Journey to the Center of the Earth
- July 22, 2016
- Frogwares
- 23h median play time
Get on Steam"Journey to the Center of the Earth" is a first-person adventure game featuring beautiful 3D graphics and a superb storyline. Players, as photojournalist Ariane, explore a hidden world beneath Iceland filled with exotic landscapes, unique civilizations, and strange creatures. As you solve puzzles and uncover clues, the game reveals a shocking secret in this epic adventure.
Reviews
- The game features beautiful visual scenes and graphics that are exceptional for its time.
- The story has an interesting premise and can be engaging for fans of the adventure genre.
- The game offers a nostalgic experience for those who enjoyed it in their childhood.
- Navigation is frustrating due to pixel hunting and small hotspots that are hard to spot, leading to tedious gameplay.
- Many puzzles and content from the original version are missing, making the game feel incomplete.
- The voice acting and character dialogue are often criticized as poor and unengaging, detracting from the overall experience.
- story20 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 60 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The story has received mixed reviews, with many describing it as mediocre and filled with clichéd characters and fetch quests. While some players found it charming and entertaining, likening it to a "train wreck of clowns," others criticized the unclear progression and frustrating gameplay mechanics that detracted from the narrative experience. Overall, the story is seen as a redeeming quality in an otherwise flawed game, but it struggles to engage players fully due to its execution.
“Certainly has a longest journey vibe and the story was interesting enough to stick it through, with some tricky minigame puzzles.”
“With a point-and-click system and gorgeous locations, this game has a nice plot and some good use of the items.”
“Thanks Frogwares, you guys are master storytellers and creators!”
“The story, honestly, was rather mediocre.”
“All of the characters are mediocre, just as the story itself.”
“The story and progression are not clear in the slightest and I have encountered many bugs while playing this game.”
- gameplay6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The gameplay has been criticized for its frustrating mechanics, particularly the character movement and excessive backtracking, which many users find outdated and unenjoyable.
“The movement mechanics of the character you play, Ariane, are terrible.”
“Very frustrating gameplay with a lot of backtracking and outdated mechanics.”
“Very frustrating gameplay with a lot of backtracking and outdated mechanics.”
- graphics3 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- -33 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game, while considered exceptional for its 2003 release, are marred by choppy character movements and various graphical glitches. Some players find the visuals charming and tolerable given the game's age, but others criticize the overall presentation due to issues like poor UI and pixel-hunting.
“The graphics are exceptional; although the characters' body movements are rather choppy, when this game was originally released in 2003, the stick-man-like movements were acceptable. The visual graphics were so amazing at that time that one might have been in a state of rapture.”
“The graphics are tolerable considering it's from 2003, and the overall story is somewhat harmless and charming.”
“The graphics are tolerable (considering it's from 2003), and the overall story is somewhat harmless and charming.”
“There's so many I've lost count: unskippable snail-speed terrain traversal which wastes your time, nonsensical puzzles, pathetic graphical glitches, counter-intuitive and inconsistent UI, horrible pixel-hunting, broken game triggers, deadpan voice acting, and so on and on and on.”
- humor2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is largely unintentional, with players finding amusement in the absurdity of the dialogue and the repetitive fetch quests. While it can provide some laughs, it often feels more like "laughing at" the game's shortcomings rather than a deliberate comedic effort.
“At times (when it wasn't too frustrating), I enjoyed the game because I was laughing at the absurdity of the dialogue and the nature of all the fetch quests and 'fix-it' quests.”
“Definitely 'laughing at' and not 'laughing with', as the game does not try to be funny.”
- music1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's music is praised for its chill vibe, enhancing the retro experience and contributing to the overall aesthetic appeal. Reviewers appreciate how the soundtrack complements the visuals, creating a captivating atmosphere.
“The game offers a fantastic retro feeling experience, and I wish I'd found it years ago. The chill music is so pretty and complements the resolution beautifully.”
“The soundtrack perfectly captures the essence of the game, enhancing the overall atmosphere and making every moment more enjoyable.”
“The music is incredibly immersive, drawing you into the game world and making each level feel unique and engaging.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, often describing it as user-hostile and cryptic, which detracts from the overall experience.
“One of the most tedious, user-hostile, cryptic games I've ever played.”
“The grinding feels endless and lacks any meaningful reward.”
“It's frustrating to spend hours grinding only to make minimal progress.”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game's stability is heavily criticized, with players reporting numerous issues such as frustratingly slow terrain traversal, nonsensical puzzles, graphical glitches, inconsistent user interface, ineffective pixel-hunting mechanics, broken game triggers, and lackluster voice acting, all contributing to a frustrating experience.
“There are so many issues I've lost count: unskippable snail-speed terrain traversal that wastes your time, nonsensical puzzles, pathetic graphical glitches, counterintuitive and inconsistent UI, horrible pixel-hunting, broken game triggers, deadpan voice acting, and so on.”
“The game is plagued by constant crashes and freezes, making it nearly unplayable at times.”
“I encountered numerous bugs that completely broke my progress, forcing me to restart multiple times.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by a sense of disconnection, as the protagonist's awkward, gliding movement creates a surreal and unsettling experience that may evoke feelings of unease or alienation in players.
