The digital delights of Sony’s scrumptious PlayStation Network service know no bounds. Aside from letting punters compete in online gaming, stream films, browse the Internet and more, its premier attraction rests in the copious supply of downloadable games ripe for the picking. From PSN exclusives to PSOne Classics, minis and plain old add-on content, Sony’s online space is chock full of goodies battling it out for your hard-earned digital dollars.
Welcome back to another installment of Inside PlayStation Network, where every Monday – Friday we’ll pluck a PSN release—be it new or old—and put it in the spotlight for a thorough dissection. Fancy getting a new PSN game but don’t know what one to plump for? Perhaps this feature will help. Didn’t realize that a game was available in your region until now? We’ve got you covered. Or, perhaps you were musing over what those lucky Japanese folk were tucking into over in the Land of the Rising Sun? You can be sure our coverage will extend to those rare regional exclusives as much as those firmly embedded on the public consciousness.
For our latest entry, we shine the spotlight on the dreamy, innocent world of Flower.
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Developer: thatgamecompany
Region(s) available: Japan, North America, Europe
Players: 1
Developed by the irreverently-titled thatgamecompany, Flower follows in the idiosyncratic footsteps of flOw, in that it offers an experience that is more than a little eyebrow-raising to say the least. After all, the game’s concept isn’t exactly run-of-the-mill, being that you’re transported to the dreamy landscape of a bunch of flowers stuck in the dull, perpetually colourless confines of a bustling city. Each dream serves as one of the game’s stages, and at the centrepiece of these levels is a particular theme and objective.
Control is a relatively simple affair, and involves you tilting the SixAxis pad to send a bunch of flower petals cascading almost majestically through sprawling, lush environments. Hitting any of the regular buttons will drum up a wind that can be used to give them an extra push on their journey. You initially start off with one petal, though this will quickly change as you bump into other flowers thus increasing your number. This also has a direct effect on the game world, such as opening up new areas, powering up wind turbines and rejuvenating grassy fields.
That’s actually the meat-and-potatoes of Flower right there. You flutter about in the breeze, leisurely complete objectives at your own pace while soaking up the sumptuous visual work. As you might have expected, there isn’t any discernible way to fail or die in the game. More traditional tasks do exist though, if you’re up for them. For one, Flower has some secrets tucked away to unearth throughout every stage, not to mention some particularly clever Trophy unlocks to boot. You may breeze through Flower in little more than an hour, but there’s always reason to come back for more, if nothing else just to enjoy the eye candy of the environments.
Read more on Flower in our review, and be sure to join us again tomorrow for another gander Inside PlayStation Network.