Take a break from your Halo 3 sessions for an other-worldly experience on the Playstation 3 with Flower.
A pale, lone petal softly floats around lush meadows with moistened blades of grass and a plethora of unbloomed flower buds. Dreamy, whimsical music tugs gingerly at your ears as your eyes scan over the unending landscape, your hands becoming one with the petal. Once your solitary petal twirls around the first bud, magically blooming it to life, your heart is captured forever. A visual and emotional stunner, Flower begs the old familiar question, can video games be considered art? I can wholeheartedly attest that Flower is in indeed art, in the most definitive sense of the word.
ThatGameCompany delivers yet again with this powerful, engaging experience that serves as an emotional release and a portal into another world, one we’re not stranger to: nature. Flower breathes life and emotion into the genre, deviating from many of the highly popular shooter titles put out in truckloads nowadays and throwing a simplistic refreshment into the mix. Reminiscent of titles such as Rez and Katamari Damancy, Flower presents a compelling experience that surprisingly takes your emotions on a rollercoaster of highs and lows. Never has a seemingly innocent game with no dialogue or ‘character’ drawn out so much emotional response: bliss, happiness, wonder, joy and amazement shortly transform into frustration, heartbreak, trepidation and even fear, and then back again. Ultimately, ten dollars is a measly amount you pay for the extraordinary experience Flower will grant you.
The beginning levels of Flower are brewing with bright, vivid colors and exquisite landscapes.
In Flower, the player is one with the environment, pulling the background into the limelight and becoming the dynamic ‘character’. The game starts you off in a mundane, yet wistful room with a window view of a bustling city and a wilted flower in a pot. With zero explanation on what to do or where to go, you eventually discover that you play as the lone petal on that wilted flower. You are then thrust into your first level of open grassy plains and rows of flower buds. After some maneuvering on your part, the point of the game becomes immediately clear and thus your adventure begins.
The environments in which you play in are all skillfully rendered in eye-catching detail and brilliant colors. Breezy, sun-kissed meadows are soon replaced by dark, steep canyons and then lead to a more sinister atmosphere of a broken city. The gentle breezes transform into powerful winds, forcing your petal to rush at incredible speeds. The music resembles that found in yoga workshops with some added mysticism. The notes rise high and low in tandem with the aura the environment you’re floating in presents.
Some of the flowers seem to 'sparkle' in darkened environments, and elicit an appropriate 'twinkling' response when bloomed.
Flower’s gameplay and controls are simplistic in design. The game employs the use of Sixaxis motion controls, where the player must tilt the controller in the direction they want their petal to float in. An option to float ‘faster’ is also available with the use of the analog sticks. The player tilts the controller as he directs the first petal and accumulates a colorful swarm of other petals he has picked up along the grass. The unbloomed flowers are laid out in patterns and soon you will realize that certain flowers must be bloomed in order to trigger a color explosion and proceed throughout the level.
The gameplay sounds very relaxing and simple at first, but in order to float effectively in the direction you desire to travel to, you must directly face your PS3 and your TV. The zen-like atmosphere tricks you into thinking you could lie down on your couch while playing, but you’ll soon be trying to wiggle your way out of the side screen. Another feature where the controls might annoy you a bit are the brief cut-scenes that take place every two to three minutes, throwing off your good floating rhythm. However, once mastered, you’ll find that this control scheme does indeed instill a meditative vibe into your playing.
The goal of Flower is to heal the city and paint it's lands with the petal's blooming power.
The only complaint I can make is the fact that the game is rather short. Five levels sneak up on you rather quickly, and leave you aching for more flowery experiences (yes, I went there). Thankfully, the couple hours it requires to complete is worth every minute and in no way do you feel rushed to finish by a certain time. Flower can easily be completed in one night, and still elicit a magnanimous emotional response. Additionally, Flower’s non-linearity allows for you to back track and search for rare and secret flowers, explore inside buildings, between rocks, as well as tempt you to ‘bloom’ every last flower. This extends the playing time by a substantial amount as well as makes a great reason for replayability. Finding all the secret flowers will also grant you quite the surprise in the end.
Recommendation
Described as an ‘interactive poem’, the concept of Flower challenges the traditional medium by expanding upon its accessible controls, displaying a gorgeous palette of stunning visuals, and by evoking an emotional whirlwind of delight and fright. It acts as a great ‘cleanser’ in between your Gears of War all-nighters as well as worth a whole night of gameplay at your leisure. Flower warrants a purchase simply for the experience alone. It’s the cheapest Zen breakout you’ll ever purchase, and procures a great return on your investment with its enticing replayability. Buy it, buy it, buy it. Your therapist will thank you.
Flower
Systems: PSN
Developer: ThatGameCompany
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Find: PSN Store
All reviews are based on final retail code unless otherwise noted.
April 21st, 2009 at 10:21 am
If we don’t have a therapist, should we get one first before playing Flower?
April 21st, 2009 at 11:32 am
I need to get a PS3 to understand the point of this game.
April 21st, 2009 at 6:37 pm
You should probably get a therapist regardless, William.
April 21st, 2009 at 6:40 pm
Agreed.
April 22nd, 2009 at 3:12 pm
I’m a little lost in Melissa’s awesome imagery, but I otherwise concur, too.
April 22nd, 2009 at 7:21 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YIATUTFNwk A little video Co-Review that Drea and I did a while back, that way you can see the game in action.