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The Long Journey Home Review

Never tell me the odds..

According to one of my playthroughs of the roguelike The Long Journey Home, humanity's first meeting with an alien species took place between the crew of our first interstellar vessel and a squat little glukkt trader named Mendarch. Here it was: the chance of enlightenment and the promise of advances in science beyond our wildest dreams. There was a whole unspoken history in his calling our place the galaxy the "prohibited sector." And what were the fruits of that first mission? He offered to loan me 600 galactic credits and only told me that he expected 200 credits in interest after we finished the transaction. Aliens will be human, I guess.

The Long Journey Home Screens

Unfortunately, those interactions turn out to be a fairly small part of The Long Journey Home. The vast majority of a playthrough involves either easing the ship into a planet's orbit or sending the lander down to a planet's surface to scrounge for gases and metals needed to refuel or repair the craft, or to pick up the "exotic" matter needed to power the jump drive when I wanted to port to a neighboring star. Both minigames are 2D and factor in a given planet's gravity, which appeals to the science nerd inside me in a simplified Kerbal Space Program sort of way. Both require a careful dance of the left and right mouse buttons; in space you use the left button to fire off lightweight "thrusts" for precision maneuvering and the right for "boosts" that guzzle fuel and propel you from a big planet's orbit. When you visit a planet with the lander, you use the left mouse button to thrust upward and the right to thrust downward.

The bumps and bruises you get from botched attempts aren't mere "aw, shucks" moments. They're life-threatening, damaging not only your craft but often breaking the bones of your crewmembers in the process. Upgrades you can pick up from quests of vendor help, yes, but it's always challenging. (And using a controller is far worse as far as I'm concerned, though I've also heard people say the opposite.)

When The Long Journey Home focuses on interactions with a diverse and entertaining cast of aliens across its procedurally generated star systems, it's possible to find a degree of wonder and personality that many roguelike seldom achieve. Unfortunately, such interactions take a back seat to a barrage of frustrating minigames with rewards that rarely match the risks. The experience as a whole suffers for it.

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Wot I Think: The Long Journey Home

Star Trekkin'

It's not all that long, the journey, but it is very busy. About six hours might do the trick, but you're likely to get distracted along the way. Part Star Trek Voyager and part The Odyssey, The Long Journey Home [ official site ] puts you in charge of a small crew who have been stranded far from Earth due to a tech malfunction, and must make their way home, making friends and enemies along the way. Though it's clearly inspired by the likes of Star Control and Captain Blood, I've found myself thinking of No Man's Sky as I play. Here's wot I think.

TLJH is one of those games that feels like lots of mini-games stitched together. There's some basic resource management, Thrust-like planetary landings, conversations with alien races, combat, and star system navigation. It's a game that could easily end up being less than the sum of its parts, but the structure of the journey itself ties everything together and makes each decision and challenge important. Whether you're figuring out if a diversion to save a plague-ridden planet is worthwhile or even a realistic possibility given how limited the essential resources needed to keep your ship running might be.

There are four things to consider. Your crew are a primary resource and as they pick up injuries, your journey becomes more perilous. Those injuries come from rough landings, risky flying, certain encounters and ship-to-ship combat. People are your most precious resource, and are irreplaceable, though they can be healed if you find the appropriate items.

The other three resources you'll need to trek across the stars can all be picked up along the way and the core loop of the game involves ensuring you gather enough of each at each stop along the route.

First of all, you'll need fuel to move within systems, and to send your single-seater lander craft down to the surface of planets. It's planetside where you'll find the gases, metals and minerals that are used for refuelling and repair, but you might also want to visit some planets as part of a quest chain, or on the off-chance there'll be some mystery to uncover. But, yes, fuel is of vital importance, and you'll use it to move between planets and find it on planets.

And then there's a second kind of fuel that lets you jump between systems. The ingredients for that are found on planets as well, and you'll always have a fairly good idea what you're going to find once you settle into orbit. A scan tells you what kind of resources to expect, and what quantities they might be found in, and information about inhabitants, atmosphere, weather and overall threat level.

If a planet has firestorms, high winds and scarce supplies, it's probably not worth risking your lander and crew. You can repair both your ship and lander, and that's where the third resource, metal, comes into play.

On one level, that's how The Long Journey Home works; you travel from place to place, gathering enough resources to ensure you can make the next jump, or survive the next tricky landing in order to get the fuel to make the jump. That's where it reminds me of my hours with No Man's Sky, a game in which I never cared for the journey so much as the destination. The lure of discovering new species and biomes was powerful, for a few days, and part of the attraction was knowing that everything I saw mine and mine alone. Discoveries born of code and procedural design.

There is randomisation in The Long Journey Home as well, but it affects the order of things rather than the things themselves. The systems you'll pass through on your way back to our solar system are different each time, but the things within them are hand-crafted. There are several species to encounter, all with their own stories, dialogues and quest chains. Those quests range from delightfully silly interstellar quiz shows and tests of strength to genocide and flirtations with transcendental beings. What they all have in common is a sense of mischievous wit in the writing, which is courtesy of RPS columnist Richard Cobbett, a man who has forgotten more about RPGs and their tropes than most of us have ever known.

The combination of resource-gathering and wordy adventures is an odd one, but it's mostly successful. At worst, the actual business of scooping up fuel and minerals becomes busywork, interrupting the flow of a quest, and the limited number of encounters means that you'll start to see repetition after a few playthroughs. Thankfully, running into aliens you've already met on a previous journey doesn't mean you're in for an identical story – some encounters have fairly predictable outcomes, but some branch and twist, and there are even emergent qualities to some stories, which can be derailed or unexpectedly collide with one another.

There's a lot to like in those encounters but it's hard to escape from the feeling that the actual machinery driving the game is simpler than I'd like it to be. If you come for the stories, you still have to do the work in between them, as if visiting a library with a byzantine membership system that requires you to sign up again every time you want to borrow a book.

Take the lander sections: they're beautiful and simple enough, rarely taking more than five minutes to complete, even if you actually explore the surface and have a mini text adventure rather than just scooping up resources before jetting away. But they're also repetitive and a couple of mistakes can make the cost of landing heavier than rewards. I'd describe The Long Journey Home as a difficult game, given how hard it is to get home, but it's an oddly pitched difficulty. I'm more likely to peter out than to explode in a blaze of glory or perish in a calamitous misadventure.

Simply put, getting home is hard work and even though there are loads of amazing adventures to be had along the way, you'll also be carrying out a lot of maintenance. Think of this more as a warning than a condemnation because I'm still enjoying the game after thirty-five hours of playing. There's something quite soothing about the repetition that puts Long Journey Home into my Podcast Pile – which is to say, the pile of games that I play while listening to podcasts. That's not a bad pile to be in given how many podcasts I listen to every day.

And, yes, it still reminds me of No Man's Sky, but with these discrete mini-games instead of the arduous walking and gathering and crafting and inventory juggling. It also feels like a successor to Digital Eel's Weird Worlds: Return to Infinite Space, and a stronger one than the actual sequel. There's not quite enough here to win me over completely, but there's more than enough to make the numerous trips I've made worthwhile, and part of the charm is in never knowing if there's anything left to discover. The stars are strange and home to many mysteries and it's tempting to stick around until I've seen them all. But keep in mind that there's lots of work to do along the way.

