Reviews by Kinetic Mouse Car

Several days ago, I visit IFDB and see this:

News on Even Some More Tales from Castle Balderstone: OFFICIAL PLAYER'S GUIDE November 22, 2022 An OFFICIAL PLAYER'S GUIDE is now available for Even Some More Tales from Castle Balderstone, with all kinds of tips and hints and solutions and maps. - Details

I wasn’t sure if I should cry. I had thoroughly played all the games (within the game) and completed them but one. Meanwhile, I was hearing all about (Spoiler - click to show) some secret bonus game that would be unlocked by completing the first four. The words “tips,” “hints,” “solutions,” and “maps,” in this announcement immediately pulled me back to the game so I could finally play it from start to finish. It also means I can give this awesome game a review.

Overview
This was an entry in last year’s Ecto-Comp and offers quite an experience. My understanding is that people besides Ryan Veeder wrote and created stories that he then implemented into parser to be showcased in Even Some More Tales from Castle Balderstone. An anthology.

It is the first game that I have played that splices Twine with Inform/Vorple. It begins in Twine. You are a guest at Castle Balderstone and are brought to a room where four cover art photos are displayed on the screen with the games’ titles. It felt like walking into a movie theater and looking at the posters. When you click on one you “walk” to an area where the author of the story is getting ready to read the story to an audience. This transitions to the parser where you can play the game. Immersive approach!

During the gameplay a sketch of the author is included on the right side of the screen with a small bio. It helps you appreciate the amount of brain power that went into each story. Even Some More Tales from Castle Balderstone is the amusement park and the games set within it are the rides. It has nothing to do with amusement parks/rides but that is the analogy that came to mind.

Letavermilia
I will discuss this game first because it is the one that I could not complete without the walkthrough.

In Letavermilia you are playing as a bounty hunter tasked to hunt down a hacker who goes by, Letavermilia, the same name of a deadly plague that has run rampant across interstellar space. This is probably the most elegant space bounty hunter IF game I have played. The protagonist has worked their way up to become an “A-list bounty hunter” with high paying clients, and it shows. For one thing, the ship has been upgraded to something classier. If “space bounty hunter” does not sound like your cup of tea- think again. There is something about it that strikes a unique chord. Rather than a typical high action speed chase through space, an emphasis is placed on subtlety. If you try to examine a detail, chances are the game will have something to say about it.

We begin on Ligeia, an oceanic planet where you are vacationing. As you lounge peacefully on the hull of your fancy ship you get an urgent message to track down Letavermilia (the hacker). You are following a trail that she leaves behind. Gameplay involves decoding her messages to find the coordinates for the next planet you travel to. Before the walkthrough was published, I was stuck on (Spoiler - click to show) Zante, trying to decipher the message on the (Spoiler - click to show) etched panel. I feel like I should have been able to figure it out on my own. But I didn’t, and that’s that, I guess. Now I was able to go to the next planet. I was really excited to see what world was in store (and tired of guessing pitifully at travel coordinates). After that, I used the walkthrough on and off.

While gameplay has a narrow focus on one objective at a time, it still injects intriguing overarching story along the way. The big concern looming over everyone’s heads is Letavermilia, the plague. We get a smattering of interplanetary politics. Entire planets infected by the disease are quarantined. Meanwhile, uninfected affluent planets form an alliance called “Isolated Worlds” that cease contact with worlds outside this group.

The player is in a unique position because the PC’s bounty hunter credentials allow access to worlds that would otherwise be unavailable. I feel that the portrayal of bounty hunters in both IF and non-IF (or at least in what I’ve seen) tend to use a profile of a battered scoundrel who accepts shady contracts and walks a fine line with the law. The protagonist in Letavermilia is more privileged with glitzy clients and jobs received from entire governments.

I was not happy with the ending. No, no- It’s a fantastic ending. It’s an effective ending. I disliked it simply because it did not end how I wanted it to end. This may surprise you, but if I were to assess the ending of every story in this game and decide on the scariest, it would be this game without a doubt.

What do I mean by scary? I don’t mean spooked scary where everyone around the campfire screams because they heard a small noise out in the words. The feeling I associate with this ending is deep dread that sets in only when it is too late. You realize what just happened, quietly, without the game having to spell it out for you. (Spoiler - click to show)

Your nose is bleeding.

This bounty hunter had in the bag only to discover that the villain (who, technically, we still never meet) has been holding everything in the palm of her hand. I was rooting for the PC. If it weren’t for the villain, we would be swimming about leisurely on Ligeia. Plus, there is only one ending. In the other three games you can negotiate for happier ones.

This sense of dread is not a sudden event. It develops slowly through the gameplay, and you hardly even know it until it reaches the end. A trend is that (Spoiler - click to show) planet locations generally have small maps that you navigate freely and yet they manage to convey a feeling of being funneled along in a direction regardless of your choices. The anxious man who is a little too zealous about your presence (and your teeth, for some reason) as he escorts you up and down the narrow stairwell to look at the server room. The dust storm that keeps you confined to the area around your ship. The deep elevator (my favorite) that shuttles you deep underground to a concrete room. And somehow this hacker manages to leave her messages before you arrive. You are in control, but ultimately, you are not. The extent of this is not revealed until you paint yourself into a corner. Then- surprise! Down you go. That’s what makes this game scary.

Before I move on, I want to share my favorite planet, (Spoiler - click to show) Ulalume. Here, you are at a planet devoted to the nightlife. While planets are consumed by disease, partygoers continue to live extravagantly without any thought that the vast resources of the Isolated Worlds could be spent- I don’t know- coming up with a cure, maybe? Or maybe they simply want to distract themselves from it. People on this planet have a lot of ways of trying to distract themselves. You use an elevator to reach the bottom level. Its glass walls allow you to see the establishments on each floor. The farther down, the more unsettling things we see.

Now you can see through the haze. Humans are sprawled over velvet pillows, wearing expressions of vacant satisfaction.

No one cares that you are plunging deep underground in an elevator to reach a cold concrete room with a message from a hacker who borrows inspiration from a deadly plague. Now, that’s atmosphere.

Visit Skuga Lake
Your boss went to write some articles on a little-known town but has gone missing. As her intern, you travel to the town to investigate only to be thrown into a motel closet. Seems like outsiders are unwelcome. I did not need the hints for the Visit Skuga Lake because I had already devoured back when I first found the game. I mapped that place to death. Notes, lists, you name it. I did consult the guide’s amulet/eyestone chart because it is much more organized than the table I created.

When I first played Visit Skuga Lake last year during Ecto-Comp, I remember the parser being a tad slow with my commands. It would take about half a second- just enough to be noticeable- for the game to respond. But not really a big deal. When I replayed it a few days ago the delay time was even slower. The longer I played the greater the lag. By the time I managed to (Spoiler - click to show) retrieve the key from the sleeping guard and get the boat running to reach the smaller island it was taking three full seconds for the game to respond to each command. I’m not sure why. This was not a big deal since I already knew what to do, but if this were my first ever playthrough, experimentation would be a nightmare.

