Let's hop on this journey and see how a good scotch can compliment it.
Journey is the last of three games created by indie developer ThatGameCompany for the Playstation 3. Sony offered them funds for three exclusives and they delivered a trio of original games starting with flOw and followed by Flower. Now that the deal is over, let's keep an eye on their next move and where they will develop next. For the time being, I'll focus on Journey.
If anyone is debating on whether games are an art form or not, you've found a new argument in this game. Journey gives a new twist to multiplayer games. You're alone in the desert with no clear objectives, except for your instinct, which tells you to go forward. It's like a pilgrimage but you don't really know why and it doesn't matter, you move on. Across your journey, you might find another travelling player. You won't know if it's a girl or a guy, where it's from or anything else. You can only interact by producing little sounds and visual cues. That's where it gets interesting. You don't need to go together and help each other but the experience will be more satisfying if you do. I feel that the limited interaction makes people more altruistic and in turn, makes the multiplayer experience more enjoyable. Since you don't talk, there's no trolling, no discrimination, it's about cooperation and exploration. The game might be on the short side but anything longer would've dragged on and for 15 bucks, there's no reason to complain.
Now why would I want a scotch with Journey? Because I had one when I first played the game... More importantly, the experience I had with the game comes closer to the one I get when I drink a fine scotch rather than a great beer. It's a small quantity that is enjoyed from start to finish at a slow pace.
I chose Glenmorangie's Astar to match with this special game. It's a match made in heaven ; Astar translates to Journey in Gaelic and Glenmorangie means : Valley of Tranquility. Already, we see a nice connection between the two.This scotch has a nice and pale golden color reminiscent of the sand and the embroidery on the character's costume.
Astar comes with a nice toffee smell complimented with a bit of spices and a touch of cinnamon. It has a great dessert-like odor. Once you take a sip, you have a drink that is full bodied and comes rushing with alcohol warmth. When everything settles, there a comforting wood after taste that stays until your next sip.
Just like this nice scotch, Journey is best played while relaxing on your couch. Slowly progressing through the world, enjoying your surrounding and the stunning music. You don't rush it, you taste every drops.
Go and try this combo! If you don't like scotch, give Journey a try anyway. We need more of these original titles to balance all the bloody and mindless FPS games (we also need a few of them). I look forward to ThatGameCompany's next project.
Until then,
Cheers!
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