The Long Journey Home is available now for Windows, via Steam and GOG .

Disclosure: Richard Cobbett wrote the words and has a regular column on RPS that I edit most weeks. The fact that I have to look at so many of his words as part of my day-job and actually enjoyed playing a game that was stuffed with even more of them could probably be seen as a compliment.

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It was supposed to be a short test run – a quick flight to Alpha Centauri and back. But when mankind’s first experimental jump drive goes wrong, you and your crew find yourselves trapped on the wrong side of the galaxy. Now, you are entirely on your own – and the only way back leads through the vast unknown of outer space. On your strange journey, you will encounter unforeseen obstacles and unimaginable treasures. You will fail and you will pick yourselves up again. You will suffer painful losses and also make new friends – in a vibrant universe that changes its design with every new journey. Your most important goal: Bring your crew back home to their families and friends. The Long Journey Home combines an open world full of galaxies, planets and anomalies with quests and mechanics of a rogue-like RPG. You have to make decisions – and choose to live with the consequences. One destination. Endless adventures. Where will this journey take you?

• Featured Content / Reviews

The Long Journey Home Review

by Alex Fuller · November 30, 2018

Are We Nearly There Yet?

Originally released for PC last year before making its way onto consoles this November, The Long Journey Home is a different title from what many have come to expect from Daedalic Entertainment, a developer and publisher more renowned for its various adventure titles. Tasking players with guiding a ship across the far reaches of space, The Long Journey Home never attempts to make its journey particularly thrilling, but the deliberate pacing combines well with its risk-versus-reward elements and the simple enjoyment of travelling the stars.

The Long Journey Home begins with players selecting the crew, spaceship, and universe seed for a mission to test a new faster-than-light drive. There are ten potential members to fill out the four available crew slots, each with their own item and skill set, as well as three spaceship and lander options providing different attributes in terms of speed, cargo space, and so forth. As the title alludes to, the test does not go quite as planned, and the crew find themselves and the ship far, far away from home. Left to their own devices, the crew must try and find the way home while dealing with dangerous locations, limited resources, and aliens of the friendly and not-so-friendly varieties.

The universe seed is the primary factor that will affect a playthrough of The Long Journey Home . It determines what players will be able to encounter, from the alien species present to the general makeup of the stars and galaxies they will be roaming in. This leads to a wide variety in difficulty between playthroughs, with certain seeds being far more welcoming to new players than others. However, there is always an element of luck to things, and even on an easier seed and with the game’s story difficulty setting, there will be many opportunities for the journey to end prematurely.

Successfully slinging the ship between planets is highly satisfactory.

The structure of the game has players jumping from star system to star system, stopping off at planets, space stations, and asteroid fields to find resources, investigate points of interest, or take on small jobs. Gravity plays a big part in travelling between locations in the star system, and players are heavily encouraged to make use of gravitational slingshots wherever they can to ensure they don’t needlessly waste fuel. Once players have successfully gone into orbit around a planet or moon, they can send the lander down to the surface, where it will have resource points that can be gathered and maybe other points of interest such as an alien settlement or set of ruins to explore. The structure is decently paced, with planetary stopovers always being a quick in-and-out, and it makes for an engaging journey where it can be easy and enjoyable to get sucked into a mindset of “just one more system…”.

The game’s controls are nice and straightforward, but one of the few annoyances comes with controlling the lander. Some planets are more hostile and difficult to land on than others, some having high gravity or winds, others prone to earthquakes or lightning storms, with players able buy and attach modules to the lander to help against these. However, the game always seems to enjoy throwing the lander down at high speed, so that even a lander that has in theory been modified to cope with the conditions will still be flung onto the surface despite the player’s best attempts. In these cases all players can do is hope the damage isn’t too severe and just carry on. It’s understandable that the game is promoting a sense of risk-versus-reward on using the lander, but it’s nevertheless frustrating, particularly given how much more enjoyable and comparatively friendly interplanetary travel is.

Combat encounters are not worth actively seeking out.

Though there are some interesting quests and pieces of lore to discover, there isn’t much of a narrative to The Long Journey Home . Part of this is because quests and jobs often require that players go out of their way to complete them, which is generally a high risk to take considering the limited resources available and the propensity of the ship to be damaged through wear and tear when it jumps. Even on the friendly seeds, money needed for repairs can be hard to come by and so time spent going back and forth in one sector can be very costly in the long run. There are very few named characters in the game, and those that are named generally appear for a single quest before they disappear and are never heard from again. The Long Journey Home is undeniably more about trying to survive the journey above anything else, but there’s some interesting variety to the alien species that can appear, with some enjoyable writing and inconsequential banter between the crew that appears from time to time.

Crew members don’t gain any new skills on top of those they come with; anything they can do to help depends on items picked up throughout the voyage. The main concern is keeping them alive, as various things such as radiation from stars and heavy lander impacts can cause injuries, five of which will cause that crew member’s death. Instead, any progress comes from what helpful items players are able to attain, and crew members can be help get these. For example, Ash is able to turn alien flora into medical items, used to heal aforementioned injuries. Meanwhile, players can also buy new modules for the ship or lander that will provide bonuses such as improved radiation shielding. It all follows the theme of survival above anything else.

Combat is not very interesting and more often than not best avoided. Combat will see the ship come up against another ship, usually bigger, which may itself spawn additional smaller ships. The ships then fly around each other, shooting in pre-defined directions — the default weapon has the player ship fire up to four projectiles directly port and starboard, with players able to buy upgrades from a very limited selection of weapons and shields — then recharging before firing again. If players win, they may be lucky enough to receive a paltry set of credits or resources that may just about cover any repairs. If players lose, then it’s time to rewind back to the start of the star system or start the entire journey anew. The combat itself is straightforward, but is rarely worth the time and effort.

Some planets have very pretty backdrops, but be prepared to see similar ones elsewhere in the galaxy.

There’s not too much to say about the audio in The Long Journey Home . The best thing to say is that the atmospheric music tracks do a nice job combined with the gravitational simulation to make the journeys between planets nice and chilled out. Sound effects are fine, but there’s no voice acting, though given the general lack of narrative in the game, there isn’t much to be gained even if it was present. Visuals also do the job well, with a nice and clear UI, but the positives reduce out over time. Some planets are pleasing to look at, but by the time players are through they will have seen all the templates multiple times. The same goes for the alien species, there is good variation between them, but just one design for each species and nothing to distinguish individual encounters.

The Long Journey Home doesn’t outstay its welcome. A successful journey should take most players around ten hours, which is a good length for those who just want to get home and enjoy the accomplishment while the gameplay cycle remains enjoyable. Meanwhile, the way the universe is generated with seeds means that those who are interested in seeing everything the game has to offer as well as find new challenges have many reasons to keep coming back. It never offers the most in-depth or exciting gameplay moments, but the overall experience of The Long Journey Home is an enjoyable one.

Good at sucking players into the journey

Using gravity is fun

Combat feels like an afterthought

Some lander annoyances

Tags: Daedalic Entertainment PS4 The Long Journey Home

Alex Fuller

Alex joined RPGamer in 2011 as a Previewer before moving onto Reviews, News Director, and Managing Editor. Became Acting Editor-in-Chief in 2018.

