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‘Stanley Parable’ and ‘Gone Home’ devs team up to form Ivy Road studio
Annapurna Interactive will release the first game from Davey Wreden and Karla Zimonja's studio.
iOS game sale offers discounts on 'Journey,' 'Flower' and 'Donut County'
You can save on a bunch of Annapurna Interactive titles.
Throw the couch, there's a Fly In The House
A new trailer for Fly In The House shows just why lone developer Mykhail Konokh calls it an "exploration and destruction" game that parodies Fullbright Company's own exploration game, Gone Home. In Fly In The House, you become obsessed with a nagging, buzzing insect's presence and take up arms against the nuisance. Much like Coffee Stain Studio's Goat Simulator, Konokh's game rewards players with points and ranks when they toss any item in the house they find at the fly, trashing the place they call home. While not officially on Steam Greenlight yet, Fly In The House's concept page notes that players will also "search hidden objects" and "reveal the mysteries" of the main character across varying game modes. Check out the trailer after the break. [Image: Mykhail Konokh]
Stories we tell in quiet houses and alien invasions
Video game experiences aren't wholly relegated to what designers have deliberately laid out for you; through gameplay, a unique narrative emerges. We all have our own stories: a car chase in Grand Theft Auto V, a battle within a hidden cave in Skyrim, an ore-rich chasm in Minecraft. These discoveries highlight the promise that, if we just keep looking and keep testing a game's boundaries, we might find something that's uniquely ours. Thanks to franchises like BioShock, Fallout and Grand Theft Auto, the idea of player-driven narrative is being explored in different ways. From collectibles to character customization and sprawling open-worlds, video games today are littered with tools people can use to manufacture stories that belong only to them. But that doesn't mean the role of the developer has been in any way diminished. On the contrary, designers now have more work to do than ever, subtly and precisely tailoring their games so that players can get a full experience without feeling like they're being led by the nose.
Terrorists invade Gone Home in new Counter-Strike map
If you felt that critical darling Gone Home featured too little gameplay and not nearly enough gunplay, today's your lucky day: A Counter-Strike fan going by the name of "Nipper" has recreated Gone Home's idyllic suburban location within Valve's beloved first-person shooter. Designed for up to 32 players (but recommended for far fewer), cs_gonehome essentially transplants the tenets of Counter-Strike into the meticulously detailed home that served as the setting for Gone Home. Each new round sees players purchasing weaponry and gear before setting out to hunt down the opposing faction, while hostages are spawned at random each time the game resets itself. Despite this, many commenters on Steam are quick to point out that the design of the Gone Home house doesn't lend itself well to Counter-Strike's gameplay. Complaints range from a lack of lighting in the cellar, to too many areas in which campers can hide and narrow corridors that make Counter-Strike's most overpowered guns even more effective. "There are several ways in which the map doesn't work all the well in [Counter-Strike], but that's hardly the point, I think," writes Steam user Space Hamlet before describing the map as "a fascinating intersection of the design of two games." [Image: Valve]
Humble Indie Bundle returns with Gunpoint, Gone Home
Humble Bundle breaks away from its recent mobile focus with a new Humble Indie Bundle, offering up downloadable PC versions of SteamWorld Dig, Gunpoint, and Gone Home for a buyer-chosen price. Pay any amount for Humble Indie Bundle 12 and you'll get stealth-puzzler Gunpoint, hack-and-slash dungeon crawler Hammerwatch, and mining-themed sidescroller SteamWorld Dig. Beat the average purchase price (currently $7.38) and you'll also get Fullbright's atmospheric exploration game Gone Home, monochrome shoot-'em-up Luftrausers, and immigration inspector sim Papers, Please. Humble Indie Bundle 12 also offers an Early Access key for Prison Architect with purchases totaling $10 or more. Bundle proceeds benefit the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Child's Play Charity. [Video: Humble Bundle]
Gone Home going to Wii U, says Nintendo manager
For more on Gone Home, check out our review. (The Unite 2014 video is below the break as well as the text from the image for anyone who has difficulty reading it.)
Life is Strange: Ambiguous young love among leading ladies
Life is Strange is DONTNOD's second game ever – it's also the studio's second game starring a woman, following 2013's Remember Me. "That's not us trying to be different for the sake of being different," Creative Director Jean-Maxime Moris said during a demo at Gamescom. "It's not as if we're trying to 'fix the industry.'" And Life is Strange is so much more than "a game with a girl in it."
