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Wayward Manor review: More like Wayward Meh-nor
"Youth is no excuse for bad taste," the crotchety old house in Wayward Manor says as it watches a pair of gluttonous children chow down on sugary snacks within its creaking walls. If youth doesn't excuse poor taste, then certainly there's no excuse for Wayward Manor's bland appeal, not when it comes from a successful studio – The Odd Gentlemen – and a world-renowned author – Neil Gaiman. Wayward Manor seems as if it were a mobile game that somehow ended up on Steam for PC and Mac. Maybe it was put on Steam by mischievous poltergeists or vengeful spirits, but the fact remains that it doesn't feel, look or play like a desktop game. This doesn't automatically equate a terrible experience, but, as a puzzle game, Wayward Manor leaves much to be desired in terms of complexity, and as a showcase for the writing of Neil Gaiman, it just barely scratches the surface of the narrative depth he's proven he can provide in comics, books and online ramblings. Rather than the scritch-scritch of razorblade claws creeping out of your bedroom closet, Wayward Manor's scratches are more like the pawing of a feisty, yet de-clawed, cat.
Neil Gaiman's ghostly adventure Wayward Manor debuts in July
Developer The Odd Gentlemen have announced plans to launch Wayward Manor on July 15, 2014. Wayward Manor would be notable on its own, as the game's premise casts players as a ghost attempting to solve the mystery of his own death by scaring the current, living inhabitants of the old Victorian house where he once lived. However, Wayward Manor earns an extra level of notoriety thanks to a plot written by Sandman author and neo-goth icon Neil Gaiman. Though The Odd Gentlemen make no mention of a price point for Wayward Manor, the developer notes that the game will be available via Steam for both PC and Mac platforms. Additionally, Wayward Manor will appear on the Humble Store, where 10 percent of the proceeds from the sale of the game will be donated to charity. [Image: The Odd Gentlemen]
Sneak a peek at Neil Gaiman's Wayward Manor
Wayward Manor is a spooky adventure game written by best-selling author Neil Gaiman, with art by Eiser Award-winning artist Chuck BB and developed by PB Winterbottom's The Odd Gentlemen. If anyone needs more reason to be excited about this project, see the teaser above. If anyone is still on the fence, you're past our help. Go read The Sandman or something. Players of Wayward Manor inhabit the body (so to speak) of a ghost attempting to scare away visitors of his Victorian Gothic estate in the 1920s. Along the way, he learns more about his victims, his own death and a dangerous happenstance facing them all. Wayward Manor is due out this holiday season on Steam for PC and Mac, with pre-orders available on the game's official site, starting at $10.
Neil Gaiman enters gaming space with 'Wayward Manor'
Wayward Manor is the first game from acclaimed author Neil Gaiman, whose resume includes classics such as American Gods, The Sandman and Coraline, in addition to a myriad of other dark, whimsical sundries. Expected in the fall of this year on PC, Mac and "tablets," the game is being produced in conjunction with The Odd Gentlemen, a developer Gaiman chose for its ability to balance the cartoonish and the macabre. While no gameplay footage is shown in the introduction trailer, Gaiman does lay down Wayward Manor's premise: There is a house in 1920's New England, and it is the player's responsibility as its deceased occupant to frighten the Manor's new, still living tenants away. Pre-orders both physical and digital are available on the game's official site, in addition to various merchandise, tickets to Wayward Manor's launch party and a $10,000 dinner with Gaiman, which he describes as "the single spookiest dinner anybody has ever had ... in Los Angeles." We're keeping our fingers crossed for some heavy Amanda Palmer involvement in the game's soundtrack.
The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom is today's Steam Daily Deal
Sunday's Steam Daily Deal makes perfect sense to us -- at the end of the weekend, we often find ourselves wishing for the power to control time, to perhaps make the day a little longer, or start it all over again, or to reverse it to that one wonderful spring afternoon in 1995. The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom is therefore the ideal game to get lost in right now, especially since it's 66 percent off (just $1.69) on Steam for the rest of the day, however long you decide that is.
Codename bringing original indie games to PlayStation Home
Sony has announced a partnership with upstart independent game label Codename that will see a variety of games from indie devs released on PlayStation Home, beginning with four revealed today that are due over "the course of the next several months." The group includes Dueling Gentlemen from Odd Gentlemen (Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom) which, as its title suggests, will see Home inhabitants squaring off one-on-one in a classic battle of honor. The hook: Duels will take place live on stage in Home's Central Plaza. Addiitonally, Lazy 8 Studios is bringing its unique 3D puzzler Cogs to Home as a Central Plaza spectacle, complete with multiplayer. Super Awesome Mountain RPG -- a board game/RPG mash-up from Codename itself -- and Minor Battle, Peanut Gallery's Indiecade award-winning, team-based platformer round out what we here at Joystiq HQ are calling "The Most Excited We've Been About Home in Forever Collection." The official announcement is posted after the break.
