
Factsheet
Developer:
The Voxel Agents
Based in Victoria, Australia
Release date:
September 20, 2018 (console, desktop)
May 16, 2019 (iPhone, iPad)
Platforms:
Nintendo Switch
Sony Playstation 4, 5
Xbox One
Steam - PC, Mac, Linux
Mac App Store
Windows Store
App Store (iPhone, iPad)
Google Play (Android)
Google Stadia
Website:
http://thegardensbetween.com
Regular Price:
USD | 19.99 USD (console, desktop, streaming) |
USD | 4.99 USD (iPhone, iPad, Android) |
Description
The Gardens Between is a single-player adventure-puzzle game about memories, friendship and time for all console, desktop and mobile platforms.
Arina, a headstrong girl, and Frendt, a boy wise beyond his years, fall into a series of vibrant,
dreamlike island gardens peppered with everyday objects that hold a special significance to the duo.
Together they embark on an emotional journey that examines the significance of their friendship:
the memories they’ve built, what must be let go, and what should never be left behind.
Designed as a homage to the enduring power of friendship, The Gardens Between places you in
control of not the characters themselves, but the force which will change and shape their
relationship: time. In the mysterious realm they find themselves transported to, cause and
effect are malleable and time flows in all directions. Solve puzzles to reach the apex of each isle
and light up constellations of memories, illuminating threads of a bittersweet narrative.
iPhone and iPad:
The Gardens Between has been reimagined for the iPhone and iPad to bloom on the Liquid Retina displays, to be intuitive to touch, and to fit seamlessly into our modern lives.
The game optimises for Metal rendering, and at the top end is targetting a sublime 60fps at full resolution on the A12X Bionic of the iPad Pro (3rd Generation).
The gorgeous compositions and scenery flourish in the additional width of the Super Retina display, and can seamlessly handle the switch between portrait and landscape views.
Player progress is immediately shared with all your iOS devices with iCloud syncing, perfectly integrates Made for iPhone controllers and offers full keyboard support on iPad.
Reception:
The Gardens Between was described as "a masterwork" by The Guardian,
“the simplest deep game possible” by hardcoregamer.com, and a game "you need to play" by Engadget.
It is one of the few games ever to pick up the coveted Apple Design Award and be included in Apple's "Best of 2018".
It also won "Australian Game of the Year" at the AGDA's, "Best Technology" at Sense of Wonder Night,
"Fiction Winner" at the Bolognaragazzi Children's Book Fair,
and "Most Innovative Game of Gamescom" by Game Two, amongst twenty more international awards and nominations.
Note for streamers and content creators:
You are welcome to share video of the game and to monetise your content.
History
Origin:
The Gardens Between, much like The Voxel Agents’ other titles, has been built with the ambition to create a game that anyone can play and enjoy.
Our goal is to encourage careful, mindful and stress-free exploration throughout the game while providing in-depth puzzles and challenges.
When making The Gardens Between we set out to tell a compelling story that players can connect to and understand,
presenting a genuine story with significant meaning and personal impact.
We aim to be respectful of the players time, to paint our environment with care and consideration
and make The Gardens Between a restful, relaxing experience.
Art & Music:
Experience the Breathtaking Art & Music of The Gardens Between with our Album Length 'Ambient Slow Trailer' at relax.thegardensbetween.com
App Store, iPhone, iPad, iCloud and A12X Bionic are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries and regions. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc.
2019 Valve Corporation. Steam and the Steam logo are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Valve Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries.
Features
- Solve bespoke and original puzzles in this gorgeous single player experience
- Manipulation of time makes cause and effect malleable
- More than twenty gorgeous and surreal gardens islands to explore
- Dreamy tale of adventure, friendship and growing-up
- Vibrant, storybook-inspired art style
- Designed for accessibility; simple controls, free from text, speech and complex UI
- Relaxing, ambient soundtrack by feature-artist Tim Shiel
- Playtime: Roughly 2 ~ 4 hours depending on puzzle solving confidence
- Mobile exclusive: play single handedly in super tall portrait view
- Mobile exclusive: play with touch screen, keyboard or controller
Videos
Out Now iOS Trailer YouTube
Story Trailer 2018 YouTube, .mp4
Gameplay Trailer 2018 YouTube, .mp4
The Gardens Between - Ambient Slow Trailer - Youtube Playlist YouTube
Images
Logo & Icon
Awards & Recognition
- "Best Game Changers of the Year" Winner - Google Play Store 2020
- "Tsuguhiko Kadokawa Prize" Winner - Digital Children's Book Fair. Tokyo, Japan 2019
- "Excellence in Art" Winner - 16th IMGA 2020
