Double Fine releases Broken Age, has a very weird day

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It’s days like this that make me glad I don’t work in public relations.  Double Fine released their long awaited adventure game, Broken Age, to kickstarter backers today, and turned what should have been a triumphant victory lap into a scramble to control rumors and speculation.  Sound like fun?  It probably wasn’t.  Read on for the details.I’m sure we all know the story surrounding Broken Age by now. But just in case you don’t here’s an absurdly brief recap.

  • See Tim.  
  • See Tim get money to make game.  
  • See Tim make too much game.  
  • See Tim split game into two parts.  
  • See Tim use money from part one to make part two.  
  • Make, Tim.  Make. 

OK, caught up?  Good.  So anyway, part one of Broken Age was released to the game’s backers on Kickstarter today, which should have made everyone very happy.  The problem is that, along with the game, Double Fine sent a message informing the backers that they were being placed under an embargo.  In case you’re unaware, an embargo is usually something reserved for the press, and is used to keep them from talking about a game until a specified date; usually, the game’s public release date.  But Double Fine decided to take things a step further, forbidding Broken Age’s backers from writing about the game until January 27th, the same date that professional journalists would have to wait until to post their reviews.  A bit weird, right?  But not entirely unexpected, given the tremendous amount of attention the game has gotten.  Double Fine was likely in an awkward position; wanting to reward their early backers, yet protect those who haven’t bought the game yet from a deluge of spoilers.

But it didn’t take long for the grumbling to start.  After all, the internet does love righteous indignation, and a studio asking paying customers not to discuss their game was too easy a target.  So before the angry mob could light their torches, Double Fine sent out a second message to backers, telling them that the embargo has been cancelled, and that they’re free to write about Broken Age as much as they wanted.  So all’s well that ends well, I suppose.  But you just know there are a few folks out there who are disappointed that they’ll have to find someone else to be mad at.

In between all of this embargo drama, Double Fine also announced that part one of Broken Age will be released to the public on January 28th for PC, Mac and Linux.  The game will sell for $24.99, and is currently available for pre-order on Steam.  Part two of Broken Age is due later this year, and will come as a free add on when it is released.  To go along with Broken Age’s debut on Steam, Double Fine has released a new trailer for the game, focusing on Vella, one of the two playable main characters in the game.  Check it out below.

That is one pretty game. Visit the game’s official homepage for more videos and screenshots.

Thanks to VG247 for following all of the Kickstarter shenanigans.


About the Author: (@Joe_of_the_Dead) Lead Editor, Writer

Joe was born in a time of war. A console war. Two electronic titans were locked in a heated battle for the living rooms of America. Which titans, you ask? Well, the Fairchild Channel F and the Atari 2600 of course. You see, Joe is old. So many of his favorite games tend to be on the older side as well. But that hasn’t stopped him from developing unhealthy obsessions with such modern franchises as Halo and Mass Effect. Just don’t tell him how long it’s been since the original Metroid was released. His aging heart can’t take the shock.

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