When I began this game, I heavily underestimated its authenticity and artistic potential. I will never do so again.
"Women are like forests: mysterious and full of wolves."
At first glance, you think you may understand this line. You think you've seen everything it has to offer, and that there's no other perspective that can be seen. Then you beat The Path (and perhaps study/ponder upon its meanings). After everything finally comes together, you look at the statement again, and its -entire meaning- has changed.
This process, actually, is my personal experience of the game. At first I was somewhat disappointed, and about to dismiss the game as another 'artsy for the sake of' shtick with no substantial plot or meaning. I so wrong, but I would not realize this for another three days.
Let me gloss over some objective-portions of the game. Graphically, the visuals are beautiful; two of my friends walked into my room (at separate times of the day) and -both- commented about how pretty it was. In addition, the music is hauntingly memorable as well, especially the forest-music. Everything in these two departments are clearly, nicely woven together.
I do have a couple of nitpicks, however, to be completely fair. Though I loved this game, there are aspects that I just can't deny:
1. This game is not for everyone, and I really mean this. It is very slow-paced, so you need to be a certain 'type' of person to enjoy this style of gaming. Also, it's incredibly ambiguous with its approach towards the story, so you will need to think.
2. The controls can be clunky. Also, sometimes you walk through objects (though not frequently).
3. It's weak in its 'gameplay' department, and this is because, well, there technically isn't any (you essentially just run around). That said, this game is -clearly- more about 'atmosphere' than anything else. And in this department, it is a sure winner.
But now that that's over, let me get to why I liked this game so much. My two favorite categories were blown away: story and characters.
The Path, despite being so simple, has some of the most memorable/real characters you can find. Throughout my playthroughs, I related to the characters as if I actually knew them. I felt their pain, confusion, joy, and disappointment. On top of that, the overarching theme of the game, of which I'll purposely leave vaguely as 'a story about growing up', was devastatingly powerful. The process of me 'understanding' the story was essentially:
Day a) Ugh...this game is pretty terrible.
Day b) Hmm...some artistic talent, but mostly artsy for the sake of
Day c) There might be themes in here, but they're way too superficially woven to have any real meaning
*3 days later (cumulatively), everything comes together*
d) My God, this is absolutely fantastic.
And then the line finally began to make sense in another way:
"Women are like forests: mysterious and full of wolves."
It took a lot of patience and diligence, but after finally understanding the 'true meanings' behind each of the endings, I have to say this game is truly great. (Not implying that there are 'official' meanings; the game developers seem to be against this). Still, though, I'm somewhat proud of what I've come up with.
Really, the Path is anything but a superficial attempt at being artsy. Supported with beautiful graphics and sound, The Path was like a random assortment of puzzle pieces that needed to be put together. And when you are finally able to piece together the game's intended message, the result is nothing short of phenomenal.
All in all, if you can look past the game's small technical problems and be patient enough to deal with its periodic crawl-like pacing, you can't really go wrong with the Path. Just make sure you 'understand' what's really going on before you make a rash judgment like I did because there is -definitely- something in between the lines. I wish I could say more, but then I'd be spoiling the game. There is just so much to say about this, and in a way, that alone testifies to what an accomplishment this game is.