Gone Home Boxed Special Edition goes international on July 3
Those who haven't already enjoyed the critically-beloved Gone Home via digital distribution can pick up the game at retail in a new "Boxed Special Edition" which arrives on July 3. Developer The Fullbright Company has teamed with Merge Games to release the Boxed Special Edition to stores in the UK, Ireland, Italy, and Benelux and Nordic countries, alongside international releases in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the Czech Republic. If you live outside of these regions but still want to get your hands on the Super Nintendo-inspired packaging, Merge Games will also offer the Boxed Special Edition via its website. Alongside a DRM-free version of Gone Home, the Boxed Special Edition includes that snazzy packaging, a Steam key, sticker, poster and art book. Pricing varies based on location and retailer discretion, but Merge claims the game will be available in the UK at £19.95, other European regions at €24.95 and in Australia for $29.95 AUD. [Image: Merge Games/The Fullbright Company]
Gone Home co-creator opens new studio 'Dim Bulb Games'
Johnnemann Nordhagen, the programmer behind critical darling Gone Home, has opted to form his own studio. "Hi Twitter. I'm starting a new game development studio: Dim Bulb Games," Nordhagen recently tweeted, alongside a link to the new studio's website. Visiting that URL offers no further information on the developer's plans, though it does offer an official logo and a notification that Dim Bulb is "[a]n independent game studio based in San Francisco." Alongside his work in Gone Home, Nordhagen's resume also includes the Minerva's Den DLC for BioShock 2, an addition that many fans hold in higher regard than the original game. [Image: Dim Bulb Studios]
Gone Home and Papers, Please sweep Games For Change Awards
The Games For Change Festival hosted its annual awards ceremony on Wednesday night, honoring socially conscious games in three categories: Most Innovative, Most Impactful, and Best Gameplay. Game of the Year, the fourth and final award, was given to a game that embodied all three categories. Some 140 games were nominated, and a panel of experts in gaming, media, education and philanthropy whittled those selections down to eight finalists. Lucas Pope, though not in attendance at the awards, dominated the stage. Papers, Please, Pope's brutal game about playing a border crossing guard in the fictional communist nation Arstotzka, won both the Most Innovative and Best Gameplay awards. Speaking with Joystiq via email after the awards, Pope shared his thoughts on why his game seems to resonate so strongly with players. "It puts players in an unfamiliar position and asks them to make difficult decisions with no easy answers," said Pope. "The subject matter is unique enough to get people interested, so the challenge for me was to hook them early with the core gameplay, then build on that with an interesting story." Most Significant Impact, the award given to games about social issue that also encourages players to develop empathy and respect for the subject, went to Electric Funstuff's The Mission US: A Cheyenne Odyssey. Mission US simulates life for the Northern Cheyenne tribe as it confronted the institution of Native American reservations in the 19th century. The Games For Change Game of the Year award was given to The Fullbright Company for Gone Home, their divisive first-person adventure. Steve Gaynor and Karla Zimonja accepted their award in a brief video message which, as the ceremony's host put it, may have been the first ever selfie acceptance speech. Papers, Please and Gone Home both received year-end accolades from Joystiq and numerous other outlets. Lucas Pope offered some insight into why games that address social issues are gaining traction amongst players. "I think the changing audience is related to generations and technology," explained Pope. "I grew up playing games my entire life so they're a natural form of expression and entertainment for me. I don't necessarily look to games for only straight up fun times, and I'd say most of my generation is the same way. At the same time, the tools and resources to create games have exploded in the last five years. It's much easier now to make smaller games that reflect personal experiences. With more games like this being made, there's naturally going to be an audience to play and enjoy them."
Papers, Please, Gone Home, and more named finalists at the 11th Annual Games for Change Awards
The 11th Annual Games for Change Festival kicks off in New York on April 22, shining a spotlight on video games and developers pushing the medium not just as quality entertainment or educational tools but as venues for social justice. On Tuesday the organization announced its finalists for the Games for Change awards, honoring eight games for their gameplay, innovation, and their impact in highlighting specific issues from underage drinking to the dangers faced by migrants crossing the US-Mexico border. At least two nominees were amongst Joystiq's favorite games of 2013.