This game has heaps of cool content. Every animal, landmark, and found object have important content attached to it. What I like best is how there are plenty of puzzles, but their solutions are flexible. While many puzzles are optional, pursuing them are still relevant to your objectives because they follow a similar concept. (Spoiler - click to show) You collect animal amulets and eyestones. When paired together, they give you powers- a wide variety of powers. Experimenting with them is so much fun. You do not need to find every (Spoiler - click to show) magical item, but it is a welcome task, and one that will likely prove useful later in the gameplay. Experimentation is the main attraction. I hope the lag is just an issue on my end. That aside, the story, gameplay, and characters are excellent. Lag-time or not Visit Skuga Lake is a must play if you feel like sampling the stories in Even Some More Tales from Castle Balderstone.

Singing for Me
Definitely, my favorite in all of Even Some More Tales from Castle Balderstone. It is meant to be played repeatedly and offers a lot of strategizing. My high score is (Spoiler - click to show) $1938. "I suppose this is adequate," said the Waldgrave. I’m still proud of it.

The protagonist is a young man returning home after college. He tells the story through humorous journal entries shaped by the player’s choices. The entries depict an oddball town that grows weirder and weirder in a way that suggests normalcy in its community. If you keep shuffling along with the town’s traditions, you get sucked right in. Next thing you know, the (Spoiler - click to show) Harvest Festival arrives. The ending is delightfully disturbing and unexpected. Even better is the redeeming ending. The game makes the player work for it, but it is fulfilling. I’d share more but I’m already starting to sound like (Spoiler - click to show) Darren.

Nyvo the Dolphin
This game gave me a lot to think about. If you happened to be standing on a tall cliff while staring at the ocean and see a dolphin equipped with a (Spoiler - click to show) prosthetic arm, a (Spoiler - click to show) grenade launcher, and some (Spoiler - click to show) foreign object in its eye, what scenario would play through your head? What explanation would emerge as you try to rationalize what you just saw? Nyvo the Dolphin has the answers. An adolescent dolphin comes across a shipwreck. Not some storybook pirate shipwreck but the wreckage of a high-tech ship carrying (Spoiler - click to show) classified military cargo. The highlight is the writing. It has a dramatic yet clinical tone as it narrates Nyvo’s encounter with (Spoiler - click to show) dangerous human technology…and how he is changed by it. It’s also in third person which makes it even more potent.

You mean there’s (Spoiler - click to show) more?
Finally, this was the moment I was waiting for. (Spoiler - click to show) The bonus content: a FIFTH game. Hunted , if I remember correctly. A stop and start Christmas nightmare. I think. This kid is on the run in the North Pole. When he gets caught* the gameplay switches where you are the “Bad” version of the kid. The Good and Bad version of the kid’s identity battle it out as you flip flop between two gameplay sequences. And then sometimes the parser would kick back to the Twine format where everyone is sitting in a circle to hear a story before launching into more gameplay. It was overwhelming. Cool, but overwhelming. At one point I was in a cozy house, but then that changed. The entire time I was all, “wait- stop, stop, stop. I wasn’t done yet!” I would gladly replay the entire game to revisit it if not for the lag issue I had with Visit Skuga Lake.

Nonetheless, I am so happy to have reached this point.

*Also: (Spoiler - click to show) I found a key that presumably unlocks the office door, but right before I reach it Krampus gets me. Is it possible to outrun him or is failing the whole point?

Final thoughts
A truly ambitious piece. It also defies the notion of quality over quantity, or quantity or quality. It’s a quality game, and there’s lots of it! A lot of planning and care seems to have gone into its creation. Sometimes you may find yourself coming back just to revisit one of the stories. Especially Singing for Me. There is something in it for a wide range of audiences in terms of length, technicality, and subject matter. Make sure you turn on the rainy music that the game recommends before you start playing.

You are fourteen-year-old Kyle, a Boy Scout looking to earn a Community Service badge. Peanut the cat has run off, and this is your chance to show initiative. Time to investigate the local neighborhood.

Gameplay
When the game began my first impression was that a Boy Scout troop was out looking for a cat (does that occur in real-life?) which immediately creates a cool ambience. A closer look soon showed that Kyle is the only Boy Scout around. Meanwhile, a group of middle-school aged kids, are running about and talking about a kid named Max. Naturally, the player is roped into participating in Max’s plans.

I really, really, like the (Spoiler - click to show) occult twist. Yes, you heard that right. The start of the game sounds like a light, wholesome game about a youth trying to save a cat (which also sounds like fun) to earn a badge only to surprise the player with an unexpected thrill. Eerie ten-year-old Max (Spoiler - click to show) wants to hold a ritual in the groundwater tunnels. Sounds cool! Max needs three Native American artifacts for the ritual. He has one and wants you to find the other two. By now, finding the cat falls to the wayside as you pursue this new objective.

This is not a puzzle heavy game but there is a lot of exploring. The gameplay has a moderate sized map consisting of a suburban area. You will probably want to make a light map of the underground tunnels. Nothing too fancy, but you may find it helpful.

There is one bug/issue that made the game unwinnable. (UPDATE: I've received feedback that this is NOT an unwinnable state. I'm leaving this paragraph in as a formality but understand that my calling it unwinnable was an incorrect assessment on my part). (Spoiler - click to show) Max wants Clem to solder the three artifacts together. Clem follows you around for most of the gameplay. You are supposed to retrieve the hand-held generator from his garage, fill it with gas, and give it to him so he can use his solder iron. I put the game in an unwinnable state by giving him the generator before Max has all three artifacts.

He looks at you, “Give me the hand-held generator.”

I already gave it to him at the garage. I tried to take it back, but…

That seems to belong to Clem.

I restarted the game because I could see no way of soldering the artifacts together to start the ritual. CORRECTION: While Clem may still ask for the generator even after you give it to him, he will solder the artifacts together once everyone arrives.

Story
I was expecting the story to have more focus on the protagonist’s goal of earning a badge, perhaps incorporating themes of “character building.” Maybe I am misinterpreting the process of earning a Community Service badge. Point is, Kyle obviously takes this seriously, and as a game, the idea of earning a badge takes center stage. This is the first Boy Scout PC I have played in interactive fiction, and I was excited to see where it would go. Ultimately, this part of Kyle’s identity was not showcased as much as I thought it would be.

