Telltale Games throws us a bone with the surprise announcement that development
of Bone is complete, and that a demo/trial version of the comic book-inspired
adventure game is already available. The 73.4 MB trial/demo can be unlocked for
the game's purchase price with no further downloads, the demo is available from
bone.telltalegames.com and mirrored
on
3D Gamers,
FileFront,
Gamer's Hell,
and
Worthplaying.
Here's the news, including word that the way the game was created allows for
rapid development of future episodes, the next of which is due in early 2006:
SAN RAFAEL, California – September 15, 2005
Telltale, Inc. is pleased to announce the immediate availability of its first
interactive tale based on “Out from Boneville,” from Jeff Smith’s acclaimed Bone
series. Visitors to the Telltale website can also download a free demo version
of the game.
Telltale, an emerging pioneer in interactive adventures and entertainment, is
making this title available through its direct-to-consumer Telltale Now™
channel, for downloading titles over the Internet. This can be accessed at the
bone.telltalegames.com URL.
The Bone adventures begin with three cousins – Fone Bone, Phoney Bone and Smiley
Bone – who become separated in a vast, uncharted desert. One by one, they find
their way into a deep, forested valley filled with wonderful and terrifying
creatures and new mysteries that await them.
Hailed by reviewers and educators alike as engaging for all ages, the Bone books
have become the anchor for a series of graphic novels from Scholastic’s new
Graphix imprint.
“I’ve worked very closely with Telltale as they’ve been developing this title
and have been very impressed,” says Jeff Smith, creator of Bone.
“They’ve done an amazing job capturing the essence of my story and adapting it
for a new medium – with great animation, voices, and fun puzzles and games
worked into the story in a very natural way.”
“We’re finding that Bone plays really well as an interactive tale,” says Dan
Connors, CEO of Telltale. “It has terrific characters, an interesting setting
and a story that hits on many different levels. It has something for everyone,
with an approachable narrative for kids; fun mini-games and puzzles; and deeper
elements for fans of classic adventures and epic sagas.”
Telltale has created innovative tools, designed specifically for rapid
development of high quality, space-efficient titles for digital distribution.
With this approach, Telltale has the ability to publish new Bone episodes
regularly, with the next one scheduled for early 2006.
Those interested in Telltale’s “Out from Boneville” can download a free demo
from bone.telltalegames.com and
other popular download sites. They can un-lock the full story for $19.99 without
any additional downloads.