Reviews by Kinetic Mouse Car
ECTOCOMP 2025
View this member's profile1–7 of 7
Note: Don’t be turned off by my rating. I found it tough to rate because it feels like it should be higher, and yet, I needed to be realistic. I hope this review clarifies things.
The supernatural carries a stigma that leaves its victims scrabbling for support. But when it’s taboo to even discuss such matters, support is hard to find. That’s where you come in.
This is my calling. I investigate this kind of stuff. The dangers that play out just at the edge of society. The threats from things that… aren’t human.
You are a traveling exorcist who goes from city to city offering your services to those who contact you. Of course, this means you live with this stigma everywhere you go.
But being a professional, it’s all part of the job.
A submission to Ectocomp 2025 in the Le Grand Guignol category.
Gameplay
Exorcist Tipline makes a strong first impression with its fast-paced, suspenseful opening scene. It provides both a glimpse of the work the protagonist does and the stigma around anything supernatural. I was excited!
The main gameplay begins with the protagonist moving to a new city. The plan is to stay at a hotel for seven weeks. After that, it’s time to move on and the game ends. At the start of each day, the player checks their answering machine for any new cases. Next, they choose from a list of possible actions.
-Go to map location
-Research in the library
-Spend the day warding
-Prepare the coinboard for divination
-Go over notes
Aside from checking your notes, each action takes up one day. Being 48 days long, the gameplay will run on the longer side. During this time, seven cases will be made available.
Implementation
The implementation is the game’s fatal flaw.
When I say, “difficult to play,” I mean that it can feel borderline impossible to make any progress towards solving the cases. The problem is that the player has little way of knowing what to do after they first meet with a client. On top of this, the gameplay’s rigidness makes it difficult to experiment and fully appreciate the city setting.
The notes only list your active cases. Rarely are they updated with new information, leaving it up to the player to remember everything. Characters may drop snippets of info when you first meet them and that’s it. If you miss a key detail, your mistake. For example, (Spoiler - click to show)Randall only mentions his local church- which you can visit- once. The notes can’t even be accessed at the library while you’re doing research.
The biggest issue is how the player’s progress can go unrecognized. Consider (Spoiler - click to show)Randall again. His dead mom is supposedly sending people tapes of him doing awkward things. At one point, we receive one. I figured the practical thing to do would be to go talk to him about it. But when I did, the game acted like I had nothing relevant to share.
My main takeaway is this: If there was a hint guide to nudge the player in the right direction, it would be enough to help them navigate around the implementation issues and at least enjoy the story. Being able to save the game would be nice, though I was relieved to see that the game (Spoiler - click to show)sends you to a checkpoint if you die.
Story
I love the overall premise: an exorcist provides a discrete support system for those who are otherwise shunned, dismissed, or ignored. Rather than having a “main” story, Exorcist Tipline is more akin to a collection of stories that coexist at once. I’ll use this section to reflect on my experience with the cases.
The game makes it easy to care about the characters, especially when a client’s loved ones are involved. Exorcist Tipline is ultimately a game about helping people. But without any direction, it quickly becomes a game about letting everyone down.
(Spoiler - click to show)Out of the seven cases, I managed to complete four of them, but only with less-than-ideal outcomes. A man's family dies (that one was the worst), a teenager has their arm ripped off (mentioned only)/possibly dying as well, a woman loses most of her cognitive abilities, and another man who will never get closure on his dead father-in-law. All in a day's work!
Monica looks at me and stammers a few barely connected terms. Expressing gratitude is likely no longer within her ability, and even if it was, there is probably not much left to be thankful for.
Believe it or not, this was one of my more successful outcomes.
The other cases? Unable to reach a conclusion. For a few, waiting too long resulted in the client vanishing or some other sad outcome. If this happens, no one is willing to talk about it because of the stigma. If anything, I want to know how to help the first client. So much so that I replayed it several times in hopes of finding a better outcome. No success.
Redbridges, population circa 800,000.
That said, I enjoyed the city setting and its subtle urban fantasy vibe.
Visuals
The visuals are a strength. Exorcist Tipline is made with both Ink and Godot. In the center of the screen is a black column with white text. Behind it is a backdrop that depicts the setting. An innovative feature is pop-up imagery used for maps and the divination board. To use the board, the player drags coin icons and flips them onto the board in search of meaning. This was a fantastic way of making the game more interactive.
