Ratings and Reviews by Kinetic Mouse Car

Frolic RPG is a procedurally generated Twine game with emoticon characters and a light-hearted atmosphere.

✿~✿~✿~✿~✿~✿
It begins with a simple menu of actions, stylized with flower icons.

Gameplay primarily involves three activities: Making friends, dancing, and frolicking around a surreal landscape. If you pay attention, a closer look reveals that (Spoiler - click to show)some of the flower icons have content as well.

Everything is randomly generated, and the delight of playing Frolic RPG stems from discovering the range of symbols, words, and emoticons featured in the game.

The “RPG” aspect is rather superficial and limited to NPC descriptions, which may disappoint players eager to play an RPG. On the flip side, its simplicity may also appeal to players.

APPEARANCE: ^(.__✿]~
CLASS: BIRBO
HOME: FUZZY TIDEPOOL
STATS: +1 WOBBLINESS

My favorite is the frolic part, also known as WANDERFROLIC. You spend several turns frolicking through a landscape, watching the text cycle through symbols and verbs, before taking you back to the menu.

GIRL CAVE
☁♫_✽
bounding 2gether

This game has the same surreal introspective qualities found in the author's other works, qualities that showcase a talent for assembling descriptive imagery and complex concepts in the player's mind with only a handful of words. While Frolic RPG is only surface-deep in comparison, it still feels distinctively like a Porpentine game.

GLOSSY COVE
☁_✿☆☁
gliding 2gether

Picturing these landscapes was oddly soothing.

Frolic RPG has no storyline, player objectives, or ending, but there are occasional themes on gender and identity. These aren’t explored in-depth, however. They merely exist as just another component of the game’s carefree world.

GENDER TREE
☆✿
scampering 2gether

Design-wise, game uses a BRIGHT PINK background with large glowing white text, creating a joyful effect… and hurt my eyes until I adjusted the brightness of my screen. I mean that as a compliment, though. Its appearance radiates cheerfulness which boosts your mood.

Final thoughts
A pink game with emoticons may not sound like your thing, but its use of procedural generation in the gameplay is surprisingly effective at drawing you in. You might just end up playing longer than you intend to. The lack of objectives makes it easy to pick it up and set it aside without worrying about playing it to completion.

If you feel like your day is dragging on, Frolic RPG may be the escape you need.

You are the Project Manager of a team of employees, but there’s been some changes. The company has introduced a new feature: ProMa, an A.I.-powered management program. To assist you, of course.

ProMa has now scheduled a meeting so you can touch bases and complete a performance review on an employee named Gregg Pendleton.

Problem: Gregg is dead.

Gameplay
Your discussion with ProMa is conducted via chat message, and all choices involve conversation. The game begins with the player "logging in" by typing a username into a text input box. I like games that do this. It's a small feature, but surprisingly immersive.

I have mixed feelings about how the conversation tends to loop around in circles. I think it’s intentional to make our conversation with the A.I. more exasperating, but this means that it’s not always clear which responses move the story forward. At least it factors into the (Spoiler - click to show)score at the end.

Story
Structure
What makes For Gregg so effective is how our conversation unfolds.

It's not obvious at first, but ProMa has the player eating out of its hand. By the time the game ends, the player is sitting there thinking, “what just happened?”

It all starts when ProMa activates Grief.exe and takes control of the conversation.

You see, it has made it its mission to help you cope with Gregg's death, and proceeds to annoy us when, frankly, we’re not exactly grieving this colleague we barely knew. But we have compassion for him and get upset when ProMa makes insensitive comments.

The author's writing is brilliant. The way they portray a computer desperately trying to counsel a human on grief (despite, moments ago, said computer not knowing what death was until it launched Grief.exe) is so smooth. Especially since this help is unsolicited.

For example, if you admit that you didn’t really know Gregg, ProMa interrupts by saying, "I understand you might want to distance yourself from Gregg's death," and takes the initiative to become your therapist.

ProMa’s insistence that we “talk about our feelings” gets irritating real fast. In fact, we get angry when it writes some offensive (though funny) eulogies for Gregg. But this is a good thing! Because anger is one of stages of grieving! You're making such great progress, Reader. Meanwhile the player is staring at the screen like, you have got to be kidding me.