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The Long Journey Home – PS4 | Review

• By Owain Thresher
• | 18th November 2018
• | PS4 , Review
• |     0

Space: The final frontier. In The Long Journey Home, it’s your mission to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilisations, to go boldly where no one has gone before…or at least attempt to, in-between some questionable minigames and an eclectic mix of alien species.

The Long Journey Home places you at the helm of the first human voyage to the nearby (relatively) Alpha Centauri galaxy – however, during a test flight the ship, and all its crew, are flung to the other side of the universe. Alone and in an ever-changing, yet always threatening galaxy, it’s up to you to get you and your crew back to Earth, alive.

With a classic premise, The Long Journey Home attempts to present the infinite potential of space exploration, and to some extent, succeeds. It’s in its ability to tell stories that The Long Journey Home shines.

Along your astronomical journey, you’ll encounter a wide array of hugely differing alien species. Unlike other games where this has been attempted (here’s looking at you No Man’s Sky and your selection of three sentient species) The Long Journey Home manages to create a huge variety of alien species, and by extension stories.

The Cueddhaest race was the first I encountered. An insect-like race of creatures made out of pure energy, the Cueddhaestare often seen in pairs, but are always spouting out wisdom relating to their species and their unique religion – their overarching aim? To locate the spiritual ‘Threefold Key’ which will open the path through the Pillars of Ascension and into the Nextplane.

This just describes the species I encountered the most – each species is just as interesting, complex and truly engaging. They have rich and fully fleshed backgrounds which make every encounter interesting and exciting.

If this game was a space-faring, RPG/DnD-like experience I would definitely praise it a lot more. Sadly, outside of The Long Journey Home’s superb writing, the gameplay doesn’t necessarily hold up.

The core gameplay is split between a few distinct, yet slightly frustrating minigames. The first takes place in the hub world-like space area. You can fly freely around planets, stars and space station by controlling the ship’s speed and direction to gracefully glide between worlds (or, if you’re like me, violently collide across the night’s sky) – it’s an interesting mechanic that would be more enjoyable if the controls weren’t janky. Even when boosting, often times the ship feels slow and imprecise, and in a game where precision is key, this can be particularly frustrating.

The precise nature of the game is shown clearly in the game’s second stage: soaring across each planet’s surface on the hunt for resources needed to refuel or repair your spaceship. In an attempt to recreate the nostalgic pleasures of older, 2D lander minigames, The Long Journey Home, unfortunately, manages to create a frustrating and annoyingly precise challenge. Outside of the crazy amount of precision that is needed to land in the small, specific mining points across the planet, the player must also tackle the elements, in the form of radiation, heat or earthquakes. Add to this the lander’s ability to chug down fuel faster than you’re able to mine it, and you have an experience that is annoyingly frustrating offer sufficient rewards.

Final Impressions

And that doesn’t even begin to touch on the infuriating consequences of damaging your ship or injuring a crew member – and that’s the crux of The Long Journey Home – it presents a beautiful and rich universe that is bogged down by its flawed gameplay and lacklustre rewards.

*Code kindly provided by the publisher for review*

Developer:Daedalic Entertainment / Publisher: Daedalic Entertainment Release date: 14/11/2018 Platforms: PS4, Xbox One Platform Reviewed on: PS4 Pro

The Long Journey Home

Final score.

• Some truly great environments are on display
• There is a huge array of interesting and unique alien species
• Some frustrating minigames sour the entire experience
• The interactions you have with the aliens are few and far between

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• The Long Journey Home is an Action Adventure game, developed by Daedalic Studio West and published by Daedalic Entertainment, which was released in 2017.

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The Long Journey Home (PS4 International)

• Explore a living, procedurally generated universe and encounter diverse alien races. Revisit galaxies in which you have already travelled and try to take different paths in a familiar environment.
• Form alliances with strange aliens, from the noble knights of the Wolphax to the unpredictable Ilitza.
• Raid alien tombs full of traps and treasure, compete in the galaxy’s greatest combat tournament and research strange artifacts.
• Assemble your own crew and use their individual skills, from archeology to technology or diplomacy.
• Conduct negotiations and make challenging decisions, which will change the universe forever.

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Product description.

There are a million worlds in the galaxy. Only one of them is Home. It was supposed to be a short test run – a quick flight to Alpha Centauri and back. But when mankind’s first experimental jump drive goes wrong, you and your crew find yourselves trapped on the wrong side of the galaxy. Now, you are entirely on your own – and the only way back leads through the vast unknown of outer space. On your strange journey, you will encounter unforeseen obstacles and unimaginable treasures. You will fail and you will pick yourselves up again. You will suffer painful losses and also make new friends – in a vibrant universe that changes its design with every new journey. Your most important goal: Bring your crew back home to their families and friends. The Long Journey Home combines an open world full of galaxies, planets and anomalies with quests and mechanics of a rogue-like RPG. You have to make decisions – and choose to live with the consequences. One destination. Endless adventures. Where will this journey take you?

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PlayStation Plus Game Catalog for April: Dave the Diver, Tales of Kenzera: Zau, The Crew 2 and more

Animal Well launches day 1 into PlayStation Plus Game Catalog on May 9.

Rely on your wits in Animal Well, slip into a wetsuit with Dave the Diver and journey through mystical 2.5D realms in Tales of Kenzera: Zau. All three games launch onto PlayStation as part of the PlayStation Plus Game Catalog. And there are even more games joining April’s Game Catalog lineup. Let’s take a closer look at each. Aside from Animal Well and Tales of Kenzera: Zau, all titles will be available on April 16.

PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium | Game Catalog

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Explore a surreal, forsaken labyrinth and unravel its many secrets. Discover a mysterious, non-linear, interconnected world as you solve puzzles in over 250 rooms in whatever order you choose. Rely on your wits to avoid danger in this combat-free Metroidvania. You’ll encounter creatures both beautiful and unsettling, and have to decide what is safe and dangerous. Manipulate a pixel-art world in surprising and meaningful ways and try to survive what lurks in the dark. In Animal Well, there is more to the world than what you can see. 

*Animal Well will launch May 9.

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*Tales of Kenzera: ZAU will launch April 23.

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Construction Simulator | PS4, PS5

Construction Simulator has returned – larger and more impressive than ever! Fulfil your ambition to become a successful construction entrepreneur by establishing your business from scratch, assisted by your mentor Hape. Tackle intriguing projects of different sizes and requirements that help you increase your income, so that you’re able to add even more powerful machinery to your vehicle fleet. Along the way, diverse clients will test your abilities as you navigate challenges, making every task a test of your skill set. Get ready to showcase your process as you tackle a variety of construction challenges in this dynamic and engaging adventure. 

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Get ready for a high-speed trip across the USA and enjoy one of the most complete open-world action driving experiences ever created. With access to free content, new game modes, tracks, vehicles, events, and more added every season, The Crew 2 has all you need for an unforgettable ride. Take on the American motorsports scene, discover exhilarating landscapes and pick your favorite vehicles among hundreds and play with up to seven friends online.

