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[Lurk]

When indulging in my first foray into the truly artistic game world- by working on Life,a game by Lurk- I had started 3 different sketch projects as a first draft. I managed to tie some loose ends on my second one, which I am proud to unleash onto an unsuspecting world. This one is heavily inspired by the always popular 'the Graveyard' it's shaggy doppleganger, 'the Gutter'. So sit down, grab a box of tissues and let yourself be consumed by the endless gameplay possibilities of 'A Sad Tale'.



VERSION 1.6
Fullscreen version
http://www.box.net/shared/dixfqug2p8
Windowed version
http://www.box.net/shared/ej46mhrk3o

Controls:
Arrows to move around
Z- to cry
X- to pick up objects, release to throw
C- to use objects

[MaloEspada]

Sad game

I got these endings:
-Died on snow
-Drowned
-Beaten up to death

Which objects do you pick up?
EDIT: Never mind. Got a wooden stick and killed my ma

[sergiocornaga]

I've had a bit of a play around, but no happy ending yet. Of course, I'd be surprised if there was one, but I always try to look.

[William Broom]

It's a pretty good game. I like how you've included some 'art game' ideas, but within a proper narrative rather than the abstract/metaphorical deal that we usually see.

I quit after I finally managed to blow myself up. Kind of a good ending, since I killed my father as well? I never found out how to get drowned, though - maybe it's possible to drown your father?

Also, is it intentional that your father can punch you so hard that you fly through the wall?

[increpare]

I find the cynical-art game genre to be interesting in general (in that they tend to inspire very conflicting emotions, where I can find myself appreciating them in spite of vehemently disagreeing with their their politics). 

I haven't managed to figure out all the possible sadnesses yet. : (

[sergiocornaga]

I find the cynical-art game genre to be interesting in general (in that they tend to inspire very conflicting emotions, where I can find myself appreciating them in spite of vehemently disagreeing with their their politics).

Interesting you should say that. Playing this I found myself thinking a lot about your game Missing. I'm interested in this alleged 'genre' for similar reasons to you, I think.

[Eraser]

I've:
Been beaten to death
Frozen to death
Led my parents outside (and they didn't die )
Run away from home
Blown myself up
Watched as my dad continued to beat my mom's dead body (which I killed)
Blown up my house and then ran back inside to see my mom burning in a corner. I died trying to save her.
Blown up my house and then run away from home
Led my parents out of the house, blown it up, and then been beaten to death in the snow.

When you're knocked on the floor (about to die) you can still throw stuff. Might be unintentional, but is still pretty interesting. Also, moving objects can sometimes be twitchy.

Very nice and complete though.

[deadeye]

I find the cynical-art game genre to be interesting in general (in that they tend to inspire very conflicting emotions, where I can find myself appreciating them in spite of vehemently disagreeing with their their politics)

Eventually everyone will realize that cynicism towards art games is itself a legitimate topic for creating an art game, thereby ironically negating the cynicism in a logical feedback loop and rendering the creator an "artiste" of the type he so cynically seeks to deride, which simultaneously widens and yet bridges the gap between the art-game and non-art-game camps by lending credence to both sides.  Polarizing as his creation is, the cynic thus becomes creator and destroyer, Alpha and Omega, and the cycle continues... never breaking, but spiraling wider and wider, out of control, while the ghost of Marcel Duchamp watches on, giggling maniacally to itself.

Would but the cynic realize that to extinguish this flame (which is his goal), he must not by dousing it with hate, nor stoking it with love (for both love and hate are fuel to rejuvenate the fires of contention), but should allow instead the wind of indifference to carry it beyond himself, and once free seek it not further.

Or, uh... yeah, downloading now...

Edit:
Ugh, I can't see shit.  Is there any way to zoom the screen?

[Kepa]

I find the cynical-art game genre to be interesting in general (in that they tend to inspire very conflicting emotions, where I can find myself appreciating them in spite of vehemently disagreeing with their their politics). 

I haven't managed to figure out all the possible sadnesses yet. : (

Wait, what makes this a cynical-art game?  How can you tell?

Ugh, I can't see shit.  Is there any way to zoom the screen?

Eventually everyone will realize that not being able to see shit is itself a legitimate topic for creating an art game.

[increpare]

Wait, what makes this a cynical-art game?  How can you tell?

Lurk has vocally expressed his distaste for many games which are classified as "art games" (though maybe not the genre). 

That said, he also recently said

But I really, from the bottom of my heart have to admit that I'm starting to feel a bit out of it recently; I don't get it-  non-games(or art games ).

Given this, I would guess that, if not one of pure cynicism in intent, that at the very least Mssr Lurk has very mixed feelings about the game he has produced here as an example of Art.  But he's here, so maybe he can clarify for himself.

[Lurk]

This is not an art game. I made the original design as a critic of art games, but I made Life to fulfill that role. This one has been introduced as a lark, but is in fact a part of real research I'm doing for a future game. I don't dismiss every game experiment/art game as useless, I just don't think they are necessarily 'progress'.

