Ani Has OCD: A Perfectionist’s Take on “Flower”

Last semester I was stressed out and had to take multiple exams on the same day. I was interested in looking into some relaxing games. As soon as I had finished all my exams I went to visit Alex, he had to go somewhere so he set up his PS3 for me, and had me try out Flower, a seemingly simple game made by ThatGameCompany.

First off, I’d never played the PS3 before, so I was totally amazed at the motion controllers. Flower was a blast, for me. I loved being able to glide along beautiful landscapes collecting flower petals. There is something very relaxing and satisfying about it. I feel like the game play is so simple, but that it is artistic while remaining relevant and simple.

Flower is another example that follows  my simple game-play plus creative options equals a great game in my opinion. The player can chose what levels to play, and then how to go about playing the levels, either by whizzing through and collecting only flower petals that are necessary or by carefully and slowly going through to collect every single flower petal possible. I have OCD and I chose the later method. By the last level of Flower Alex was getting upset with me for trying to collect all the petals and painfully made me move on. Flower can also be incredibly (and aggravatingly) challenging, I got upset when I kept getting burned from the electrified metal. It’s nice to have a game that can be engaging, challenging, AND still relaxing.

I like Flower, but I wish I could chill out and enjoy it more. However with that said, I think I’d be hard pressed to find a more artistic, innovative, and entertaining game. When I have a lot of time I plan on playing all the way through flower and collecting every single petal I possibly can without Alex and his friends pressuring me to move on. Despite the pressures, I did feel much more relaxed and chilled out after playing flower.

You can go here  for more beautiful screenshots and info about this excellent indie game.

What are your thoughts on Flower? How do you play it? And what do you get out of it?

Happy Gaming,

Ani