I liked the character portraits. Disarming but not too cartoonish. Not every character has one, but I enjoyed the ones that were featured. Now, if you’re not careful, (Spoiler - click to show)the supernatural will come searching for you… at night. This is illustrated as a shadowy figure appearing on the screen, followed by a face. Not quite a jumpscare, but creepy enough to be unnerving.
Unfortunately, there is slow timed text. Inconvenient, but manageable. However, when a major event occurs, the text will sometimes speed through it before you have a chance to fully process it! That was worse.
Final thoughts
If it weren’t for the implementation, Exorcist Tipline would shine. I was impressed by its complexity. The parts I liked I really liked. But that’s not enough to fully make up for the implementation issues. I hope the author continues to develop this game. Or at least publish a hint guide. That would make a big difference for players.
If you enjoy supernatural investigation games or anything that combines mystery with the occult, such as Grimnoir, then Exorcist Tipline may interest you. Frustrating, yes, but there are components that make it highly likable. Otherwise, it may not be worth your time considering that it’s a longer game.
A rather unique ghost exorcism game set in an old movie studio, November 23, 2025Founded in the mid-1970s by Gregory Korda, Armature Studios produced a wide variety of films, many of which received high praise from critics and audiences alike. But the studio seemed… cursed. Every year, someone would die, often under suspicious circumstances.
After going out of business in 1998, the studio sat in abandonment. Prime real estate isn’t as desirable when it has the reputation of being haunted. Jump forward to 2025. You are a freelancer whose work deals with the supernatural. Recently, the studio’s lot was purchased, and the new owners have hired you to rid the studio of whatever haunts it.
In other words, Kinophobia is a ghost investigation game that takes place at an abandoned movie studio. The game is made with Inform and is also a submission to Ectocomp 2025 in the Le Grand Guignol category.
Gameplay
At first, I found the game to be quite intimidating. My initial impression was that there were tons of things I had to juggle. Notebook. Binder that gets filled quickly. Phone. A pendant with some kind of substance in it. And verbs. RESEARCH. CONSULT. WRITE. Something about CONCLUSIONS.
I was overthinking it. Soon enough, it clicked. Kinophobia quickly became a lot of fun.
The gameplay involves exploring the studio for newspaper clippings, posters, memos, letters, and other readable material that name-drop people, films, dates, and incidents tied to Armature Studios’ history. Along the way, you can also encounter haunted objects that provide further clues.
As you pick up the shotgun microphone, you feel a slight tingle of static electricity.
The main goal is to identify the 24 ghosts that haunt the site. This is done by finding the person’s name, cause of death, and year of death, which you record in your notebook. Once everyone has been identified, you go to the one room that has been off-limits during the gameplay. But I won’t spoil it.
The gameplay’s structure is a bit unusual. When it comes to games about ghost hunting or exorcisms, I imagine the player running around to find and confront/banish ghosts directly or solving scenery/object-based puzzles. Kinophobia is more of a research-oriented investigation. After collecting readable material, you sit down to analyze it. My favorite part of this is Ari, our research assistant who will look up topics and text us her findings. Sometimes she’ll text us at random to make sure we’re doing alright. She’s awesome.
Ari tells you that the top hit for this name is a "dadfluencer" based out of Cleveland. The person you're looking for is probably not that.
There is so much content to explore. It’s easy to go down a rabbit hole as you chase every bit of info that you find. I love this sort of thing. After a while, you almost forget that you’re investigating a haunted movie studio. Almost.
You think you hear a voice behind you - there's nothing there when you look, of course.
The game makes sure to remind the player of where they are. This includes (Spoiler - click to show)experiencing eerie visions. I actually wish there were more of these. It’s also possible for ghosts to appear visually, but this is more for atmosphere than anything else.
I did need the walkthrough to finish the game. 24 ghosts are a lot. I enjoyed the challenge, but some were too cryptic for me. For example, (Spoiler - click to show)I think reading the “Whatever happened to Magda Marcel?” article and concluding that she was murdered is a bit of a leap, though I appreciate how the game confirms this through a text message we receive from Ari as well as the appearance of Magda’s ghost (a gnarly murder, from the looks of it). Also, I was more inclined to classify hairstylist Melissa Wong’s death as “illness” (chemical poisoning) than “accident,” considering that it was due to routine exposure to toxic hairspray.
