The Big Journey

Mobile ports have a stigma for being poor quality, especially when it seems like the game was made specifically for a mobile interface in the first place. While The Big Journey does hit a few snags when it comes to that presumption, most of the time it offers a fun-but-not-too-easy experience that you can play once through and be satisfied, or go back through the levels and try to get top marks in all of them.

Like many mobile ports, the plot isn't really the main conceit, but it does shape a number of optional activities you will encounter throughout the game's 25 levels. As Mr. Whiskers, an overweight cat with an unhealthy obsession for dumplings, you've run into a problem. Mr. Choo a.k.a. the man who makes the best dumplings ever, has gone missing, and for the love of your appetite you must find him or be reduced to eating ACTUAL CAT FOOD for the rest of your days. I may have extrapolated a bit from the main story beat here but just go with it.

The main goal of the game is to guide your chubby little kitty through various twists and turns in the landscape by rotating the world using the left and right triggers. You also have a jump to get yourself onto higher platforms and bypass (or eliminate) enemies. That's about it for the mechanics though, which is in line with most mobile titles. During this time you will want to pick up dumplings, which appear to make you fatter, but honestly I never found a place where my progress was hindered because of that. The amount of dumplings you pick up satisfies one of the level requirements, the other two being how many bugs you pick up, and whether you can finish a level in under 5 minutes. 

The game does a good job of introducing new elements at a reasonable pace. Eventually you will be using bouncers, raising platforms, unlocking doors, riding wind currents, and many other standard platformer tropes. New enemies are also introduced over time, but nothing ever gets so challenging that you want to quit out of frustration, even in the later levels.

For a game that is really just about rolling around as a fat cat and collecting things to satisfy level requirements, I will give it credit for a lot of extra things you can do in the levels. Finding new animal friends is cute and the animals are presented in a humorous way. You can take pictures to post on Catstagram which will help you obtain Steam achievements, and you can play the game as different cats. There are hidden areas too but they are fairly obvious.

While the point of the game doesn't seem to switch up a whole hell of a lot, it's excusable because of the level design. Each level is uniquely themed, with rich, vibrant colors and backgrounds that are entertaining enough on their own. The different ways to get through narrow passages, or up onto out-of-reach locations, never feels too repetitive, and even running into an enemy doesn't kill you, it just removes a dumpling from Mr. Whiskers a la Sonic the Hedgehog's rings. You don't die if you run into an enemy with no dumplings however, which makes the game a little too easy if you ask me.

Overall, I had fun with my time getting through The Big Journey, however brief it may have been. Is it worth the price of admission? I know you can get it a lot cheaper on mobile, so your mileage will vary here, but I went into this game with low expectations, and came out purring like a cat full of dumplings, so I will say it was time well spent.