Tale of Tales has begun production of a new videogame for PC, Mac and
Linux, scheduled for release next year.
Sunset is a first-person exploration of a single penthouse apartment in
a fictional tropical republic suffering under an oppressive regime. Set
in the early 1970's, the player, a housekeeper, visits week by week
and slowly discovers the role of the apartment's eccentric occupant in
the civil war — and her own role in his life — as the city erupts around
them.
The former philanthropist has been living a secluded life after a
military coup had stifled the arts and culture that once aroused his
passions. The thoughtful attention of his housekeeper awakens a new love
for his country and his people in him. But the ruthless government will
not be defeated with a velvet glove. Maybe she can convince him to join
the violent resistance movement that terrorizes the capital.
Against the sunset-lit backdrop of a war-torn metropolis, two hearts
meet in a fast-paced thriller. Your investigation of a person's
belongings creates a level of intimacy never far away from romance. It
is up to you, however, to decide how the relationship evolves. Will you
be a lover? A fighter? A friend or a traitor?
"It's like a shooter game where you are not the hero but one of the
people in the background," according to Tale of Tales founders and
directors Auriea Harvey and Michael Samyn. "And also that is how it
feels to live in the world today, surrounded by the evidence of war but
most of us not feeling a part of it. The game contains both empathy and
apathy. But also a feeling of being caught up in a struggle bigger than
your day to day life."
Sunset is the second biggest project Tale of Tales has been involved in
(after The Path) but is still being produced with a very small team:
Auriea Harvey and Michael Samyn design, model and program; Kris Force is
in charge of sound design; Agency, Leigh Alexander and Ste Curran's new
game development consultancy, are advising on the project direction; and
an anonymous author is helping with the story. Last but not least,
Austin Wintory is composing the music for Sunset.
Partial production funding has been acquired from the Flanders
Audiovisual Fund, that has supported most of Tale of Tales games in the
past.
Next to Sunset, Tale of Tales is preparing two other productions: The
Book of 8, a re-imagination of their very first design based on the
Sleeping Beauty fairy tale and An empty World, a collaboration with
Jessica Curry and Vicki Wong.
Tale of Tales will be available, for the curious, at the Game Developers
Conference in San Francisco where Auriea Harvey and Michael Samyn are
presenting their Nuovo Award nominated Luxuria Superbia in the
Independent Games Festival pavilion and an early prototype for that game
in the Experimental Gameplay Workshop.
More details on Sunset - The Game
