Reviews by Kinetic Mouse Car

The Acreage is an oddball sci-fi game that slowly grows on you. You are Lain Bellets, a mercenary born in the Pisces constellation. A man named Desmond hires you to escort him and his companion Isaac to a monastery on a planet called Surst.

Isaac is unlike anyone you’ve ever met. Childlike stature, sickly pale skin, mechanical eyes, and black wires growing from his scalp. He communicates via a device hidden in his clothes and only speaks in verses… and he’s taken an interest in you.

But your ship, The Vigil, was damaged after escaping a scuffle with law enforcement. The three of you are now stuck in Bluèl, a city on some nondescript world.

Gameplay
Gameplay revolves around the end goal of getting your ship in working condition so you can leave. This means navigating the city and networking to find individuals who can help you. There are just over a dozen locations. You begin in a seedy motel room.

A CLINIC and GROCERY STORE are nearby. A short flight of stairs leads to a PAWNSHOP. Between two buildings you see a small TENT, firelight still flickers from within. A VENDOR stands by her STALL, holding out various trinkets for sale.

ISAAC huddles next to you, wrapping his tunic close in the cold.

Exits are listed at the bottom of the screen. A built-in map is also available. It is a Quest game (fortunately, the website now allows you to save without an account).

While I do wish that more scenery could be examined, the game does reward the player for noticing certain details. For example, (Spoiler - click to show)you listen to the men gambling outside the shacks, you get another dialog option when talking to the seer.

The coolest feature is probably the three characters who exist inside your head as colour-coded dialogue: Synapse (yellow), Animus (blue), Sinew (red).

Familiar voices echo within the architecture of your being.

I’m not sure if they are A.I.s or something more abstract, but they contribute guidance and humour, sometimes even disagreeing with each other. They are especially helpful in making sense of Isaac’s cryptic manner of speech. As a result, I was never lost and always knew what my immediate objectives were. Plus, they’re fun characters. Like when we spot a stunningly beautiful person in the bar.

SINEW: Wow.

ANIMUS: Wow indeed.

They also serve as a moral compass, weighing the pros and cons of available choices.

Story
Backstory
Humanity resides throughout the constellations of the zodiac. The space between them, if I’m not mistaken, is called the “acreage.” Sometime ago, all sources of starship fuel were destroyed by an unknown agent, preventing travel between regions. This event was known as the Divide. Deprived of trade and commerce, many civilizations died out.

Thanks to the invention of “fold engine” technology, travel has been restored. But the Divide’s left regions vulnerable to exploitation by corporations like GasTechnin that seek to monopolize and control workforces. Just listen to what the citizens of Bluèl have to say about life there. (Spoiler - click to show)The parasitic secretary expects us to work 10 months at a gas refinery just to leave the space port.

Immediate story
Initially, it appears that Isaac is Desmond’s “sidekick.” It’s actually the other way around.

Nonetheless, I really enjoyed the ideas contained in this story. I won’t spoil it, but the things Isaac reveals about himself are shocking and kind of cool. A recurring joke is how people assume that Isaac is your son.

He looks over at Isaac and beams a smile in his direction, seemingly unconfused by small figure’s strange appearance.

“We also have plenty of roles for children eager to earn some spending money.”

The volume of Isaac’s silence seems to suddenly increase.

With Isaac, there are also some philosophical, perhaps even religious, themes associated with his character. We get the sense that he is (Spoiler - click to show)on a mission for a higher purpose regarding the acreage. He hints that you can be a part of this, if you so choose.

Endings
The game’s description says that there are multiple endings, but I only found two. Without going into detail, they align in the fashion of (Spoiler - click to show)“do you go back to your old life or do you try something new?” I’m curious to know if there are any other outcomes.

Visuals
Its appearance is of a black background and primarily green text. The font does take some time to get used to, but this is offset by key words being displayed in white text and in ALL-CAPS. Cleverly, the screen changes when you (Spoiler - click to show)access the office terminal.

I did find spelling errors (the game is currently Version 1.0.)

ISAAC leavevs and waits silently for you at the bar's entrance, simmering with angy.

Then again, I suppose there is a lot of text to proofread in this game.

Final thoughts
Some games, when you play them, feel like an easy five stars. With The Acreage, its potency snuck up on me. It wasn’t until I reached the end that I realized, “I love this game. What a great experience.” The appeal is hard to pin down. It feels more surreal than other sci-fi games I’ve played. Its depiction of space travel is especially interesting. And Isaac. Odd… but elusive. As I said, it grows on you.