Story
To avoid spoiling the immediate story, I’m going to focus more on the worldbuilding component. After researching the daylight out of everything, one could almost believe that, despite being a work of fiction, the people, films, essays, organizations, and other subjects in Kinophobia are real, perhaps because much of it feels vaguely familiar. I should note, a few things do exist, like Letterboxd. But most of it is fiction.
There’s even commentary on these fictional works.
Ari shares a Letterboxd review of Ampersand (2008): "What if all your failed Hinge dates showed up to your house to kill you with hammers but you were too busy having crippling gambling debts to notice. Five stars."
These were a delight to read.
I’m not the first to make this comparison, but Kinophobia reminds me of Excalibur, a Twine game where you navigate a convincing Wikipedia-style “website” about a TV show of the same name. Both have an investigative element where you dig for info and draw conclusions. But what I especially like is the depiction of a creative endeavor that once lived in its heyday. Through your investigation, you start to imagine what it was like before the television show got cancelled, or before the film studio went out of business. As dysfunctional/cursed as they were, there was a moment when they shined. It’s neat to contemplate before returning to the present.
Also, the author describes Kinophobia as a “database thriller,” which may just be my new favorite genre.
Visuals
I like that the game uses a black screen and white text. Much spookier than the default white screen with black text. The cover art also has a nice appearance with black and white imagery + a splash of orange.
Final thoughts
Will everyone fall in love with this game? Not necessarily. But I do think it has something for everyone. There are parts you will appreciate.
As for me, I had a blast. It featured some of my favorite things: An atmospheric map that you roam freely, and a story that you piece together through research. And while it’s a long- and sometimes difficult- game, the walkthrough is well designed. It cuts to the chase so you can dive right into the essence of the gameplay.
So far, Kinophobia is one of the best ghost investigation games I’ve played!
Founded by Doctor Morben, Morben House was once a state-of-the-art establishment that could cure any mental illness, even insanity. Until patients disappeared and scandal forced the asylum to close its doors in 1930s. It’s been left abandoned- and the source of countless rumors- ever since.
Fast forward to the 21st century.
You’ve got bills to pay. And a theory: If it served wealthy patients who supposedly never left, could their valuable belongings be in there? Looting it is a gamble… but you’re desperate.
Desperate enough to sneak into this reportedly haunted (and surprisingly accessible) asylum and face whatever secrets lie within!
A submission to Ectocomp 2025 in the Le Grand Guignol category.
Gameplay
Our adventure begins outside the asylum’s entrance. The game features what I like to call “free range of movement” which is where the player navigates rooms and interacts with content like they would with a parser, except they click on links instead of type. As a Twine game Doctor Morben's Asylum has one of the largest maps I’ve seen.
You have full roam of the asylum and, for a limited time, the grounds outside it. There’s a lot to explore.
More signs: CONSERVATORY to the left, HALL to the right, and CONSULTING ROOMS pointing yet further down the passage.
>> Enter the greenhouse
>> Enter the hall
>> Follow the passage to the foyer
>> Follow the passage to the back of the house
Initially, the objective is to find valuable items until it becomes clear that (Spoiler - click to show)A, there’s not much worth taking, and B, there are ghosts who need your help (see Story section). The focus is then on finding the right item to appease each ghost and earn their support before facing the ghost of Doctor Morben and freeing the souls trapped in the asylum.
Despite the large map and long gameplay, this is not a puzzle-fest. Puzzles boil down to finding the right items to bypass doors and fulfill encounters with NPCs, but the game keeps things varied to avoid becoming stale. Players are encouraged to carefully examine their surroundings and revisit locations as they learn more secrets.
A central gameplay mechanic is a “Panic” stat that tracks the player’s fear levels. This adds an extra challenge to balance out the simplicity of the puzzles.
Panic: 6/14
You are on edge.
If you max out… (Spoiler - click to show)it’s not a good idea to max out here.
