Reviews by Something Moving Under The Bed
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Take a narrowboat through fallen Victoriana dealing with encounters on the way, December 11, 2017A succinctly written but atmospheric story, where you must make decisions to survive a boat journey in a fallen world. The very limited resources work well to create tension (despite options being somewhat limited over a short story duration), keeping the journey gripping.
The setting is obscure, but unlike some stories is not overreliant on this to the point of being obtuse; here it works to remain intriguing.
Well-written linear tale with occasional options, December 9, 2017A well-written and characterised story, which is mostly linear with a few choices.
I found the build-up and scene-setting chapters actually much more engaging, giving a real sense of the people and especially the place. It was almost a disappointment in comparison to this when the story got to its main focus and quickly ended.
There is some problem with stories where you can select from multiple endings, which can cause them all to feel somehow less 'tangible' and lack the same closure.
Tantalisingly compelling but tragically broken, December 3, 2017This one is a real shame - It has a lovely style & interface, including great sound & other effects to enhance the atmosphere (though the sound volumes seem to differ a lot). The writing is good (despite some spelling errors) and the story seemed genuinely intriguing leaving me really keen to see what was going to happen...
I like the way the author doesn't feel it necessary to describe *everything* in room descriptions, just the impression pertinent to the story.
Although, it could do with more descriptions of objects that can be examined, to make immersion richer.
The author has attempted to get away from using n-e-s-w directions, though oddly only for indoor locations.
Sadly though, from a technical point of view it has some game-breaking errors; In some places the directions seem to break leaving you in weird 'non-locations' or unable to progress. Some players couldn't even progress past the car at the beginning; I tried both browser and downloaded versions, and from the comments upon several sites couldn't find anyone who had been able to progress further than the village garden.
Less seriously, there are some errors where you can answer the same phonecall twice or 'open' doors already caved in; error messages appear for some unexpected commands and it reacts very badly to commands like 'look in'. It is also VERY picky about which verbs work for things you can do- For a sheet over an object you cant 'take' 'pick up' 'look under' 'move' or 'lift' the sheet - though you can 'remove' it! The same goes for other situations.
Some room descriptions are different the second time you enter, with different directions available, which the game doesn't respond to... whether this is an intentional part of the eventual storyline is impossible to tell.
Clearly a lot of time was put into what seems like a really engaging story; but as it stands it's a tragic testament to the importance of error-testing after all the hard work... Here's hoping some day a version comes out that can be experienced fully.
Short ghosthunting game- much presentation, but not complex., January 5, 2017Lots of presentation touches and a brief writing style. (While the presentation's a nice idea, all the extra bits overwhelm the story a little).
The author clearly made effort to include some ghosthunting terminology (which is clarified in the game)- But the story really needed proofreading/spellchecking, which is very distracting in a minimalist story like this. Some good ideas, but it feels like it needed to develop further and it becomes more cliched as it continues.
Options which kill you can be fairly random, and the choices of restart point are pretty confusing...
If you play I'd recommend the downloadable version, as I got no sound in the online one.
Finally a game combining my love of creepy tales and coffee, January 4, 2017A short and simple tale, varying depending on your actions. Strong presentation helps the interesting concept to work a lot, and as your actions repeat the changes build up nicely.
Not overly complex, but well-crafted for a short experience.
A short, but original&effective minimalist tale, January 2, 2017This author really knows how to use minimalism to create an atmosphere of the eerie & the liminal...
A short piece with a novel concept, it features a limited environment but a very well implemented one, used to heighten the tension. Effectively written, and with several endings depending on what is done.
A girl who escapes to the forest and the wolves, December 20, 2016The story actually branches a fair bit, though some branches are much harder to find, and there's a lot of scope in different things you can try, as some of the achievements show. I played several times to try different options & didn't encounter any missing paragraphs or errors on my playthroughs...
I found the story quite tight, with every event contributing to the greater storyline; and there are a number of ways the finale can play out.
Thoughtful and touching, December 19, 2016A simple setup that turns out to be a surprisingly thoughtful and touching story, as long as you don't mind stories in mysterious cultures you won't fully understand; rewards attention to detail.
Too rushed and eventually falls apart..., December 19, 2016Some of the descriptions on the ship are good, but the story's too rushed to be able to build up any tension. As it goes on it starts to fall apart more, as though the author made it up as they went- some things aren't resolved, the story abruptly changes direction, and it finally just suddenly ends... and the characters' reactions aren't that believable.
There are some multiple choices that randomly kill you out of the blue with some weird unrelated occurrence.
Stolen power, December 15, 2016A short game where you're forced to make tough decisions, though you may not understand the implications of some of them at the time. Though short, the writing means it's impossible not to get emotionally invested in the outcome for the characters involved- and there are multiple endings.
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