The setting is intriguing. After snooping around you come across some newspaper clippings that outline two main controversies in the area. The first follows the development of a (Spoiler - click to show) new museum on Native American culture that has been delayed over conflicts of the museum’s focus. There is also mention of Native American artifacts being discovered while the neighborhood was being developed. The second controversy looks at a trend of (Spoiler - click to show) health issues in residents that seem to be connected to the water supply. Plans were made to re-design the water drainage system, but those plans were brought to a halt. The story focuses more on the former issue.

The storyline reminded me of an element in Anchorhead where a (semi-spoilers for Anchorhead coming right up!) (Spoiler - click to show) specific tribe- I believe it was a fictional tribe- of indigenous people who worshiped celestial entities that were of interest to the Verlac family because it was connected to a vast ritual that had been planned for generations. The player, lucky you, gets to deal with the impending doom of this ritual. Right near the center of town is a big obelisk that covers the tribe’s ancient burial ground that also seals off a hell-dimension on the other side of mortal existence. You learn about this through newspaper clippings and content from the library. It’s wild. I mean, it’s Anchorhead, obviously.

Max (Spoiler - click to show) speaks of a monster in the southernmost tunnels that had been sealed off by Native Americans. This can be unsealed with a ritual using the three artifacts. Max himself also seems to be possessed. Disturbing, but not disturbing enough to dissuade the other neighborhood kids, including Kyle, from helping. Don’t get me wrong, (Spoiler - click to show) suburban Boy Scout cat search + occult ritual hosted by a ten-year-old named Max is novel as it brushes on Anchorhead themes. My complaint is this: there is hardly any story (or gameplay) about (Spoiler - click to show) finding Peanut the cat.

Start of game: You have been tasked to find the missing cat, Peanut. You're hoping this simple mission will earn you your Community Service merit badge. You head into the woods where the cat was last seen.

We’ve seen Peanut at the start of game. She’s behind a storm tunnel grating and runs off when you open it. Onwards, you try to run and chase her. Throughout the gameplay are cues such as, “You hear the tinkling of a small bell,” and “You hear a cat meowing,” amongst NPCs’ advice to look in the tunnels! And from there on, the cat takes a back seat as the gameplay shifts to finding artifacts.

When you save your friends from the monster and win the game, Peanut decides to appear and jump into your arms. Great resolution, but I just sat there realizing how much time I wasted trying to corner the cat into one of tunnels, using the dead rat as bait (probably not as appealing to cats as I thought), and experimenting with the various exits and entrances in the tunnel maze to map out her movements. The kid doesn’t even get his badge at the end of the game!

Characters
NPCs wander independently. I always enjoy seeing this in interactive fiction because it feels more dynamic. That said, their behavior does not have much substance. When you first meet them, they introduce themselves to you which is a strong start. Then they wander around until aimlessly until you make progress towards the (Spoiler - click to show) ritual. To be fair, designing seven (plus Peanut) independent NPCs is probably not an easy task. And you will find moments where NPC behavior triggers a surprising effect, such as when they all (Spoiler - click to show) suddenly gather in the meeting room to start the ritual. That was cool.

I have criticism about the dialog. The game uses the “topics” command to offer a list of topics to ask other characters. I thought this was smart because it keeps the player close to relevant subject matters. The issue is that A, topics do not acknowledge the player’s progress, and B, the “topics” feature lack subjects relevant to the situation. To use an example for the first case, (Spoiler - click to show) if you ask Max about the artifacts after the ritual, he still acts as if you have not found them yet. This put a dent in the interaction.

The other concern become more apparent as the story developed. Characters were limited in their responses to these events. The topics list never expands. In Clem’s introduction he says, "'I'm Clem. I'm in charge of the reconstruction effort.'" But asking him about it (I wanted to know if this had any connection to the (Spoiler - click to show) water quality controversy) results in, "Clem doesn't have anything useful to say about that." Alright, maybe I am being a stickler on this one. Still, subjects about the (Spoiler - click to show) ritual, the Andelmans’ house, and characters’ immediate surroundings are excluded from conversation. (Spoiler - click to show)

Guarding the room is a fearsome pitbull. He eyes you while growling.

Clem comes up from below.

>ask Clem about pitbull
Clem doesn't have anything useful to say about that.

I was expecting some response.

Also, who are the Andelmans'? It’s in the title. First impression was when I tried to enter the basement before meeting with the NPCs in the meeting place near the start of the game.

You begin to head west when suddenly you hear a girl's voice scold you, "We don't go in there. We think it's the Andelman House."

There you go. Mystery. It creates a chilling, sinister vibe to the gameplay. A hint that there is more to this maze of storm drain tunnels than what meets the eye. Right away you think, Who are the Andelmans? Sounds like a neighborhood legend. Your curiosity is spiked because this suburban adventure just got a whole lot interesting. This never went anywhere. We explore the house, almost abandoned, if not for the (Spoiler - click to show) guard dog in the kitchen. I kept wondering what the big secret was. Turns out, I was on the wrong path. I was thinking of this in terms of character names. Andelmans' Yard is (Spoiler - click to show) apparently named after a song of the same title. I would never have known that if I had not looked up the game’s title on a hunch. The song’s lyrics details exploring tunnels and themes that are seen in the gameplay. That was the connection I was missing.

Final thoughts
This game has a good start. While character interactions could use more polish, the game has been tested and it feels like completed piece. I enjoyed the surprises. Especially (Spoiler - click to show) Max’s surprises. The author does a nice job in mixing the everyday with the (Spoiler - click to show) paranormal. Even though I was expecting the gameplay to go through with its (Spoiler - click to show) original plot of searching for Peanut, I am glad that, in the end, we find her anyway. If there are any more games about Kyle trying to earn a badge, I would be interested in playing them. An enjoyable slice of life game mystery with a horror twist.

You are Royal Councilor for the King. The Queen’s birthday is next week, and you have been tasked with finding the perfect jadeite stone. The game has it all. Glamour. Travel, freedom to journey to different places in the world on a whim with a platinum credit card and a personal jet. Every resource is at your disposal to ensure that the Queen receives the desired gem. And, on top of that, a deadline which requires the player to use their time strategically. Great concept. But the game’s implementation sours the experience.

Gameplay
The game begins in your lush, personal office where the first chunk of gameplay focuses on researching clues on jadeite using resources found in the Royal Manor. It is Monday, and you are expected to find the perfect jadeite gem by Sunday. The second portion of gameplay involves traveling from country to country to track down some jadeite based on leads from your research. It is possible to travel and return to the Manor if you wish. (What is jadeite? Jadeite is a rare mineral, typically characterized with a light green colour. Like jade, but more precious.)

First half: Manor
Besides researching the whereabouts of jadeite, an interesting objective is to find different forms of jadeite. For example, there is a type of cabbage called jadeite cabbage. With this knowledge you can ask the chef to prepare the dish to be served later. Finding these themes were fun, though poorly implemented. I will discuss the (Spoiler - click to show) gown puzzle later.

