Journey
Journey is a little different than most of the games on this list in that you can’t queue up with a friend and guarantee that you’ll play through Thatgamecompany’s gorgeous playable screensaver together. You can play Journey by yourself, but throughout your trek through a desert up to a mountain in the distance, you’ll pass by other players making their own pilgrimage; you’re free to heed them as they try to help you find your way, or you can ignore them. However, Journey’s only form of communication is through chirps that don’t have a specific meaning, so you and your traveling partner will essentially create your own language by wordlessly chirping at one another as you move through the world. The expedition to the mountain is arduous, emotional, and beautiful to behold, and it’s also one that’s better when walking alongside another. Even if you don’t know just who it is you’ve been paired up with. — Kenneth Shepard
