The Longest Journey

 PC
  • Publisher: Funcom
  • Release Date: Nov 16, 2000
User Score
8.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 578 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 490 out of 578
  2. Mixed: 56 out of 578
  3. Negative: 32 out of 578
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  1. Solaris123
    Jan 7, 2021
    10
    A beautiful story much better than most of today's boring new games like The Witcher 3 or The last of us
  2. ChesterField
    May 1, 2020
    9
    Incredible old school point and click graphic adventure. Ahead of its time and a mandatory purchase for fans of the genre.
  3. bancandrei
    May 12, 2020
    10
    The best old school adventure game. It is creative, introduces an interesting world and the ending felt just perfect, so yeah it's got a story as well :) masterpice.
    Avoid the sequels though. Even though the graphics have hardly aged well, this is still the best of the bunch.
  4. tsschindler
    Sep 2, 2021
    6
    I’ve never been a huge fan of point-and-click games (which I associate with absurd puzzles getting you stuck in a middle of somewhat good story - infuriating) and, honestly, till now I hadn’t heard a word about this game. Apparently though, it is one of the genre’s classics and one of the best point-and-clicks of all times. This was how it was pitched to me by a friend (an enthusiast ofI’ve never been a huge fan of point-and-click games (which I associate with absurd puzzles getting you stuck in a middle of somewhat good story - infuriating) and, honestly, till now I hadn’t heard a word about this game. Apparently though, it is one of the genre’s classics and one of the best point-and-clicks of all times. This was how it was pitched to me by a friend (an enthusiast of such games) and we ended up playing it together. And boy, was the journey long…

    TLJ is the first game from Funcom, a Norwegian studio, released in 1999. And you can clearly see it’s 22 years old: low poly models, prendered backrounds etc. The visuals are not hideous though, it’s just clearly visible it’s an old game. Classic, creepy FMVs are also there, don’t worry.

    My experience with this renowned classic started with manipulating the game’s files. Because, unfortunately, as Windows 10 is not able to run old stuff properly, clicking mechanism in the game was completely broken, making TLJ unplayable. Fortunately, this wasn’t only my problem and after going through a short tutorial, I managed to somehow fix it. SOMEHOW, because clicking was still broken but a bit less. Welp.

    Nevertheless, we jumped into the story and initially I was sure it’s a kind of a gate keeping game, that is supposed to keep the noobs out of the point-and-click business. One of the first puzzles is 1) timed, so good luck with broken mouse clicks 2) so abstract that unless you follow a walkthrough, trial and error seems to be the only method to solve it. Luckily, a veteran was supporting me – and after making it to the 4th chapter (out of 13) the plot actually started to be intriguing and my annoyance dropped down a little.

    Nevertheless, I wasn’t mind-blown: TLJ tells a story of a teenage April Ryan, destined to save the balance between two worlds – Stark, a world of science and logic (which apparently is “our” world) and Arcadia, a land of magic and unlimited possibilities chaos. Why? Because if they are not balanced, bad things will happen. That’s basically all there is, and cool cyberpunk motives appearing during Stark levels do not improve it much. Neither do loads of cheesy lines and unfinished subplots. By no means is the story bad, it’s just pretty generic. The writers apparently tried to develop it a bit but it’s just another epic world-saving scenario.

    Except for some ridiculous puzzles, quest solving can be absorbing and that is what keeps the player with the game. A player like me, of course – I bet point-and-click fans can find all they need in TLJ. Once again, I’m grateful there was another person playing with me: otherwise I’d quit it pretty quickly.

    What was driving me crazy was the inconsistency of game mechanics. Sometimes to drink a potion you have to use it on yourself but sometimes you just click the button from the drop-down menu; sometimes to ask your companion for a favor you have to talk to him but sometimes you use him (!) on an item that needs to be interacted with etc. I was getting stuck frequently not because I didn’t know what to do but because the game couldn’t decide how it wants to run its UI. Also, as in all games of this genre you are offered a ton of dialogue options, yet your choices don’t really matter – if you don’t hit the right one at first, you just keep talking till nothing remains. And as much as I like listening to stuff in games, the awareness of total linearity was a bit disappointing.

    I guess this wasn’t a game for me – but I understand how it was a milestone in genre development. That aged a bit too much, unfortunately.    … Expand
  5. alona
    Jan 22, 2021
    8
    Very good game! Usually not into point and click genre, but I love The Longest Journey. It definitely has something.
  6. Nacke11
    Dec 17, 2021
    10
    End of 2021. I got a decent hardware: RTX 2070 and Ryzen 5 3600 and I played this game without any additional HD mods or whatever exists out there, it was a raw experience. I thing this might be one of my favorite games. You can just feel the effort and love that went into it and I'm really, really grateful for this game. I don't know if this is a relevant information but I just wanted toEnd of 2021. I got a decent hardware: RTX 2070 and Ryzen 5 3600 and I played this game without any additional HD mods or whatever exists out there, it was a raw experience. I thing this might be one of my favorite games. You can just feel the effort and love that went into it and I'm really, really grateful for this game. I don't know if this is a relevant information but I just wanted to note that I'm 20 so it's not some kind of nostalgia because my parents weren't even planning on having me when this game came out. So yeah, I want to say "Thank you" to the developers and the whole staff. I'm especially grateful for the voice acting team that did an amazing job and made the whole world feel more alive. Again, thank you.… Expand
  7. sikorasiegersup
    Nov 25, 2022
    2
    you have the feeling your are in an interactive movie and not in a game. the game itself consists of some outraged and poorly creative puzzles . probably many of you need to look up the solutions.
    dialogues are lenghty and boring after a time in this inflated fantasy world
  8. xcale
    Feb 23, 2023
    10
    This is not a game. It is a masterpiece of digital art. Incredible story + fun + great game dynamics + not so bad graphics. Probably this game changed my perspective for point & click adventures. A must try for everyone.
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Awards & Rankings

3
#3 Best PC Game of 2000
6
#6 Most Discussed PC Game of 2000
11
#11 Most Shared PC Game of 2000

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
91

Universal acclaim - based on 26 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 25 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 26
  3. Negative: 0 out of 26
  1. Quandary
    90
    TLJ is a masterpiece and one of the best Adventures to be released during the past few years. Unfortunately it should be avoided by people who are violently repelled, for themselves or their offspring, by some extremely crude language.
    Read full review
  2. GameSpy
    92
    The powerful story affects you as it unfolds and by the end you will be drained--your life will never be the same again. This game could do to adventure games, what Doom did for the FPS. A must buy for anyone and everyone.
    Read full review
  3. IGN
    93
    This game does more than just recreate the nostalgic experience of old school adventure gaming, it actually reinvents how stories can be told in the medium, and gives us a glimpse of what we can expect in the years to come.
    Read full review
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