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Shh: A Bird Story dev speaks up about pre-release silence
A Bird Story is Kan Gao's follow-up to To the Moon, a quietly emotional and surprisingly deep game about life and love that's been well-received since its release three years ago. Now, with A Bird Story launching on Friday, Gao is proud of his new game, but he feels the need to warn players that it may not be what they expect. It's simpler, he says. "The one thing that I'd like to be clear about is that I'm certainly not unsure about the game – to me, it's perhaps the one thing I've made that I'd choose if someone were to ask me to," Gao tells Joystiq in an email. "That being said, I don't expect everyone to share that sentiment (it doesn't have a more intricate story like To the Moon, for example), and I think some folks (naturally) have a certain expectation about what the next game is going to be like – I think that's what I'm worried about. I really think it's the kind of game that's best enjoyed with a blank slate." A Bird Story is a short bridge between To the Moon's first and second episodes, the latter of which has yet to be released. The series deals in time travel and the final wishes of people on their deathbeds: The main episodes feature two scientists as they enter a dying man's memories to alter events and make his final wish come true, at least in his mind. A Bird Story stars a boy who grows up to be the dying man in episode two. In a video posted yesterday, Gao says multiple times that A Bird Story is different than To the Moon – for starters, it has absolutely no dialogue. Similarly, Gao hasn't been very vocal about developing A Bird Story, providing minimum updates and releasing just one trailer back in August.
To the Moon follow-up, A Bird Story, coming Nov. 5
The follow-up to Freebird Games' emotional To The Moon is finally spreading its wings and flying toward release. A Bird Story will launch for PC, Mac and Linux on November 5, the developer has announced. Last year, when Freebird Games had anticipated a mid-2013 release for its next title, the developer pitched A Bird Story as a "narrative-driven, top-down adventure short." A press release announcing the game's new release date this week calls it "an hour-long adventure game about a boy who found an injured bird." A Bird Story is the "bridging episode between episode 1 (To the Moon) and episode 2 of the series" and will be available on Steam, GOG and other unnamed digital platforms.
To the Moon mini-episode takes flight for free today
To the Moon, the emotional adventure from indie developer Freebird Games, now has 20 more minutes of feelings and platypuses in a free mini-episode that dropped today. It's available in the Steam files, via Freebird or, if that site remains under heavy load, through these mirrors. The new episode is half holiday treat and half restitution for the delay of A Bird Story, Freebird's next game that was initially slated to launch in 2013. The freebie is a lighthearted romp in Sigmund Corp with a tiny nod to Johnny's story from To the Moon, creator Kan Gao says. "Sorry that A Bird Story's running late, but at least Eva and Neil get to make a short return sooner than expected," Freebird wrote on Facebook in December. To the Moon will have Steam Trading Cards soon, with a preview of those included in the gallery below.
To the Moon follow-up mini game, A Bird Story, set free mid-2013
Freebird Games' A Bird Story, available for PC in mid-2013, bridges the gap between stellar 2011 indie game To the Moon and its coming sequel. A Bird Story is a "narrative-driven, top-down adventure short" that chronicles the young life of the old man in the sequel, and while it is a narrative game, A Bird Story features almost no dialogue. It does have an original soundtrack composed by creator Kan Gao; check out a sample in the title screen above.To all the players expecting certain things in the next full To the Moon game, Gao says even he isn't quite sure what it will look like, but he won't develop it just to meet certain quota or mirror previous games."However, what I can promise is that I'll always be making what truly means something to me - and hopefully, to you too," he says. "I hope everyone could take them as they come, and enjoy them for their own merits."
To the Moon 66% off on Steam, Sanitarium down to $4 on GOG
The critically acclaimed (and touching) adventure, To the Moon, is celebrating the holiday today with a 66 percent off Steam sale. The price of the game has dropped to $3.39 – when you start comparing your various favorite pastimes, picking up To the Moon is just about the best emotions-per-dollar deal you'll find.If scares-per-dollar is a more valuable metric to you, then GOG.com is offering up 1998's classic Sanitarium for just a few cents more, at $3.99. It's also about memory and psychology, but it's a little less touchy-feely, and a little more grabby-stabby, if you know what we mean.