It certainly helps that the gameplay has features that guide you in the right direction. That way, you can complete it and decide whether it resonates with you. I noticed that the game begins with “PART ONE: OLD BEGINNINGS.” Does this mean The Acreage is only the first installment? I hope so.

This is what you trained for all your life. This is what your squadron died for. The expeior queen, helpless, at your feet.

Helpless, she is not.

The Selfish Gene is a sci-fi game about dealing the final blow, only for victory to remain out of reach. Perhaps violence isn’t the answer. But what alternative do you have when Earth and the human race is on the line?

It’s a submission to inkJam 2025, though made with Unity instead of Ink.

Overview
Earth has been taken over by the expeior alien race, aka “expys.” Meanwhile, humanity has taken refuge on Earth’s moon. You are Captain Aster on a mission for the Human Resistance. Your task is to infiltrate the alien mothership and slay the expeior Queen, Queen Ismin. By your side is your squadron and Lieutenant Latif, your friend and military engineer.

Gameplay
The gameplay uses a cyclic trial-and-error structure. It kicks off with the characters breaking into the mothership’s hanger. You then choose which of the ship’s six locations to explore. However, locations can only be visited once.

The Queen is camped out somewhere onboard. She’s able to control time locally, allowing her to escape death, as shown in the opening scene. The protagonist kills her, only to find himself outside the ship with his crew, moments before the infiltration begins (they are at least vaguely aware of this).

Same deal with the gameplay. If your showdown with the Queen ends in failure, you are sent back to the beginning.

THE LANDING - AGAIN

Therefore, the objective in the gameplay is to experiment in the order in which you explore the ship’s locations to maximize your chances of success against the Queen. Each failure informs the next “loop.”

Mechanics
Choices are made by selecting a card from a spread shown at the bottom of the screen. Cards determine how you approach a task, and include things like “Violence” and “Smarts.” The cards you receive at the start of each cycle will also change.

Nothing fancy, but streamlined and quite easy to learn.

Story
The human vs. expeior war is an intriguing one that we know little about.

I do wish there were more backstory. Not only is this a war, it’s an interplanetary one. However, its coverage in the game feels one-sided.

Despite coming off as the default “bad guys,” the more you examine the expeiors, the more complex they seem in their motives. For example, (Spoiler - click to show)Queen Ismin says, "I do want to preserve the Earth," and agrees that its preservation is of greater value than trying to win at all costs. Her concern feels genuine. If the player succeeds in their negotiations, the situation becomes a matter of “I’ll put my weapon down if you put down yours.” So, maybe there’s some hidden depths there.

As for the title, I interpret it as considering the other side rather than merely focusing on what you have to lose or gain. The game has four endings. I found all of them except Ending 2.

Visuals
The visuals are awesome. When I first played The Selfish Gene, I kept thinking, wow, this game looks really professional. The characters look cool, and while we only get a glimpse of expeior biology, it seems that they can come in variety of physical forms. (Spoiler - click to show)Poor Vicky looks like a dehydrated stalk of celery. I would love to see more.

The screen is divided into three columns. The middle one is for text. To the left is Captain Aster and his allies, while everyone else is displayed to the right. If you gain a new ally, they move to the left side of the screen. Cards are colour-coded with neat symbols. Even the clickable map of the ship was impressive!

Final thoughts
The Selfish Gene offers a gameplay experience that felt new and innovative. A good use of Unity’s visual abilities. Arguably, the game is an equal mix of combat and diplomacy, and the character art and card mechanic are notable features. And while it’s not a “time travel game,” it does borrow the looping structure used in games like Vicious Cycles where you repeat the gameplay and learn from failure. If you like choice-based sci-fi games that rely on visuals, definitely give The Selfish Gene a try.

There are parts that could use refinement. I noticed more than a few spelling errors. Additional context on the interplanetary war would also give the story needed perspective and make it less one-sided, but that fortunately (Spoiler - click to show)doesn’t stop successful negotiation from feeling satisfying. As the game puts it: It’s a start.

Growth under the Dome is an Ink game that describes itself as a “Solarpunk coming of age story.” A compelling story, but also one that is hobbled by various issues.

Being a submission to inkJam 2025, it appears that the author created an improved, post-comp version of the game. According to its itch.io page, this is identified as Growth under the Dome - fixed. My review will be based on this version.

