4.5/5 ★ – Commanderjoe349's review of The Pathless.

After my dreams of playing Cyberpunk 2077 were dashed by the glitches, I went to the PS Store in search of one more game to play before the new year. On a whim I bought The Pathless completely unaware that this game was from Creative Director Matt Nava, the mind behind beautiful games like Journey and Abzu. If I had known this I would've bought this game straight away (or maybe I wouldn't have because I originally planned to buy a PS5 last month, and those dreams were also dashed. Now I've got physical copies of Spider-Man Remastered, Miles Morales, and a PS5 download of Bugsnax that I can't play). Once I picked it up I couldn't stop playing it. I was surprised at how much I thoroughly enjoyed my time with The Pathless. The Pathless is an open world game where you explore a mysterious land, on a mission from a voice in the sky, and fight giant monsters who reside within the land. If that sounds familiar it's because it's the same framework as hit game Shadow of the Colossus, but instead of climbing on the monsters you chase them with sick parkour moves and a bow until they tire out. These monsters are gods who've become corrupted by The Godslayer, a man who wants to destroy the world and recreate it in his vision. Y'know... like Thanos. In this open world game you have no map. You see the theme of this game is about making your own path. Nobody will travel the world the same way you do as you strive to bring light back to this dark land. However, I do think the game itself sometimes battles against its own theme. I may be running around the way I see fit but the island is very much split into sections, and you have to defeat each monster before you can traverse onto the next which means you don't have free range on this open world. You're given a section of the land and once you complete this section's main objective a new section opens up. It's more of a nitpick I guess but that's why it doesn't have much effect on my opinion of the game. Now you may be thinking "Oh god, no map. I'm gonna get so lost looking for everything." No worries mate, because you're given a mask that has the "Sight of Truth." When using this sight, puzzles and important areas of the land glow so you can more easily find them. The Sight also keeps track of everywhere you've traversed, highlighting wherever your feet have touched the ground. However your feet are only going to be touching the ground half of the time because you have a companion Eagle with the strength to hold onto you as she glides. This birdie's a stronk-boi because she's the reincarnation of The Mother Eagle God, here to help you revive her children. At first this power seems like it only helps a little but as you power up you'll fly like an eagle, to the sea, fly like an eagle let your spirit set you free (sorry I had to). As monsters attack you they will harm your feathered friend, and you must heal her giving her well earned skritches. That's right, you can pet the eagle, and it's an important mechanic. The simplistic yet stylized flair of Journey and Abzu is back at it again with a beautiful forest environment that is stunning to take in, along with another breathtaking score from Austin Wintory. Wintory and Nava go together like peanut butter and jelly, man. I luv em. They mix together seamlessly to always give you a great experience. In essence this game is Shadow of the Colossus meets Journey, so it makes sense that 2 fantastic games would make a wonderful combination.