Reviews by G. Faregan
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Spaceship maintenance, October 6, 2022This is a well implemented puzzle game set on a spaceship. You play as a maintenance worker with a growing to-do list of things to fix, and in the background there are exploding space stations, rebel factions, and densely populated moons. It feels kind of like a larger and more developed version of "Fragile Shells". The puzzles are pretty good, and the game includes good hints if you get tired.
Spy thriller, October 6, 2022I really like what this game is trying to do. You are dropped into a spy thriller and must choose from a list of actions when presented with a series of tense situations. The way the story is framed and the meaningful effects of your actions provide a good sense of freedom.
Feedback for author:
I'm not sure I liked the labeling of the choices as clever/bold/open. Sometimes it didn't feel that the choice fit the label, and I'm not sure if the labels/tone were really necessary. Another criticism is that the events that result from your choices did not always seem obvious to me. When I encountered police in chapter 2 it wasn't clear that this was because of something I did earlier. I think making cause and effect obvious is good in games, even if it isn't always realistic.
Robots, October 6, 2022This game is similar to "Inside the Facility". In this game you are a robot on a mission to exterminate creepy bugs in a facility populated by various other bots. You gain several simple abilities to help you solve the many amusing puzzles. The game includes a unique map to help with navigation.
I liked it, October 6, 2022This is a short branching CYOA style game in which you play as a woman in a wedding dress driving away from an apocalyptic storm behind you. There seem to be several endings, including one branch that seemed to be longer and had a more optimistic ending. I thought the writing was evocative without being overwrought, although the apocalyptic storm that is chasing you is pretty unsubtle.
Sci-fi research facility, May 18, 2022This is largely a treasure hunt style game where you must determine where to take your current item, though there are also more complicated puzzles. It takes place in a sci-fi research facility with teleportation rooms and invisibility labs and amusing NPCs.
My only complaint is that the navigation starts to get tedious after a while as the map keeps getting larger. My ideas for dealing with this would be: include a "go to" command; include a graphical interactive map in the game; use a smaller map and reuse the rooms more.
Post apocalyptic journey, April 15, 2022The premise is that you must trek to the nearest neighboring bomb shelter to bring back a doctor (and ex wife) to save your in-labor current wife. All puzzles are of the combination lock/password style. It has a nice pixel font.
One room heist, April 15, 2022The goal is to steal a jewel from a woman in a train car. The main mechanic is changing your disguise when the train goes through a (dark) tunnel. The characters and setting are pretty great. I found the puzzles kind of frustrating.
Sci-fi duels, April 15, 2022Diminutive PC must fight a series of duels in a tournament using brains in order to win back their home planet's moon from the Flash Gordon-esque evil emperor. Uses fairly standard object based puzzles in Twine (combine objects, use object). I really liked everything about this game. Maybe it isn't Shakespeare, but I'm not sure that's a valid criticism.
Fun Western., April 15, 2022It has a good plot, pacing, characters, setting, and some fun historical facts. You must defeat 3 bad guys using various Western techniques and objects. I liked the puzzles in this game better than in the author's previous game Dynamite Powers.
Procedurally generated fantasy., April 15, 2022This game is very similar to the previous 4x4 Galaxy. It is a procedural roguelike with items and combat. It's pretty addictive leveling up your character and gathering gold.
I liked the egg., April 15, 2022It does a lot of whirring and gurgling and other amusing things. The egg is the best and only part of this game. (Spoiler - click to show)It seems like you just have to wait for the egg to repair itself to win. There are a lot of optional tasks which I mostly failed at, but you might like them if you like challenging puzzles.
Short action story., April 15, 2022This is a short linear story without puzzles. I enjoyed the good, matter of fact setting and style, and I think it's worth the 15 minutes required to play. It has monsters. It is pretty much non stop action, and maybe could have benefited from better pacing.
The player directs their friend's search through that friend's ex-boyfriend's dorm room via text message, with the purpose of coming to terms with their recent break up.
A classic game, April 15, 2022I probably shouldn't review this game because I don't really have many nice things to say about it. I perhaps optimistically hope that this is not the pinnacle of what interactive fiction can be.
