Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Living Will

Random Thought: "I didn't want to host Thanksgiving for you freeloaders anyway."

This felt like a very interesting and ambitious game, and I feel like it was the kind of game that really took advantage of its medium - a document that is dynamic and changes. I really feel like it was a great innovation. Unfortunately, I am not too ashamed to say that I didn't get it. I played several times, and I was never quite sure how I was affecting my benefactor's will, or what exactly I was choosing, or even how to tally success the final outcome. Perhaps that says more about life though, than the game?

But overall it felt more like a law student's project than a game for laymen. But I'm willing to give it the benefit of the doubt, and I'd like to see more games that take advantage of this system. Kudos!

5/10

Andromeda Apocalypse

Random Thought: "I can be the one that gets through to this Hyerotope and create peace throughout the universe."

This game was incredibly solid. It had robust puzzles, dialogue, backstory and dealt with questions of sentience and the importance of life, especially to creatures who are so vastly different from any sort of humanity. Do these creatures have the moral right to do what they want, lesser creatures be damned? Do they even care or recognize? What does this say about humans who do similar to other creatures? The antagonist was creepy in a mental way. Then there was the issue of the ship's humanity, if it had any. This game was just an enjoyable breath of fresh air: well-written and thought-provoking. The puzzles all made sense and followed an internal pattern that made sense. I enjoyed the innovation of offering unlocked achievements instead of just points - it made each point seem that much more rewarding, and gave that much more encouragement to replay. Aside from the achievements though, I felt that the game very much followed the adventure game formula, and I would have liked a little more variation.

The only thing I didn't really enjoy (and this is a small nitpick compared to how solid the rest of the game was) was the frozen monster - he must have been taking up a lot of power? Also, I am not ashamed to admit this, but I am horrible with directions, and I map each game I play. (SPOILER NEXT SENTENCE) I felt very proud of finding a solution to dealing with this monster who was always behind me - leading it in a loop that would put the monster at my back and the cart at my front. But the game did not recognize this solution, and I ended up wasting so many turns doing this that I died and had to restart from somewhere in the middle. In the end, the  monster chase didn't feel like it fit, and perhaps ruined what would have otherwise been a very high-level scifi game with a kind of scary that didn't really fit the pace of the rest of the game.

9/10

Sealed Room

Random Thought: "The lion and the unicorn were fighting for the crown... (Now I hope that's stuck in your head too)."

This game felt like a training exercise, perhaps another first attempt? I feel like I have gotten several of those in a row. If so, welcome all newbies to this wonderful world of anything goes!

But that said, players still expect a certain amount of internal logic, even when you are dealing with magic any mystery. It's important to keep track of motivations, rules, etc. These are the things that make magical stories relatable, otherwise player are asked to figure things out several times over. When you ask players suspend your disbelief, you need to stick to one clothesline, otherwise players get their panties in a bunch. (You see? That horrible metaphor was understandable because it was internally consistent.)

The other thing that players like in games is some challenge, or at least the feeling that they know what to do next. Part of this has to do with that internal consistency I mentioned. When you have a magical system and know how it works, you can anticipate what you need to do next. I suspect many of the, "talk to unicorn" obvious prompts could have been cleared up with some more dedication to creating that narrative and consistency.

But do keep writing, I think there is some good potential here.

2/10

Sunday Afternoon

Random Thought: "Will I get called a demon-child if I throw the sermon into the fire?"

This game had a really engaging beginning. I felt completely engaged and attuned to the character. The voice was spot-on and I instantly felt like a bored kid in a stuffy room. The aunt had engaging and well-written dialogue, and the scenery was well-described and interesting. I instantly felt my motivation and I felt given a good direction on what I needed to be doing.

But that's where it stopped. I wasn't able to advance the game, and even after referring to hints, I wasn't able to get past the first room. Perhaps I was missing the exact keyword to ask the aunt about, but I noticed that there was an updated version of the game, which leads me to believe that perhaps this was a bug. Unfortunately, as a purist, I am judging this game based on the turn-in date (I held myself to this same standard when I released my game). And so I don't get to play it past the first room. Without a walkthrough from the author, I can't get any further. Which makes me sad, this seemed like a really promising game, and probably would have gotten a 10/10 (which I interpret as having no faults in accomplishing everything it sets out to do, as well as being enjoyable).

6/10

Valkyrie

Random Thought: "Those kids these days with their fanfics!"

I enjoyed the premise of this game, and I think with some work it could have been a lot of fun. It had the feel of someone's first attempt, and to that end I would like to welcome the new author and congratulate them on putting themselves out there, and writing what they feel, and also assure them that there's only room for better and better games. (And if this is not a first attempt, I am sorry for making that assumption). 