Overview
Everyone lives in a structure called the “Dome.” Life thrives, but has rigid societal roles. Reminiscent of the Divergent series, the transition to adulthood occurs in a ceremony where young people publicly select the role they will have for the rest of their life. This ceremony serves as the game’s intro. The ceremony involves placing a wood tablet engraved with one's name into one of four baskets: farming, maintenance, lake management, and record keeping/public speaking.

The night passes, and you certainly enjoy this last party as a child.

Tomorrow, you’ll wake up as an adult.

The time has come for you and your peers to make this decision.

Gameplay
After the ceremony, gameplay moves in monthly increments. At the end of each month, the game asks where you want to do next. It’s (highly) expected that you stick with the role that you initially chose.

What will you be this month?

Sun Director (level 0)
Lake Tickler (level 0)
Dome Fixer (level 0)
Voice Lender (level 2)

I will be none of that

However, switching roles, while frowned upon, is not forbidden (slacking off is also an option). The game makes it clear that you must change roles to advance the story. A happiness mechanic is used to illustrate this.

You sense it’s taking a toll on your moral and your body.

(-1 happiness)

The aim is to sample each role to discover a new insight about the Dome, opening up opportunities to cause mischief and better understand the Dome’s limitations. With enough persistence, (Spoiler - click to show)it’s possible to leave the Dome entirely. Otherwise, the game ends with the Cloudmouth festival, 21 months after the intro.

Unfortunately, the gameplay doesn’t always acknowledge the player’s choices.

Your second month as a Sun director flies by… People seem to avoid you since you left and came back.

Left and came back? I was only here for two months! When the Grassgrowth season begins, your friends inform you that your constant switching of roles is making people nervous. Except, this conversation still occurs even if you never switched.

Story
Backstory is scarce with only brief mention of an “Accident” prior to the Dome’s construction, but it’s not enough to answer basic questions we may have. Was it built in response to a natural or human-made disaster? If we break one of the roof panels to see outside, we glimpse a thriving wilderness, not a wasteland. But people are more interested in remaining in the familiarity of the Dome where the sun is displayed on the ceiling via a control panel. I am curious about the history behind all of this.

My main frustration is how the story starts out strong concept but starts to deteriorate and towards the end. It loses focus.

It would have been interesting if the game elaborated on the purpose of singing. Apparently, singing is used to direct sunlight to crops among other applications. I wonder how that works.

Characters
This game also reminds me of The Giver in the sense that there is a growing divide between the protagonist and their peers when it comes to questioning the status quo of the world they live in. In both works, there is an “outside” world said to be full of danger. Fortunately, everyone is content to stick to their assigned roles in the safety of a sequestered community. The protagonists find themselves at odds with said community when they start asking questions that no one wants to consider, especially questions about (Spoiler - click to show)leaving.

It’s suggested that the game’s protagonist is somewhat of an outsider. They seem to have a history that sets them apart from everyone else. The closest answer get is through the protagonist’s relationship with their mother. She wants them to follow expectations and adhere to tradition. Apparently, something happened to their father. He is dead, although their mother is strongly in denial of this.

The protagonist’s central trait is their rejection of conformity and how they challenge the taboo of changing roles. Why should one’s life be determined by a tablet in basket? It leaves no room for flexibility. The game does a nice job in conveying the quiet scandal people associated with such abnormal choices. Everyone’s all did you see that? They changed roles! Meanwhile, the protagonist shrugs off any disapproval, though they do find themselves growing apart from childhood friends.

The bottom line is that the protagonist doesn’t fit in with the society inside the Dome. (Spoiler - click to show)They want out. Only then will they have room to grow.

Final thoughts
It seems that solarpunk stories are becoming more common, and I’ve enjoyed playing games like Growth under the Dome.

The game’s overall premise is intriguing because it allows players to choose their own role in a structured society and whether they want to commit to it or go against the grain. By choosing the latter, we get an exhilarating sense of freedom anytime we break the rules. The protagonist’s imagination of the outside world is contrasted with the stifling life inside the Dome, (Spoiler - click to show)setting stage for when they finally leave it all behind.

That said, it has glaring flaws that detract from the experience, even as a post-comp release. Besides the implementation and narrative issues that I’ve already discussed, there are a lot of spelling and grammar issues, particularly with formatting dialogue. But as a coming-of-age story with a slight sci-fi bent, Growth under the Dome is still worth your time.

Begscape is a Twine game about traveling from city to city and begging for coins to afford food and shelter. Begging is nearly the only action in the gameplay.