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Inspired by Indian mythologies such as Mahabharata and Ramayana, and by the medieval architecture of Rajasthan, Raji: An Ancient Epic brings a refreshing new style to the action-adventure scene. Battle ferocious demons and bosses, solve ancient puzzles, explore massive forts and palaces and experience a sibling story who find themselves at the center of a divine war. Every corner of the game’s environment is drawn in the Pahari art style and combines hand-painted textures, rendered in 3D. 

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Play as your favorite ninjas, Lloyd, Jay, Kai, Cole, Zane, Nya and Master Wu to defend their home island of Ninjago from the evil Lord Garmadon and his Shark Army. Master the art of Ninjagility by wall-running, high-jumping and battling the foes of Ninjago to rank up and upgrade the ninja’s combat skills. Experience the film across eight action packed locations each with its own unique Challenge Dojo. And with the Battle Maps, play against friends and family locally in competitions for up to four players!

Nour: Play With Your Food | PS4, PS5

Nour is an experimental food art game that blends mouth-watering visuals, dynamic beats, and playful exploration. Unbound by scores, time limits, or realism, Nour invites you to play with your food in a variety of surreal scenes ranging from chill to unhinged – from a symphony of toasters to a bathtub full of ice cream, and far beyond. Rediscover the joy of play in this unique foodie fantasy.

Deliver Us Mars | PS4, PS5

Sequel to the award-winning Deliver Us The Moon, Deliver Us Mars is an atmospheric sci-fi adventure offering an immersive astronaut experience. Explore new frontiers on a suspense-fuelled, high-stakes mission to recover the ARK colony ships stolen by the mysterious Outward. Board the Zephyr as you journey from Earth to the surface of Mars. Traverse and endure its harsh and unforgiving terrain as you quest to discover the secrets left behind by Outward. Use both brains and brawn to overcome mental and physical challenges, find the ARKs, and uncover the motivations of those behind the distress call that brought you here.

Lego Marvel’s Avengers | PS4

Avengers Assemble! The best-selling Lego Marvel videogame franchise returns with a new action-packed, Super Hero adventure. Join the Lego Marvel’s Avengers team and experience a videogame featuring characters and storylines from the critically-acclaimed films and more. Play as the most powerful Super Heroes in their quest to save the world.

Miasma Chronicles | PS5

Realtime exploration gameplay meets tactical, turn-based combat with RPG elements in Miasma Chronicles. In the not-too-distant future. America has been torn apart by a savage force known only as the ‘Miasma’. Meet Elvis, a young man brought to the mining town of Sedentary as a baby. Left by his mother in the care of a robotic older ‘brother’ and given a mysterious glove with which he can control the Miasma. Join the brothers on a quest across a post-apocalyptic wasteland to find the answers they crave. Answers which may change the course of human history forever.

Stray Blade | PS5

Prove yourself in this action-adventure and master intense combat while exploring the ancient ruins of a mysterious civilization. Legends tell of Acrea the Lost Valley, a wild and overgrown place but unmistakably powerful. You found this forgotten land yet died. Time passes, and miraculously you are brought back to life. The price you pay: You are bound to this land. Regain your freedom and embark on the quest of restoring balance in this ravaged and war-torn place guided by your trusty companion, Boji. Explore towering throne rooms of giant god-kings and long-lost cities. As you uncover their secrets, prepare to face even deadlier foes. Get ready to explore a world that is constantly altered by your discoveries and the waging forces.

PlayStation Premium | Classics

·   Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare (original PlayStation version)  | PS4, PS5

·   Star Wars: Rebel Assault II: The Hidden Empire (original PlayStation version) | PS4, PS5

·   MediEvil (original PlayStation version) | PS4, PS5

*PlayStation Plus Game Catalog lineup may differ in certain regions. Please check the PlayStation Store on launch day for your region’s lineup.

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Everything new on PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium in April 2024

If you buy through a BGR link, we may earn an affiliate commission, helping support our expert product labs.

It’s another month which means new games for anyone with a PlayStation Plus Extra or Premium subscription. This month, we’re getting a number of indie titles coming to the Game Catalog that include versions from both the PS5 and PS4 era.

PlayStation Plus Extra costs $14.99 per month, and PlayStation Plus Premium costs $17.99 per month. Premium also gets gamers access to game trials and game streaming to devices like the PlayStation Portal.

So, what’s coming to PlayStation Extra and Premium this month ? Let’s get into it.

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Coming to PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium in April 2024

Dave the diver – april 16th.

Dave the Diver is the first title launching on PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium in April. The game will be available on April 16th and will include both the PS4 and PS5 versions.

Dave the Diver is a casual, singleplayer adventure RPG featuring deep-sea exploration and fishing during the day and sushi restaurant management at night. Join Dave and his quirky friends as they seek to uncover the secrets of the mysterious Blue Hole.

Oddballers – April 16th

Play a new type of hard-hitting dodgeball and use brutally unfair tactics to mess with your opponents in this wacky multiplayer party game. Dodge, block, and grab whatever you can to throw at the faces of your frenemies. And use the environment to crush opponents with electrical fences, explosive gas tanks, or tennis ball launchers. Every arena comes with its own rules and features various frantic mini-games where anything can happen. Play with up to four players in your living room, or take the matches online and compete against five other contenders.

Construction Simulator – April 16th

Another title launching on PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium in April is Construction Simulator . The title launches on April 16th and includes both the PS4 and PS5 versions.

Construction Simulator has returned – larger and more impressive than ever! Fulfil your ambition to become a successful construction entrepreneur by establishing your business from scratch, assisted by your mentor Hape. Tackle intriguing projects of different sizes and requirements that help you increase your income, so that you’re able to add even more powerful machinery to your vehicle fleet. Along the way, diverse clients will test your abilities as you navigate challenges, making every task a test of your skill set. Get ready to showcase your process as you tackle a variety of construction challenges in this dynamic and engaging adventure. 

The Crew 2 – April 16th

Get ready for a high-speed trip across the USA and enjoy one of the most complete open-world action driving experiences ever created. With access to free content, new game modes, tracks, vehicles, events, and more added every season, The Crew 2 has all you need for an unforgettable ride. Take on the American motorsports scene, discover exhilarating landscapes and pick your favorite vehicles among hundreds and play with up to seven friends online.

Raji: An Ancient Epic – April 16th

Another title coming to PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium in April is Raji: An Ancient Epic . The game will be available on April 16th and includes both the PS4 and PS5 versions.

Inspired by Indian mythologies such as Mahabharata and Ramayana, and by the medieval architecture of Rajasthan, Raji: An Ancient Epic brings a refreshing new style to the action-adventure scene. Battle ferocious demons and bosses, solve ancient puzzles, explore massive forts and palaces and experience a sibling story who find themselves at the center of a divine war. Every corner of the game’s environment is drawn in the Pahari art style and combines hand-painted textures, rendered in 3D. 

Lego Ninjago Movie Videogame – April 16th

Play as your favorite ninjas, Lloyd, Jay, Kai, Cole, Zane, Nya and Master Wu to defend their home island of Ninjago from the evil Lord Garmadon and his Shark Army. Master the art of Ninjagility by wall-running, high-jumping and battling the foes of Ninjago to rank up and upgrade the ninja’s combat skills. Experience the film across eight action packed locations each with its own unique Challenge Dojo. And with the Battle Maps, play against friends and family locally in competitions for up to four players!

