Tale of Tales announces pricing of upcoming indie horror gameWhen The Path is released through Steam, Direct2Drive and Tale of Tales' own website on March 18th 2009, it will cost $9.99. This is considerably less than other PC games of a comparable scope and budget.
"It was a difficult decision to make," say creators Auriea Harvey and Michael Samyn. "Ideally we'd prefer to just give our work away. But that is not an option with The Path. So when it was time to decide on a price, frankly, we had no idea. How can you put a value on something that is such an important part of your life, that is the fruit of such hard and dedicated work? And what should the price be of a product that is unlike anything available on the market? In the end, we decided that the most important thing to us was that many people play the game. So we didn't want price to stand in the way of that."The Path is Tale of Tales' first experiment with commercial games publishing. An experiment involving the creation of a new type of game experience for a new type of player. In search of a new kind of economy, where authors and players support each other without outside interference. It sounds like a naive ideal but it is certainly a dream they share with many independent game creators. Sales of The Path will determine the future of Tale of Tales. And as such, the future of a type of exploration of the medium that not many developers are involved in.
Much like Tale of Tales' other productions (including IGF finalist The Graveyard), The Path does not offer the player challenge through complicated game rules or grand goals. It's not an action-packed adventure that leads to certain heroic victory. Instead it offers a sincere meditation on the subjects of choice and consequence, temptation and duty, growth and change, and life and death.
"We think the audience is ready for a game like The Path. Gamers have spent enough time in war zones and on race tracks now. We think they are ready to appreciate a more modest and introverted experience. We also believe that a lot of people who have been standing on the sidelines of game culture so far, will find something that they can truly appreciate in The Path. It's obviously a big risk. But if we don't do it, who will?"
The Path is a contemporary interpretation of the ancient tale of Little Red Ridinghood. It features six sisters -Robin, Rose, Ginger, Ruby, Carmen and Scarlet- who are sent, one by one, to their grandmother's house on an errand. Grandmother lives on the other side of a path that is flanked by a dense forest, equally foreboding as it is inviting. Will the girls obey their mother's explicit command of staying on the path? Or will they stray and meet their doom? Do they really have a choice?