Underlying story
Humor aside, we learn more about Gregg. He (Spoiler - click to show)died by suicide after the company reduced his salary so it could afford ProMa. This becomes more relevant later.

Our conversation with ProMa starts to go off the rails. It keeps trying to convince us that we don’t like working at the company.

Then we get this zinger:

Themes
For Gregg is a short game, but that doesn't stop it from making powerful points about A.I. and its integration into the workplace.

There is an irony to designing an A.I. with a "Grief.exe" protocol so employees can grieve the loss of a human life… without interfering with productivity, of course.

In compliance with the protocols of Human Resources, I have set aside these next twenty minutes for grieving Gregg Pendleton together.

And it turns out (Spoiler - click to show)we've already been sacked. Grief.exe ends up being an empty formality. It’s played for laughs here but serves as a sad reminder of how corporations view their employees as assets to be shuffled around to maximize profit before being discarded.

Gregg's (Spoiler - click to show)situation of being replaced with A.I. is relevant to our world as A.I. technology becomes more mainstream. This prospect raises worrying implications. One of the game’s main takeaways is when ProMa says,

It is clear to me that there are some things AI still needs human beings to double-check.

If human involvement is a critical step in incorporating A.I. into workplaces and beyond, let’s hope that we don’t all get replaced. Otherwise, who knows what will go on unchecked?

Visuals
As a Twine game, For Gregg is a great example of how clean formatting goes a long way in creating a crisp, polished appearance. It uses a light bluish grey background with black text and blue links. Paragraphs are neatly spaced and centered on the screen, and everything is easy to read.

Final thoughts
For Gregg is more than an amusing game about a wrangling an A.I. at your workplace. Beneath the surface, it’s about the cold realization that comes with discovering that you’re not, in fact, the indispensable, valued person you thought you were.

While the game keeps things light-hearted and humorous, it’s worth taking it seriously because we just might find ourselves in the characters’ shoes as A.I. in the modern workplace becomes normalized.

Less like a game, more like a reflection, Nineteen is an author's sharing of her experience with suicide and the insights she has gained over the years.

Gameplay is non-linear. It begins with a short but powerful sentence:

I was twelve the last time I tried to kill myself. That was nineteen years ago.

This sentence contains links that bring you to different moments in her life, and these are woven together through the links scattered across the narrative until we reach the game’s “end.” Depending on the parts you visit, you may need to play the game more than once to view everything.

The author gives us an intimate look into her life and even includes family photos. The details are best experienced through the gameplay in her own words. I’ll just focus on the game’s central theme: the critical role of friendship when struggling with depression.

She recognizes that this is easier said than done and writes about the struggle of not knowing how to convey the kind of support you need. Sometimes you're not even sure of what to ask for, and if you do, there's fear of what your friends may think.

Next, she reflects on how friends can be oblivious of the impact mundane actions can cause, for better or worse. Like when one friend sent her a silly picture of a cat (included in the game!), which was enough for her to want to remain in the moment.

Do they know?

Do they get that they might have just saved my life with that stupid cat macro?

On the flip side, an insensitive comment made by a favorite teacher resulted in feelings of rage- feelings she suppressed until she was alone.

Despite all this, the author concludes that "the only consistently valuable tool I have found has been my friends," and this realization is the product of over a decade of life experience.

As the game draws to a close, we receive this key insight...

Depression convinces you that you have no power. Sometimes you need friends to lend you some of theirs.

...only for the author to take this one step further.

There is always someone who will lend you power.

If you can't think of anyone else, think of me.

The player can then click on "think of me" to email the author! This also serves as the game’s ending. And what a brilliant way of doing so!

I’m not sure if it’s still active, though. The game was created in 2013.

I will say: the game’s implementation could be smoother. Some passages have no links, interrupting the flow of the story. There is no "back button," and the “Rewind” feature on the side of the screen only led to, “No passage available.” It may not occur to players to use the "back" button on their browser, forcing them to restart (like I did until I figured it out). Also, the text is rather small.

To conclude, Nineteen is a short Twine game that leaves a memorable impression on the player due to the author’s candid writing and heartfelt discussion on the difference a support group of friends can make. Her approach of paying it forward by reaching out to players is especially admirable. Play it and see what resonates with you.

Note: This review is for the post-comp release. The change log refers to it as v101, and I recommend playing this version.

