REVIEW : Deer Journey (PC)
You begin in a thicket of ferns. You gradually make your way towards the open. The camera jounces gently, and you burst free from the thicket, catching your first glimpse of yourself: a deer fawn. You have light brown fur with white flecks on it. The planet you live on is lush with plants. There are berries and small pink blooms all over the place. Trees form arches over you. The scenery changes to bright meadows full of fluffy grass. This is the universe of Pablo Picazo’s Deer Journey, a game he created and sold.
Quiet Beauty
Deer Journey is nearly wordless, with the exception of tutorial cues for eating and attacking. You play and saunter through the world as a young deer, taking in all of its attractions. The experience of playing this game is both modest and exhilarating, thanks to lighting effects, motion blur, and exquisite detailing. The flow of water varies. Tall grass blades swing in the breeze. While these may be cosmetic traits in another game, they are crucial in the universe of Deer Journey, defining a beautiful but merciless wilderness.
A “Dark” Story
Deer Journey cannot be described as a survival game. The game is played by wandering and investigating “levels” or chapters. You learn to eat even though you lack a hunger gauge. You will eventually learn how to attack. You walk through varied surroundings along pebbled pathways, across hazardous waterways, and pushing through dense forests throughout the game.
This is a dark story, literally. Some sequences take place at sunset. You go about while the screen dims from bright orange to navy blue to impenetrable darkness during these levels. In other episodes, you might be seen walking towards a distant light source. This results in some memorable moments, such as stumbling onto a waterfall or a sunlit clearing after meandering through shady woodlands, but the lack of direction and the concealing darkness may limit your ability to appreciate several levels.
Poignant Piano Moments
Environmental storytelling is used in wordless games. Visuals and music may convey a lot of information. Deer Journey tries and sometimes succeeds in striking the necessary chords. James Wolf and Pablo Picazo composed the soundtrack, which features expressive piano tunes. These pepper the game expressively, producing feelings of intimacy as the deer matures.
Conclusion: Worth a Walk?
In my life, I’ve played a lot of games with animal characters. To effectively portray the animal experience, most adopt minimalist UI and contextual narrative. Deer Journey follows in those footsteps, albeit occasionally stumbling. It’s not as dynamic as WolfQuest, and it doesn’t hit the same emotional highs as Shelter 1 and 2. Instead, it meanders (but peacefully) through an undulating landscape, weaving through forests and sloshing through rivers.
REVIEW : Bright Memory: Infinite Platinum Edition (XBOX Series X)
