Ratings and Reviews by Simon Deimel

A very cute story about some kids going trick-or-treating on Halloween. A very short CYOA-game, one of the endings can be reached after a short time -- but there are different endings, so it even has replay value.
The game was written by a young Miss with some help of her father (also an IF author). It has to be mentioned that the storyline is pretty much her own creation. Of course it contains some fantastic moments, but that's fairly okay -- to be honest, I felt reminded of some R.L. Stine story, so nothing wrong with that.
I also liked the numeration of the pages -- it conveys the feeling of the old Fighting Fantasy books (in case anyone happens to remember those).
So cheers to Adelynn and her first work.

This project was an entry for the IF Art Show 2000. The works published in this context concentrate on observation without an apparent plot -- like watching a piece of art in a museum and experiencing its details.

THE VISITOR lets you visit an elderly woman in a nursing home, and you can have a conversation with her. (Spoiler - click to show)It is also useful to examine the room to find suitable conversation topics. The conversational system is basic, but adequate. According to the topics chosen and actions done, the player will influence his/her relationship to the elderly woman. The game presents the final result when it ends.

It is not a real art show, but moreover a character study. When I played it, I was eager to find out more about the woman and to attain a good relationship. In some way the story has a lot of heart.

It is recommendable for everyone who likes a short diversion; there could be more to it, but it surely meets the requirements of a short character portrait.

Yes, I get it. It is an experiment. Create a game without an actual room. It sounds impossible, but obviously here we have an example of what can be done. It is surely interesting in terms of programming, but does it contribute to the gameplay? Well, it hardly does. The game starts nowhere, in darkness; for the player it is actually like a room without a lightsource and without any exits; I could not see a difference.

The game itself consists of one puzzle which is not difficult to solve with some experimenting. The implementation of verbs is okay, I did not have to do any guesswork. There are no storyline and no characterizations at all -- the player is confronted with the problem, has to solve it, and that's all, folks.

(Spoiler - click to show)I played (and solved) the puzzle on my mobile phone for the first time, using ZMPP (which does not show the cover pictures). So I saw the picture later, and I really wonder why it was designed in such a way. It actually gives away the complete solution of the only puzzle. The picture is not only giving a clue, but shows the final objective of the game. Honestly, you would not put the picture of the arrested murderer on a film poster of a mystery thriller, would you? It would spoil the whole plot. In this case, carefully spoken, the choice of the game cover is slightly inconsiderate.

For me this was a short puzzle, nothing more. I cannot say that it is bad, but there is not much content. It may be a great experiment, but a player will probably not experience anything special. Referring to general gameplayers, it is recommendable if you like a short diversion that focusses on one puzzle.