Seeing how Journey has resonated with players across the world, we wanted to work with the Santa Monica Studio to provide a deeper look into the visual development behind this critically acclaimed hit. So, we’re excited to let everyone know that we will be presenting you with a wonderful first-time look at the extensive artwork that went into bringing Journey to life. It’s the first book directly inspired by one of our games and is titled The Art of Journey and will be available for purchase in September.

This book, designed and written by and Matt Nava, art director on Journey, and in conjunction with BLUECANVAS Magazine provides an insider’s view into the stylistic influences, narrative functions, and game design goals that shaped the final look of the game.  Readers will discover how Journey’s landscapes, cut-scenes, and much-loved robed traveler came to be. For your enjoyment, The Art of Journey will come bound as an embossed hardcover book filled with gorgeous concept art, intricate pencil drawings, and 3D models printed in full color on art-quality paper.

In addition, the book has an innovative “augmented reality” feature powered by the Daqri 4D platform. By downloading a free companion app, readers will be able to point their smartphone or tablet’s camera at special images and see animated 3D models appear straight from the game. It’s a truly unique and innovative way to more fully experience the artwork of Journey.

We are especially proud to include a tribute in the book to the game’s players. Journey’s touching experience and memorable visuals have inspired many players to create their own artwork. Matt has collected some of the team’s favorites in a special fan art section which I hope will speak to those of you who have been moved by the Journey experience.

The Art of Journey will be accompanied by a voucher that will allow readers to download a free copy of the game’s soundtrack to their PS3.

Please continue to stay tuned for updates and sneak peeks for The Art of Journey. In the meantime, don’t forget to check out the Journey Collector’s Edition, which will be available on store shelves this coming Tuesday, August 28, and take a look at the video below for some insight into The Art of Journey.

From the simplicity of flOw, to the beauty of Flower, to the awe of Journey, this special Blu-Ray bundle features thatgamecompany’s three award-winning PlayStation Network-exclusive titles, paired with exclusive new content and previously released digital content.

The complete set of bonus flOw, Flower, and Journey content includes:

• Thirty-minute behind-the-scenes documentary about the making of Journey
• Creator Commentary playthroughs of all three games
• Three exclusive mini-games from thatgamecompany
• Concept art and screenshot galleries for all three games
• Original soundtracks for all three games
• PS3 dynamic themes and wallpapers
• PSN avatars including eight exclusive new Journey avatars never released before
• Official game trailers and developer diary videos
• Reversible cover art

We are particularly excited about the Creator Commentary play-throughs of all three games, because we get to share with fans insights about flOw, Flower and Journey straight from the minds of the designers, artists, engineers and composers who worked together to make these games so special.

Another really great treat for fans featured on the disc are the three exclusive mini-games. These were born out of a tradition we have here at thatgamecompany: the 24hr Game Jam. As the name implies, each of these games was created start to finish in just 24 hours. For the first time ever, thatgamecompany’s mini-games Gravediggers, Duke War!!, and Nostril Shot, will be available to play outside of our studio. We share these extra treats as a “thank you” to our players for supporting us over the years. In case the names didn’t already give it away, these mini-games showcase thatgamecompany’s lighter side with screwball competitive multiplayer action. We hope you sincerely enjoy their silliness as much as we have.

Please enjoy the official trailer for Journey Collector’s Edition, which highlights what’s in store for fans when thatgamecompany’s first Blu-ray disc release hits stores on August 28.

After we released Flower in 2009, players sent hundreds of emails about their experience with the game. They varied from a nine-year-old girl to a 65-year-old man, from a marine serving duty overseas, to a soldier returning from Iraq. There were even stories about a mother’s memory of her two children in the wheat fields, a surreal butterfly fantasy from someone’s grandmother who passed away, and a young man who spoke about his brother who has Down syndrome. Those kinds of letters are what drive us at TGC to keep working.