Modern society is run by sub-sentient computer programs known as “subs.” You work as a cyberpsychiatrist where you assist and discipline these subs when they run into problems. One night, you are awakened by an emergency: the subs are misbehaving.

And society will come crashing down if you don’t resolve it.

Gameplay
The Entropy Cage is centered around investigating the subs’ odd behavior before shifting to (Spoiler - click to show)aligning with one of the factions from the story.

Gameplay consists of the player receiving requests from subs and deciding on what action to take. Initially, the only action available is “reseed,” but more options become available as the situation develops.

b91: Hello. My program is stuck. Reseed me.

user> sub.reseed() | sub.queryRequest()

Players may find it a bit ambiguous. We’re supposed to “find out what happened,” and yet, it's unclear what your immediate objective is. It’s hard to tell if you’re doing anything right because we always get Jake’s disapproval, though I understand that might be so we can feel the protagonist’s frustration for ourselves. That doesn’t make it less confusing.

Reseed the subs? He complains. Freeze the subs? He complains. Promote the subs? He complains. Each time he complains that we should “try something else,” and the player is staring at the screen thinking, there aren’t any other links to click on!

Allowing the player to save their progress would have been appreciated or at least have a way for the player to skip to later content after their first playthrough. If you're not careful, you click on a link that, woops, turns out to be an ending.

I nearly gave up hope on understanding what I was doing when I froze/promoted/etc. this endless parade of faulty subs. Gradually, things came into focus.

user> sub.promote()

SYSTEM: REDIRECTED sub.promote() -> sub.kill()
bb1: Why? Query Why?
bb1: Query Why? Use? Hello?

In this example, a sub requested that I promote it. And I did: "sub.promote." Some (Spoiler - click to show)unknown agent changed sub.promote to sub.kill, killing the sub instead of promoting it. The poor sub is wondering why this is happening.

So: My advice for playing The Entropy Cage is to stick with it.

Even when you have no idea what’s going on, you can still have fun.

Versions
Out of curiosity, I tried the competition version and could see a clear difference. I like how the newer version uses “reseed” instead of “punish,” which feels more intuitive (and not so mean). Consider:

b78: Hello. I have been bad. Punish me. vs.

f71: Hello. My program is stuck. Reseed me.

I wonder how previous players will feel about the game now.

Story
Before you play, I highly encourage you to read the backstory which can be accessed via the game’s menu. It provides essential context to understanding the story. Without it, I would not have been able to piece together the overarching premise on my own.

It’s quite intriguing!

The author shares that the game “came from wondering what religions computers would create for themselves,” which raises concern of what would happen if said computers started to engage in religious warfare. The aim of The Entropy Cage is to consider humanity’s role as an observer of this theoretical warfare, and this is reflected in the protagonist’s task at investigating the subs’ erratic behavior.

Endings
I thought there were only 2-3 endings until I looked at the ending guide built into the game. The guide summarizes each ending regardless of if you’ve reached it. Turns out, there are 9 possible outcomes. Reaching them was another matter…

Thoughts
Ending 1 serves as a potential warning for our current world and the near future. Technically mild spoilers, so I’ll put them under a spoiler tag.

This theme of over-reliance is increasingly relevant to the technologies that have emerged in recent years which will only continue to be developed.

Characters
We know little about the game’s protagonist beyond their job title and their employer: a corporation called Cloud-Nine. Or is it an agency? Either way, its specialty is transportation. You definitely want your subs to function correctly for that.

Apparently, we've also been “suspended.” The game doesn’t say why, and I would be fine with this if Jake didn’t bring it up ALL THE TIME. He keeps waving your suspension around and threatening you to the point where I want to know why the protagonist is on thin ice. Or is Cloud-Nine just looking to cut costs?

At least some of our exchanges with him can be humorous.

SYSTEM:CHAT@jake: And what checks that blood?
SYSTEM:CHAT@user: A pre-sub. Damn. That guy had one job.

There are NPCs who play a big role behind the scenes, but A, I don’t want to spoil them, and B, I’m still a bit confused about who they are aside from the fact that they are (Spoiler - click to show)subs of religious factions.

Visuals
Taking after the cover art, The Entropy Cage uses blue and black as its main colours. Its appearance is a large dark blue text box against a black screen. Text and links also use different shades of blue.

