I am somewhat suprised by GameSpot's reaction, given its known bias against the adventure genre. I wonder if the artistic angle of the game somehow had overly influenced the reviewer's mind.

Still, this is a very interesting game from a very interesting developer.

First off, I noticed this game on Steam back when I still used it a long time ago. I went to the website and it looked pretty neat. I know it's one of those Art Games, and yes, I am a fan of that genre (Braid is one of my favorites).

I know the storyline of it, take different little girls through a forest for different experiences each time. But I guess my questions are 1) Is the experience different enough for each little girl that I can get some decent mileage out of the game? and 2) How frightening of a game is it? I ask because I enjoy games like Silent Hill and Resident Evil.


Anyway, I saw this one mentioned over on the Dark Side the other day and thought I'd get some opinions about it before I actually set out and bought it.

I'll merge you to the member review and discussion there.
Your question might already be answered.

I don't think it was at DarkSide though - I'll check.

It depends on your definition of "decent mileage". Yes, the girls all have different stories to tell, but you must be willing to let them do so and that requires a bit of patience and some imagination. The woods have different "attractions" or "special places" for each girl but they overlap, i.e. girl 1 has place A and B, girl 2 has place C and D, girl 3 has place B and E etc. It's not scary in the Silent Hill/Resident Evil sense. I don't know any games that compare to it, but there are no zombies or other monsters chasing you. There is a dark atmosphere and a sense of imminent danger but it will almost certainly not creep you out nor give you sleepless nights. I would recommend this game to you because you say you like Art Games, but I am not quite sure you'd enjoy it because you may expect too much of it. Why don't you try the prologue first? It's not a real demo but it does give you a taste of what the game is like.
http://tale-of-tales.com/ThePath/downloads.html

Well, for a $10 game I think you will get very good "mileage" from it. I mean just wandering through the place and doing next to nothing, looking at the dreamy landscape and listening to the creepy music is worth the price of admission alone.

But beyond that there is a lot this game has to offer, albeit it delivers at a very slow pace and in a somewhat obscure manner. If you contemplate it enough and absorb its deliciously hidden sub-textures it will take you very far for such an inexpensive game.

hmmm nvr even heard of this... looks very cool... will check it out asap

Just downloaded this game and started playing. This is about the weirdest game I've ever played. (not bad weird, just weird). Has anyone else played it? So far the girl is just wandering around, picking up flowers and meeting another kid and playing. It appears you have to pick 144 of a certain kind of flower. Any opinions? Thanks.

Hi Laurette -- this is more of an interactive art experience than a game. It has very dark themes. I would normally send this thread to the appropriate forum, but I'm not sure we have one.

EDIT: Err, am I imagining things or did I just wake up in the Boomer Reviews forum?

I sent it there since that is where we put the others.

Aha! Nice to know I'm not losing my mind. Well, any more than usual.

Wow, -=sinotek=-
even if you were not right about the story, that is such a well thought out interpretation.
It's funny because I tried the demo for a short short while and thought I had a bad video card because the girl went so slow, ha ha.
Shelly
(and I didn't mean you were not right about the story)

Hi sinotek, I thought your interpretation of The Path was very interesting. I have played through a chunk of the game & thought the concept & the mechanics of it were very good.

But, never mind the controversial aspects of it, I found it incredibly tedious,& it failed to entertain me for very long - it was just too slow & far too repetitive!

There has obviously been a lot of hard work & dedication gone into making the game but if only the makers of the game could have incorporated their ideas into more of an AG rather than to me a very boring 'art experience' it would have been a lot better. Even if it had to be released episodically with each girl. Well that's my thoughts but I did appreciate the idea and wonderful mechanics of the game!

Has anyone played this game? Does it run on W7? I don't see in the list that play or not by Draclvr. Since apparently it is download only I want to make sure. I have a W7/64-bit and and old XP that runs slowly but can play almost any game. I would prefer to download it in the W7.

Also, I don't see anything in the GameBoomers about this game even when it has good reviews elsewhere, is it good? Some places say to be adventure and others action. I play both, I don't if it is in the right forum.

Mcc -- The Path is an interactive art experience that toys with gaming conventions but that isn't really a game. For a viewpoint from an adventure gamer, try this review.

Thank you Becky!