And now, the reaction to Journey has been even more overwhelming. We have received more letters from fans in the two weeks since Journey’s launch than we did for Flower over the past three years!

We owe a lot to our fans. In fact, idea of forming the thatgamecompany team to create games with Sony Santa Monica originated from several dozen emails that players sent in after playing our first student game, Cloud, from our time at USC. It was the players who told us how moving the game was and how it is important that we keep making these types of games so that more people in the world will realize what video games can be, and can grow to love games through our work. To me, that was a life-changing moment. I knew making games was my life calling.

This art piece expresses our gratitude.

Lastly, a lot of you have seemed to really enjoy the music in the game, which was composed by Austin Wintory. And we’ve received a lot of requests to release the soundtrack of the game. Well, I’m happy to announce that the soundtrack will be hitting the PS Store and iTunes on April 10, and there will be a limited CD release in the near future as well.

Thanks, again, for all your support. We’ll see you online!

It has been heartening to see the reactions from the press so far. We’ve had editors tell us how much the game moved them emotionally, or fundamentally changed the way they think about multiplayer in video games. Our goal was to change the impression players have towards each other over the network. We wanted to bring a thatgamecompany-style adventure to our players and create an emotional connection between them. And it’s been great to hear we might have achieved this goal.

We get very nervous before the reviews hit. With the early access for PlayStation Plus subscribers last week, we started getting reactions from the players. We couldn’t be more moved by what reviewers and players are saying about Journey on the web. Thank you for sharing your Journey experiences with us, they are what keep us going and make all of our hard work truly worthwhile.

Don’t forget to head over to Facebook to pick up your exclusive Journey avatar for your PSN ID. If you’ve played Journey already, let us know in the comments what you think of it. And if you’re waiting to get it tonight, let us know what you’re most looking forward to. I hope you enjoy the game, and I hope to see you online!

As you may know from my recent tweet, the development of our latest PlayStation Network game, Journey, is finally complete. And today, we’re very excited to announce the official release date for Journey. You will be able to download it from the PlayStation Store for $14.99 starting March 13th, 2012. Three years ago, our last game, Flower, was part of the Spring Fever event on PSN, and this year Journey will kick off this year’s Spring Fever. Look for more information on the highlight games and sales of this year’s Spring Fever event on the PlayStation.Blog in the coming weeks.

With each game we create, we want to bring something truly unique and authentic to the user. We want our players to experience something they have never felt before. Our first game for PSN was flOw in 2007, a meditative zen video game haiku. We followed that in 2009 with Flower, our video game version of a poem about the tension between urban bustle and natural serenity. Journey, our third game, is an interactive parable, an anonymous online adventure to experience a person’s life passage and their intersections with other’s.

You wake alone and surrounded by miles of burning, sprawling desert, and soon discover the looming mountaintop which is your goal. Faced with rolling sand dunes, age-old ruins, caves and howling winds, your passage will not be an easy one. The goal is to get to the mountaintop, but the experience along the way is discovering who you are, what this place is, and what your purpose is. Travel and explore this ancient, mysterious world alone, or with a stranger you meet along the way. Soar above ruins and glide across sands as you discover the secrets of a forgotten civilization. Featuring stunning visuals, haunting music, and unique online gameplay, Journey delivers an experience like no other.

This last Sunday, February 12th, was the anniversary of the launch of our previous game Flower. We started working on Journey right after Flower launched, and the past three years have flown by extremely fast. In these three years, we at thatgamecompany and our friends in SCEA Santa Monica Studio have faced many challenges together and emerged stronger. Much sweat and tears have been put into the development of the game, and many people have come and gone.

So for us, the Journey in the game has also become a metaphor for the development process of the game itself. Our team is very close to our own mountaintop; we are just a few short weeks away from letting the world experience what we’ve poured our hearts and souls into these last three years. I can’t describe how eager we are to let everyone finally play the game and hear about your experiences with it.

Stay tuned for more Journey news and updates in the coming weeks.