- "Apple Design Award" Winner - Apple 2019
- "Fiction" Winner - Bologna Children's Book Fair 2019
- "Puzzle Game Category" Winner - Webby Awards 2019
- "Gamer's Voice Award" Finalist - SXSW 2019
- "Mac Game of the Year" Winner - Apple 'Best of 2018'
- "Game of the Year" Winner - Australian Game Developer Awards 2018
- "Tech Award" Winner - Sense of Wonder Night Tokyo 2018
- "Excellence in Visual Art" Finalist - IGF Main Competition 2018
- "Best Gameplay" Finalist - Adventure Gamers Aggie Awards 2018
- "Best Concept" Finalist - Adventure Gamers Aggie Awards 2018
- "Best Setting" Finalist - Adventure Gamers Aggie Awards 2018
- "Best Animation" Finalist - Adventure Gamers Aggie Awards 2018
- "Best Non-Traditional Adventure" Finalist - Adventure Gamers Aggie Awards 2018
- "Top 5 Best Games" Indie Arean Booth 2018
- "Best Of MIX - Audience Award" Winner - MIX Seattle 2018
- "Most Innovative Game of Gamescom" Winner - Game Two / Rocketbeans.TV 2018
- "Excellence in Visual Art" Finalist - BIG Festival 2018
- "Game From Across the Ditch" Finalist - Play by Play NZ 2018
- "Excellence in Visual Art" Finalist - Freeplay Festival 2018
- "Indie Showcase" Winner - PAX Australia 2017
- "Excellence in Game Design" Winner - Busan Indie Connect (BICFest) 2017
- "Grand Prix Award" Finalist - Busan Indie Connect (BICFest) 2017
- "Excellence in Art" Finalist - Busan Indie Connect (BICFest) 2017
- "Excellence in Experimental" Finalist - Busan Indie Connect (BICFest) 2017
- "Best of GOW" Winner - Game on Weekend 2016
- "Main Competition" Finalist - IGF China 2015
- "Final Selection" Out of Index Experimental Games Fest 2015
- "Best Visual Art" Finalist - Freeplay Festival, 2015
- "Best Design" Finalist - Freeplay Festival, 2015
Selected Articles
- "A miniature meditative masterwork. This time-bending story is an impeccably crafted minimalist model of video game and puzzle design."
- Oliver Holmes, The Guardian - "The Gardens Between is a masterpiece of minimalist storytelling, creating a shockingly moving, personal experience. Featuring a gorgeous, surrealist style and challenging but fair puzzles, this is a must-have title for anyone who enjoys puzzle games."
- A Kay Purcell, Gaming Trend - "Infectiously adorable characters. The warm and fuzzy feelings from start to finish ensure that your memories of playing it will live on. "
- Peter Brown, GameSpot - "Along with mind-boggling goodness, the presentation is fantastic. Smooth animations, an obscene attention to detail, and a beautiful soundtrack. Sure to make for a real memorable experience."
- Peter Glagowski, Destructoid - "The team have gone above and beyond in evoking the smaller, somewhat forgettable aspects of youth."
- Brodie Fogg, Finder - "The time-traversal mechanic doesn’t just play into the puzzle elements of the game. It also functions to service this metaphor of nostalgia in which you’re going over the same memory over and over."
- Tina Amini, Mashable - "There are only a handful of games on the App Store that have this level of polish, confidence and clarity of vision."
- Harry Slater, Pocket Gamer - "It never stopped showing me new, beautiful, and incredible things. Go play The Gardens Between without giving it a second thought"
- Campbell Bird, 148 Apps
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Additional Links
About The Voxel Agents
Boilerplate
The Voxel Agents create delightful games that unravel in surprising ways. Headquartered in Melbourne, the studio was founded in 2009 by Simon Joslin, Matthew Clark and Tom Killen to create games that kindle curiosity with a passion for highly focused gameplay.
The studio and its games have been awarded many prestigious design, art and audio awards, including the coveted "Apple Design Award", and "Game of the Year". The Voxel Agents first established their success with the release of Train Conductor and followed with Train Conductor 2 USA, Train Conductor World and Puzzle Retreat, with over 17 million global players enjoying Voxel Agent games. The team released the highly anticipated title The Gardens Between across all console, desktop platforms in 2018, and iOS in 2019.
More information
More information on The Voxel Agents, our logo & relevant media are available here.
The Gardens Between Credits
Henrik Pettersson
Game Director
Soft Science
Art Director
Matt Clark
Tech Director and Executive Producer
Josh Alan Bradbury
Designer and Animator
Brooke Maggs
Writer and Producer
Tim Shiel
Musician
Simon Joslin
Executive Producer and Level Designer
David Little
Programmer
Jessica Brett
3D Modeller
Daniel Olsen
Audio Designer
Jackson Wood
Additional Programmer
Sam Wong
Additional Programmer
Maya Kerr
Additional Programmer
Contact
Journalist Inquiries
simon@thevoxelagents.com
Customer Support
support@thevoxelagents.com
Business Development, Job Applications
pr@thevoxelagents.com
Twitter (The Voxel Agents)
http://twitter.com/thevoxelagents
Facebook (The Voxel Agents)
http://facebook.com/thevoxelagents
presskit() by Rami Ismail (Vlambeer) - also thanks to these fine folks