Journey to the Savage Planet
Developer(s)Typhoon Studios
Publisher(s)505 Games
Director(s)Alex Hutchinson
Producer(s)Reid Schneider
Designer(s)Jean Pellerin
Programmer(s)Yassine Riahi
Artist(s)Erick Bilodeau
Writer(s)
Composer(s)Brian D'Oliveira
EngineUnreal Engine 4
Platform(s)
Release
  • Windows, PS4, Xbox One
  • January 28, 2020
  • Nintendo Switch
  • May 21, 2020
  • Stadia
  • February 1, 2021
  • PS5, Xbox Series X/S
  • February 14, 2023
Genre(s)Action-adventure, metroidvania
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Journey to the Savage Planet is a 2020 action-adventure game developed by Typhoon Studios and published by 505 Games. It was originally released for Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on January 28, 2020, followed by a Nintendo Switch port on May 21, 2020. An upgraded version of the game titled Journey to the Savage Planet: Employee of the Month Edition was released for Stadia as a timed exclusive (due to Google's ownership of the studio)[1] on February 1, 2021 and for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S on February 14, 2023.

Gameplay

Journey to the Savage Planet is an adventure game played from a first-person perspective. In the game, players are tasked to explore ARY-26, a colorful planet inhabited by various alien lifeforms such as Pufferbird, Barfer, and Floopsnoot. The player's main task is to catalogue various alien flora and fauna, and collect the resources needed to craft new items and upgrades, such as jetpacks and grappling hooks, which enable the players to reach previously inaccessible areas.[2] Players will encounter various hostile lifeforms, which can be defeated using weapons such as laser guns and throwable items such as acid grenades.[3] The game can be played cooperatively with another player.[4]

Plot

As an employee of Kindred Aerospace, the "4th Best Interstellar Exploration Company", the player must explore an uncharted planet named ARY-26 to see if it would be suitable for future human colonization.

Development

Journey to the Savage Planet was directed by Alex Hutchinson, the director of Assassin's Creed III and Far Cry 4, and it was the debut project for Typhoon Studios. About 20-30 people worked on the game, and the game's development started in late 2017.[5] The team wanted to make the game a very focused experience, thus they avoided adding many features that were considered as "extras" in other triple A titles. Elements from Metroidvania games were incorporated into the game, and the team introduced a lot of hidden content to encourage players to explore the world.[6] In comparison to standard video games the game was designed to be shorter and easier than most modern titles, this was done so that players would not "see it as a liability".[7] Speaking of the game's tone, Hutchinson called the game an "earnest comedy" and that the title was "very much more in the fiction side of science fiction".[8] The game's dialogue was designed to be humorous, but the team ensured that players can create funny moments on purpose or by accident via the title's various interconnected gameplay systems.[9] Metroid Prime, the Far Cry series and Subnautica influenced the game's design, while the game's bright visual style was inspired by films such as Men in Black and Ghostbusters.[10] The game incorporates elements from Pioneer, a cancelled game that Hutchinson was working on at Ubisoft.[7] The team took influence from the Golden Age of Science Fiction specifically the optimism expressed in those works.[7]

Hutchinson announced the game during The Game Awards 2018.[11] Publisher 505 Games released the game on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows (via the Epic Games Store) on January 28, 2020.[12] Due to the relatively light content Hutchinson chose to release the game at a budget price of $30 which he hoped would help players "take a risk with a new IP".[7] A Nintendo Switch port was released on May 21, 2020.[13]

On December 19, 2019, Google acquired Typhoon Studios and placed it under Stadia Games and Entertainment (SG&E), the division developing games exclusively for Stadia, Google's cloud gaming service. The studio was integrated with SG&E's existing Montreal studio, which was headed up by Sébastien Puel. Journey to the Savage Planet was not part of the acquisition.[14][15] A Stadia version of Journey of the Savage Planet was released by SG&E on February 1, 2021.[16][17][18] On the same day, Google shut down SG&E and its internal studios, with all former Typhoon Studios staff leaving the company.[19] Due to these closures, the developers became unable to fix several bugs present in the Stadia version, including hangs and crashes. 505 Games stated that all assets of the Stadia version were owned by Google and SG&E, therefore the publisher could not resolve the situation. Google eventually released a patch on February 23.[16]

Former members of Typhoon Studios established a new studio Raccoon Logic in August 2021, with some funding support from Tencent. Through negotiation, they were able to retain the intellectual property rights to Journey and the planned sequel that Typhoon had been working on at Google.[20]