Second half: Jet-set travel
Travel! The player goes from country to country to buy gems and then use those gems to lower the asking price when you buy more expensive ones. You alternate between buying gems and making offers. And traveling in luxury, of course. It follows a pattern: buy a gem and use it as leverage for the next gem you purchase. That way, you only juggle a few gems at a time. This mechanic simplifies the gameplay and gives players the chance to leisurely take in the geography as they travel across the planet. An adventure for someone preferring a single, streamlined gameplay over technical puzzles. If only it worked. Unfortunately, this game is overrun by bugs.

Now, before you flee, understand that this is a game worth exploring for its novel ideas. However, I do not recommend pressuring yourself to complete it because you probably never will. I ran into several walls that halted progress. Of course, there may be things in the gameplay that I did not notice. I could be wrong. If anyone is reading this and thinking, “challenge accepted,” good for you. By all means, play it. After running around on the face of the Earth, I would love to complete this game.

Bugs & issues
When I first started the game, I marveled at how descriptive everything was at the Manor. The room descriptions featured lavish scenery, and your surroundings glow with the decadence of your position as the Queen’s Royal Councilor. It reminded me of the phrase, “you can look but don’t touch.” If you try to “touch” (interact) with the game, the shiny image unravels. Talking to characters, examining items, and testing verbs reveal some holes in the game’s fabric.

The game is extremely buggy, both cosmetically and mechanically. Some of the most important functions fall apart. At best, it feels awkward. At worst, it prevents you from making progress. Early in the game there were tasks I was unable to complete, but these were relatively non-vital enough to be ignored. The first sign of trouble was about (Spoiler - click to show) preparing the Queen’s gown.

Marina, the head fashion designer, asks you to retrieve a gown from the Queen’s closet, and gives you a key to unlock it. When you collect the gown the game says, "Take it downstairs to the stylist and she will deliver it to the King," the stylist referring to Mariana. But then you run into this issue:

>ask Mariana about gown
Try giving the gown to the Stylist.

>give gown to stylist
Mariana doesn't seem interested.

I found no way of fulfilling this task. Nor can you also ask her about jadeite more than once. She delivers her line and becomes unresponsive. All I have is this gown that no one cares about. But oh well, I suppose I could just skip this and jump to the gemstone hunting part.

The crippling part of this game by far is the failure of the offer/give command. As I mentioned earlier, the whole point of the gem seller encounters is to offer a gemstone to lower the asking price for the gemstone on sale. Out of all the characters in this game, NONE are responsive to the player trying to give them things. The player is helpless. The only choice they have is to buy it outright, which is bad because the game insists that you will need to conserve money to buy the jadeite later.

To use an example, (Spoiler - click to show) you can buy a Red Beryl Emerald from the seller in the Wah Wah Mountains. This is what the exchange looks like:

>ask Louis about red beryl emerald
I might have a small sample. It is worth ten grand per carat. Are you a serious gem collector?

>yes
You are becoming somewhat of a gem collector. Try giving Louis Potosi the Black Opal to lower the asking price.

>give black opal to Louis
Louis Potosi doesn't seem interested.

Louis was not interested in anything. I have a gut feeling that this was not because I was offering him the wrong gem. I offered him every gem, but no change. None of the characters in the game respond to the player’s attempts to engage in buying and selling which is an issue because this is the backbone of the gameplay.

Cosmetically, the game is unpolished. Sparseness combined with surface bugs. Poor formatting and awkward character dialog with messages like, “(southwest then east)” tacked on at the end. Though trivial in comparison to the rest of the game, these areas still stick out. A sad part is that you can hardly examine or interact with items in the intriguingly described locations. I did like the interactivity of Tsimbazaza Zoo.

If you are interested in fudging the gameplay, here is a tip (major spoiler tip) you can try when you leave the Manor: (Spoiler - click to show) If you go east from the limo circuit, you end up in Hong Kong where you can attend a diamond auction. After the auction, you can buy the jadeite. Is this a bug, or is the rest of gameplay optional? Why bother running around buying and bargaining (or at least trying to bargain) with people across several continents when you can skip to the main event? The exit to Hong Kong is not listed in the limo circuit’s room description. I stumbled across this by accident while randomly testing different directions. Anyway, yes, you can buy the jadeite. But there is a bug that prevents you from finishing the game. I have not found a way around it, but someone else might.

Story + Characters
The story is not deep but is an eye-catching premise. Buying and selling gemstones while traveling the world. It is a creative idea with some fun vibes. Even has the tones of a much more well-behaved and courteous version of Prima Varicella from the game Varicella. The protagonist in Jadeite for the Queen is male, but the game decides to stick with minimal details.

If you are lucky, you may find NPCs (besides Dante, but even he cuts it close) who will respond to more than two prompts. NPCs are like props. They add detail to the scenery and carry out one function, usually related to a transaction. I was not expecting them to engage the player in thoughtful discussion, but conversation is extremely shallow.

I think the game also tries to incorporate some geographical history and culture into its destinations. I like this idea, though it is frosting compared to having cohesive bug-free gameplay. The portrayal of some characters seemed a bit contrived, maybe stereotypical. Further development would make it more engaging. Regardless, the author has a strong vision that shines through.

Final thoughts
First things first, I have a feeling that this game was never tested. Testing goes a long way, and it desperately needs it. I want to cut the author some slack since it appears to be their first game, but right now it is borderline unplayable.

I am giving the game an extra star because of the creative concept and because it is interesting to play. It may be a chaotic mess as you try to make progress, but you cannot deny the some of it holds your attention for at least a short while. It captures the flair for travel and mixes it with glamour while also adding a reasonable deadline to keep the player on their toes. If the author were to refine and hone these elements, I think the game would gain popularity. Jadeite for the Queen may be incredibly unpolished but with some work I am confident that it has the potential to be a lovely gem.

Oh no! Aliens have arrived and the fate of the city is now in your hands. Campus Invaders is a comedic sci-fi peril story about a normal citizen tasked with saving the day when aliens from space park a spaceship over Vigamus Academy’s campus. And here all you planned to do was attend a seminar!

Campus Invaders has ups and downs. On one hand, this is a great game for newer players because the puzzle logic is not too difficult (Spoiler - click to show) (ex. teacher stuck in a vending machine? Look around to find a coin. And you do. It is laying out on the floor of another room) while also having the player think outside the box, such as dealing with the alien in the bathroom. Objectives are also easy to follow because NPCs tell you want to do and then point you in the next direction after you have fulfilled a task. The downside is that the implementation of the puzzles is not as well-fleshed as the concept behind them.

