The Stanley Parable Dev Showcase: Payment

The Stanley Parable Helpful Development Showcase is our way of connecting you to the development of The Stanley Parable by giving you a small look at what's been going on behind the scenes. Each week we'll give you a tiny peek into what it takes to make a game like The Stanley Parable, the creative challenges we come up against in the course of development, and how to not judge yourself as a person for the quality of choices you've made in your own life. These are just a few of the topics we'll cover in this incredibly useful blog series.

This week we've got an email from Robert I. of Michigan:

The stanley parable was good but it was too short. I won’t pay for the remake unless it’s longer.

Don’t worry Robert, we’ve got you covered! Here at Galactic Café know that when you spend money on a piece of entertainment you expect to be occupied by that thing for a reasonable amount of time. Besides, if you’re poor why would you want to waste more time playing video games? Get a job, hippie.

This is why I’m pleased to announce that The Stanley Parable: HD Remix will actually scale in length depending on how much money you spend on it!

Let’s look at one example: Suppose that you spend, say, $10 on the game. In that case, the narration in the game might sound something like this:

http://www.galactic-cafe.com/HDS/payment/speedA.mp3

Now let’s suppose that you spent $50 on the game! WOAH!! You’re after an experience! Here’s what you can expect that same line of dialogue to sound like.

http://www.galactic-cafe.com/HDS/payment/speedB.mp3

You see, the more money you pay the longer the game will take. If you're really loaded, a single playthrough of the game could last years!

Alternatively, you will be able to download the game for free, but that same dialogue will sound like this:

http://www.galactic-cafe.com/HDS/payment/speedC.mp3

But of course there's more than one way to affect the game's length. Loaded Lucy who spends generously on the game will find that her character's speed will be adjusted thusly:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=GLLcmPZs83U

Oh, but here's Deadbeat Dana who couldn't contribute more than a dollar. Boo hoo Dana, way to spread the pain around. You'll only get to spend a few minutes playing Stanley Parable because this is how fast your character will move through the game:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=uFxmvJfE1PQ

Beyond simply affecting the length of the game's play time, we also want to make the game a more pleasant experience for those who pay more money. So if you pay above $20, at random times throughout the game the Narrator will give you compliments! Here is one example of a compliment he might give deliver:

http://www.galactic-cafe.com/HDS/payment/complimentA.mp3

Another example of a possible compliment:

http://www.galactic-cafe.com/HDS/payment/complimentB.mp3

Alternatively, if you choose to play the free version of The Stanley Parable, this sound clip will play at random times throughout the game:

http://www.galactic-cafe.com/HDS/payment/terriblesound.mp3

Next week we'll talk about filing receipts from business expenses.