Three modes of difficulty: Gentle, Normal, and Hard, which can be toggled during gameplay. However, the game doesn’t explain what they entail. I tried them and didn’t notice much of a difference. The only thing that comes to mind is that (Spoiler - click to show)Gentle mode allows you to take Han’s photograph from the office and use it to appease his spirit in the secret downstairs area. Otherwise, he continues to be a threat.
Despite the slick interface, flexible gameplay, and spooky story, there are some noticeable snags. Several times I came across red error links (ex. Error: cannot find a closing tag for macro <<first>>), and the feature that keeps track of your endings is a mess.
There is also a bug involving (Spoiler - click to show)Beau Russell’s ghost. When appeased, ghosts disappear from their haunting spot. To do this with him, you hand over the cigar case. He thanks you and disappears. But if you revisit his location, the game acts as if this never happened. You get ambushed by an angry ghost but no longer have the cigar case.
Story
The game’s story is not exactly groundbreaking or innovative, and when it comes to the premise of exploring an abandoned (and often haunted) asylum, it doesn’t bring anything new to the table. Instead, its strength stems from a consistent and streamlined narrative, along with characters that we can care about. Topped off with the writing and suspenseful gameplay, the result is an immersive story that draws the player in.
Doctor Morben's Asylum never had a dull moment.
But what is going on?
(Spoiler - click to show)Doctor Morben’s work revolved around "Geisterextraktion," the theory that insanity can be separated from personality in the same clinical manner as any routine medical procedure. He had much confidence in this theory’s therapeutic potential.
This is the power of my elektrospirituskauterisation technique!
And a flair for the dramatic.
Unfortunately, no one shared his enthusiasm. He sought support from scientific institutions to further his vision, only to be turned away. He sent threats, saying that continued rejection of his ideas would leave him no choice but to demonstrate the legitimacy of his work through any means possible.
And so Morben House was born. Advertised as an exclusive clinic for wealthy clients with psychological conditions, he led with the claim that he could cure insanity. In reality, the asylum was a way of having easy access to test subjects because he hadn’t yet perfected his technique. His experiments involved trapping patients’ souls in a machine that he built, presumably killing them (the game glosses over this detail).
Ultimately, this meant that many patients who checked in never checked out. The public took notice, scandal resulted, and Morben House was shut down before he made his big breakthrough.
…and yet, the soul-containing machine is still running deep inside the asylum. It becomes your job to destroy it. Problem: Morben’s ghost is lurking about. He wants you to be his next test subject.
Subject matter
Despite its subject matter, Doctor Morben's Asylum is not as grim as its premise might suggest. It’s not a graphic game. No gore. It’s not One Eye Open. If anything, the most disturbing part is the mere fact that asylums like Morben House actually existed (even today there’s room for improvement- but that’s another discussion). Content-wise, the game taps into this history without trivializing it.
What we find in Morben house reflects some of the beliefs about mental illness that were present at its time. For example, female "hysteria" equating to mental illness.
(Spoiler - click to show)Name: Lola Stardust. Condition: Hysteria.
Hysteria? Wasn't that what they called any unhappy woman back then?
Or how certain behaviors, like wetting the bed, are viewed a matter of moral failure that requires “correction” (aka: child abuse).
I like that the game chooses to (Spoiler - click to show)humanize the ghosts rather than antagonizing them as “crazy patient” NPCs. Now, the ghosts, who are traumatized, will attack you out of confusion, until you bring an item, or “anchor”, that allows them to reclaim memories that were stripped away. They then reappear to help when you go to destroy the machine.
Endings
There are seven endings. At the end of the game there is a box listing the endings that you reached. Unfortunately, it is a tangled mess of red error links and can even misnumber the endings that are listed. As far as I’m aware, I found all but endings 2 and 3.
Endings I reached: (Spoiler - click to show)“Gave up and ran away, lived another day” (1), “The doctor’s next experiment” (4), “Greed beats charity” (5), “Lost to the device” (6), “An end to this horror” (7). I’ve played the game multiple times to find the others with no success. Does anyone have any ideas?
Characters
I discussed the NPCs. I'm a little curious about the protagonist.
An old aluminium torch. The battery isn't perfect.