I have mixed feelings of how some of the dialog is displayed. In these cases, tH3 diAl0G lo0kS liK3 tHIs WhiCH g3tS TeDIus qUIcKlY. This formatting is clever because it conveys that the sub we're chatting with (Spoiler - click to show)is slowly being corrupted. The downside is that it's inconvenient when trying to process what the sub is saying.

Final thoughts
The Entropy Cage feels somewhat like a hidden gem.

I've played games where the source of conflict is heavily based on "A.I. vs. human characters." In The Entropy Cage, the source of conflict is "A.I. vs A.I.," and I don't see this nearly as often. The human protagonist is not an active participant in the (Spoiler - click to show)subs’ warfare, and yet we wield enough power to alter its trajectory.

It’s also frustrating. Even now, I have a hard time understanding it all. While the game’s mechanics emphasizes how the protagonist is working within limitations as they try to resolve a looming crisis, it hinders the player’s enjoyment of story instead of enhancing it.

Still, I liked The Entropy Cage. The game grows on you if you spend enough time experimenting with it.

If you’re looking for a sci-fi game that prefers its mechanics over heavy dialog, The Entropy Cage offers a unique experience. Despite its flaws, it raises questions on morality, technology, and where we stand within it. It was released in 2014, and the author hasn’t created anything since. But if they ever do, I’d be interested.

Anhedonia is a Twine game about depression and how it saps the meaning in one's life. It appears that it’s a reflection of the author's own experience. Everything is told in first person. That said, I will refer to the narrator as "the protagonist." Consider this review as how I understand the game. I hope it reflects what the author had in mind when they created this work.

Gameplay is linear. I'd describe the gameplay as a train of the protagonist's thoughts. While progress is made by clicking on links to move to the next thought, the use of cycling links in some passages add interactivity.

Anhedonia keeps the word count to a minimum, and there are simple but well-designed drawings that add polish. Some of the art is even animated! The visuals also pair well with the font. The dark grey text almost looks like handwriting and there are red links. Fade-in-fade-out text effects are sometimes used to tell the story.

The protagonist looks at the difficulties of living with depression and mental illness, which include the societal belief that you just need to "try harder," medical professionals not taking you seriously, concerns about affording medication if you lose your insurance, and more. But the game's focus is centered on the concept of "anhedonia," which also serves as its title.

"Anhedonia" is an inability to experience pleasure and is often associated with depression. While the game does not explicitly provide anhedonia's definition, it's conveyed through the story. The protagonist no longer finds joy in not only things that once made them happy, but also in things that reinforces one's awareness of being alive. This includes physical sensations that engage the body which now feels muted.

The game does, however, define another word:

semantic saturation:

the phenomenon whereby the uninterrupted repetition of a word

leads to a sense that the word has lost its meaning

Next, the game says that being mentally ill is "not a question of semantics but of ontology."

If I understand this correctly, the protagonist is drawing a parallel between the loss of meaning within a word, and the loss of meaning in their life because of depression, both of which involve some form of repetition: the repetition of a word vs. repetition of depression in everyday existence. The result? The loss of meaning. And loss of meaning can imply that pleasure is lost as well.

I think the game summarizes itself when it ponders,

how does one separate illness from self

A recurring theme is how the numbness of daily life can cause one to be desensitized to what it's like to feel numb to begin with. If depression is all-encompassing, it becomes difficult to identify where "you" start/stop and where the mental illness begins.

I'm going to leave it at that.

Now, I encourage you to play it so you can experience the story for yourself and form your own interpretation. Gameplay is only a few minutes long, and I think the low word-count will appeal to players. Visually, if you're looking for inspiration, Anhedonia is a great example of a Twine game with a simple yet polished appearance.

I imagine that creating Anhedonia was no easy feat for the author, and I appreciate the time and effort put into the game’s creation.

(edit: character name fix. (Spoiler - click to show)EARTH CAT not SPACE CAT.)

The protagonist of SPACE FROG! is... SPACE FROG. Written in all-caps, like the title. He, predictably, is also a frog.

SPACE FROG wants to collect a star. He has his own spaceship. Because of size limitations, the player can only choose one item to bring. There are three items to choose from, which encourage multiple playthroughs. The rest of the gameplay involves traveling to planets.

