The former PlayStation exclusive has stepped out

Before the inventive family drama What Remains of Edith Finch, there was The Unfinished Swan – another exploration-driven fi??rst-person adventure game from Giant Sparrow. If you never played it and you've become a fan of the studio in recent years, it's a good time to go back with fresh eyes.

Almost eight years after The Unfinished Swan's original Sony-backed release on PS3, the game is now available on PC through Steam and the Epic Games Store (for $14.99) and also on iOS (for $4.99).

On PC,? publisher Annapurna Interactive has a slight discount – to $13.49 – until September 24.

Bit by bit, you'll fill in a stark world with splashes of paint, and Giant Sparrow switches up the puzzle-solving formula in later chapters. The Unfinished Swan doesn't reach the same great heights as Edith Finch – what a perfect blend of narrative and mechanic??s – but it's worth having around for posterity.

As always, it's a pleasure to see older digital-only co??ns?ole exclusives find their way to PC.

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Probably wouldn't have played them, otherwise

When The Unfinished Swan and Journey are ported to PS4, players who own the games on PS3 will not have to pay again to experience the new versions -- Cross-Buy support is confirmed!

Someone in the PlayStation Blog comments also asked "Will it be 500 [frames p??er second]?" and that, hilariously, got an actual response from Sony Santa Monica. "I've never heard of a game that is 500FPS, but the team is targeting 60FPS," said community strategist Aaron Kaufman.

It's been so long since I've played Journey that I might as well continue waiti?ng until I inevitably get a PS4. Perhaps by then I??'ll have forgotten more of the game. That's my hope, anyway.

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Sony Santa Monica creative director teases potential releases

[Update: "Lots of people asking so I'll clarify. Was nostalgic playing the PS4 versions of the games so I busted out the PS3 to replay some others," Gary said in a follow-up on Twitter, adding he believes Journey and The Unfinished Swan still look "fantastic" on PS3.]

If a recent tease is any indication, The Unfinished Swan and Journey might just be migrating to PlayStation 4. Sony Santa Monica creative director Nathan Gary took to Twitter this weekend, posting a seri??es of photograph??s featuring the titles accompanied by cryptic messages.

The first set of images display the PlayStation 4 astride snapshots of Flower, Flow, and Escape Plan; a trio of Sony-published games confirmed to be receiving enhanced editions o??n ?the soon-to-be released console.

The string of pictures concludes with shots of The Unfinished Swan and Journey?? alongside the words "finished" and "I'm  finished." However, unlike the?? preceding photos, the PlayStation 4 isn't clearly visible in the frames.

Mind you, even if the machine appe??ared side by side with the acclaimed titles it would be a far cry from an official confirmation. That said, if Sony isn't planning to re-release the games in the near future, this seems like a long way to go just to needle fans and get people's hopes up.

[Photographs: Nathan Gary] [Illustration: AJ Hatley]

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More hot deals than can shake a PS Move controller at

Sony came out of their E3 press conference smelling like roses. Capitalizing on the miscues of their comp??etitors, the platform-holder seems poised for a resurgence this winter with the PlayStatio?n 4. In the meantime, Jack Tretton and company are showcasing their Midas touch with one of the most impressive PlayStation Store updates in recent memory.

As previously reported,  Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception,XCOM: Enemy Unknown, LittleBigPlanet Karting, and Machinarium are joining the Instant Game Collection this we??ek. Starting today all four titles will be free for PlayStation Plus Members. But that's not all, Sony is also kicking off a massive sale in celebration of E3 and there are some crazy good deals to be had.

Highlights include: Tomb Raider for roughly $20, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance and Far Cry 3 for $30, and indie-darlings Sound Shapes and The Unfinished Swan for less than a fiver. Has anyone mentio?ned that So?ny is killing it?

PlayStation Plus: E3 2013 Sale,? Free Machinarium, Uncharted 3, XCOM, More [PlayStation Blog]

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No ugly duckling

The Unfinished Swan has come a long way since it was first revealed in 2008 as "that weird game where you chuck paint at white walls." It still is th??at weird game where you chuck paint at white walls, but there's a lot more to it than that.? 

From a simple clever prototype to a more "artsy" adventure, The Unfinished Swan clearly hopes to stand tall next to other downloadable curiosities such as Flower and Journey. It comes damn close, too.

Not quite there, but close enough.

The Unfinished Swan (PlayStation Network)
Developer: Giant Sparrow
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Release: October 16, 2012
MSRP: $14.99

The Unfinished Swan is set in the remains of a long-abandoned kingdom, once under the rule of an egocentric and selfish king. Having painted most of the realm bright white, for no colors were deemed good enough for his creation, Unfinished Swan's world is?? ma??de of bold shapes, defined mostly by shadow and paint thrown around by the player. 

The first chapter introduces us to the core concept. Using the PlayStation Move remote (or DualShock 3 if you prefer), the player looks around and tosses out a ball of pain??t with a single button press. The world is completely white, but by throwing paint, the protagonist Monroe can define shapes, gradually revealing a world full of objects and obstacles. The only other color at this point is gold, used to define the footprints of the titular Unfinished Swan, a living painting created by ??Monroe's mother. The swan acts as something of a guide, as Monroe attempts to track it down. 

Using the paint, the opening chapter has Monroe find his way around a rather beautifully designed environment, the stark contrast of black on white providing a visually unique world that one can't help but be impressed b?y. This, however, couldn't possibly support a full game. The now-famous monochromatic scenario only really represents the first chapter, with the remaining three opening up to new ideas that remain thematically unified while providing vastly different experiences. 