PSA: To the Moon is on Steam to make Sunday dreams come true
To the Moon is now on Steam in German, French, Italian and English, as promised earlier this month, and it's on sale for 20 percent off through September 14. With the sale, To the Moon is $8 as a standalone or $10 bundled with the soundtrack, which includes two bonus tracks not in the game.Those who purchased To the Moon direct from Freebird Games' website can snag the Steam version for free by sending an email with your order ID to steam [at] freebirdgames [dot] com. Developer Kan Gao is manually sending out Steam keys once he gets them and he asks for patience in this process.Freebird is working on the second episode of To the Moon and a "short game set in the same universe before that," Gao says. He offers a preview of a song from one of these games right here.To the Moon comes highly recommended from some of the people you trust most in the world.
To the Moon hits Steam September 7, next episode incoming
After teasing in April that a launch would happen "soon," Freebird Games' To the Moon is officially hitting Steam on September 7.To the Moon has been on our radar since last year, when it made our 2011 Best of the Rest roundup. Back then it was available on the developer's site and on Desura, but it was absent on Steam, a service with a wider audience, higher profile and where a game of To the Moon's caliber truly belonged. To the Moon will be available in English, French and German, and likely Italian and Korean, Freebird's Kan Gao says.Freebird is working on another episode of To the Moon, featuring the same doctors invading another dying person's memories in the attempt to make their patient's greatest wish come true, mentally, at least.In April, Gao said To the Moon will be free on Steam to those who purchased it previously, and that it wouldn't include Steamworks, since it's such a short game anyway. Gao confirms that To the Moon won't use Steamworks for achievements or saves, but "it's possible that a new form of cloud saves will be used."Those who bought To the Moon from Freebird's site, and only from Freebird's site, will get a Steam version for free. This will be on a request basis, since Gao has to manually email each person with a free code. He'll announce an email account for retrieving free codes once it's all set up.
To the Moon rocketing to Steam soon, play it so it's not your last regret
To the Moon is a beautiful breakout indie game – you may recall it from our previous praise in the 2011 Best of the Rest roundup – that is now officially coming to Steam, developer Ken Gao of Freebird Games announced today on Twitter.Calling the announcement "semi-casual," Gao still doesn't know an exact date for To the Moon's Steam release, but he expects it within the "next month or two." To the Moon will not include Steamworks features such as cloud saving, but as Gao says, "the game is really short, it can be played in 1 or 2 sittings."Anyone who bought the game from any other vendor, including directly from Freebird Games, will automatically get a Steam key when it launches. To the Moon is for PC only now, but Gao said he is looking for ways to resolve technical issues to bring it to Mac as well.We can attest for the brevity of To the Moon, but regardless of its length To the Moon offers a profoundly introspective, metaphysical experience. If Journey awakened your sense of spiritual fulfillment, To the Moon may be the next title to expand your universe. It's that or DMT, really, and one of those doesn't have any untested, potentially long-term side-effects.
EA adds CD Projekt RED, Paradox, and nine other publishers to Origin
When Valve introduced the hat system to Team Fortress 2, you swore off Steam forever. You're a die hard PC Battlefield player, and simply won't play it anywhere else. You refuse to use standalone clients for launching your favorite PC games. Do these things describe you? Then you're probably a big fan of EA's Origin game service, which will be getting content from 11 publishers "in the coming months," according to a press release issued by EA this morning.The first game to be added is the aforementioned Rift from Trion Worlds, with games from Robot Entertainment, CD Projekt RED, Freebird Games, Recoil Games, Autumn Games, 1C Company, Inxile Entertainment, Paradox Interactive, Core Learning, and N3V Games joining Rift's ranks soon. EA says that more specific information on pricing and release dates will be offered in the near future via Origin, so keep an eye out while you're remaining steadfast in your stance against that other major digital retailer.