The main issue is that elements are scarce. Gameplay follows a show/trade pattern of showing or giving something to one NPC in exchange for something that you need to give to another NPC. I think there may be a term for that. Because the setting is a research facility and the protagonist is prospective student, the interactions tend to be about gaining approval or permission to access new locations. Nothing wrong there. What falls flat is that character interactions lack substance which drags the game down since character interaction makes up a chunk of the gameplay.

NPCs have their one moment before retreating into the background as awkward scenery. It feels unnatural. Lack of responsiveness is primary issue. I was a bit surprised at how faculty do not react when you run tearing into their office amid an alien invasion. They just sit there at their desk until you talk to them. When you first speak to them, they have a verbal response, but afterwards you get a pre-recorded message that does not even come from the character, or when you first meet Mica Hela the game says, “Mica Hela welcomes you to her office and tells you that anything (or almost!) she can do for you, she will,” rather than her character speaking to you.

Besides character interactions, the other flimsy element in the game is with the scenery. While the room descriptions are interesting, the things inside them are only sparsely implemented. The description for the terrace is:

You went out on the terrace of the upper floor of the Vigamus Academy, on which a beautiful warm sun shines. From here you can clearly see the large alien spaceship that stands out in the sky and the thousand colored lights that turn on and off on the glittering metal hull. To the west, you can go back inside.

>x spaceship
You can't see any such thing.

I thought that the spaceship was clearly visible. It was frustrating to be unable to examine key items to learn more about them.

There are no true bugs that keep the player from making progress, but there some superficial ones. The game allowed me to pick up the trolley and carry it around in my inventory like a bookbag. It is ironic that it says, "You could use it to put in the bulky stuff you won't be able to carry by hand." You would still be carrying the bulky stuff anyway when you put it in the trolley. This was weak design.

It is not the most polished game but still decent. While most of this review has been spent analyzing the downsides of Campus Invaders, there is merit. It has spirit and is short enough to keep the story’s enthusiasm from fizzling out. Never does it waver from its atmosphere. Perhaps some testing would have tightened everything to make it more of a finished piece, but it still offers a fun time battling with alien invaders. (Plus, I liked the inclusion of a (Spoiler - click to show) secret section in the game).

For the spirit of Halloween, I have to review at least one EctoComp game.

Buggy is about a relatively featureless PC riding on a rickety buggy with a brother named Everett (nicknamed “Ever”) as they try to escape from some unspecified pursuers.

In this game, if there are no bugs, you are doing something wrong. In fact, the PC’s brother will call you out on it. The gameplay begins on the buggy and ends when you crash.

If you make an error, such as, "lookj" (a command typo I make when typing quickly) we see that everything destabilizes, to Everett’s horror. The buggy goes out of control. Errors also consist of verbs that are not implemented, although more often than not Everett will interject a reference about said verb.

"Oh my heavens it's another error," whispers Everett. There's a large crack. The buggy jolts. Everett starts swearing but then switches to praying when he sees you watching.

Endings provide suggestions on other verbs to try, and through this you will learn how to win the game. Super short, excellent length if you want to play a game standing up.

The only story content that I could see was how the protagonist is grieving for someone named Lenore and killed a demon. I am not sure if the two are related. The description of the sky was a potent indicator of their feelings. I was not expecting to be able to (Spoiler - click to show) take the clouds or moon. I did the all-encompassing "take all" only to get "moon: The sinister clouds are in the way." That made me laugh. Still, I feel for them.

It is an amusing experience if you are familiar with simple parser commands, and, arguably, flat-out hilarious if you are not. Either way, approach this game with a grain of salt and you will have a fun time.

This game is not a mere skip through the forest, I can tell you that.

The subject of Arborea is hard to summarize in a sentence. I have never played a game quite like it. It has the slight sci-fi angle of being in a computer simulation that adds a unique flair without coming off as a sci-fi game. It has a strong history-based component and yet I would hesitate to write it off as a historical game. There are even a feel mythic and spiritual elements thrown in. And then there is the overarching question of what is Program Arborea? But first things first.

Arborea seems to be a rift off the word “arboreal” which refers to the overall nature of trees. The definition, “pertaining to trees” also surfaced when I looked up the word. Both descriptions are spot on because Arborea is all about trees and human’s relationship with them, whether it may be for exploitation of resources, cultural traditions, or everything in between.

Gameplay
The game begins right after you step into a simulation room where a smooth computerized voice informs you that Program Arborea is about to begin. The next thing you know, you are in a vast forest with no exits and nothing but a gourd in your possession. On the gourd are markings that represent trees from different parts of the world. By identifying the trees, you can travel to eight world regions at different point of human history depicted in this game. It is not a time travel game. The player is not going back in time. Instead, they are simply in a simulation that brings the time periods to them.

Direction > Tree > Destination
North > Pine > The Pine Forests of Scandinavia
East > Palm > The Palm Tree Plantations of Indonesia

You are presented with the simple sounding but vague goal of finding a kernel. The game essentially cuts you loose to figure it out on your own. But it also seems like the more you try to make progress on your own, the more guidance you find in the setting and characters. It can be intimidating at first. You learn that you must “solve” each location, but this is not done independently where you solve one before moving on to the next. Instead, everything crisscrosses. Items from one location can be used in another. The puzzles are not always intuitive and given the size of the game it easy to lose track of your progress.

Once you (Spoiler - click to show) complete the content in each area, its corresponding icon on the gourd will crack (such as the frog for the Amazon). Turns out the kernel is inside the gourd. I spent all this time looking around for it, only to realize that I technically had it the entire time. The catch is that it is only retrievable once every icon is cracked. And that is not even the end of the game. Surprise! There is an endgame as well. Even though it took a while, completing the game felt satisfying.

Puzzles
The gameplay (and corresponding walkthrough) is long, and I figured that would never replay it after I was done. Turns out this was a game where I found myself eerily capable of remembering the exact solutions. Many puzzles seemed rather simple in retrospect, although (Spoiler - click to show) I still have lingering surprise over having to haul around a severed head for a chunk of the gameplay (it is less gory than it sounds). I have played games where the puzzles are cryptic and I need the walkthrough, and even after I complete the puzzle step-by-step, I still find myself unable to explain what I just did. Many of the puzzles in Arborea can be done in different order. I kept thinking to myself, "you know...I wonder what would happen if I did this first instead.” I returned to the game and played around with the order in which you can complete things.

There are a few guess the verb puzzles that will probably leave players flipping through the walkthrough. A big roadblock for me was (Spoiler - click to show) crossing the Savannah to get to the carcass. If you try to go south, the PC understandably chickens out. I was not sure what syntax to use. In the walkthrough, there is a subtle clue on what word to use, which assumes that the player is familiar with Star Trek. I am, but even that did not help me make the connection. It is not a standard verb, either. Another guess the verb issue was with (Spoiler - click to show) banishing the demon in the Himalayas. Even though it had a few more small clues, I still needed the walkthrough.