Nour: Play With Your Food – April 16th

Another title coming to PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium in April is Nour: Play With Your Food . The title will be available on April 16th and includes the PS4 and PS5 versions.

Nour is an experimental food art game that blends mouth-watering visuals, dynamic beats, and playful exploration. Unbound by scores, time limits, or realism, Nour invites you to play with your food in a variety of surreal scenes ranging from chill to unhinged – from a symphony of toasters to a bathtub full of ice cream, and far beyond. Rediscover the joy of play in this unique foodie fantasy.

Deliver Us Mars – April 16th

Sequel to the award-winning Deliver Us The Moon, Deliver Us Mars is an atmospheric sci-fi adventure offering an immersive astronaut experience. Explore new frontiers on a suspense-fuelled, high-stakes mission to recover the ARK colony ships stolen by the mysterious Outward. Board the Zephyr as you journey from Earth to the surface of Mars. Traverse and endure its harsh and unforgiving terrain as you quest to discover the secrets left behind by Outward. Use both brains and brawn to overcome mental and physical challenges, find the ARKs, and uncover the motivations of those behind the distress call that brought you here.

Lego Marvel’s Avengers – April 16th

Another title launching on PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium in April is Lego Marvel’s Avengers . The title launches on April 16th and includes the PS4 version.

Avengers Assemble! The best-selling Lego Marvel videogame franchise returns with a new action-packed, Super Hero adventure. Join the Lego Marvel’s Avengers team and experience a videogame featuring characters and storylines from the critically-acclaimed films and more. Play as the most powerful Super Heroes in their quest to save the world.

Miasma Chronicles – April 16th

Realtime exploration gameplay meets tactical, turn-based combat with RPG elements in Miasma Chronicles. In the not-too-distant future. America has been torn apart by a savage force known only as the ‘Miasma’. Meet Elvis, a young man brought to the mining town of Sedentary as a baby. Left by his mother in the care of a robotic older ‘brother’ and given a mysterious glove with which he can control the Miasma. Join the brothers on a quest across a post-apocalyptic wasteland to find the answers they crave. Answers which may change the course of human history forever.

Stray Blade – April 16th

Another title coming to PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium in April is Stray Blade. The game will be available on April 16th and includes the PS5 version.

Prove yourself in this action-adventure and master intense combat while exploring the ancient ruins of a mysterious civilization. Legends tell of Acrea the Lost Valley, a wild and overgrown place but unmistakably powerful. You found this forgotten land yet died. Time passes, and miraculously you are brought back to life. The price you pay: You are bound to this land. Regain your freedom and embark on the quest of restoring balance in this ravaged and war-torn place guided by your trusty companion, Boji. Explore towering throne rooms of giant god-kings and long-lost cities. As you uncover their secrets, prepare to face even deadlier foes. Get ready to explore a world that is constantly altered by your discoveries and the waging forces.

Tales of Kenzera: Zau – April 23rd

Embark on a poignant single-player story shaped by actor Abubakar Salim’s own experience with grief, discovering how love gives us the courage to press on after devastating loss. Wield powers from the Sun and the Moon to defeat restless spirits in rhythmic combat and become a worthy Nganga: a spiritual healer. Discover a rich universe with untold lore of chaos & order and journey through mystical 2.5D realms awash with color and depth, emboldened by multi-award-winning composer Nainita Desai’s enchanting original score.

Coming to PlayStation Premium | Classics in April 2024

While most of the games coming to PlayStation Plus will be available on both the Extra and Premium subscriptions, some games will only be available for Premium subscribers. Here’s that list:

• Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare (original PlayStation version)  | PS4, PS5
• Star Wars: Rebel Assault II: The Hidden Empire (original PlayStation version) | PS4, PS5
• MediEvil (original PlayStation version) | PS4, PS5

Coming to PlayStation Plus Premium in May 2024

Animal well – may 9th.

The first title announced for PlayStation Plus on both the Extra and Premium will be Animal Well . The title will be available on May 9th and includes the PS5 version.

Explore a surreal, forsaken labyrinth and unravel its many secrets. Discover a mysterious, non-linear, interconnected world as you solve puzzles in over 250 rooms in whatever order you choose. Rely on your wits to avoid danger in this combat-free Metroidvania. You’ll encounter creatures both beautiful and unsettling, and have to decide what is safe and dangerous. Manipulate a pixel-art world in surprising and meaningful ways and try to survive what lurks in the dark. In Animal Well, there is more to the world than what you can see. 

There are a ton of games coming to the subscription service in April, so get ready to have a lot to play starting on April 16th! Make sure you don’t forget to grab your free games for April as well.

This article talks about:

Joe Wituschek is a Tech News Contributor for BGR.

With expertise in tech that spans over 10 years, Joe covers the technology industry's breaking news, opinion pieces and reviews.

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Danikon- Travel in the New York Style

Travel tips, reports, and impressions in the eye of a wandering New Yorker

A Tale of Two Cities – a journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow

A riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma – that’s how one great politician characterized Russia. Is it really so? Last Summer I had a chance to visit Russia’s two capitals; the trip was short but intense and quite exciting.

Planning the trip and getting Russian visa.

It was a spontaneous idea. Long ago we booked a private boat to cruise Croatia. When the time came to search for airfare, I found an attractive option via Moscow. I thought if we were going through Russia anyway why not to stop there for a few days. Great idea but here comes the reality. The first thing to learn was to visit Russia you need a visa. Google search on Russian visa returned a long list of requirements.

To apply you need an application (to be filled online but then still printed and brought to in-person appointment), a valid passport, one photo, and also (a quote from the Embassy website) a confirmation of the hotel reservation, a confirmation of reception of the tourist, and a register number from the Uniform Federal Register of the Tour Operators of the Federal Tourism Agency.

These hurdles are probably a turn off for most people considering such a trip, but as I was about to learn, when dealing with Russia have patience and don’t rush for judgment. Yes, the application form is long, but questions are simple and it does not take long to fill out. A worldly and confusing passage about the Uniform Federal Register is actually a one-page letter that Russian incoming tourism entities are very well aware of. Most hotels provide such a letter within 24 hours for free via email if you book a stay at that hotel. If you stay at a small bed and breakfast, Airbnb or with a family, there are plenty of online services that provide the letter for you for a nominal charge. Then get a photo, make sure your passport is valid 6 months after your departure from Russia date, print out an application and a letter you received from a hotel or a hosting service, and you are ready to apply.

If you leave in New York, Washington DC or Houston areas, you are lucky as there are Russian consulates there and you can submit your application directly and pay only a consular fee.  The access is strictly by appointments that you should request online at a consulate site . Start looking for an appointment at least three months in advance to get your visa in time. You (not your representative or an agent) must apply in person however if you travel with a group or a family on the same dates and itinerary, only one person from the party may submit all applications. The visa fee payment is accepted in the form of USPS money order only.