Monologue , April 15, 2022I really didn't like this game. It isn't really a game, but a semi interactive monologue delivered by the excessively tedious and obnoxious Dr Bother. This amounts to a straw man argument, with the targets including post modernism and internet trolls. These things might very well be terrible, but they still deserve a better argument against them than this game gives.
Roguelike fantasy game, April 15, 2022I played this game probably longer than I should have, and was repeatedly killed. I thought it might be my own fault and tried various strategies, but overall I think the game is unfair. It doesn't give the player enough opportunities to really customize their character and develop a strategy, and some enemies can kill you in one or two moves, sending you back to the beginning of the stage. Try the author's 4x4 archipelago for something easier and less frustrating. Unless you really want a challenge I suppose. There's probably a successful strategy but apparently I'm not smart enough.
If you like these things, you'll probably like this game. There's a Martin Gardner book that combines logic puzzles with a sci-fi setting/theme you'd probably also like.
You are a vegetable, April 15, 2022You are a vegetable like the character Xan in Farscape. I would guess there are 30-40 rooms. The setting is a broken and empty moon station, and the goal is to revive the station.
Things I liked:
- It's possible to play without hints.
- Interesting and well developed world.
- Simple map that is easy to remember and navigate.
- The monster.
- Vegetable fantasies.
Things I liked less:
- Hints, about, and other common things aren't implemented.
- The bottle puzzle.
- Rotating the planet? Then again, maybe it's so unrealistic that I might actually like it.
- The snag action only seems to work on 2 objects.
Short and relaxing, April 15, 2022You are a raccoon. There is one room. The goal is to bake cookies. It is very simple and short but I find these kinds of games relaxing. I know a few raccoons and they are definitely more high strung than this, but I don't need that when I'm trying to relax.
This game is like Anchorhead - village on coast with tentacled-monster worshipping villagers and old school text adventure mechanics. It seems like something a lot of people will like if they like those things.
I only want to add that I wish that some of the Lovecraft inspired fiction focused less on the tropes and more on the psychology. It makes sense you'd become obsessed if you found an interdimensional portal leading out of the everyday meaningless universe we all live in.
“In that shrieking the inmost soul of human fear and agony clawed hopelessly and insanely at the ebony gates of oblivion.”
There is perhaps a fine line between being surprised by an unexpected revelation and being tricked. This game falls more on the side of tricking and railroading the player into playing the role of a despicable character. Why would anyone choose to play that role otherwise?
Also, stories that take place in metaphorical/allegorical settings rub me the wrong way. They generally are trying to preach to you, package some complex piece of life into a conveniently simple fantasy, or make interesting what would otherwise be obvious and banal.
Wonderful atmosphere, October 29, 2021This game is worth playing for its a magical winter atmosphere, preferably on a cold and dreary winter evening. As for the puzzles and the rest, I only remember needing to use hints and getting lost a lot.
Play as ghost, October 29, 2021Use emotions as verbs to manipulate objects, eg "desire x" to make x fly towards you. It has a kind of dark, gothic style. I'm not sure if having the house painted in bright primary colors fits the style, but it is a unique approach. I could have lived without the obligatory combination lock puzzle.
Pulp sci-fi, October 29, 2021The premise is that you are a child helping the suspiciously friendly aliens that landed in your backyard. The puzzles are classic text adventure, ie irritating. But I'm a sucker for pulp sci-fi.
15 minutes., October 28, 2021You are a tiny ninja. You go to different parts of an apartment and give the appropriate items to the correct "roommates" to help them and ultimately find the hat. It also has some puzzles involving a ninja throwing star. It is light hearted and amusing and definitely worth 15 minutes.
Economic system satire, October 28, 2021The goal is to turn the capitalist town (Goldwater avenue etc) into a communist paradise by performing the tasks on your to-do list. The puzzles are pretty standard text adventure style and can be annoying, but the solutions are pretty funny. One of my favorite games. Note: you don't need to be a communist to enjoy this game.
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