You choose between exploring a planet or moving on. While the game offers three possible planets, you can only explore one per playthrough. It's also possible to (Spoiler - click to show)return to Earth and end things there. All of this provides incentive to play the game more than once. For convenience, there's a "back" button available.

The planets are each inhabited by other animal characters who offer wholesome interactions.

SPACE FROG wasn't sure what to do. He didn't speak sheep.

Could he communicate with the sheep in some other way?

SHAKE FROGGY BANK
BAA BACK

In some endings we succeed in acquiring a star, while in others (Spoiler - click to show)we get sidetracked and set the star-collecting aside for another day. There are no bad endings. Only ones filled with optimism and joy. I love SPACE FROG's reason for collecting a star, which is only revealed at the end. I don’t want to spoil it, but it has something to do with (Spoiler - click to show)EARTH CAT.

The game has a strong ambience of imagination, curiosity, and the excitement of making new friends...

But SPACE FROG was no ordinary frog.

...and these qualities are showcased in our protagonist.

Made with Twine, the game uses a pale green background and black digital-looking text. There are graphics for most scenes that breathe life into the story. The graphics may be simple, but they fit the game's minimalist design perfectly.

While SPACE FROG! can be appreciated by anyone, the game is fantastic option for children. It features an endearing story with a low word-count, heartwarming visuals, and beginner-level interactivity.

I apologize for the cliché title; I couldn't help myself.

Overview
SCP Containment Breach is a fan game about the SCP Foundation, a fictional organization that catalogs anomalies and phenomena, particularly those that pose a threat. It adheres to the motto of Secure, Contain, Protect. Its existence is kept secret from the public.

Fiction aside, the Foundation is a collaborative project that anyone can contribute to. Visit its website. While there is no single canon, it sets a basic framework and lets writers' imaginations take care of the rest.

Technically, SCP Containment Breach is a partial recreation of another Foundation fan game: A video game called SCP – Containment Breach. Nearly identical titles.

In the video game, you play as a "D-Class," a category of personnel consisting of death row prisoners. They are considered disposable and are used to deal with dangerous anomalies, or “SCPs.” While it features multiple SCPs, its main attraction is SCP-173.

Anyway, SCP Containment Breach, an interactive fiction game made with Quest, attempts to recreate the video game's plot, but only focuses on SCP-173.

(SCP-173 is considered the "Original SCP" of the Foundation. When observed, it appears as a statue. When everyone looks away, it can move and will kill you. When working with it, the mantra is “don’t blink.”)

With that out of the way...

My review of the game
Unfortunately, SCP Containment Breach is not even a finished game. I understand that this may be the author's first game. But it is so lacking in detail it feels more like they lost interest and uploaded it just because.

The game begins in a room with no explanations or overhead announcements, only a document about SCP-173. Our prison uniform identifies us as a D-Class while the document suggests that we’re here to investigate SCP-173’s containment. Thing is…

It's a shame because the game made me so excited.

A SCP 173 containment chamber
This is where SCP 173 is suppost to be contained, but he isn't here.

You can go north.

Spelling errors aside, this scene in the containment room ramps up the suspense because the SCP is on the loose. I'm just waiting for it to appear out of nowhere.

Too bad. (Spoiler - click to show)What’s the point of a game about an escaped SCP when there’s no SCP?

There is only one puzzle, and that is (Spoiler - click to show)unlocking the control room door with a keycard. The control room contains a switch that you can turn on and off, but it has no effect. The map is one long hallway with a side room, and it is nearly empty of content.

Also, implementation is rocky. You can repeat putting on the mask ("wear mask" doesn't work, only "put on mask") even though you are already wearing it. Examining yourself only results in "looking good," which would have been a good opportunity to develop the story. I'll leave it at that.

Appearance wise, the game uses a black screen and dark green text that is difficult to read. To be fair, it incorporates three cool pieces of imagery: the document with a photo of SCP-173, an icon for the keycard, and a creepy image of static that you get when you mess with the computer. That's the game's only strength.

In conclusion, I was really disappointed. It gets one star because it's so barebones. But I'll throw in another star because I really like the concept. This game was made in 2013 and is most likely abandoned. If anyone else decides to make an IF fan game of the Foundation, I will happily play it.

As long as the (Spoiler - click to show)SCP actually shows up.

The hiss of electronics and tubes being vacated of the substances that they had housed is what jars you from an unnatural sleep into consciousness.