It is morning. Shelter costs 5 coins. You have 2 coins.

Beg

You beg for coins with the hope that you have enough at the end of the day. Otherwise, you sleep on the streets which worsens your health. You can either keep begging in the city or move on to the next one. Unless the locals kick you out first. The cost of food and shelter depends on the city. The game ends when you die.

While some players might find it too repetitive, it’s actually quite engaging and not entirely without strategy. Cost of food/shelter can range from 4 coins to 9 coins. My strategy involved moving on from the more expensive cities. However, it's possible to encounter hazards while traveling. And even if you find the game to be overly repetitive, the temptation of achieving a new high score may make it difficult to step away. In one playthrough, I lasted 23 days!

A prominent theme is the societal dismissal of people in need. While Begscape does not go into detail, the cities’ population inherently frowns upon your presence. Some individuals may give you coins, but most are content to look away or take advantage of your vulnerability. And sooner or later, you get thrown out. It is such that you are stuck in a continuous cycle of begging to afford basic necessitates with no way out.

Someone kicks over your bowl and grabs your coins. You lose 4 coins.

The gameplay briefly touches on the stigma around homeless people, such as the belief that they only spend money on drugs and nothing else. In addition to being homeless, it we battle other taboos. Notably, our gender.

A mutant beekeeper walks by, mocking your gender.

While there is no further elaboration on this, it nonetheless connects back into the subject of gender identity and judgement which is often found in Porpentine’s work- as is the usage of random generation for NPCs and scenery.

Begscape is a game that you can find yourself visiting time and time again due to its simple central mechanic and the temptation to replay it for a higher score. The protagonist’s situation gives you things to think about.

It’s late at night and mr. leg can’t sleep. Solution: find milk.

This is an extremely short Inform game. Lunch break game? More like a snack break game. Acquiring the milk involves one puzzle.

The author nailed the prose. The lowercase letters and grammar effectively convey the uncomplicated world of mr.leg. I was impressed with the minimalist approach and how it informs the narrative and gameplay. The peaceful nighttime ambience was memorable, along with the cover art.

In conclusion, mr. leg needs some milk demonstrates what can be achieved when you focus on only cultivating what you need to tell the story. Whether this succeeds is often hit or miss, but the author of this game makes it work.

GROWBOTICS is a Twine game about a fictional product of the same name. A workbench that can craft anything using intangible and abstract ingredients.

If you believe the hype this machine is capable of anything.

At least, that’s what you’ve been told.

Gameplay
We begin by unpacking the workbench. The game involves combining primary “essences” to create secondary ones, both of which can be combined to produce a final product, such as a Surprising Electric Eel. You then choose to create something new, end the game in disappointment, or end feeling satisfied with your creation.

YUCK, try AGAIN | NOT HAPPY but I'M DONE | YAY! I love IT

Except, this ends up being one-dimensional. The hint guide, which I recommend using, lists over 500 combos. I was excited by what was listed- Whale Song, Costume Design, Popular Science Book- only to learn that, aside from having cool icons, what you create is irrelevant to the game’s outcome. In fact, the only choice that makes a difference is when you customize your workspace at the start of the game (see Story).

What’s the point of crafting more complex items? The game gives the impression that your choices matter more than they do, and that’s the source of disappointment. As a result, there is little incentive to experiment which is a shame since I can only imagine the amount of time the author spent putting it all together.

It wouldn’t be so bad if your final creations were preserved instead of discarded. It reminds me of app games that use the similar mechanic of combining elements to make intuitive products (ex. combine two trees to make a forest), icons included. Except, your creations are cataloged so you can keep track of them. In GROWBOTICS, these creations go into the trash if you decide to craft something else.

Implementation
Despite its simplicity, the gameplay can be frustrating. I wish the listed the combinations for your secondary essences because order matters. Otherwise, you have the issue of “did I choose Liquid + Solid or Solid + Liquid?” You can check the hint guide, but this becomes tedious. Initially, I kept playing just to see the icon imagery.

You have reached your maximum quota of 20 secondary essences. Switch mode or reset.

…but this was the final straw that led me to stop playing. To be honest, I almost had more fun reading the impressively organized hint guide.

Story/Characters
The game takes a novel approach to character customization. Your identity is linked to the location of your workspace and determines the story. There are 36 locations, from “blanket fort” to “religious cell.” You can be a researcher on the moon, a vampire in a gothic mansion, an anthropomorphic plant person, and more.

