Journey developer, Jenova Chen, says ThatGameCompany were lucky to have signed a publishing deal with Sony when they did, because they may not have had the opportunity to make games like Flow and Flower with another publisher.
Chen says that it was a mix of luck and timing that saw ThatGameCompany sign a three-game deal with Sony for the launch of the PlayStation 3.
Speaking with GamesIndustry.biz, Chen says the studio was lucky that they pitched their ideas at a time when no one else was developing anything for the PlayStation network.
“When we signed the contract the PlayStation was due to launch in four months, so they were in dire need for content,” he says.
“When we pitched Flower I didn’t really know what the game was,” he admits.
“I just said ‘hey, we want to make a game that is about feeling of being in love to others.’ Sony’s publisher side was actually crazy enough to sign that.”
Chen says that if he had tried to pitch the game to someone else under different circumstances, “I would be killed.”
Journey represents the third and final game in the deal that was signed with Sony. Chen declined to comment on whether ThatGameCompany would continue to work exclusively with Sony.
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