Reviews by J. J. Guest
Ectocomp 2014
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Smashing Pumpkins, January 28, 2015So far as I can tell, this gory tale, centred around the programmers behind 'DOOM' isn't interactive at all. There's something that looks like a parser, but it doesn't seem to make any difference what you type. The story is amusing enough, more so if you're a fan of 'DOOM'.
No place like home, January 28, 2015Circumstances outside your control force you to move to a different part of a city again and again, as described in a panoply of randomly generated passages. It's not much fun, but as a satire on gentrification and urban displacement it's quite effective.
—in the ::::: lime ::::: light :::::, January 28, 2015The most frightening of the Ectocomp 2014 games that I've played so far, Lime Ergot creates a genuinely unsettling atmosphere for all the beauty of its tropical setting. The game's main NPC, the General, doesn't do or say much but she nonetheless exerts a terrifying power.
Pharates Lost, January 28, 2015A creepy bit of body horror from the author of last year's equally disturbing Boogle. A parasite of some sort must complete a number of biological processes in the right order to hatch from its human host. I was pretty determined to beat this game but eventually my patience was spent, and I didn't choose another.
Unfinished, but intriguing, January 26, 2015There are a lot of interesting ideas here; perhaps too many for a three-hour game, since most of them remain rather undeveloped. Some typos and a missing passage suggests the author ran clean out of time, but I'd be intrigued to see a post-comp release.
Fun for a minute or two, January 26, 2015Being English I've never actually been trick-or-treating, it wasn't a thing here when I was a boy, so this simulator is the nearest I'll get to 'the most important part of Halloween' - counting the candy. It's fun for a few minutes, but could have done with a bit more variety - and maybe a few surprises.
Enjoyably Silly, January 26, 2015An enjoyably silly game peppered with David Whyld's arch humour. It might have been better without the apartment prelude; the fun really starts outside in the forest.
Quite an achievement, January 26, 2015A lovely, creepy Lovecraftian tale with some great alternative endings. Quite an achievement for three hours' work!
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