A large cardboard box is sitting in the middle of your secret lab.

Eh.

A hyperdimensional cardboard box is sitting in the middle of your cyberdwelling.

Better.

There is replay value in seeing what stories are associated to each identity.

Endings
Earlier I said that what you create has no effect on the game’s outcome. Technically, that’s not the case for a few locations. It’s superficial, however.

You discuss your biodegradable solenoid valve over a plate of scones with jam and cream, and everyone seems quite taken with it.

Your creation is inserted into the scene without any regard for context. Even if it did have a meaningful impact, the lack of a save function discourages tinkering with these outcomes, leaving no choice but to restart and recraft the basics just to see what would happen if you end the story with an Organic Cosmetic Surgeon.

What I enjoyed most were the outcomes when you reject the workbench.

Themes
This is where the “purposeful” part of my review title comes in. I think GROWBIOTICS does a nice job in conveying the idea of imagination, ingenuity, and the benefit of having a space that is all yours and enables your creativity.

You like to let your sensations have free reign and remind you that you're worth indulging.

Although I suppose this goes in the opposite direction if we decide that the workbench is useless. Still, it embodies the sense of “anything is possible if you put your mind to it.” And if that means crafting a Tall Planet in your greenhouse, so be it.

Visuals
The weaker parts of GROWBOTICS are somewhat offset by the slick, aesthetically pleasing visual design. As a Twine game, it makes a great first impression. Despite the underwhelming gameplay, I had a difficult time stepping away because of how it looks.

There are two colour schemes available, both of which have backgrounds with patterns that add flair without being distraction. It almost gives a “science-like” feel. Text is easy to read and links use trendy colours. AND THE ICONS! I love icons. Every final result has its own icon.

Final thoughts
My title is meant more out of affection.

Some parts I really liked and I was impressed with the author’s commitment in implementing hundreds of makeable items. Unfortunately, any strengths are hindered by the game’s shortcomings. The selling point is product creation, but once this central mechanic is revealed to be superficial, the appeal goes away. Despite the game’s great overall concept, its major flaws result in an unfocused finished final work.

That said, I do think it offers a fun first playthrough. You may not stick with it for long, but it is worth playing for the initial experience. Perhaps you’ll find inspiration in the visual design or character creation. And if you enjoy games that involve crafting things from basic resources, GROWBOTICS may especially interest you.

Mars and Earth are at war. Mission 193 was just another mission sent to the Red Planet. Its objective was to take control of the Martian military.

It didn’t go well. To avoid bad press, Mission Control claims it was successful.

But you’re not buying it. And so, you’ve infiltrated a government database to find out what really happened.

A Bare-Bones Jam 2025 entry.

Gameplay
Mission 193 left five soldiers isolated on Mars. The gameplay involves listening to their individual audio recordings. These are listed by last name. Mitch. Fox. Rook. Olsen. The fifth is Lain, but she doesn’t have any.

UIF_M_193_W1 : Sol +7, 17:30:26 MLT : User: S. Mitch

This is not a database that you search and explore. Logs are made available in groups, or “waves,” and must be listened to in order before you can access the next wave.

[Team Logs now available]

I’d categorize Martia Termina as a passive investigation game. You’re just there to read the logs. Interactivity is surface-deep. Progress is made by tapping/clicking on the screen to read each passage. I’m not against this. However, games that follow this format can have a harder time maintaining the player’s attention. This was the case for me.

At first, I couldn’t follow the story. This is partly my own issue. I need to read things more than once before it clicks. But the implementation certainly didn’t help. For one thing, the screen only displays whatever is currently being said. It then disappears.

A. Olsen [What did you want to ask anyway, Fox?]

The “history” feature displays a transcript- extremely helpful- but only for recent dialog. If it has a scrollbar, it doesn’t work. Furthermore, when you access a new wave, everything before it is no longer available. As for autoplay mode, the slider that controls its speed is stuck at the slowest setting. All of this makes replays a drag, even with the single save file.

Story
Backstory is minimal. Mars is inhabited by an alien species whose tech is sought after by Earth. Mission Control serves as Earth’s leadership, or at least where the Mars-Earth conflict is concerned. Its personnel are quickly discarded once they are no longer useful.

It took me a while before I could follow the outline of the story because the logs aren’t always in chronological order. Out of curiosity, I want to know what players think:

Characters
I don’t think the PC is ever identified. Our role is to be an anonymous protagonist who simply witnesses the truth. And we sure do.

