Despite recent financial trouble, Don’t Nod Entertainment has decided to continue the tradition of marking down all chapters of their 2020 narrative adventure game Tell Me Why earlier this month. The studio has elected to make this game free to play on Steam and Xbox during the month of June to celebrate pride month every year since 2021, as the game features a transgender character, Tyler, whose identity is central to the plot. Don’t Nod made the annual announcement earlier this month via social media, as shown below.
Tell Me Why focuses on the relationship between “reunited twins Tyler and Alyson Ronan” who must “use their supernatural bond to unravel the memories of their loving but troubled childhood.” The prequel opens with Tyler as an eleven year old sitting in an interrogation room on the night of his mother’s death, ending as he admits to killing her in self defence. The first chapter, titled Homecoming, shifts to a montage of the twins preparing to see each other in person for the first time in years.
It is revealed that Tyler has spent the past decade in a youth center, receiving support for his mental health and transition. Despite the fact that Tyler and Alyson have a telepathic supernatural gift, simply referred to as their “Voice,” not interacting face-to-face seems to have dampened this ability, and it is only restored once they are reunited. Their Voice is not the only supernatural element at play, however. Both the twins’ memories of the night their mom passed away do not appear to add up with each other, with several other details seeming out of place.
There are two additional chapters in Tell Me Why: Family Secrets and Inheritance. Players must take on the roles of both Tyler and Alyson in order to make important decisions, understand each twin’s perspective, and uncover the truth about what really happened on that night ten years ago. Player choice directly impacts the ending of the game, offering two different endings.
The gameplay is relatively short, only taking about ten hours in total. Don’t Nod fans are able to snag this deal until July 1, 2026, when prices return to normal at $19.99 USD. They are not required to completely play through Tell Me Why by the end of the month; it is only necessary to save it to their game library.