It's an interactive poem. That was my first thought the moment I started playing Flower. And I don't mean some crap written by a fourteen year old kid filled with angst, no my friends, we're talking about master work here. Flower is a relaxing and moving experience. If you've been avoiding it for some reason, stop. You deserve to play Flower, and be thankful that PSN has been blessed with such a title.
The game is simple really. You control the wind carrying a single flower petal and as you pass by other flowers they bloom and you pick up another petal. Pretty soon, you'll have a huge trail of flower petals behind you of various colors. Each of the levels found in Flower offer up different challenges, none of which are stress inducing or very challenging. The core goal in each level is to "awaken" the area. Basically, you're restoring the color and beauty to the world. There's no hurry though, you can float around on the breeze as much as you want before moving on. Using the motion controls to handle the direction of the wind works very well and is something you pick up on within less than five minutes of gameplay.
Flower has a wonderful soundtrack, one that was obviously designed to aid in your relaxation. You'll find no hard thumping rhythms here. Just peaceful pieces music that fit the gameplay nearly perfectly. There is some interactivity to be found even here as when you pass by a flower you'll get a musical note that fits the soundtrack of the level. It doesn't matter how fast or slow you progress, the notes you're creating never seem out of place. Even the effects are relaxing. From the sound of the wind cutting through the tall grass to rain gently falling, if you close your eyes you might as well be listening to one of those relaxation CDs.
The wonderful and relaxing music would all be for nothing if the visuals looked like mud on the side of a wall. It's a good thing that they've been given just as much care and attention as the finely crafted audio. Heaps of attention has been given to the grass in Flower. So much so that it's one of the more impressive aspects as it moves with the direction of the wind and parts like the red sea when you sore past close to the ground. The flowers themselves are brightly colored and incredibly vibrant which makes them stand out all the more against the drained back drops that you haven’t restored yet.
I can find little wrong with Flower, and what little there is I feel are more personal gripes than actual faults. For starters, it's a short title. Six levels to be exact. I suppose this should be expected for a ten dollar PSN game but it's enjoyable enough that it will leave you wanting more. Also, you're locked within a section of each level until you meet the requirements to progress onward. While these requirements could hardly be called challenging, I feel like Flower would have better been served if each level was fully open from the start. And, aside from finding each secret flower in every level or just wanting to show the game off, you really don't have much reason to replay Flower once you're finished. As you can see my list of complaints don't amount to much. Flower is every bit a title worth your purchase and very much a title worth being praised.
Nelia writes: "Spring is nearly here and to celebrate we've put together a list of some of the best Springtime video games for the upcoming season."
Ten years ago, the delicate indie game Flower was first released on PlayStation 3. Flower broke a lot of molds, turned a lot of heads, and spawned a lot of "is this even a game" soul-searching editorials, but a decade of hindsight shows that it's as much as 2019 game as it was a 2009 game.
First game I bought ‘n’ beat after my daughter was born. Late night, mom asleep. Lil’ girl in one arm while I six-axis’d with the other. Beat it on PS4 again years later on her birthday, just cuz. :)
I can relate. The last of us was the first game I played after my daughter died. At first it was hard but a semi healing experience as the game progressed. Flower is great though very relaxing game
Oh man I’m so sorry. Sincerely.
You know, they say music is the soundtrack of our lives. Goes to show how far games have come that they too can leave these little footprints.
I'm glad it helped you heal. I'm very sorry for your loss. My first born son is only months old and I can't even imagine losing him. Games can be very powerful experiences. Sometimes more powerful than almost any other artistic medium.
Sony still owns the ip though so that would be a big deal if they allowed that. I think they should allow it personally; thatgamecompany has created gem after gem that will be remembered as art pieces. They have made their money off the games and more and should free them to the rest of the cummunity...they would still make money off licensing for the ports anyway.
They are releasing Flower, Flow and Journey on the PC, but honestly the PC is more neutral ground. I agree that putting them on rival consoles would be highly unlikely. It would be great if more gamers could enjoy these awesome games though.
Well, yeah. The same with The Journey and Flow. They don't get old because graphics are stylized and gameplay is quite unique.
It's such a fun and relaxing game. Probably the best use of the sixaxis we got. A friend forced me out of my gaming comfort zone to buy this and Noby Noby Boy, didn't regret it what so ever. Ps3 had a lot of fun silly PSN titles that you really don't see this gen. Still waiting for my Shatter remaster and/or sequel.
I always play this game, every year, on a relaxing, warm spring evening. I also have the soundtrack.
I have a special connection to this game. It really resonated with me and to this day, there doesn't seem to be much reason beyond "Spring has always been my favorite season". Go figure.
This week Tracy Fullerton from @USCG ameLabs and TracyFullerton.com joins Mike (@AssaultSuit), Tiny (@Tiny415) and Aaron (@Ind1fference) to talk about: USCGameLabs, Game Innovation Lab, SAAM Arcade, Walden, Flow, Flower, Journey, What Remains of Edith Finch?, Threes, GameDesignWorkshop.com, TWINE, Unity Store, Jenova Chen, PS3, That Game Company, Saikoucon, Ready Player One, A Quiet Place, Rampage, Movie Pass, Bumblebee, The Happening, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Teen Titans Go to the Movies, Power Rangers, He-man, She-ra, Amazing Interiors, Arcade 1up, Sea of Thieves, Curse of the Moon, Mega Man X Collection, Spyro Collection, Money Puzzle Exchanger, Enter the Gungeon, Cursed Souls, Overcooked! 2, Flat Heroes, Pool Panic, Bomb Chicken, Slam Land, Pixel Ripped 1989, Radio Hammer Station, AirConsole, Shantae half-genie curse, Dead Cells, We Happy Few, Salt and Sanctuary, Sleep Tight and more.