However, do not despair if this option is not feasible for you. There are Russian Visa processing centers that have a much more flexible attitude. You can apply by mail or show up with no appointment, you can get an application photo there, you can delegate the procedure to your representative or an agent, if needed you can get a visa in a much shorter time even in the same day, and you can use all form of payments. The service charge is reasonable –$33 plus the consulate fee. If however, this does not work for you either, the is also an option to obtain the visa via one of the visa services or via your travel agency. Speaking about fees – the consular charge for all kind of tourist visas is $160 for standard processing time (officially 20 working days but most of the time done in 2 weeks or less. The price goes up if you need the visa faster up to a whopping $600 for the same day service.

The embassy recommends 3-year multiple entry visas, so if you return to Russia within 3 years you won’t need to apply again, and even if you don’t – the fee for a single entry is the same. I did not want to pay for a Russian visa more than absolutely necessary and chose to apply directly at a consulate. The earliest available date for a visa appointment was about in two months, so I was right to start the process early.

I  booked an appointment and I started planning the actual trip. Marina and I decided on two days in St. Petersburg and one day in Moscow. Our daughter with a friend traveled with us, they have never been to Russia before so they wanted to stay in Moscow one extra day. There are plenty of accommodation options in both cities, but more in Moscow. All major hotel chains have properties there, and the rates are good due to a favorable exchange rate  To utilize my stash of IGH points I booked two rooms at Crown Plaza Ligovsky in St. Petersburg at just 30K per room per night. There are several IHG hotels in the city, but Crown Plaza had the best location – right off Nevsky prospect , St. Petersburg’s main thoroughfare. In Moscow, the choice was even better. We contemplated booking   Four Seasons or Ritz-Carlton , even they were affordable, but at the end decided on Marriott Grand Hotel on Tverskaya street – just minutes walk from the Red Square . I made reservations online and emailed hotels asking to send for The Uniform Federal Register nonsense. I received them via email the very next day, our visa paperwork was ready.

The next task was to get from St. Petersburg to Moscow. Two Russian capitals are connected by all means of transportation from airplanes to riverboats, but we decided to take a train. The expresses make 403 mile-long journey in less than 4 hours, and depart almost hourly from Moscow train station in St. Petersburg that is conveniently located right across from Crown Plaza hotel. There are sleek bullet style “Sapsan”  trains  but we chose “Nevsky Express”. This unique though a bit old-fashion train leaves at 1pm and arrives at 5pm so we could have lunch while traveling. This is the only train that has a full-service restaurant – Sapsans only have bistros. The reviews said that the seat configuration is 3 X 3 in a glass door compartment, it feels a bit like you are in a fish tank, but the ride is much quieter than in an open coach. I booked the train tickets on Russian railways website : there is English version, credit cards are no problem, and the booking process is mostly straightforward.  

The form advises you to enter your name exactly as it appears in your passport but then asks your paternal name (your father’s name). Obviously, there is no paternal name in US passports. I typed “X” in a paternal name box (we could put N/A or real names I guess). This was never questioned.. Also, as we learned later the seat map did not show the actual configuration correctly. I thought I booked four seats together, but we ended up in adjacent compartments. It was not a big deal as we spent most of a trip to a restaurant car anyway, but if seating is important to you, I suggest double checking at a ticket office.

Time flew and the day of the interview at the consulate came. The Russian mission in New York is located in a posh Upper East Side 91 th Street right near Central Park . Unlike other recently shut down Russian diplomatic entities in the USA this is an actual Consulate and not a spy safe house. The elegant French maison was initially built by Vanderbilt – Sloane couple at the beginning of the 20 th century and was one of the grandest private residences in the city at that time. It went a long way before becoming a Russian property but still keeps its grandeur look (which partially explains those high visa fees as the maintenance surely costs a lot). The appointment itself was fast and non-eventful. A guard at the entrance checked my name against a list of appointments and quickly let me in, there was only one person ahead of me at the visa window, and within minutes I handed my papers to the clerk. He examined the pages, asked a few simple questions, and directed me to the cashier to pay the fee. The visas were ready in 10 days the countdown to the trip began.

St. Petersburg

Aeroflot is the only airline that flies from the USA to Russia directly, and it only flies to Moscow. Interesting to know it is one of the oldest airlines in the world operating under same name since it started flying in 1923. The Russian capital has 4(!) international airports (I already wrote about it in an earlier post), but the largest Sheremetyevo  is Aeroflot’s hub and has frequent connections to other Russian cities including St. Petersburg. Aeroflot is a part of Skyteam alliance but booking on points via Delta or Air France/KLM will cost a lot especially in business class. The smart way is to book via Aeromexico . It charges only 50K each way for a business class ticket to Russia which you can transfer from Amex Membership Rewards. The transfer is not instant, but Aeromexico holds the reservation until points reach your account. Aeroflot business class excided my expectations. The seats were spacious and lay flat, the service was punctual and meals delicious. Unfortunately, due to sanctions, a cheese platter was not available  (no kidding), but wine choice was adequate. The thunderstorm hit New York area right before the takeoff, so JFK was at a ground stop. The delay was over two hours – obviously, we were missing the connecting flight to St. Petersburg. We worried but a flight attendant assured that everything would be taken care of. She was right!  We were rebooked on the next flight in an hour and arrived with a minimal delay.

Unlike Moscow, St. Petersburg has only one airport that is not that far from the city. It took about 30 minutes to get to Uprising Square –Crown Plaza was just around a corner. As époques and rulers changed so did the city toponymy. The name itself made a round trip from St. Petersburg to Leningrad (with a short detour to Petrograd) and then back to St. Petersburg. Uprising Square commemorates events in 1917 Russian Revolution. It got its name in 1918 after the Bolsheviks took control and managed to keep it till present.

Hotel Crown Plaza Ligovsky was surprisingly good, may be one of the best in its brand. The building used to be a school but a few years ago was acquired by IHG and completely remodeled. The lobby was a medium size, without an excess of ornaments but convenient and functional. Behind a reception, there was a souvenir shop (don’t shop – you find better variety at lower prices elsewhere) and a restaurant (don’t eat – for the same reason). 

Our room was on the top level and had the floor to ceiling wall to wall window that if needed could be closed by a mechanical shade. The view was right at the train station plaza, but with the excellent soundproof the noise did not bother us at all. We settled, unpacked, refreshed and had some rest after a long trip. In the evening we stepped out to Nevsky Prospect that was beautifully lit and rightfully rivaled Paris Champs-Élysées. It is an excellent place for sightseeing, however for a good value dinner avoid its touristy eateries and turn to adjacent streets.

We ate at Smoke BBQ restaurant on Rubinstein . American style steak houses are a cool novelty in Russia. An owner tried and to some degree succeeded in creating a Texas ambiance. We ordered grilled vegetables and baby ribs with a local beer. The food was delicious though a bit heavy, so after the meal, we took a walk before returning to the hotel. The area is called  Vladimirskaya,  and if you are Dostoyevsky fan that where he and many of his characters lived. Built mostly in the middle of the 19 th century for low-income renters it never was a posh part of the capital, but the recent renovation and development brought a lot of life here. We walked along Vladimirsky street , reached our hotel and called it a day. 