Martia Termina focuses on building tension between characters. Take a group of soldiers and isolate them on Mars after a tough mission. Next, have them answer to an entity that cares more about material gain than human lives. Finally, add distrust, in-fighting, clash of personalities, ulterior motives, and you will get this game. Oh, (Spoiler - click to show)and some of them may have been involved romantically.

These tensions are effectively conveyed. The odds are stacked against them, and we feel it. But it also can get rather caustic. Character interactions have a nastiness that may take players by surprise. It feels like everyone is this close to snapping. (Spoiler - click to show)Some do.

Visuals
Bare-Bones Jam is perfect for this game. The rules require games to use their system’s default appearance. No customization. Martia Termina is made with Video Supertome, which means a black screen with white text in a digital-looking font. This appearance, combined with the lack of thrills, pairs well with the game’s military sci-fi genre. The black-and-white artwork on the game’s itch.io page is awesome.

Final thoughts
If you prefer story over gameplay or are a fan of military science fiction, play Martia Termina. Despite being a passive listener, the recordings provide a front row seat to the drama that goes down. It can get intense.

Tough characters who don’t get along are stuck in a dangerous alien-made facility and forced to rely on leadership that only cares about PR and profit. You have your (Spoiler - click to show)designated “evil teammate,” though they all seem to occupy moral shades of grey. Reminds me of a few sci-fi films…

Otherwise, whether you enjoy it will likely be hit or miss. I was all for the story, but it was the implementation that wore me out. I needed to play this multiple times to understand the story. Unfortunately, its design does not inspire replays. Only exhaustion. At least fix the autoplay feature. That would be fantastic.

Three stars, but a strong three stars.

Note: Don’t be turned off by my rating. I found it tough to rate because it feels like it should be higher, and yet, I needed to be realistic. I hope this review clarifies things.

The supernatural carries a stigma that leaves its victims scrabbling for support. But when it’s taboo to even discuss such matters, support is hard to find. That’s where you come in.

This is my calling. I investigate this kind of stuff. The dangers that play out just at the edge of society. The threats from things that… aren’t human.

You are a traveling exorcist who goes from city to city offering your services to those who contact you. Of course, this means you live with this stigma everywhere you go.

But being a professional, it’s all part of the job.

A submission to Ectocomp 2025 in the Le Grand Guignol category.

Gameplay
Exorcist Tipline makes a strong first impression with its fast-paced, suspenseful opening scene. It provides both a glimpse of the work the protagonist does and the stigma around anything supernatural. I was excited!

The main gameplay begins with the protagonist moving to a new city. The plan is to stay at a hotel for seven weeks. After that, it’s time to move on and the game ends. At the start of each day, the player checks their answering machine for any new cases. Next, they choose from a list of possible actions.

-Go to map location
-Research in the library
-Spend the day warding
-Prepare the coinboard for divination
-Go over notes

Aside from checking your notes, each action takes up one day. Being 48 days long, the gameplay will run on the longer side. During this time, seven cases will be made available.

Implementation
The implementation is the game’s fatal flaw.

When I say, “difficult to play,” I mean that it can feel borderline impossible to make any progress towards solving the cases. The problem is that the player has little way of knowing what to do after they first meet with a client. On top of this, the gameplay’s rigidness makes it difficult to experiment and fully appreciate the city setting.

The notes only list your active cases. Rarely are they updated with new information, leaving it up to the player to remember everything. Characters may drop snippets of info when you first meet them and that’s it. If you miss a key detail, your mistake. For example, (Spoiler - click to show)Randall only mentions his local church- which you can visit- once. The notes can’t even be accessed at the library while you’re doing research.

The biggest issue is how the player’s progress can go unrecognized. Consider (Spoiler - click to show)Randall again. His dead mom is supposedly sending people tapes of him doing awkward things. At one point, we receive one. I figured the practical thing to do would be to go talk to him about it. But when I did, the game acted like I had nothing relevant to share.

My main takeaway is this: If there was a hint guide to nudge the player in the right direction, it would be enough to help them navigate around the implementation issues and at least enjoy the story. Being able to save the game would be nice, though I was relieved to see that the game (Spoiler - click to show)sends you to a checkpoint if you die.

Story
I love the overall premise: an exorcist provides a discrete support system for those who are otherwise shunned, dismissed, or ignored. Rather than having a “main” story, Exorcist Tipline is more akin to a collection of stories that coexist at once. I’ll use this section to reflect on my experience with the cases.

