Beautiful, Interactive Travelogue Old Man’s Journey Will Release May 18th

When we first heard about Old Man’s Journey back in February, we were immediately taken with its stunning, hand-painted visuals and its admirable goal of telling one man’s story of “life, loss, and hope” through the wordless trip he embarks …

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When we first heard about Old Man’s Journey back in February, we were immediately taken with its stunning, hand-painted visuals and its admirable goal of telling one man’s story of “life, loss, and hope” through the wordless trip he embarks on across the countryside. The trailer developer Broken Rules shared at that time showed off some of the actual gameplay, which involves players physically sliding the landscape around to create alternate paths for the eponymous Old Man so he can reach new locations.

Though there were some seemingly sticky situations the Old Man needed to get out of—such as a wheel crashing through a fence just above his head in the midst of a lightning storm—the entire experience is designed to be calm and meditative, packed with “pressure-free puzzles” that will only enhance, not distract from, the affecting narrative.

Alongside the announcement that Old Man’s Journey will be launching on May 18th, Broken Rules has released a new trailer this week. While some of the same in-game locations are shown off here in slightly different viewpoints—the soothing row of waterfalls feel oddly familiar by now—the short video gives us many more new areas to get excited about.

The first trailer focused heavily on the Old Man’s trip by foot, but we now see that he has a lot of modes of transportation as his disposal, and he’ll be traveling much farther than we initially suspected. He makes progress via fishing boat, train, truck, and even hot air balloon. His journey must take multiple days, as we watch the sky change from a soft morning blue to a golden pink sunset to a deep nighttime navy and back to a cloudy turquoise afternoon. Exactly what he’ll pass and where he’ll end up is still a mystery, but we have to wonder if the fact that he takes two different boats in this trailer hints at the importance of the ocean—he is, after all, on a journey to “find your heart, once lost at sea.”

We’ll find out soon when Old Man’s Journey launches on iOS, Android, and PC May 18th.

Jillian will play any game with cute characters or an isometric perspective, but her favorites are Fallout 3, Secret of Mana, and Harvest Moon. Her PC suffers from permanent cat-on-keyboard syndrome, which she blames for most deaths in Don’t Starve. She occasionally stops gaming long enough to eat waffles and rewatch Battlestar Galactica.