 There were plenty of places where I felt that the writing could have use a cleaner or more interesting presentation. They say with art that you should, "show, don't tell", and that applies to IF Comp writing as well. So for instance, instead of writing, "You use a spell to get clean.", how could you write that without using the words "use" "spell" and "clean"? How about this: "You utter a simple combination of words, and suddenly the dirt sloughs off from your body and clothing, forming a small ring of filth around your feet. You spit out a small ball of condensed plaque, and a tumbleweed of loose hair falls from your head. Finally, you feel a slight burning sensation under your arms as your pores exude - momentarily - a perfumed mix of honeydew and vanilla." It's more work to think about describing and phrasing those kinds of details, but it really pays off in the end, and makes for a more engaging game and story.

In a similar vein, I feel that the game could have contained more CYOA player choice splits, and more obvious decision implications, but I understand that those all seriously compound how much work you have to put into the game.

Finally, I feel that mythology was a good place to a new writer to start, and I encourage more use of whatever starting material you feel is good or interesting (and legal). Good luck, and I hope that you continue writing! I look forward to more material from you in the future.

3/10

Last Minute

Random Thought: "I still like Choose Your Own Adventures."

Every year there are people who wait until the last minute to write their games. And they work hard, for a week, to pump something out quick and dirty. And probably a lot of us have been there. But it's not something that we really look back fondly upon, or enjoy as judges or players in the game. We just feel kind of sad about that silly thing we did in the past. And we moved past it and realized that you either release your best, or you wait until next year. For last year's competition, I had been working on a game for months that I pulled back on because I realized it would not be ready on time. And that's part of being a good author - learning to write hard, strive for quality, and not release anything that hasn't been polished. And as an author, this game feels like a celebration of not trying, not working, being a slacker, and an assumption that I will enjoy and empathize with that feeling. And that doesn't really evoke the kinds of feelings that make for enjoyable gameplay, on top of the typical symptoms of an unpolished game.

So please start now on your game for next year, and let's see something nice.

1/10

Castle Adventure

Random Thought: "If my map gets screwed up, I swear to everything that I am not starting a new one."

As far as IF / Text Adventure enthusiasts, I feel I am on the younger side. Perhaps that is why I do not have the nostalgia or affection for the grindfest-styled empty-room mazes. These just feel annoying and impeding to me - they are what the gamedesigner has put in to stretch out gameplay and make the game last long enough to satisfy a time quota. The grind is supposed to break up the interesting things: plot, puzzles, and potentially other mechanics. But in an Indie game competition where gamewriters have been freed from that demand for grind, I don't much see the point in including it. But I tapped out as soon as I realized what I was in for, and went straight for the walkthrough.

Which thank goodness it had a walkthrough, because I think I would have quit otherwise. Each plot point and seemed loosely tied together making sense only because someone wrote that they must, and the other characters were incredibly flat / offensive stereotypes. I feel like these games must be very near and dear to a sizable population of the IF community, but they just baffle me.

1/10

Murphy's Law

Random Thought: "If I just >WAIT, nothing will go wrong."


I liked this game. Things happened at about the rate I expected, and I enjoyed the humor. It had a pretty good level of detail too. Very solid all around. I enjoyed the juxtaposition of various elements, very deadpan delivery that really worked well with the material given. I enjoyed the papercut puzzle, and while many games can have overly complex command chains, I felt like that was really a feature and part of the humor of the game, and I really enjoyed the detail in getting my car to start. I figured that would be important later, and I think taking note of that detail prevented a bad ending, so I felt like that was a great way to work with the system and reward buying into the ridiculous system. Having a game that ends with a horrible ending can be unsatisfying, but when you are upfront about that horrible ending, it makes it part of the fun to watch it unravel, kind of like a movie you've already watched before years ago. But then again, while tapping that feeling of familiarity can create an instant connection, it also doesn't feel new or exciting.

Only in-game complaint is the typical setting of a crappy unkempt house/apartment, and a protagonist who has details like, dirty dishes but refuses a command "wash dishes". I want to wash my dishes!

8/10

The Island

Random thought: "What the fuck do you do with a winch?"

This game was a good beginning writer's game. It had puzzles, clues, decisions, and mystery. However, I call it beginner because it didn't progress much past the training stage. The story and its elements lacked descriptions, and I was left puzzling over my character's motivations or backstory. Some mystery is expected: it allows you to clarify what's important, but everything being a mystery makes the experience just feel out of focus. Perhaps the finale cleared things up, but I got stuck in the tower where I wanted to bring a bucket up, but couldn't do so. I felt clever enough when I found an unmentioned winch using "take all", but then I tried to >PUSH,  >PULL, and  >TURN the winch, but all to no avail. Which left me wondering if I was missing the obvious verb for what you do with a winch. I ended up giving up. Which made me sad, I was hoping to finish the game, and perhaps get some enlightenment on any of the backstory (the game seemed to imply I would be thrown into an endless loop repeating this puzzle). But I encourage the author to keep going! It was a good start, this is an indie competition, and the more work we get the better. Just work on more depth next time.

2/10