PSA: P.B. Winterbottom now stealing pies on Steam
As anticipated, the most gentlemanly pie-napper imaginable, P.B. Winterbottom, is now stalking the windowsill of Steam. Valve confirms The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom is now available for download for $4.99 -- complete with Steam achievements, leaderboards and Steam Cloud functionality. The title -- a puzzle-platformer Indiecade finalist developed by The Odd Gentlemen and published by 2K Play -- follows the titular Winterbottom, whose hunger for pie can only be described as insatiable. Offer the man a slice of cake and he may travel back in time to before you offered the cake and write you a pleasant note about how he never eats cake. %Gallery-32537%
The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom coming to Steam April 20
It figures. Just when we were starting to get excited about never having to type The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom again, 2K Play reveals that The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom is jumping from XBLA to PCs via Steam on April 20. See, including the headline, that's three times we've had to type it already today, and this is still the first paragraph. The whimsical platformer, originally developed by The Odd Gentlemen, is being ported (with 5 new puzzles) by 2K China. If you've managed to stay ignorant of its monochromatic charms to this point, we've got a trailer for you right after the break. %Gallery-32537%
GDC 2010: From student game to success
Believe it or not, many of the best games start out as student development projects. The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom, flOw and even Portal all began life as student projects. Speaking at a GDC panel, the developers of the games listed above gave their advice on how budding student game designers can see their own projects become a success. The panel included Kim Swift, designer of Portal and currently of Airtight Games, Matt Korba and Paul Bellezza of The Odd Gentlemen (P.B. Winterbottom), and Kellee Santiago of thatgamecompany (flOw). The advice was wide-ranging, though all the panelists agreed that the best way to get a game noticed is to submit it to as many competitions and festivals as possible. Swift specifically noted that it's a good idea to literally drag people to come and play your game at festivals and shows like GDC. The game itself should "grab" players as well, with Korba saying that a festival showing of a game should be get players involved within five minutes.
P.B. Winterbottom competition underway, global pie deficit looming
When we look at the charming puzzler The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom, we don't think of it as a high-stakes competitive sport; however, 2K Play and The Odd Gentlemen recently announced a contest for the game's speedy completionists. Each week for the next month, a level from the game will be designated as a gruesome battleground, where players with the top ten fastest times will be eligible to receive P.B. Winterbottom-branded 360 faceplates and t-shirts. Click past the jump to see the four levels on which you should start tirelessly practicing your insidious pie-thieving craft.
X3F TV -- XBLA in Brief: The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom
Puzzle-platforming fans, rejoice, for The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom is here. The game employs simple platforming skills combined with time control mechanics, great music and a very unique art style. See it all in action in the latest episode of XBLA in Brief. Should you wish to take the plunge into the world of time-bending pie theft, the full version is 800 ($10). Shortcut: Download the trial version of P.B. Winterbottom [via Xbox.com] [iTunes] Subscribe to X3F TV directly in iTunes. [Zune] Subscribe to the X3F TV directly. [RSS] Add the X3F TV feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically. [M4V] Download the M4V directly.
P. B. Winterbottom traveling through time for February 17 release
According to a 2K Play press release we received late last night, a certain porcine pie thief and his time-altering puzzle-platformer, The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom, will be coming to Xbox Live Arcade February 17 for 800 ($10). To get an idea of whether or not this is news that you should get excited about, we suggest checking out our interview with Matt Korba, the game's creator. Or, if reading isn't your thing, simply watch these pretty moving pictures. Or, better yet, just read the aforementioned press release. Containing words like "buttwitt," "Chronoberry," "delicious morsel," and "sleuthing," it might just be the most phonetically pleasing piece of marketing we've ever read.
Winterbottom devs think you're tired of 80-hour games
As we get older, we find we'd typically prefer a great 10-hour game to a pretty good 20-hour game. The Odd Gentlemen – the devs behind upcoming XBLA puzzle-platformer The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom – have realized that as well and it's part of the reason they think indie devs are focusing on smaller, more easily consumable experiences. As studio co-founder Matt Korba told Gamasutra, "People are tired of 80-hour games ... so, I think the other thing about these indie experiences and these vignettes is you get something that's really good and really satisfying in a short amount of time." Even if the game length discussion isn't particularly interesting to you, the full interview is worth a read if you're curious at all about the indie perspective.
