Game Review: Journey of Life
by Bryan Scheidler
Alone on a beach, it seems most survival games start you off this way and Journey of Life is no different. Journey of Life is a game that is currently in Early Access. If you are a fan of survival games then this one will feel very familiar. It has all of the usual suspects like harvesting food, chopping trees, mining stone, crafting and exploring. Even though Journey of Life has all these familiar elements, I have to say that it has a steep learning curve. Often times it can be hard to find the specific resource you are searching but once you are familiar with the game and the visuals things start moving fast.
Like all other survival games, players must keep a careful watch on their health, food, and water. Letting these meters get too low could mean death for the player. That being said, I never had issues with my food or water while I stayed near the starting area but the one game I ventured out I quickly got into trouble. Journey of Life is definitely one of those games that feels overwhelming the first couple of times you play. There is a lot to figure out how the game works and where to find the resources that will become key to creating your first base.
One aspect of the game I haven’t had the opportunity to try out is the multiplayer something I feel would have made the game much easier. Playing the game solo is hard, really hard. The biggest problem I kept running into was an issue of manpower. A single player can only hold so many materials. Building yourself a backpack is absolutely necessary but even with the backpack you still can’t carry much. In order to really get a small base going you are going to be making lots of trips for resources, so make sure and find some friends to play with.
Considering that the game is still in early access you should expect that there are some things that will be changing. That being said, the game is very playable right now and for fans of the survival genre, this is one to check out. Journey of Life has all of the things I look for in a game and I can’t wait to see how they continue to refine it while it is in Early Access.