Chapter two uses water instead of paint. By this point, the king has graciously agreed to allow shadows in his kingdom, giving the world a bit more definition, so the fire button is used to hit switches to open doors or rotate bridges in a level more about navigation and straightforward environmental puzzles. More importantly, water interacts with green vines, which twist and grow when hit. As they grow, the vines creep up walls to create tactile surfaces upon which Monroe can climb. While none of this is difficult, it's still interesting, the core idea pr?oving intriguing enough to keep the player nodding in satisfact??ion. 

Chapter three and four are difficult to describe without spoilers, so I'll just say that they throw some clever new twists out there, involving both the manipulation of light in darkness, and the use of paint?? to create one's own platforming environment. The latter half of the game becomes a bit more challenging, presenting hazards that can "kill" Monroe (death merely resets you to the last safe area, which is a few feet away at most) and demanding a handful of trickier navigational feats. Again, nothing is ever taxing, and you'll never be stuck, but the second half manages to be incredibly absorbing regardless. 

Along the way, Monroe can find and hit balloons hidden sneakily in the world. Balloons act as a sort of currency, allowing the player to buy new toys, such as a scanner that detects nearby balloons, or a hose that sprays paint balls at a rapid pace. Since the game's never about challenge, these toys won't necessarily make the adventure "easier" in any sense of the word, but they'll either make paint more convenient or fun to use, so the??y're worth checking out. 

There are also golden letters plastered to walls and floors which, when hit, uncover a piece of narration, detailing the life of the king and the ridiculous things he did to his people in the pursuit of vainglorious gratification. Although the idea of a bumbling and selfish king isn't necessarily new, Unfinished Swan's backsto?ry is charmingly presented and paints a surprisingly vivid picture of a character who only becomes more fascinating and important as the adventure progresses. It's a sweet little tale and, by the end of it, most players will feel utterly delighted. 

It has to be said that, despite only running to about two or three hours, Unfinished Swan sometimes struggles to keep up the pace. The aforementioned chapter vine sections, for example, make up a significa??nt portion of the game and get rather tired rather quickly. Constantly chucking water at greenery to watch it grow is fascinating for a whil??e, but it soon errs on the wrong side of slow. Sadly, it's probably the most overused part of the game, making up a significant percentage of the overall journey while better ideas and superior environments get far less of the spotlight. 

The lack of interaction may put off many players entirely, as no matter what chapter you're on, most of it still amounts to just chucking globs of stuff at static objects. Giant Sparrow has, however, taken a page or two out of thatgamecompany's book and made sure there are visually impressive treats to keep the player hooked. It works for the most part, but the environment just isn't quite as engaging as those seen in Flower or Journey. Unfinished Swan's world is bold and packs a visual punch, but it's also quite alienating and cold, which makes for a less hearty reward after one's spent a good chunk of time throwing liquid at pla?nts. 

My other complaint would be that, toward the end, the game feels like it's trying just a little too hard. It would be tough for Giant Sparrow to deny it's been greatly inspired by its indie peers, and it's clear that it wants to create the emotional resonance enjoyed by some of the PSN's most critically acclaimed titles. In that regard, however, parts of the final chapter seem labored, really pouring on the music and storytelling in a way that wasn't done beforehand, so it comes across as forced. Fortunately, the game pulls itself out of try-hard territory at the very end, capping things off pleasantly. It's a rock??y road a?long the way, however.  

An odd bit of dreariness aside, The Unfinished Swan is still a rock-solid game with oodles of character. While stopping short of the heights seen in some of Sony's other exclusive "art" games, Unfinished Swan remains a worthy adventure, one of many that continue to def?ine the PlayStation Network as a braver and more experimental place than the downloadable markets of Sony's competition. If it had expanded the latter half of the adventure more and focused less on the plant puzzles, it would ha?ve been near-perfect.

As it stands, The Unfinished Swan is a good ??way to casually wile away some spare hours. You can't complain too much about that. 

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PSN+ gets it October 16

Sony has announced that the paint-em-up puzzler The Unfinished Swan will be available to download on October 23. If you're subscribed to PlayStation Plus, you snarf it a week earlier on ??October 16.

The game's a damn interesting prospect. The ent?ire world is white, and you navigate it by tossing paint about to define the shapes inside it.? I can't wait to see whether or not the core concept has the longevity for a full game, though I certainly hope so. The idea's too fascinating to let go to waste. 

Sony forgot to list a North American price, but it costs £9.99 in the UK. The natural assumption is that it'll set Americans back? $14.??99.

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Yes, Pottery Barn, the home furnishings store. While showing off some concept art for upcoming PS3 game The Unfinished Swan in a session earlier today during gamescom, Giant Sparrow's Ian Dallas explained?? how they were having a bit of trouble coming up with the right feel for the game's city chapter, and how a little window shopping fixed that.

Early art for the city stage was mostly black and white, and had a feel too similar to that of the game's first stage (shown in this video). They later came closer to the desired softer feel with some two-tone grey concepts, but it wasn't un??til one of the design team members visited his local Pottery Barn that it all came together. While walking around the store he found that he liked the soft blues and pinks found in the children's section on products for boys and girls. Now the city chapter features soft, child-like blues, which fits well with the game's storybook feel and is a good counterpoint to the rest of the game. 

It pays to shop around!

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