Reception

Reviews of the game were generally positive according to review aggregator Metacritic,[21][23][22][24]

References

  1. ^ "Become the Employee of the Month when Journey to the Savage Planet comes to Stadia Pro". Chrome Unboxed - The Latest Chrome OS News. December 5, 2020. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  2. ^ a b Wakeling, Richard (January 28, 2020). "Journey To The Savage Planet Review - A Pulpy Sci-Fi Romp". GameSpot. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  3. ^ Lane, Rick (January 30, 2020). "Journey to the Savage Planet review – a colourful adventure". The Guardian. Retrieved January 30, 2020.
  4. ^ Livington, Christopher (August 19, 2019). "Journey to the Savage Planet will have online co-op, launches in January". PC Gamer. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  5. ^ Leri, Michael (June 16, 2019). "How Journey to the Savage Planet was inspired by archaeology and Assassin's Creed 3". Game Revolution. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  6. ^ Valdes, Giancarlo (April 12, 2019). "Journey to the Savage Planet is a cheeky sci-fi romp packed with secrets". VentureBeat. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  7. ^ a b c d Garst, Aron (April 3, 2020). "Journey to the Savage Planet a reaction to a past life of AAA development". Gamsutra. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  8. ^ Valentine, Rebekah (December 7, 2018). "Journey to the Savage Planet and an adventure in optimism". Gameindustry.biz. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  9. ^ Hornshaw, Phil (June 24, 2019). "Journey To The Savage Planet Lets You Make Your Own Laughs With 'Interactive Slapstick'". GameSpot. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  10. ^ Futter, Michael (March 26, 2019). "'Journey to the Savage Planet' Is Irreverent Exploration in Service of Capitalism". Game Informer. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  11. ^ Vincent, Brittany (December 6, 2018). "TGA 2018: Typhoon Studios' Journey to the Savage Planet announced". Shacknews. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  12. ^ Khan, Imran (August 19, 2019). "Journey To The Savage Planet Releasing In January". Game Informer. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  13. ^ Sheridan, Connor (May 21, 2020). "Journey to the Savage Planet Switch version is out now". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on May 21, 2020. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  14. ^ Takahashi, Dean (December 19, 2019). "Google buys triple-A game dev Typhoon Studio to beef up Stadia". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on December 27, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  15. ^ Sinclair, Brendan (December 19, 2019). "Google Stadia acquires Typhoon Studios". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  16. ^ a b Walker, Alex (February 22, 2021). "Stadia Developers Can't Fix The Bugs In Their Own Game Because Google Fired Them [Update: Patched]". Kotaku. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  17. ^ Li, Abner (February 1, 2021). "[Update: Claim now] Google adds three Stadia Pro games for February 2021, including Journey to the Savage Planet". 9to5Google. Archived from the original on February 1, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  18. ^ Schoon, Ben (January 26, 2021). "Journey to the Savage Planet confirmed for February 1st Stadia release [Updated]". 9to5Google. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  19. ^ Robinson, Andy (February 1, 2021). "Google has closed its Stadia game development teams". Video Games Chronicle. Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  20. ^ Robinson, Andy (August 11, 2021). "Savage Planet studio Typhoon has reformed and kept the IP after Stadia closure". Video Games Chronicle. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  21. ^ a b "Journey to the Savage Planet for PC Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  22. ^ a b "Journey to the Savage Planet for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  23. ^ a b "Journey to the Savage Planet for Xbox One Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  24. ^ a b "Journey to the Savage Planet". Metacritic. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
  25. ^ Devore, Jordan (February 2, 2020). "Review: Journey to the Savage Planet". Destructoid. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  26. ^ Wood, Austin (January 27, 2020). "Journey to the Savage Planet review - "A great time no matter what you do"". GamesRadar+. Future Publishing. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  27. ^ Skrebels, Joe (January 27, 2020). "Journey to the Savage Planet Review". IGN. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  28. ^ O'Reilly, PJ (May 25, 2020). "Journey to the Savage Planet (2020)". Nintendo Life. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  29. ^ Iwaniuk, Phil (January 27, 2020). "Journey to the Savage Planet review". PC Gamer. Future Publishing. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  30. ^ Lane, Rick (January 30, 2020). "Journey to the Savage Planet review – a colourful adventure". The Guardian. Retrieved May 29, 2020.

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