The next day was fully designated to explore St. Petersburg. The breakfast at the hotel was $15 per person. We politely declined and had a morning meal at a café just next door – a very nice and cozy Russian version of IHOP. The food was excellent and cost half of a hotel price, especially good were “ syrniki ” – Russian cheesecakes in the form of pancakes that are served warm. After breakfast, we met our guide for a historical center walking tour.

For two centuries St. Petersburg was the main city of Imperial Russia until Bolsheviks moved the capital to Moscow in 1918. Czar Peter the Great ordered the construction of his new residence on an empty swamp just conquered from Sweden in 1703.Miraculously the beautiful city was built from scratch. Nevsky Prospect was and still is St. Petersburg main thoroughfare, the imperial façade and the most desirable place to see and be seen. Naturally, the most part of our tour was along and around Nevsky. St. Petersburg impresses and inspires, especially if you are lucky to be there on a warm sunny day. We were blessed with the weather and enjoyed our time to the fullest. The czar’s planners designed the city in the beautiful proportional classical style. To the credit of consequent authorities, St. Petersburg original look was preserved through times (unlike Moscow but more on it later).

We walked toward the Admiralty and observed a palace after a palace, a monument after a monument, and even retail stores were historical and architectural gems. We stopped by Elyseevsky Gastronomy that now is more a tourist attraction than a shop.  The visitors observe Russian delicacies on display from dozens of types of caviar to a chocolate blob in the form of Lenin’s head.

Walking few blocks down is probably Nevsky most interesting point. Czar Alexander I ordered the construction of Kazan Cathedral in 1801 and later it was dedicated to commemorate the victory over Napoleon in 1812 war . The architect decided to use St. Peter’s Cathedral in Rome as a prototype but instead of placing it on some kind of a square put it right on the city main street with the colonnade stretching along. We stepped inside to see the interior.

Among numerous artifacts commemorating that war, we noticed the keys of Berlin. After Napoleon invasion failed, the Russian army went on the offensive and chased the French troops all the way to Paris. Along the way, they captured Berlin  – that time an ordinary Prussian town. By the customs of that time, the elders presented the city keys to the victors. These keys along with keys from other conquered places are kept in Kazan cathedral ever since. During the World War the Nazis wanted the keys back, they siege St. Petersburg for 900 days but failed to capture it and were eventually defeated. Maybe the keys were the reason?

Facing the cathedral on the left side and behind, across Nevsky there is an astonishing Christ the Savior on the Blood cathedral. For some it may reassemble St. Basil on Red Square in Moscow but only from a distance. It was built in 19th century exactly at the place where Czar Alexander II was assassinated in 1881 (therefore called on the Blood). The bridge across Griboedov canal is the best place to take pictures.

We continued on passing among other beautiful buildings the Stroganov Palace (of Beef Stroganoff fame) to Moika river embankment where a booked private boat was waiting for us for St. Petersburg rivers and canals tour.

Before boarding, we stopped by Mamma Roma restaurant (Russian analog of Olive Garden)  and got pizzas, salads, pasta, and a large bottle of Pino. The lunch cruise was relaxing and delightful.

We went into a mighty Neva river , then to smaller and quieter inner rivers and canals. From the water St. Petersburg looked different and even more beautiful.

The ride took an hour and a half, just the right time to finish the picnic.

After pizza and wine, we would not mind a nap, but it was not in our program. Of course, there was much more to see in St. Petersburg, but we wanted to have at least a glimpse of its imperial suburbs – places where czars had their summer residences. We choose Pushkin –Czarina Catherine park and palace . The original town name was Tsarskoye Selo (Czar’s village), but in the Soviet era, it was renamed after the great Russian poet Alexander Pushkin who studied there. Pushkin town is about 30 miles from St. Petersburg, the arranged mini-bus was waiting for us by the pier, the ride took almost an hour as we drove from the center via recent quarters to Pulkovo highway and a belt road.

The palace is the baroque style gem and features the famous Amber room .

The adjacent park is equally nice, designed in a traditional manner with English and French garden parts and is kept impeccably well. We visited it on a late afternoon and took the best pictures of the whole trip.

Our tour ended there. We parted with the guide and took a 30-minute walk from the park through the town to the train station. The town itself was heavily damaged during the war (the Nazis were here), most of the buildings were constructed in the 1940 th and 1950 th . Nevertheless, the town is upscale, green, clean, comfortable and a very desirable place to live for St. Petersburg folks who can afford it. From the station, a suburban train brought us to the city center at an architecturally interesting Vitebsky Vokzal.

We took the metro to our hotel which was just two stops away and noticed its style and decor to compare to Moscow’s later on. The dinner that night was at Russkaya Rybalka ( The Russian Fishing)  restaurant on Krestovsky island . Naturally, it had a seafood menu. We had an excellent sturgeon with a lot of appetizers and then tasty desserts to finish the feast.

Next morning was bright and sunny, but sadly we had to leave St. Petersburg. Our train was in the afternoon, so we still had some time to explore the city a bit more. Our last visit was at the Hermitage museum .

It hosts one of the best fine art collections in the world. It was started by czars and therefore located in the Imperial Winter Palace .

After czars, the collection became a national museum and the must-see place for anyone visiting St. Petersburg even for a short time.

The exposition was enormous, but we were in a rush so to optimize the time I arranged a guide who whisked us inside past the queue and showed all the museum highlights in just two hours (almost impossible task but our guide Nataliya handled it splendidly).

The time after the tour was pretty much the race against the clock. We caught Uber at the Palace square and (luckily with no traffic) got back to the hotel.  Strategically our bags were already packed, so all needed was a checkout. Even though the train station was across the street, we had to enter through a central entrance to pass security which was a bit of a walk. Still, we boarded the train in time.

We settled in our seats and right after the departure headed to the restaurant car. A chicken caesar salad was stupendous, pretty fresh and quite eatable. The restaurant car was more spacious than a cramped compartment, so we hang there after we finished the meal. The first half of a way from St. Petersburg was mostly woods, then as we were getting closer to Moscow, the landscape became more diverse. We crossed Volga river at Tver .

After that it was less than an hour to the destination, the area outside became more and more urban and quickly turned to Moscow suburbs. On the train, we were offered a meet and greet taxi service at a rip off price $30 per ride (street taxis are about twice cheaper, and Uber costs even less), but been pressed in time I sighed and booked it. I believe it was worth it as a driver met us right at a carriage door and led straight to a car through the chaos of a train station plaza. The ride to Marriott Grand Hotel took about 30 min on Sadovoye Koltso (Garden Ring). We did not see any gardens though, just big city traffic. We arrived at the hotel and entered the lobby. The Moscow part of the trip had begun.

Moscow isn’t St. Petersburg, you realize it at the first moment you arrive at the official Russian capital. While proper, classical and phlegmatic St. Petersburg is to fall in love at first sight, an energetic, chaotic, and somewhat barbarian Moscow guards its affections. So what you might not like the byzantine labyrinths of its central streets, the elbowing crowds and the loud attitude on display everywhere – “if you make it there you make it anywhere” so truly applies here. Every Russian knows all roads to success in any walk of life lead to Moscow.