The game makes it easy to care about the characters, especially when a client’s loved ones are involved. Exorcist Tipline is ultimately a game about helping people. But without any direction, it quickly becomes a game about letting everyone down.

Redbridges, population circa 800,000.

That said, I enjoyed the city setting and its subtle urban fantasy vibe.

Visuals
The visuals are a strength. Exorcist Tipline is made with both Ink and Godot. In the center of the screen is a black column with white text. Behind it is a backdrop that depicts the setting. An innovative feature is pop-up imagery used for maps and the divination board. To use the board, the player drags coin icons and flips them onto the board in search of meaning. This was a fantastic way of making the game more interactive.

I liked the character portraits. Disarming but not too cartoonish. Not every character has one, but I enjoyed the ones that were featured. Now, if you’re not careful, (Spoiler - click to show)the supernatural will come searching for you… at night. This is illustrated as a shadowy figure appearing on the screen, followed by a face. Not quite a jumpscare, but creepy enough to be unnerving.

Unfortunately, there is slow timed text. Inconvenient, but manageable. However, when a major event occurs, the text will sometimes speed through it before you have a chance to fully process it! That was worse.

Final thoughts
If it weren’t for the implementation, Exorcist Tipline would shine. I was impressed by its complexity. The parts I liked I really liked. But that’s not enough to fully make up for the implementation issues. I hope the author continues to develop this game. Or at least publish a hint guide. That would make a big difference for players.

If you enjoy supernatural investigation games or anything that combines mystery with the occult, such as Grimnoir, then Exorcist Tipline may interest you. Frustrating, yes, but there are components that make it highly likable. Otherwise, it may not be worth your time considering that it’s a longer game.

Founded in the mid-1970s by Gregory Korda, Armature Studios produced a wide variety of films, many of which received high praise from critics and audiences alike. But the studio seemed… cursed. Every year, someone would die, often under suspicious circumstances.

After going out of business in 1998, the studio sat in abandonment. Prime real estate isn’t as desirable when it has the reputation of being haunted. Jump forward to 2025. You are a freelancer whose work deals with the supernatural. Recently, the studio’s lot was purchased, and the new owners have hired you to rid the studio of whatever haunts it.

In other words, Kinophobia is a ghost investigation game that takes place at an abandoned movie studio. The game is made with Inform and is also a submission to Ectocomp 2025 in the Le Grand Guignol category.

Gameplay
At first, I found the game to be quite intimidating. My initial impression was that there were tons of things I had to juggle. Notebook. Binder that gets filled quickly. Phone. A pendant with some kind of substance in it. And verbs. RESEARCH. CONSULT. WRITE. Something about CONCLUSIONS.

I was overthinking it. Soon enough, it clicked. Kinophobia quickly became a lot of fun.

The gameplay involves exploring the studio for newspaper clippings, posters, memos, letters, and other readable material that name-drop people, films, dates, and incidents tied to Armature Studios’ history. Along the way, you can also encounter haunted objects that provide further clues.

As you pick up the shotgun microphone, you feel a slight tingle of static electricity.

The main goal is to identify the 24 ghosts that haunt the site. This is done by finding the person’s name, cause of death, and year of death, which you record in your notebook. Once everyone has been identified, you go to the one room that has been off-limits during the gameplay. But I won’t spoil it.

The gameplay’s structure is a bit unusual. When it comes to games about ghost hunting or exorcisms, I imagine the player running around to find and confront/banish ghosts directly or solving scenery/object-based puzzles. Kinophobia is more of a research-oriented investigation. After collecting readable material, you sit down to analyze it. My favorite part of this is Ari, our research assistant who will look up topics and text us her findings. Sometimes she’ll text us at random to make sure we’re doing alright. She’s awesome.

Ari tells you that the top hit for this name is a "dadfluencer" based out of Cleveland. The person you're looking for is probably not that.

There is so much content to explore. It’s easy to go down a rabbit hole as you chase every bit of info that you find. I love this sort of thing. After a while, you almost forget that you’re investigating a haunted movie studio. Almost.

You think you hear a voice behind you - there's nothing there when you look, of course.

The game makes sure to remind the player of where they are. This includes (Spoiler - click to show)experiencing eerie visions. I actually wish there were more of these. It’s also possible for ghosts to appear visually, but this is more for atmosphere than anything else.

