In an interesting development today,

announced that they will be publishing

this fall via

.

Tripwire Interactive is delighted to announce that it will be publishing Teotl Studios’ first person puzzle-adventure game, The Ball, through Steam and in stores world-wide. The Ball won multiple top prizes in Epic’s latest “Make Something Unreal” contest and is now following in the footsteps of Tripwire’s own Red Orchestra in making the leap from mod to full commercial release. Providing an experience far beyond what the mod offered the commercial release of the ball is highly enhanced and expanded featuring a full 6 hours of single-player gameplay.

"Tripwire Interactive is a perfect match for us" says Sjoerd De Jong, founder of Teotl Studios. "We are thrilled to work with them and are confident this deal will help us maximize the potential of our game."

“When we first tried The Ball we knew this was exactly the type of game we would like to publish – fun, creative and a blast to play” said John Gibson, President of Tripwire Interactive. “This is all the more exciting for us as the winner of the previous ‘Make Something Unreal’ contest to have the opportunity to help a winner from the latest MSU contest take their game commercial.”

About the game:
The Ball is a first person action-adventure game featuring a full single-player experience built on Epic’s Unreal™ Engine 3 technology. As a swashbuckling archaeologist working on the slopes of a dormant volcano somewhere in Mexico, you get stuck in a cavern. It doesn’t take long before you realize this is more than just a cave. You reveal ancient ruins that have been hidden from outsiders for centuries and discover a mysterious artifact, a gold and metal shelled Ball. As you progress towards solving the mystery of this amazing place you must unlock the secrets of The Ball and learn to control this ancient artifact. You will also start to encounter not just puzzles and traps, but also various strange creatures – the guardians of this mystery. These creatures also have to be overcome, using only The Ball to defend you. Venturing deeper into the volcano, you reveal some of mankind’s greatest secrets…

Key features:

• Six hours of single-player adventure
• Game mechanics that are very simple to pick up, immersing the user in the physics-based gameplay right from the start
• 8 huge levels to explore
• Includes bonus Survival game mode, with 3 additional levels
• Wide range of enemies to overcome, including mummies, an undead gorilla and boss characters
• Unique vehicles – an underground train and the mysterious “Ball Chariot”
• More than 30 secrets hidden away to be discovered, as well as multiple achievements for the player to earn
• Steamworks™ features including achievements and leaderboards The game will be available on Steam and in stores from Fall 2010. For further information on the game, visit the game website: http://www.theballthegame.com/.