Normally games are understandable. You play them, enjoy the challenge or the story, you finish and it makes sense. Of course game may not follow real life logic but they normally fall into game logic and it still made sense to us gamers. The Path makes no sense at all. If you thought you’ve figured it out it slaps you in the face and laughs at you.
The Path is a dark and brooding take on the Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale. Developed by Tale of Tales, The Path offers you the chance to play through the experience of six sisters. You are dropped on the path with the objective of staying on the path and going to grandmothers house.
However if you do follow the path and go to grandmother house, the game inexplicably tells you that you have failed. Obviously the real objective of the game is to go off the path and into the woods. Most of the game takes place in the creepy woods off the path. Your character finds things that are interpreted uniquely depending on the sister you are playing.
Playing the youngest sister Robin for example, you see her view the mysteries of the woods in her own playful eyes. Each sister has their own characteristic and personality that shapes how they view the world. They each have their own end in which they meet the wolf that ravages them. I use the term ravage loosely as ‘the end’ is open to interpretation. This is not a game for kids or people who are sensitive to touchy subjects.
As a game, The Path is severely flawed. The camera pulls away to an unplayable position high up when you run and there really is not challenge to the game or puzzle to solve. There is a collection aspect to the game whereby, you can collect light orbs that a strewn all over the woods but it is unclear what exactly are the rewards for collecting them.
The Path is an interesting and perplexing situation for a gamer. I was recently asked by a friend of mine on what am I playing. On the question of what is was, I answered that it was an interactive fiction as opposed to categorising it as some sort of game genre. Now the game is a lot more subjective than many fictional work but it still doesn’t take away from the fact that The Path is more about the interpretation of the experience rather than the game.
Due to this very subjective nature of The Path, it may not be received well by some people that may not appreciate its hauntingly disturbing images it presents. The game is nearly pointless if seen as a game. The rewards are confusing. The ending is anti climatic.
But there is something about The Path that seems to make you think about what you saw and what you think the game is trying to say. Long after playing it, you will ponder on about it. I think I may have figured it out(no spoilers). It’s not about grandmothers house or the big bad wolf. The transition to the other sisters give you a strong sense of continuation(once you have figured it out).
The Path is selling for only USD$9.99 and if you feel you want to try something really different, The Path isn’t such a bad choice. If you want a game, you should stay away from this. It clearly is not for everyone.
The Good:
- Unique storyline
- Graphics look good with interesting use of filters on an old quake 3 engine
- Very subjective story
- There is nothing like this(apart from their previous entry called The Graveyard)
The Bad:
- Unfulfilling game
- Camera not in best position when running
- Music gets repetitious
- Controls to interact with objects can get a tad frustrating when your character does something you don’t want them to do
Retail Price: $USD10
Retail Availability: Steam
Rating: 3/5
I love how they use the swirling smoke symbols on the edges of the screen to help orient the player. It's definitely an emotionally affecting experience and it's well crafted and thought out.
ReplyDeleteAww heck, I didn't know the swirling art was supposed to mean something :P. But yeah the art looked very good.
ReplyDeleteI found the mysterious girl in white in the woods to be one of the most captivating moments in any game:P
Lots of things mean something. What the house looks like at the end depends on which objects each girl has interacted with on her way there. Even the portrait hanging in grandmother's room changes.
ReplyDelete