Flower

"I am a petal on the wind; watch how I soar."

Source // PlayStation

First, there was flOw, then there was Flower. What a journey these games take you on, eh? From the microscopic life in the seas to the very nature of a gentle breeze, rolling across a field and lifting up your spirits.

Flower is not the kind of game that will challenge you to the point of frustration. It's barely got any challenge at all, so it should be the perfect game to sit back and relax with, and put the motion controls inside the Sixaxis controller to use.

Source // MobyGames

Source // MobyGames

Fun Times

I've never played Flower until now. I must have assumed it was too flowery and not worth playing back in the day, but time has gone by and I've parked myself in front of a window I can see out of and actually take notice of some wildlife. Very few flowers, mostly weeds, but it's still a little escape from the concrete of human life, and that's where Flower starts - miserable.

But we can change that.

Source // MobyGames

Source // MobyGames

This houseplant dreams of better days, and with the press and hold of a button, we can pluck off a petal and send it sailing on the wind, which we control with the motion controls, guiding our petal into other flowers, scattering a petal off of them, too, and steadily growing our presence in the air.

Source // MobyGames

Source // MobyGames

Source // MobyGames

Your aim in Flower is to restore life to the environment, and you do so by collecting groups of flower petals. Collect a set and they'll transform their surroundings, turning dead grass green and opening up new lines of flowers for you to follow to the next point of interest.

I'm playing the PlayStation 3 version and it looks nice and colourful, but a PlayStation 4 remaster probably makes them pop even more, and maybe doubles the number of blades of grass there are, I don't know. The point is, these graphics are on the pleasing side, and you're not likely to get lost or frustrated when blowing across the fields in search of your next objective.

Source // MobyGames

There are times where you can be caught out by the controls and miss a flower, requiring you to turn back around or float in from another angle, which sort of upsets your flow through the level. As collecting new petals adds a new note to the musical score, you'll also be making the game sound a little worse off, but don't worry. It's fine. Relax and pick that petal up later.

Source // MobyGames

Source // MobyGames

The end of a level shows you the new vibrancy that you've brought to the area, and each completed level slowly increases the amount of life outside your city window, the rains getting replaced with sunshine, your drab interior brightening up, and your life feeling that much better.

There appears to be some sort of scoring going on, perhaps for collecting every single flower or something, but in general, finish a level, get a new pot plant, play a new level. Do that six times and that's Flower.

Source // MobyGames

Source // MobyGames

Source // MobyGames

Source // MobyGames

Source // MobyGames

The levels will have you perform a variety of vaguely wind-based tasks, but much of what takes place is rather magical than physical, as though it's all a whimsical dream, nothing more. From the distant fields to the inner city itself, you'll be a breath of fresh, petal-infused air as you restore the world to a happier state of existence.

In a short afternoon, you'll have done it all, more or less, and Flower will have made you appreciate nature just that much more.

Final Word

I'm sure there are secrets to find within, but that almost feels too gamey an endeavour for what is otherwise just something to idly interact with, and go 'ooh' and 'aah' from time to time, as you admire the view and play with your surroundings.

Not that there's an awful amount of that to do. You largely bump into flowers at various speeds, watch a tiny cutscene of everything blossoming from the darkness, then bump into something else, but there is a 'story' to follow that ties everything together.

It's not a game to rush out and get your hands on, but I'm playing it through the Journey Collector's Edition, which brings three great arty games together into one unmissable package - flOw and Flower we've already met through this 1001 list, and Journey, released a couple of years after the 1001 list, but would unquestionably be a shoo-in for inclusion in an updated edition.

Games can take all kinds of forms, and serve all kinds of functions. Flower is something to unwind with, and if you've just tangled yourself up with the stresses of Noby Noby Boy, unwinding sounds like a great plan.

Fun Facts

The Smithsonian American Art Museum acquired Flower as part of its permanent collection in 2013, surely proving that games are art.

Flower, developed by Thatgamecompany, first released in 2009.

Version played: PlayStation 3, 2009.