Oddly enough, the some of the most challenging puzzles for me were (Spoiler - click to show) not from the main gameplay, but the endgame. For example, I did not put together the solution of dragging the cross while wearing the white robe and crown to scare off the man in the Scandinavian simulation room. Regardless, I thought that the endgame was a clever way of tying everything together (and the game keeps you guessing about whether the endgame is part of the simulation).

Story
Arborea does make some commentary about real-world issues. The locations for Serengeti, Indonesia, and the Amazon all have subtle mention of current environmental concerns. The time period for these areas is set in more modern times. We see deforestation, poaching, and the production of palm oil for consumer goods (Spoiler - click to show) such as beauty products. Obviously, these issues are far more complex in real life, but the game focuses on identifying key ideas to convey a general message of how we use trees and the ecosystems connected to them.

My ongoing question about this game has to do with “Program Arborea.” I borrowed the title of my review from the first line in the game where the computerized voice activates the simulation. The sci-fi aspect of the game stood out to me since the gameplay is essentially an advanced VR adventure. At the end of the game (Spoiler - click to show) when the Program finally ends, and a door opens so the protagonist can leave, while the voice in the background says, “Please take time to re-orient yourself and observe all normal safety precautions when exiting the building.” A museum. A museum on natural history. That is my guess.

But maybe you are not meant to look too closely.

Characters
The characters are engaging and interesting (even likable for some) but also highly generalized to match their setting. I think it steers clears of stereotyping, although that is a fine, fine line to walk. That said, it is quite possible that I either overlooked or were not aware of certain important/contextual details. I would love for players to share their take on it. Character interactions do not have much depth since each character generally has their “scene” in a puzzle, but there are meaningful moments.

Actually, this (Spoiler - click to show) can be a bit awkward when you meet these characters again in the endgame where you discover that they were merely actors participating in the simulation. Unexpected but creative approach to character design.

Final thoughts
Arborea is a long but thoughtfully constructive game. Reading this review may give the impression that the game is all about climbing trees and analyzing environmental issues, but that is not entirely accurate. Yes, those things are certainly included (especially the tree part), but the gameplay also has a broader scope in content that may appeal to you more than you would think. It is a long game, I know, but give it a shot and then decide. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it.

(Arborea strongly reminds me of The Symbolic Engine. It is a one-room game entered in an IF Art Show and involves messing around with a machine that looks at the history of humans and their relationship with the planet. It also casts an eye on what that history could be in the future. The machine uses different voices and icons to tell the story. The gameplay experience is considerably different, but the themes are spot on. Like Arborea, it has a mix of sci-fi and historical elements. Unlike Arborea, it will only take up a sliver of your time.)

Those were the words going through my mind as I looted the storage lockers while hiding from a xenomorph monster. In this game you play as space-based scavenger camped out on planet Mercury. You need to repair and refuel your ship but cannot afford it. The plan is to wait for a scavenging opportunity. Finally, you spot a derelict ship drifting towards the sun. Perfect for looting. But just because it is derelict does not mean you will be the only living thing on there.

But first…
If you liked the planning part of Sugarlawn then this may be the game for you. It has a lot of replay value in a similar fashion. Into The Sun borrows a few structural features found in Sugarlawn. In Sugarlawn you are a contestant in a reality TV show about collecting as many antiques as you can in 30 minutes or less. When time runs out the player is presented with a list of the items they collected and their monetary value.

Into The Sun is similar in the sense that the protagonist is collecting items under a time restraint with the central goal of maximizing monetary gain. It too, evaluates the profitability of the player’s looting excursion at the end of the game. But Into The Sun is no copy of Sugarlawn. It does not take a fill-in-the-blanks approach where merely the setting and inventory items are swapped out to create a sci-fi replica. The game still distinguishes itself in both gameplay and story.

Gameplay
You begin on the derelict ship’s middle level next to the airlock that leads back to your own ship. Things are eerily silent but that soon changes. The author has maps for the game, and I highly recommend using them unless you want to visualize an array of junctions, companionways, and levels. I just opened it in a second tab to refer to as I played.

There is a time constraint. As the derelict ship drifts closer to the sun, it gets sucked in by the sun’s gravitational pull. The farther an object goes in, the more difficult it is to break out. The top of the screen lists the gravity level as it increases. If the player waits for too long, they burn up with the ship. I feel like the time limit is reasonably paced. It adds urgency without overwhelming the player.

One of the main gameplay attractions is the xenomorph alien that adds suspenseful atmosphere and logistical factors that the player must manage. The xenomorph is trying to hunt you down. There is always a sense of danger since you can hear it searching.

Starboard Shuttle Bay - Deck B

The shuttle bay is a round room with an airlock on the forward end. There's not as much smoke in this section, but there's a lot of haze. Looking through the observation window, you see a shuttle that holds four.

The airlock's been beaten on and is damaged. The only exit is port.

You hear something slithering towards the port side of the ship. Distant, but it's coming towards you.

The player has limited means of defending themselves, and it is so tempting to just “undo” whenever you run into the alien. But I appreciate how the game does not let you off the hook that easily when avoiding it. As it travels the ship it spits acid on valuable things, destroying them. If you want to nab this or that you better plan around the alien’s movements before they get *acidified. Sure, you may be able to “undo” to skip the inconvenience of fighting the alien but that will not stop it from trashing the ship. While the player may be able to use loopholes here and there, they cannot do so entirely.

All sorts of obstacles emerge for you to dodge. Oh, you want to go down this passage? Too bad. A pipe just broke and hot steam is spewing everywhere. It really makes the player think on their toes. Play the game to see for yourself.

And best of all….

NO INVENTORY LIMITS!

Don’t get me wrong, inventory limits can have a purpose. They add an extra challenge to the gameplay and promote strategizing. Still, they are frustrating, and I am a tad spoiled by games that do without. Deep down, I love it when there are no limits especially for a game where the goal is to loot anything that is either not nailed down or nailed down under lock and key. Barriers mean little for eager scavengers. This raises the question of how realistic it is for a protagonist to be able to gather endless amounts of stuff while still being able to climb ladders and similar activities that require the use of at least one hand. In this game it is no problem. The protagonist has a sci-fi equivalent of Mary Poppin’s handbag which allows them loot derelict ships with relative ease.

Story + Characters
The story is focused on the protagonist’s objective of scavenging enough to afford to repair their own ship. But there is some secondary story content about the derelict ship and its long-dead crew which is gleaned from flashcards found in the ship. When you put the flashcards in the data reader you find the ship’s old logs. So far, I only found two flashcards, an orange one and a yellow one. I do not know if there are more.

It is a bit of a cliché storyline but still intriguing. (Spoiler - click to show) The ship received a signal from an unexplored planet and the crew decided to investigate the surface. A crew member was infected by something that later killed him and infected another crew member. Something happened and suddenly there was a xenomorph onboard. That is all I know.