This is an extremely short game where you play as a criminal in a harsh, dystopian world governed by an entity only known as "The State."

As indicated in its title, The System [Early, Early, Early Pre-Build] 0.05, the game is in early stages of development. It's also over a decade old and unlikely to ever be completed.

Nonetheless, I will acknowledge the time and effort the author put into the game because it's kind of fun.

Gameplay
This is a Quest game. However, it only uses links, no text input.

The game begins with you being extracted from your cryo-pod. There are roughly half a dozen choices in the game, and they mostly revolve around learning about the story through conversation.

It’s clear that the game is under development. Gameplay consists of (Spoiler - click to show)being led through a facility until you end up in a room with an ominous-looking chair. You are then told to sit. Game ends.

An abrupt and disappointing end, but it’s worth playing for the atmosphere.

Story/Characters
As a prisoner, you are in a "cryo-stasis" program and have been woken after (Spoiler - click to show)142 years of being frozen.

People convicted of crimes are sent to prisons where it's every person for themselves. Do or die. Sink or swim. Prisoners’ memories are also erased to prevent them from remembering their supposed crimes.

Those who come out on top are cryogenically frozen because The State believes their ability to survive a harsh prison environment makes them good candidates for… who knows? The game ends before we learn what the protagonist is going to be used for.

The State is also looking to cut on costs, which means its prisoners are especially disposable. There are other story tidbits to be found, but I'm going to encourage you to play the game if you want to know more. It only takes 3 minutes to play.

Visuals
I enjoyed the art.

A lot of it looks like generic, public domain sci-fi art, but most of it suits the game just fine. The art for the facility (or is it a spaceship?) was successful at establishing a grim, dystopian atmosphere. I will say, the (Spoiler - click to show)blood splatter GIF (used if the player tries to fight the guards) was kind of lame.

Final thoughts
I was conflicted about rating this game because it's so underdeveloped, but since it appears to be abandoned, I'll rate it according to how much fun I had (usually my ratings aren't this simple). Besides, the game shows promise. While its story doesn't bring anything new to the table, I've found myself wanting to know what happens next.

3 stars. I was reasonably entertained.

It’s amazing what can draw a person to a game. I chose to play The Enchanted Glade because I really like the word “glade.” It conjures neat forest imagery in my mind. And the game features exactly that.

So, yes. The Enchanted Glade is a fun adventure in the English countryside. You wake up in a hotel room with no memory of where you are or why you’re there. Now, hold on-

You are probably rolling your eyes at the amnesia plot line. Truth is, neither the story nor the gameplay has any focus on the amnesia part. It’s just to create a featureless PC for the player to step into as they frolic about the scene views of Cornwall.

Explore the village of Cawsand and try to uncover its mystery!

Gameplay
This gameplay narrowly avoids feeling under-implemented. There’s not a lot of meat on it, text-wise. Rather it has a less-is-more quality that allows you to appreciate what detail is present.

You are at the entrance to the sea cave.

The waves of the English Channel lap gently at your feet. You are, however, aware of the treacherous nature of the currents hereabouts. Not a place to bathe!

Some of the language (ex. rubbish instead of trash) may be unfamiliar to players due to the English setting, adding to the charm!

What’s unusual is that there is no obvious goal, at first.

This might be a turnoff in another game, but The Enchanted Glade manages to engage the player with this ambiguity. It vaguely informs us that we’re on a mission to find out “what happened,” suggesting that it has something to do with the dryad (spirit) in the forest. It then leaves the player to solve puzzles in their surroundings as they emerge before revealing the gameplay’s true goal.

I enjoy parser games that reward the player for noticing things in their environment. You may not see the (Spoiler - click to show)frog in the bog, but if you examine the grass, suddenly it appears in the location’s description. This meticulous attention to details creates an almost meditative effect that worked well with the game’s simple atmosphere. Things don’t need to make sense right away. Enjoy the ambience and scenery.

Sidenote: For the longest time I've struggled with Quest games because they would inevitably slow down or end the session prematurely if I looked away for too long. I did not have to deal with that at all with this game. I was even able to save the game without needing an account for the Text Adventures website. I’m not sure if this is a new development, but it may encourage you to give this game a chance.

