Reviews by Cena

I mean, not much to say here. It's basically a one (or two)-room logic puzzle. Appreciated the Postscript.

'm very conflicted about Down. On the one hand, this is my second KT game (not counting Tetris) and I really like his writing. I like the ideas of his games, the way he has of evoking a particular setting, a mood, a genre convention.

But. Beyond the first puzzle, this was terribly clued. Lots of verb-guessing, reading the author's mind, and general not-sure-what-to-do-isms. On the one hand, I could also complain about the relative barrenness of the map; very little is implemented. And yet, as in Spur, KT manages to convey a lot with a little. So I can picture myself (YOU) in the tiny map, the black smoke rising in the late afternoon air, the people huddled in their little groups of misery.

What I can't do is interact with all of that very much. This is a static piece, regardless of the finale. Having sat with it for a week, it feels like an outline, almost, rather than a complete game.

There's a disjointedness in Down's puzzles and set scenes - both in terms of logic and implementation - which hasn't resolved over time. There's a hole in the center of it al, an emptiness; I almost feel like I'm watching ghosts relive the scene of their demise.

Update: I'm a maroon. Running this game requires using DosBox and the he12.exe Hugo interpreter, as well as the game file. (Thanks to Roody Yogurt for the help!)

I like the sparse yet atmospheric text, the apparent gimmick, and yet...it's a demo game, and it has defeated me.



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As of this writing in December 2022, this game won't run in the 3 terps I tried it in: Hugor, Gargoyle, and Spatterlight.

I played the Hugo port of this game, which Gargoyle doesn't like.

Out of curiosity, because I missed this back in 1995, I loaded the Inform version and...wow, this is pretty awesome.

So then I wondered if Gargoyle was the issue, and downloaded previously forgotten terp HUGOR. And lo - there it was, in all it's colorful glory. And music! I'm suffused with delight and glee! I can't get over how cool and unexpected this was. Now I'm envisioning something like Pole Position - in Hugo! This really kinda blew my mind.

Note: the current iteration seems broken both online and playing through Gargoyle. I thoughtlessly typed 'help' as my first command and led me into a (bug) cycle I couldn't escape.

Hammurabi wants whole, positive numbers only.

I remember when this came out (the Hugo port, that is), and enjoyed it. It's a different thing than the usual IF, and these days I could see it being a good base for a mini-game or something within a larger work.

This is a fun little turn-based game where you're trying to outshoot (or chase away) the bad guy. You each start with 4 bullets, and have a variety of tactical choices each turn. There's a puzzly quality about your choices, because if you (or he) shoot from too far way, you're likely to miss, but moving forward can increase your likelihood of being shot.

Simple but effective mechanics.

A different version of the Raymond Queneau classic.

This one starts off with:

"Once upon a time, there were three wee pees dressed in green dozing cosily in their pod. They had chubby, moon-shaped faces and breathed through their funny little nozzles, snoring softly and euphoniously."

vs.

"Once upon a time there were three peas dressed in green who were fast asleep in their pod. Their round faced breathed through the holes in their nostrils, and one could hear their soft and harmonious snoring." from "Un conte à votre façon,"

Not really a 'game', but rather a (charming) web-interpretation of a technique called Oulipo, written by one of the founders of that technique.

It's CYOA-esque, but at each branch you're given some choices; to continue the story, change it, or end it.

It was interesting for the 5 or so minutes it takes to go through it, and I smiled as I did.

Leaving unrated since I enjoyed the experience, and learning about Oulipo, but I don't view it as a game to be rated.