The only question I have is about a comment the game makes about the (Spoiler - click to show) ship’s AI. If you acquire the AI core the game says, "you get 200 dollars for the insane AI." When it says, “insane AI,” does the game mean that the AI was responsible for the disaster, perhaps for the strange signal or the creature infecting the ship? Or is it just malfunctioning?

Final thoughts
In a nutshell, Into The Sun is ultimately a replay puzzle in a spaceship setting. And a fairly unique one.

At first glance, I assumed the game would follow the familiar mold of a protagonist exploring a disabled ship as it drifts through space. Usually these involve repairing it with a “quick fix” to restore the power or warp drive or similar concept to enable escape or rescue. Instead, Into The Sun throws this to the wind. Repairs? Strip everything of value and leave. Oh, and there is an alien monster tossed into the mix. I just had a lot of fun with strategizing and exploring the setting.

Right now, it is one of my favorite entries in this year’s IFComp, although I still have quite a few remaining to play. We will see. If anyone is interested, my current high score is (Spoiler - click to show) 3,100 adjusted dollars. Someone will likely surpass that sooner or later.

*You certainly do not see that on Sugarlawn!

You are Bubble Gumshoe, a private eye tasked in solving the murder of Gum E. Bear in Sugar City.

Gameplay
The game begins at the crime scene. Gum E. Bear's corpse is in the alley. Officer Donut is nearby. From here, the city is at your disposal.

While the game has a smaller map than I expected it contains engaging scenery. This would be a good choice if you want a mystery game without tons of rooms. Much of the gameplay is geared towards talking to other characters but some snooping is encouraged. The game utilizes the smell and taste command for specific objects which not only assists in your investigation but pairs nicely with the fact that everything is made of candy. And in case you get stuck there are pointers at the top of the screen.

The humor in the gameplay comes from the candy-themed interpretation of a modern-day world. Experience the grunge and exotic nightlife of Sugar City. Adult bookstore? Not what you think. (Spoiler - click to show)

>x books
You weren't aware that toffee could bend that way.

Jawbreaker projects a gob of syrup into a nearby spittoon.

Despite the bizarreness of a candy constructed world, the game takes Bear’s death quite seriously. In clinical detail it provides a forensic overview of the crime scene:

Gum E Bear lies face-up on the floor, a gelatinous crater in his chest. A faint trickle of his liquid centre flows from it, pooling on the ground. A scattering of gummy chunks lie nearby, projected from the exit wound.

The fact that the victim is made of candy adds a comic effect to an otherwise gruesome scene. It is a new take on a murder mystery and draws the player in.

Story
Without a doubt the story is a creative premise. I was into the story and characters right from the beginning. Imagine taking your Halloween candy and transforming them into anthropomorphized characters. It was fun to visualize. But things did not turn out like I expected. Not necessarily the content of the plot but its structure.

At one point I desperately needed hints beyond the in-game pointers which I could not find. The game uses the “Accuse” command to make the accusation and end the game. Eventually, I decided to use it randomly to see if I could stumble across the winning ending or at least bits of information to point me in the right direction. And I did. (Spoiler - click to show) I regretted it, actually.

The following has extreme spoilers. I want to discuss the outcome of the mystery because I feel strongly about it, but it will ruin the game for you if you do. Please play the game first.
(Spoiler - click to show)
Unfortunately, I learned that most of the gameplay is irrelevant to solving the case. It made me wonder if I did in fact exhaust every puzzle. Perhaps there would be no more hints to give even if they were available. This saddened me because it meant that most of the content that I thought of as important turned out to be more or less a red herring.

This is a detective murder mystery story. The start of the game tantalizes the player by saying, “Explore the area, gather evidence, conduct interviews, and ACCUSE the culprit once you've determined...” which sets the stage for some investigative gameplay. But it turns out that the investigative theme is quite shallow.

I am giving you one more spoiler warning. Turn back if you have not tried attempted to play the game.
(Spoiler - click to show)
What frustrated me was the flimsiness of the evidence used to nail the murderer, Officer Donut. Gum E. Bear was shot by a handgun which can be found in the dumpster. Apparently, Officer Donut is the murderer because he has fingers to pull the trigger of a gun while everyone else lacks the necessary digits to do the same. Sure, Candy Kane, Jawbreaker, Don Toblerone, and Big Hunk do not have fingers. But what about everyone else in Sugar City? We see people (candy people, I guess) everywhere. Do they all lack fingers? I thought that the game would make you work to solve the murder, to find the evidence. Instead, you do not even need to leave the alley to win the game. You just accuse him, and the game does the rest. That saddened me.

I was surprised that the handgun was the only evidence used to solve the murder. There were so many clues that I was trying to investigate. The main “puzzle” I was trying to solve was about the red liquorice candy woman in the bathroom stall. If you open the stall, you see that she is consuming sherbet, which is an addictive substance. It is also the same substance found on Bear’s face. The subject of addictive substances is present throughout Sugar City. A theme for the story, maybe?

Big Hunk, the club bouncer, says, “’The streets are swimming in nose sweetener. Twenty bucks there's someone doing it in the toilets right now. I'd stop it if I could but I've got my hands full out here.’" I thought there was a potential puzzle here. If I managed to get the patrons to leave, Big Hunk could investigate. Perhaps then, and this is where I started to speculate, the player could share their findings about the broken bathroom sink.

The sink has remnants of a strawberry flavored (remember when I said this game uses the taste and smell verbs? yuck) liquid that is present in Bear’s body. Sure, that would just confirm that Bear did in fact trash the bathroom which we knew from Candy Kane. But then maybe that would lead the game in a new direction. I was excited about the possibilities although I probably got ahead of myself.

I am going to wrap up this spoiler-intensive ramble with some questions. I did enjoy this game and will be eager to give it another go if it turns out that I missed things. And I hope I did. If anyone has answers, I would love to hear them.

1: Is there any goal that you have when you talk to Don Toblerone? If yes, is it conversation related or is it solely for acquiring a pack of candy cigarettes?
2: Is there a use for the candy cigarettes?
3: Is it possible to unlock the door/gain access to the VIP lounge?
4: Is it possible to acquire a quarter to buy a newspaper from the newspaper box?
5: Is there any content involving the taffy factory?
6: Or are all these red herrings?


Characters
I did not realize this at first, but Bubble Gumshoe is a female character. We do not have much in terms of backstory, but I loved the character description that says, “You're a street-smart broad with a hard sugar shell but a soft centre.”

The characters, both main NPCs and background characters, are cleverly named with humorous personas. The only downside is that character dialog is limited. Often you are unable to ask a broad range of questions about the murder. Or even their own work or themselves. But they are still fun and interesting to interact with.

