Incredible artistic game that does a great job at telling a simple story, yet is a bit pricey for the value
You basically play as a cloth person who can only move around and glide. You basically travel through large and beautiful environments and try to reach a single point. The environments you journey through are all incredibly detailed and just beautiful to look at. The lighting, atmosphere, music, and visuals are all fantastic. The game more plays out like an interactive movie. Not like Heavy Rain's sense where you make choices that impact the game, but in a sense that you are practically unable to die and you move from point A to Point B. The game is very cinematic and relies heavily on its great visuals and atmosphere. Its one of those games that you sort of just sit back and let the game draw you into it. It does a great job at that and making you feel like you are immersed in an incredible world on a spiritual journey and its basically taking you along for a ride.
Now heres why I feel the game isn't worth the full $15 or why I didn't give it higher than an 8.0. Journey is far from a bad game, in fact, its an incredible game that is very cinematic. The problem with Journey is that its over before you realize it. The game can easily be beaten in 2-3 hours, and that's even if you go exploring and take time to admire and marvel in the beautiful environments. The game only really has a handful of segments and each segment can be beaten in roughly 30-40 minutes. If the game was even twice its length I would be more than happy to have shelled out $15, but for only 2 hours of gameplay is sort of pricey. Another thing is that once you beat Journey there isn't much incentive to pick it up again for a while. Its one of those games you play once and admire it, and then let it sit for a few years and maybe pick it up again and readmire it. Not to mention its a bit linear. The world is pretty open ended, but you are forced to take a single path and there aren't really too many secret or special areas to explore. I think this is a great concept, but if it was a bit longer and added more value, it would be one of the best of its genre in my opinion. Maybe if Journey sells well enough there will be a sequel with more value and a much longer journey.