This game is my own experiment into trying to progress beyond the scoring/dying/extra life paradigm. For example, there is no lifebar, but you can still understand your character limits after a few tries. I want the player to be able to have a real impact on what's happening - how the story ends is entirely up to you. Right now, there are only a few factors determining your experience- but imagine if it is duplicated- let's say there's a neighbor's house, a car, a dog and a doghouse. Let's say these elements also have their own agenda; you might run to the car and cry, and someone gets out, the abusive father hot on your trail. They start to argue and fight on the side of the road, while you cry. Then a van runs you over. It's still very abstract, but it's something I want to explore, micro-situations that can be expanded into a lot of experiences.

Only a fool would stick to a polarized opinion without at least checking the other side out.
 
I'll update it with a few more 'toys' soon.

[TheDustin]

As far as finite-state games with minimal interaction go, this is better than Dan Benmergui's stuff. As a tragedy this works well, and I hope you continue to elaborate on this theme. Dan's games like I Wish I Were the Moon are interesting experiments, but since they're so... well, finite they have limited appeal. If you keep on building upon this I think you could design something with substantial gameplay.

[increpare]

Cool.  I look forward to seeing what more things you add to this.

Is anyone else getting a cannon-fodder-ish vibe from the graphics?  : P

[Kepa]

Wait, what makes this a cynical-art game?  How can you tell?

Lurk has vocally expressed his distaste for many games which are classified as "art games" (though maybe not the genre)[...] Given this, I would guess that, if not one of pure cynicism in intent, that at the very least Mssr Lurk has very mixed feelings about the game he has produced here as an example of Art.  But he's here, so maybe he can clarify for himself.

The "creator's intent" part of art games always rubbed me the wrong way.  That is, a stated intent of the game being more important than the game taken by itself.  Then again, I'm not a huge fan of "conceptual art" in any form.

This game is my own experiment into trying to progress beyond the scoring/dying/extra life paradigm. For example, there is no lifebar, but you can still understand your character limits after a few tries. I want the player to be able to have a real impact on what's happening - how the story ends is entirely up to you. Right now, there are only a few factors determining your experience- but imagine if it is duplicated- let's say there's a neighbor's house, a car, a dog and a doghouse. Let's say these elements also have their own agenda; you might run to the car and cry, and someone gets out, the abusive father hot on your trail. They start to argue and fight on the side of the road, while you cry. Then a van runs you over. It's still very abstract, but it's something I want to explore, micro-situations that can be expanded into a lot of experiences.

Seems like an interesting experiment.  A game with a vague but easily understood goal of a happy ending that probably doesn't exist.  You should definitely expand upon this.

I couldn't figure out how to drown, but I did learn how to set the house on fire.  Then I went through a few games trying out different scenarios of setting the house on fire.  I tried murdering one parent but not the other, and also setting the house on fire without hurting anyone, then running to the road.

Cool.  I look forward to seeing what more things you add to this.

Is anyone else getting a cannon-fodder-ish vibe from the graphics?  : P

I got a cannon fodder vibe from the cry animation and sound.  That was a great game.

[s0]

Only a fool would stick to a polarized opinion without at least checking the other side out.

Our opinions may differ (as you know), but I gotta say I like your attitude. 

micro-situations that can be expanded into a lot of experiences

This sounds very interesting, I hope you keep at it. I was actually planning to make an "anything can happen" text adventure game some years back (never materialized though) and this sounds a lot like that.

Also, I just got another idea: how about you make the game's events proceed to a certain extent after the player dies? I might be interesting to see how the other characters react to your death, for instance whether the father regrets abusing you etc. It's something that hardly any games deal with and it might fit the theme well. Just a thought.

[Lurk]

CASinclair-

how about you make the game's events proceed to a certain extent after the player dies?

It's an awesome idea, and one that is quite easy to implement: by default, the game continues even if the player dies(it was possible for hypothermia killed characters to be 'reanimated' at some point). I put a deathclock to accelerate the gameplay, but I think it would be an interesting twist if the characters actually reacted to your death. I'll add it in the next version.

[deadeye]

So there's no way to zoom it to full-screen, then?

[googoogjoob]

i was attracted to this game by the concept and the screenshot and the controls

but then i started it and it changed my resolution to something ridiculously tiny, thus resizing all of my open, non-maximized windows and shoving them into the top-left corner of my screen

i was forced to alt-f4 repeatedly until i could see again

please fix this so that i might be able to be moved to tears by this tale of pathos

[Lurk]

mhh, I'll make a windowed version for those of you who have problems with the resolution resize.

[Eraser]

mhh, I'll make a windowed version for those of you who have problems with the resolution resize.

Well, I mean f4 can make it windowed... but I do wish you would cut out all of the black so that when full screen is activated it is completely scaled up. It was still playable for me, though. I still use a crt monitor at 1024x768, so nothing was too tiny.