The Last of Us high-fives at BAFTA awards, indies do well too
The Last of Us only delivered wins on half of its BAFTA Games Award nominations, but since it was nominated ten times, the Naughty Dog game didn't do so bad. The Joystiq Game of 2013 picked up the Best Game award at last night's ceremony in London, along with Best Story, Action & Adventure, Audio Achievement, and Performer - that went to Ashley Johnson for her portrayal of Ellie. Other big-budget games did well with Grand Theft Auto 5 and Tearaway both walking away with three awards, but it was also a good night for indie games. The Gone Home team went home with Debut Game, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons won Game Innovation, and Papers, Please stamped its name on the award for Strategy & Simulation. For the full list of nominees and winners, head over to BAFTA. Also, be sure to check out Steam's one-day-only sale on a selection of the nominated games. [Image: Sony Computer Entertainment]
Gone Home headed to consoles this year from Majesco's indie label
Indie developer The Fullbright Company announced that its landmark first-person adventure game Gone Home is coming to consoles this year. Majesco will publish the console version of Gone Home via its recently-launched indie label Midnight City. Specific release platforms have not been announced, though writer and designer Steve Gaynor notes that further details will be revealed in the coming weeks. Gone Home placed at #6 in Joystiq's "Best of 2013" rankings, with our senior reporter Jess Conditt calling it "a deeply personal, moving story" and "a feat of subtlety and game storytelling." [Image: Majesco / The Fullbright Company]
Gone Home finds 250K sales, most on Steam
Gone Home, the emotional exploration game from indie studio The Fullbright Company, has sold 250,000 copies, founder Steve Gaynor tells Joystiq. Roughly 80 percent of those sales were through Steam, he said, and 50,000 of them were in the first month. Gone Home was a favorite of ours last year, hitting No. 6 on our Best of 2013 list – but not everyone shares our taste for suburban mystery and familial letter-writing. On our first DICE podcast this week, Gaynor discussed the suggestion from some players that Gone Home "isn't a real game," during which he shared the following story: Gone Home Designer Karla Zimonja was heading home on the train in Portland, and she had an email from Gaynor open on her phone with the game's name in the subject line. Someone read it over her shoulder and tapped her arm just to say, "Oh, Gone Home? Yeah, I don't think that's really a game." Hilarity ensues on the podcast after that tale. The first DICE podcast also features Rami Ismail of Vlambeer and Davey Wreden of The Stanley Parable (a game that suffers from a similar player response). [Image: The Fullbright Company]
Joystiq's Four in February is upon us, behold our staff picks
February is a forbidding land, full of winter darkness and noisome Valentine's Day traditions that are only slightly balanced out by a steady trickle of new games. That's why Joystiq's very own Mike Suszek created Four in February, a gaming event to unify the world against the month's doldrums. Here's how it works: Pick four games to finish in February and then try to finish them. That's it. No crazy rules, no limits on what you play. Just choose four games and take them on with gusto. That's the 4iF way. The best part of 4iF is how we all get to share the struggle, though. We want you to go to the 4iF Facebook community page and tell us everything. Show us pics of what games you're playing, tell us why you're playing them, let us know when you're streaming them, and most importantly, proclaim your victories or failures. Meanwhile, over on Joystiq's Facebook page, we'll be running 4iF giveaways every four days throughout the month starting Tuesday, Feb. 4. On Twitter, we'll be tracking the action to those who shout @joystiq using the hashtag #4iF. This is war on our gaming libraries, and this is our solid battle plan. What's the staff playing? Read on.
Dorkly unleashes a trailer for Gone Home's ideal DLC, Gun Home
Gone Home - it's a nice enough experience. We guess. We said you'd leave it "with a spring in your step" in our review, but you know, like, whatever, man. Still not a game. You know? Games are about fun and stuff. Thank goodness Dorkly is here to reveal Gone Home's (totally not really being made) DLC, "Gun Home." Go on, click through and watch it after the jump. Now this looks like a game. In Gun Home, Katie returns home again ... and this time, it's personal. Katie's sister has been kidnapped by terrorists, and it's up to Katie - backpack full of shotguns and kick-ass - to get her back. OOO-WA-AA-AA-AA Go home, everyone (see what we did there?). 2014's Game of the Year is already here, and it's not even real.
Gone Home, The Last of Us, Tearaway top GDC Award nominations
The finalists have been chosen for the 14th annual Game Developers Choice Awards. This year's group runs the gamut from unassuming indies to AAA blockbusters, and encompasses all the best wonderful and weird experiences of the past year. The Last of Us, Tearaway and Gone Home lead the pack with five award nominations each. Other standouts include Device 6, The Stanley Parable, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons and Super Mario 3D World – all of which were among our favorites from 2013 – along with Lucas Pope's Papers, Please. You can check out the full list of nominees, along with honorable mentions for each of the ten categories, after the break. The winners will be chosen at this year's Game Developers Conference in San Francisco on March 19, 2014.
Joystiq Top 10 of 2013: Gone Home
Team Joystiq is barging into 2014 with a celebration of last year's best games. Keep reading throughout the week to see our assembly of ingenious indies and triple-A triumphs. Gone Home breaks gaming conventions to the point that critics (and some fans) hyperbolically question if it's even a video game, really. It's not narrative-driven – it is narrative. Much of the game plays out in the sparks of the player's synapses, filling in the story told by the notes that Kaitlin, our protagonist, finds scattered around her family's abandoned home. The notes come from her sister, Sam, in 1995 as she enrolls at a new school and meets the love of her young life. Each note is heartfelt and raw, as if ripped from the pages of a best friend's diary, and reading them becomes an almost-guilty obsession and the crux of the gameplay. Though we never play as Sam, she becomes the main character, and her tormented teenage life – complete with feminist rock, Street Fighter arcade cabinets and self-discovery – becomes the game's stage, though we never leave the walls of her deserted home.
The Queue: Gone Home
Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. Late last night, I decided to play Gone Home. It turned out to be one of the most beautiful experiences I've ever had in gaming. I highly recommend it, but don't go into it expecting a game game. It's telling you a story, but asks you to find the pieces. And now, The Queue! @piersont28 asked: What's Blizzard's policy on printing Warcraft art for personal use? I.e., a poster of the box art or my toon?