Final thoughts
As I started to play the game the experience was going at a solid four stars, but this slid as the (Spoiler - click to show) weak implementation of the player’s investigative choices began to emerge. This did not just affect the gameplay’s depth, but it also dragged the story down. Made it less dynamic. But the humor and creative premise makes it worth a try. In fact, the humor still makes me laugh. And with a protagonist named Bubble Gumshoe, well, you have got to play it.

Please excuse this analogy, but I say this earnestly: Playing this game conjures the idea of planning elaborate, decorative cookies. Stay with me. You have the frosting, and sprinkles, and whatnot planned but you run out of time and only complete the basics without the extras making it into the final product. I am not suggesting that the roughness in the game was because the author ran out of time. Instead, it merely seemed like a well thought out piece that lacked the finish that would have made it a fantastic piece. But kudos for a fun game, nonetheless.

In fact, dazzling would be an understatement. But before we dive into that let’s start with some background.

Note: This review is about a first chapter demo for a commercial game (hm, now that I think about it Andromeda Acolytes is probably the first commercial Inform game that I have played). As a formality, the review is also based off info on the IFDB listing. Other websites have additional content.

Continuing…..

Andromeda Acolytes is part of the Andromeda Series and, based on what I have seen so far, seems to branch off in terms of story depth and gameplay style (such as scuba diving). If I had not known that this game was part of the series, I would not have made the connection, or at least within the demo. The Andromeda Series was created by Marco Innocenti and is certainty worth your time. I was not particularly a fan of Andromeda Awakening - The Final Cut (I must admit, I only played the first half) but was really impressed with Andromeda Apocalypse — Extended Edition which won the 2012 IF Comp (and I played that one several times and recommend it). There are other installments by other authors but those two seem like the "main ones.” Even if Andromeda Acolytes takes the series in a new direction, I have no doubt that it will be valuable addition.

Gameplay
This is a seriously cool game. When I first saw it, I pounced. The demo reminds me of the game Subnautica (non-interactive fiction) and Tangaroa Deep (Twine) composed into vivid Inform piece. For a true effect watch Blue Planet afterwards.

The protagonist’s name is Korhva Vits, but usually referred to as Vits in the game. Vits has been assigned to a submersible mission to clear debris and relocate sea life. The player stays in a dive zone where they manage objects’ weight limits and their own oxygen levels. The game ends once you complete all tasks.

The locations can be overwhelming at first due to the amount of detail (which is also a good thing) but the game makes things user-friendly, especially with character dialog. The “think” command summarizes your tasks which is especially useful. I appreciate how the player’s oxygen levels decrease at steady but slow pace rather than depleting too quickly. Part of the immersive quality is that creatures are swimming around as you explore which gives it a simulation feel. It is the construction of a detail ecosystem that makes it vivid.

Story
The overarching story is that the planet Monarch (actually, I do remember Monarch from the other games) is populated with a modern human civilization that has no knowledge of how humanity came to exist on their world. The demo is too short to really delve into the game’s vast story. If anything, I was expecting a bit more in terms of a synopsis, but the effect only leaves me drooling for more. The game’s description (VR, cities, machines, wild technology, you name it) is vast, and the demo only skims the surface. There is a (Spoiler - click to show) mysterious slab under the boulder in the trench, which was interesting, but otherwise no story developments. But hey, it is a demo, and I think the author balanced story content with gameplay. Andromeda Acolytes paces its worldbuilding.

Characters
The gameplay is in first person. There is not a whole lot of information on Korhva Vits, but unlike Innocenti’s first two games in the series the protagonist is female. I thought that this was an interesting change and look forward to learning more about Vits. The game’s description explains that there are three other female protagonists who will appear in the full release, but for the demo it is just Vits.

There are three other characters whom the player hears over the comms: Dion, Hugo, and Eichi, but the player only speaks to Dion since the other two are in different dive zones. The game uses the “talk to” mechanic and characters have detailed responses based on the location whenever the player speaks. Even though the game does not share much about Dion’s character they are still interesting because of their friendly relationship with Vits.

Visuals
That is correct, there is a few visual elements in this game. There is a map on the right side of the screen and consists of a bright blue gradient background with boxes marking the player's location and the possible exits. This minor but crisp feature evokes an ocean atmosphere with its colour choice. It can also be turned off to save screen space. The author seems to strive to make things user-friendly. Hopefully the full release will continue with built-in maps.

(The cover art is also fantastic, by the way.)

Final thoughts
As you can see, the game’s page on IFDB says that the game will be released in 2025 (potentially shorted if you support the author) which is a while, but I think it will be worth the wait. If the demo is any indicator, I have a feeling that it will be immensely popular with players when it is released. The player only gets to dip their toes into the sand with the demo, but it has every sign of being a stellar game.

The premise of the story is that you have been abducted from your house by an alien species who call themselves the Inuop. They put you in a room with instructions to solve the puzzles within. If you solve it correctly, they will not invade Earth. If not, you are sucked into the vacuum of space. Currently I have not completed every puzzle in the game to see this outcome.

There is nothing in the game that flat-out says, “you have been abducted by a UFO,” but the introduction depicts a PC minding their own business in their living room when they are suddenly transported onto an alien vessel. That seems close to the abducted-by-an-UFO trope. I do not know if we ever get to meet the aliens directly in the gameplay. Hopefully they will keep their word about not invading Earth.

Based on what played I have played so far it appears to be a one room escape game, although I cannot say for certain until I finish it. The gameplay begins with a timer permitting the player 11 turns before the airlock opens. This adds some momentary suspense until (Spoiler - click to show) the player finds a way to disarm the timer. After that, there are no time restraints on the gameplay. The room has mostly Earth-familiar objects such as a desk, wardrobe, and couch. Later, this is combined with more alien technology. There are in-game hints, but they cut off when you reach the gameplay with alien gadgets.

I enjoyed the puzzles. They are simple and familiar but still require the player put their puzzle-solving hat on. It is not a difficult game either, but I must admit that I am currently stuck on one puzzle that is preventing me from making any more progress. I am stuck at the part where you (Spoiler - click to show) press the buttons on the panel to reveal the glass container that contains an alien device. Trying to open or break it had no effect. The game does suffer from some light implementation issues. One obstacle was:

>open glass container
It isn't something you can open.

>break glass container
The container remains undamaged. There must be some other way to get it open.

Looks like you are supposed to open it. If only I could figure out how. Oddly enough, there is (Spoiler - click to show) an eye printed on the glass container. If you stare at the eye it appears to move. Is there a way to communicate with it? The game implements the BLINK command but so far blinking has done nothing towards solving anything. After a while I decided to stop there. If I ever finish it, I may update this review. In the meantime, I still recommend this game. I enjoyed it and it has a nice balance of refining things down to the basics without being sparse.