8

8 is the game that started Tale of Tales. Our name came from the title of a book that contained a nice version of Sleeping Beauty, the fairy tale that this game was based on. We had to abandon the project when we couldn't find funding for it in 2005 but we came back to with fresh ideas in 2011 and plan to finally release it some time in the not too distant future.

8 Alpha 1 (2002)

The very first game prototype we ever made. Featuring the first appearance of the Girl in White using animations based on motion captures of Michaël's daughter, Martha, then aged 5. And home made physics to push chairs around.

8 demo VAF (2002)

An expansive demo of the entire game world that we used to convince the Flemish film fund that videogames deserve arts funding too. Click to tell the Girl in White where to go. Click and drag to tag along. Or move the camera independently with the cursor keys. Double click to move the girl to that spot immediately. Press the CONTROL key to get close to her. To jump to another room, hold down the N key and type a room number. To see the room numbers, press the I key.

8 demo 1 The Formal Dining Room (2003)

A single room demonstration of the look and feel we were going for. Controlled in the same way as above. Right click to pick up or put down and object. Left click and hold down on the servant sleeping on the floor to see her dream.

Girl in White portrait (2003)

This is just a portrait of the Girl in White, idling in the garden of the palace. We love our little girl. She was originally called The Deaf Mute Girl In The Pretty White Dress and was inspired by a photo of Auriea as a child.

Poussière Sidérale (2003)

Back in 2003, people still used CRT monitors! We had programs called screensaver to prevent a static image from burning into the screen while the computer was not being used. We found screensavers a great medium for art and made many at the time. This one is a collection of particle systems we had designed for 8.

8 demo 2 The Theater Gallery Tragedy (2004)

This is a more expansive demo that we worked on with a larger team, also to illustrate the look and feel. It includes one of the "tool puzzles" that Chris Bateman came up with (move your cursor to the left of the screen when facing the barred niche in the wall and cut the rope). Same controls as above except left click to pick up objects and right click to put them down. Press SHIFT+U to toggle between dirty and new state (and to run the fountain). Press SHIFT+E to toggle display of an overview of the entire palace.

Beauty, Sleeping (2011)

7 Years later, we had ideas for a new game based on the same premise. This prototype is controlled with the thumb sticks and shoulder buttons of a gamepad. You may need to configure the input to match your device. Instructions are depicted in an overlay on the screen. Move the left stick to look around. Hold the bottom right shoulder button (trigger) to hold the Girl's hand. When holding the Girl, moving the left stick controls her . If you let go, the girl will walk around and do things on her own.