I did need the walkthrough to finish the game. 24 ghosts are a lot. I enjoyed the challenge, but some were too cryptic for me. For example, (Spoiler - click to show)I think reading the “Whatever happened to Magda Marcel?” article and concluding that she was murdered is a bit of a leap, though I appreciate how the game confirms this through a text message we receive from Ari as well as the appearance of Magda’s ghost (a gnarly murder, from the looks of it). Also, I was more inclined to classify hairstylist Melissa Wong’s death as “illness” (chemical poisoning) than “accident,” considering that it was due to routine exposure to toxic hairspray.

Story
To avoid spoiling the immediate story, I’m going to focus more on the worldbuilding component. After researching the daylight out of everything, one could almost believe that, despite being a work of fiction, the people, films, essays, organizations, and other subjects in Kinophobia are real, perhaps because much of it feels vaguely familiar. I should note, a few things do exist, like Letterboxd. But most of it is fiction.

There’s even commentary on these fictional works.

Ari shares a Letterboxd review of Ampersand (2008): "What if all your failed Hinge dates showed up to your house to kill you with hammers but you were too busy having crippling gambling debts to notice. Five stars."

These were a delight to read.

I’m not the first to make this comparison, but Kinophobia reminds me of Excalibur, a Twine game where you navigate a convincing Wikipedia-style “website” about a TV show of the same name. Both have an investigative element where you dig for info and draw conclusions. But what I especially like is the depiction of a creative endeavor that once lived in its heyday. Through your investigation, you start to imagine what it was like before the television show got cancelled, or before the film studio went out of business. As dysfunctional/cursed as they were, there was a moment when they shined. It’s neat to contemplate before returning to the present.

Also, the author describes Kinophobia as a “database thriller,” which may just be my new favorite genre.

Visuals
I like that the game uses a black screen and white text. Much spookier than the default white screen with black text. The cover art also has a nice appearance with black and white imagery + a splash of orange.

Final thoughts
Will everyone fall in love with this game? Not necessarily. But I do think it has something for everyone. There are parts you will appreciate.

As for me, I had a blast. It featured some of my favorite things: An atmospheric map that you roam freely, and a story that you piece together through research. And while it’s a long- and sometimes difficult- game, the walkthrough is well designed. It cuts to the chase so you can dive right into the essence of the gameplay.

So far, Kinophobia is one of the best ghost investigation games I’ve played!

Described as a "sad divorced man fic," six of cups is a series of six scenes from a man's life that include a rocky marriage, a divorce, and a strained relationship with a daughter, all of which are all linked with the recurring theme of drinking (or is Card #2 supposed to be a pickle jar?). The game is also a choice-based hybridization of Unity and Ink.

The player is presented with a spread of six cards, each adorned with an image of a glass. Clicking on a card brings up a scene from the protagonist’s life, and these can be visited in any order. Instead of the game ending, the player stops once they’ve seen everything.

The writing is brief and concise. I was impressed with the amount of depth it conveys. The composition of scenes varies. One scene may consist of a few short paragraphs. Another may be a haphazard string of text messages. Instead of a detailed story, the game works to establish tone- a tone that says more than enough about the state of the protagonist's marital life without further detail.

"Okay," you say, dismissively. A dead fly floats in your drink.

I found it easy to get invested in the story and characters. There’s a sense of cynicism that persists and drives the narrative forward without feeling heavy-handed. I will say, I am itching to know more about the implications of the final line in the game:

The combination of Unity and Ink works well for the game's purposes because it adds complexity visually and implementation-wise, taking the act of reading about moments in a person’s life and giving it dimension. The visual presentation of the cards on the screen makes a strong first impression, while a range of colours, patterns, and graphical elements tailor to the mood of each scene. The format adds a degree of interactivity. Clicking on the cards, for one thing, but also superficial ways of getting the player to interact with what they read, such as having them tap the screen to “send” the text messages.

The simplicity of the six card spread works so well in allowing players to bounce around a timeline at whim. The tense conversation with the daughter, (Spoiler - click to show)Phoebe, can immediately be countered by going back to the moment in college before such responsibilities existed. And vice versa. In exploring the timeline this way, the player is encouraged to contemplate the protagonist, his choices, and how they intersect with the lives of other people.

Arguably, six of cups is more like an experience than a game, and yet, I found it just as engaging as anything else I’ve played. The concise writing, visual design, and simple but consistent implementation work together to result in a strong slice-of-life game that I have a hard time backing away from.