Marriott Grand Hotel huge lobby was hustling and bustling at that busy afternoon hour. A dozen receptionists worked hard checking in guests, but a line seemed to stay unabated. I noticed Marriott Elite sign by one of the clerks and moved right there. In a split of a second between a checked in guest left and a next in line could approach I jumped in and announced my Marriott Gold status. A clerk showed no emotion but took my confirmation paper, did few computer keystrokes, apparently confirmed that I indeed was an elite, checked me in quickly and even gave a suite upgrade and access to an executive lounge. Well, sometimes it pays to be rude!

The suite at Marriott Grand hotel was huge with a bedroom separated from the living room, two TV’s, two bathrooms and also a full kitchen with a side by side refrigerator. Too bad we were only here for one night. After settling, we went to check the executive lounge. The lounge was nicely set on two levels with large windows overlooking Moscow city skyline. The evening chef oeuvres were served. We had a dinner reserved in a couple of hours but had few bites with a glass of chardonnay.

The dinner was booked at Rukav (Sleeve) art café in Taganka neighborhood – a half an hour metro ride from our hotel.  The place was cozy, with an artistic decor although a bit kitschy to our taste. To enter the dining room it looks like you must slide down a pipe but don’t worry there is stairs as well. Most of the guests were tourists, but the ambiance was not touristy at all. A band of musicians in retirement age played American jazz. We felt relaxed, let down our guards a bit and ordered way more food we could consume.

As usual, after stupendous Russian dinners, we needed a good walk before going to bed, so we headed to Red Square. It was night, but the symbolic place was fantastically lit and full of people.

The significant part of the square was fenced off for some kind of a festival that either just happened or was about to happen, the grandeur view was obstructed and that was a disappointment.

Still, the illuminated buildings, the Kremlin towers, St. Basil cathedral looked beautiful, we took tons of pictures then walked about a mile off the square along Tverskaya street to our hotel and had a well-deserved rest.

The next day was our last in Moscow and Russia, but before leaving, we had a walking tour of Red Square and surrounding sites. After the breakfast at the lounge that was adequate but mediocre, we met our guide at the hotel lobby and headed down Tverskaya Street toward Kremlin .

We passed Pushkin Square (the great Russian poet loved both Russian capitals), then Kamergersky Lane, a pedestrian street, recently renovated in 19 th -century belle époque style. Unlike more democratic Arbat here is where affluent, well-to-do Muscovites spend their past time in numerous posh restaurants and night clubs.

Approaching Red Square, it was hard to miss a massive red brick white roof building blending with Kremlin walls. It actually was built at the end of the 19 th century and now accommodates Russian State historical Museum – a must-see for Russia’s history buffs. Just before entering the square you see the Four Seasons (former Moscow) hotel on your left and the Ritz – Carlton (former National) hotel on your right. As the grandest hotel in Moscow, Ritz hosted both the current and the former US presidents and has a somewhat tainted reputation as infamous “pee”  tapes were allegedly made here.

Finally, we were at Red Square. Last night it was magically lit, but now in the morning sun, it looked totally different. Unfortunately, the fence that obstructed the wholesome view was still there, the souvenir shops were opening, and the hordes of tourists started arriving. Usually, the best view to Lenin Mausoleum , the Kremlin wall and towers is from the opposite side of the square, the grand shopping gallery named the State Department Store (yes really), but now we had to walk around the fence and get to the Kremlin side  too close to for a panoramic view. We saw Mausoleum still functioning. Although not that long as in Soviet times, the line to enter was still formidable (maybe because this attraction was free). Behind the Mausoleum was Kremlin separated from the square by a monumental red brick wall. Hovering above the wall was the top part and the baroque roof of Great Kremlin Palace

We walked to the other side of the square to see the majestic St. Basil Cathedral . While its multi-color domes became a signature view of Moscow the actual story of this unique masterpiece is rather dramatic. Built in the 16 th century as one of the wonders of the world it later was abandoned and at some point during Stalin rule designated to be blown up as it was in the way of Red Army parades. A legend says on the eve of the destruction the Moscow principal architect chained himself to the building and proclaimed that if the cathedral is blown he is to be blown as well. The demolition was canceled, the cathedral is still there. It is nicely restored and now features icons and ancient Russian artifacts. Although not originally belonging to the cathedral the interior creates the ambiance of that époque. Unlike seeing Lenin’s corps , you have to buy a ticket to visit, but it is well worth the fee.

Past the cathedral is Moskva (Moscow) river and the bridge across it. We walked halfway on the bridge to the excellent vantage point with a magnificent panoramic view of the city.

The area on the other side of the bridge is called Zamoskvorechye (Beyond Moscow river).  It was also heavily reconstructed in the 20 th and 21st centuries but feels more humane. Many great museums and theaters are located there including the famous Tretyakov Gallery . Facing Kremlin and St. Basil cathedral, on the right side we saw a somewhat awkward looking park. The “old city” that used to be in that area was totally demolished in 1960 th   to make space for the Soviet-style “ Rossiya” hotel – at that time the largest in the world. In the new era, the hotel was demolished, and a park was created in its place. The park, however, does not look great and Muscovites’ opinion about it differs. While some insist that a bad park is better than no park, others lament the old hotel saying that it’s functionality overweighed it’s ugliness as it was a moderately priced accommodation option for Moscow visitors at a great location and then it was gone. The opposite side of the hotel –turned – park offered an astonishing view of the Kremlin wall and towers. A bit further you see the main Russian Orthodox cathedral – Christ the Savior . Build initially in the 19 th century this cathedral was less lucky than St. Basil as it was entirely demolished by Bolsheviks in 1931. For a long time, a public swimming pool was located there. Then it also was leveled, and the new cathedral was built – even more significant than the original. The new cathedral is grandiose, and the inside decorations are marvelous. It is very well worth the visit but keep in mind the conservative dress is required (no shorts or mini-skirts).

From the bridge, we returned to the Red Square to see the guards change at the eternal fire by the Unknown Soldier tomb. It was about 10-minute walk passing the places we already visited, so I decided it was a good moment to ask our guide what he thinks about Putin. He answered that Putin is incredibly popular among many Russians including himself as he brought prosperity and stability to the country. In response, I gently pointed out that a lack of democracy may be a too big price to pay for prosperity which is a relative term anyway. I got a firm pushback, something like “who are you to judge,” and dropped the topic for good. Conveniently, we arrived at the change of the guards’ place and focused our attention on it. The ceremony takes place every hour on the hour and even though it is no comparison to one at Buckingham palace still entertaining to watch as specially trained cadets demonstrate their unique marching technique.

After the ceremony, it was the time to part. Marina and I had to go back to the hotel and then to the airport to fly to Croatia while our daughter and a friend stayed in Moscow and continued with the tour.  What we missed and they enjoyed was a visit to Kremlin. This fortress inside the city is the Russian president official residence, but the historical part of it is open to the public. With the general admission ticket, you see beautiful churches and some other relics like the “ Czar – Cannon ” that never actually fired. A coveted extra admission to the Armory Chamber  is somewhat challenging to get, but the guide was able to arrange it. That night Polina and a friend dined at Michelin mentioned White Rabbit restaurant and liked it very much.

That was our blitz tour of Russia. We saw so much in these three days, yet it was just a tiny fraction of what we could and should possibly see, and that was only two cities!  Do come here and stay longer, one day we will go back too, that time for a more extended visit