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Where the Water Tastes Like Wine

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Where the Water Tastes Like Wine
Developer(s)
Publisher(s)
Composer(s)Ryan Ike
Engine
Platform(s)
Release
  • Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
  • February 28, 2018
  • Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
  • November 29, 2019
Genre(s)Adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Where the Water Tastes Like Wine is an adventure game developed by Dim Bulb Games and Serenity Forge, and published by Good Shepherd Entertainment. It was released for Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows in February 2018. In November 2019, Serenity Forge announced that Where the Water Tastes Like Wine would also be released on the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.[1]

Gameplay

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Where the Water Tastes Like Wine is a narrative-driven adventure game.[2] Players explore a Great Depression-era United States, hearing and collecting oral stories and passing them along. Stories are used as a form of progression, with characters gradually opening up to the player in response to the provided stories, which in turn allows one to learn their true stories. The player may purchase goods to replenish their hunger or tiredness, with money being earned and then spent on the aforementioned goods, or in faster means of transportation. Several means of transport are available, including walking, hitchhiking and freighthopping.

Development and release

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Where the Water Tastes Like Wine was developed by Dim Bulb Games and Serenity Forge.[3] "[Going] where the water tastes like wine" is an excerpt from the traditional American folk song "Going Down the Road Feeling Bad" (also known as the "Lonesome Road Blues"). The game was published by Good Shepherd Entertainment.[4] The game was released for Linux, macOS and Microsoft Windows on 28 February 2018.[5] According to the developer, the game's initial release was a commercial disaster.[6]

On November 8, Serenity Forge announced the game would be coming to the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on November 29.[1]

Reception

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Where the Water Tastes Like Wine received "mixed or average" reviews according to review aggregator Metacritic with the Switch version receiving slightly worse reviews than the PC version.[7] It was awarded the Developers Choice Award along with Walden, a game at the 2017 Indiecade Festival.[17] However, in the months following release, creator Johnnemann Nordhagen wrote in his postmortem,[18] "I can’t discuss exact numbers, but in the first few weeks fewer people bought the game than I have Twitter followers, and I don’t have a lot of Twitter followers," and "At the end of the day it’s astounding that a game that got this much attention from the press, that won awards, that had an all-star cast of writers and performers, that had a bizarre celebrity guest appearance [by the musician Sting] failed this hard." Nordhagen writes, "Basically, I’m not sure that games like this one can continue to be made in the current market."[19]

Soundtrack

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The soundtrack of Where the Water Tastes Like Wine gained praise as an authentic representation of Americana: The 30-track compilation spans folk, jazz, country, blues, bluegrass, and more.[20][21] The soundtrack was licensed and released by video game music label Materia Collective. A limited edition vinyl was pressed by Laced Records.

Awards

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Year Award Category Result Ref
2017 SXSW Gamer's Voice Awards Gamer's Voice (Single Player) Nominated [22]
2018 Independent Games Festival Awards Excellence in Narrative Nominated [23][24]
2019 New York Game Awards Herman Melville Award for Best Writing Nominated [25]
National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers Awards Song, Original or Adapted ("White Rider") Nominated [26]
Writing in a Drama Nominated
SXSW Gaming Awards Matthew Crump Cultural Innovation Award Nominated [27]
2019 G.A.N.G. Awards Best Original Soundtrack Album Nominated [28]
Best Original Song ("Heavy Hands") Nominated

References

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  1. ^ a b "Where The Water Tastes Like Wine is coming to consoles". VideoGamer.com. 11 November 2019. Archived from the original on 2021-06-28. Retrieved 2019-11-16.
  2. ^ a b Favis, Elise (28 February 2018). "A Soulful Journey Through America - Where The Water Tastes Like Wine". Game Informer. Archived from the original on March 2, 2018. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  3. ^ Sykes, Tom (16 February 2018). "Where The Water Tastes Like Wine flows out February 28". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  4. ^ a b Porreca, Ray (28 February 2018). "Review: Where the Water Tastes Like Wine". Destructoid. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  5. ^ Smith, Adam (28 February 2018). "Wot I Think: Where The Water Tastes Like Wine". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Archived from the original on 12 July 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  6. ^ Wood, Austin (30 March 2018). "Where The Water Tastes Like Wine was a 'commercial disaster,' dev says in painful post". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  7. ^ a b "Where the Water Tastes Like Wine for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 22 June 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
  8. ^ "Where the Water Tastes Like Wine for Switch Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 28 December 2020. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
  9. ^ "Where The Water Tastes Like Wine". Edge (318). Future plc: 118–119. May 2018.
  10. ^ Evans-Thirlwell, Edwin (28 February 2018). "Where The Water Tastes Like Wine review - the joy of sharing stories". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 29 August 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  11. ^ O'Connor, James (28 February 2018). "Where The Water Tastes Like Wine Review: Hard Travelin'". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  12. ^ LeClair, Kyle (28 February 2018). "Review: Where the Water Tastes Like Wine". Hardcore Gamer. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  13. ^ Wilde, Tyler (2 March 2018). "Where the Water Tastes Like Wine review". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 11 May 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  14. ^ Frank, Allegra (1 March 2018). "Where the Water Tastes Like Wine celebrates storytelling but loses the plot". Polygon. Archived from the original on 2 November 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  15. ^ McCarthy, Caty (28 February 2018). "Where The Water Tastes Like Wine Review". USGamer. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  16. ^ Chan, Stephanie (28 February 2018). "Where the Water Tastes Like Wine review — a few threads come loose in this intriguing tapestry of tall tales". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on 2 November 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  17. ^ "10th Anniversary Festival Awards & Honorees". Indiecade. 2017. Archived from the original on 23 February 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  18. ^ Nordhagen, Johnnemann (30 March 2018). "Where the Water Tastes Like Wine Postmortem". Johnnemann Nordhagen. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  19. ^ Vazquez, Suriel (31 March 2018). "Where The Water Tastes Like Wine Sells Far Below Expectations, According To Creator". Game Informer. Archived from the original on April 2, 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  20. ^ Quillfeldt, Thomas (8 March 2018). "Where the Water Tastes Like Wine composer on soundtracking all the USA". Laced Records. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
  21. ^ Farrell, Reilly (9 April 2018). "Where the Water Tastes Like Wine (Original Game Soundtrack)". VGMO. Archived from the original on 5 October 2021. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
  22. ^ Aviles, Estevan (31 January 2017). "Gamer's Voice Nominees Revealed for SXSW Gaming 2017". SXSW. Archived from the original on 20 February 2018. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  23. ^ Faller, Patrick (8 January 2018). "Independent Games Festival Awards Nominees Announced". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 7 January 2018. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  24. ^ Whitney, Kayla (22 March 2018). "Complete list of 2018 Independent Games Festival Awards Winners". AXS. Archived from the original on 1 July 2018. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  25. ^ Keyes, Rob (3 January 2019). "2018 New York Game Awards Nominees Revealed". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on 9 February 2019. Retrieved 7 January 2019.
  26. ^ "Nominee List for 2018". National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers. 11 February 2019. Archived from the original on 13 February 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  27. ^ Trent, Logan (11 February 2019). "Here Are Your 2019 SXSW Gaming Awards Finalists!". South by Southwest. Archived from the original on 15 February 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  28. ^ Lagumbay, Emmanuel (14 February 2019). "2019 G.A.N.G. Awards Finalists". Game Audio Network Guild. Archived from the original on 18 May 2019. Retrieved 16 February 2019.
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