Never have I played a game which so perfectly captures my understanding of the reality of a human crew space mission. Most games want to give you a tough avatar, so your ship can take a pounding, fly anywhere, refuel for nothing and protect you. TLJH spins that on its head by making your spacecraft a precious and fragile resource. The early part of the game is punishing. The game forces you to consider your first few forays as the training the Daedalus' crew would have undoubtedly undertaken. Even down to simple tasks such as lining up the drill head or staying stable on a planet with high winds have to be learned on the hoof. There is a point during TLJH when you feel like an EXPERT. You become adept at judging places worth visiting, which crew member to send, on which issues to spend your precious resources. The Long Journey Home is, in keeping with its name, a marathon rather than a sprint. Brimming beneath this is a universe of surprising personality and content. NPCs offer detailed quests. Ancient and recent ruins litter nearby planets. Brothels, tournaments and obscure games colour your journey. 15 hours in I have seen very little content twice. Despite being a grown-up Thrust clone, The Long Journey Home is beautiful. TLJH surprised me with its light-mottled wreckage drifts, vast planetary horizons and forests of tall crystal. The sound is minimalist, but perfectly captures the bleak loneliness of the journey, interspersed with life-threatening drama. The only sticking point is the price. The simple play style and interface does not seem at first like the sort of game to command $40. The vast alien cultures and depth are hidden away, perhaps unfortunately, behind a text-comms interface. Having played it, I would pay that price. It certainly has the depth to warrant it, but perhaps it will put players off by looking too indie for a full price tag? My advice would be: don't hold back. Don't miss out on one of the years most unique and beautiful titles.
Project Eden was the first new IP from the team that developed the first two Tomb Raider games, if I recall. Intriguing storyline (with a few quirks). Imagine a co-op Tomb Raider with optional 3rd/1st person, squad combat and skill-specific puzzles. At a time when first-person was all about head bobbing and fast movement, it was really refreshing to play in a first-person mode that moved according to the third-person rules. In single player there's a strategic element to placing uncontrolled units in good fire positions. The puzzle solving is great fun to figure out with the different characters' abilities and using the remote controlled vehicles to search hidden areas. All in all I think this game should have been an adventure classic, but for some reason never gained traction. The GoG version supports 1080p and the game looks better than ever. Only downside is that the dialogue gets out of sync with the characters in the plot sections. Oh and the line "that can't be a coincidence." You'll know it when you hear it...