Puzzles
I liked the puzzles, but there is some occasional clunkiness. One criticism is that puzzles are simple but not always intuitive. How are we supposed to know that the (Spoiler - click to show)dryad- who can kill the player- will be appeased by the gold acorn? Or that she wants something at all?

There is also some mild guess-the-verb confusion. (Spoiler - click to show)“Ride dolphin” and “Get on dolphin” does not work, but “Climb on dolphin” does. This game could probably use a formal walkthrough, but there are plenty of hints available on the Text Adventures website if you are willing to read through the comments.

I’ll further discuss puzzles at the end of this review.

Story
I’m not going to hash out all the details (as I often do), but it’s only when we discover the cozy library that we realize the backstory to this quiet country setting. The story then takes on a more mythical feel while still staying ground. (Spoiler - click to show) Somewhere in the forest, a benevolent spirit has been trapped by Dark Magic. There is no action or fighting. It’s focused more on finding harmony with the land to come to this being’s aid.

Not too loud, not too flashy, just the right amount of mystery.

Visuals
The Enchanted Glade features photographs of English scenery for about a third of its map locations. Nothing fancy but I found them quite pleasing to look at. They add depth to the minimal detail in the writing. It all just clicked together.

Conclusion
I was pleasantly surprised by what The Enchanted Glade has to offer. While it may not be the strongest or most complex game you will ever play, it sets itself apart with the low-key mystery and charming setting. Play the game and spend time in Cornwall!

I think I might try some of the author’s other games. Even if they don’t have glades in them.

Also: Below are some thoughts on puzzles. Spoilers!

Explore a website for ConfigurationUploader v0.0.99 software. Find out how to install it, how to use it, and what people have to say about it. But be careful. The software is in a prototype pre-beta stage of development.

Use at your own risk.

Gameplay
Gameplay is simple. You navigate the game's pages as if it were a website. Wait, that's not quite right.

It is a website.

Sort of. This isn’t Twine or a choice-based system made to look like a website. It’s made with MkDocs, a site generator. I love it when authors take such an innovative approach to game creation. I’ll discuss this further in the Visuals section.

You don’t influence the gameplay. The fun lies in reading each section to piece together the story. Site pages can be read in the order they are presented in, or you can visit them out of turn.

Accessing everything only takes a few minutes. However, I found myself browsing through it for much longer to find every detail. There is a page that marks the “end” of the game, but it’s left open-ended.

Story
The SPOILER in my title is supposed to say, (Spoiler - click to show)"imminent extinction."

Okay, it's not really a spoiler since it's revealed early on, but I want players to approach the game with a clean slate, especially since it's so short.

The software was developed by the Experimental Cognition Group at University of New Washington. It’s used for uploading configurations. Seems innocent enough.

ConfigurationUploader is a program written in the Astroglion programming language, and requires Astroglion v4.10 EXACTLY.

No problem.

Thoughts on story
While I wish I could learn more about the story, it stands on its own.

There is replay value in the sense that you see earlier pages with new insight now that you know the full story. The warning on the site’s home page makes a lot more sense.

The game raises some interesting points regarding using technology to (Spoiler - click to show)escape death, especially when said technology is still under development.

The configurator software may be flawed, but with the (Spoiler - click to show)looming gamma ray burst, it will have to do.

Characters
The developers are only identified with numbers and letters. Some have their own site page that includes their thoughts on the situation. These also provide updates for the person.

Visuals
If you skim through the game without paying attention, no one will blame you for thinking it was for a real project by a university. There's a menu section listing the site's pages, a search bar, and even a little "home" icon to take you to its main page! The blue, black, grey, and white colour scheme looks polished and professional.

This all contributed to an immersive experience.

Final thoughts
ConfigurationUploader teaches a harsh lesson: When humanity is (Spoiler - click to show)on the verge of being wiped out, you can't afford to be picky. Sometimes prototype pre-beta is all you have.

I loved this game. Within a few minutes of gameplay, you will find yourself in a creative and unexpected narrative that deepens the more you explore its contents.

The only criticism I have is that I wish it were longer. When I feel this way, it can affect my rating, but this game gets a pass because it was created for Ectocomp's La Petite Mort category, which is for works created under FOUR HOURS.

The fact that a complex, unique game like this could be created in such a short timeframe only makes it even cooler.

Science fiction + Innovative game format + One of my favorite authors = Fantastic game I recommend!