You're about to ransack an infamous asylum… and all you bring is a pack of gum and a shoddy battery-powered torch? (I only mean this from a story standpoint.)
Visuals
A few years back, I played another game by the author called The Green, and I remember being impressed with its slick, atmospheric visual design. Doctor Morben's Asylum has the same level of quality.
The screen displays a generic wallpaper pattern as a backdrop; in the center is a dark translucent text box. Text is primarily white with green links, and other colours are used as accents. Readable content*, such as handwritten letters, is displayed in a textbox that mimics paper. Icons are also creatively used. For example, a notification with a green hand briefly appears when you add something to your inventory. The author goes the extra mile to enhance the player’s experience.
*(I appreciate that we can turn off the stylized fonts used for this content. Fancy cursive handwriting has a nice aesthetic but gets tiresome after a few sentences.)
Final thoughts
I was impressed with how much Doctor Morben's Asylum had to offer.
It stood out to me because while the story and gameplay are heavy on content, it is light on puzzles without sacrificing challenge. Overall, gameplay is intuitive and streamlined. I never needed a walkthrough or hints to “win” the game, though I’d still like help for two of the endings. These qualities will appeal to players who are intimidated by large Twine games.
As I mentioned, there are some error messages and a noticeable bug. But this feels minor in comparison to the game as a whole. Some players may hesitate to play the game due to its subject matter. However, it opts for atmosphere over explicit content, relying more on the idea of exploring a spooky building.
The best way to know if this game is for you is to give it a try!
It's another entirely normal day at the office. Time to sort through your emails.
You work at an office that processes print orders and provides services for online content. Everyone has their job. Jeff, for instance, covers printing. As for you, it’s implied that you work in Editing. So why does everyone seem to think that your job revolves around juggling emails?
Oh, and something odd may be happening with your coworkers…
Every day I get emails is a Twine game and an Ectocomp 2025 submission in the La Petite Mort category. (I love the cover art.)
Gameplay is linear and occurs over several days. It consists of forwarding a stack of emails to the right colleague, and these colleagues are spread across multiple departments. Sales. Tech. Accessibility. And so forth. Why do you even have these emails? No idea.
Send to Caroline
Send to Enrique
Send to Jeff
Send to Sushila
The act of forwarding emails to the right colleague is superficial. Forward a tech-related issue to Enrique? He’ll forward it to Sushila for you. Aside from feeling pleased at remembering who works in what department, your choices here don’t affect the gameplay’s trajectory.
Instead, emails are the mechanism through which the plot unfolds. Initially, forwarding emails is followed by the bliss of knowing that they’re no longer your problem.
You forward the email to Jeff. Now you don't have to think about that anymore.
(Spoiler - click to show)Until your coworkers vanish one by one. If you forward an email to them, the system acts as if they never existed. If you bring this up with your boss, he claims that he does not know who you’re talking about. In fact, he claims that these so-called coworkers’ jobs have always been your job ever since you were hired. You must be slacking off.
This kicks off a trend that continues for the rest of the game: Each day, a coworker vanishes without a trace, and each disappearance means more work for you. To top it off, you seem to be the only person who notices.
Now you don't have to think about that anymore.
Such irony.
And while you might consider the possibility that it’s all in the protagonist’s head, there are external signs that suggest otherwise.
…the fluorescent light flickers even more erratically. You wonder if the office chatter is quieter than usual today…
Will you be next?
After every coworker disappears, you visit your boss again. He dismisses you and recommends that you balance your responsibilities with Copilot. Because that’s going to help. And so, all you can do is return to processing emails and wait for your turn to disappear. The game then ends.
The way it ends could have been smoother. It simply ends with “Return to start” which felt abrupt. This clunkiness gives the feeling of, oh, the game’s over? ok then.
I must admit, I thought there was going to be a big twist where it’s revealed that your boss murdered or is behind the disappearance of your coworkers and is pretending not to know who you’re talking about. That said, I think the existentialism of endless office work and the protagonist’s quiet acceptance of their looming demise is just as horrifying.
Appearance-wise, the game uses a basic light blue background similar to the cover art. In fact, its cover art was initially what attracted me to the game in the first place. These multiple shades of blue make my spine tingle. There is also a cream text box with rounded corners, and this looks nice against the blue background.
To conclude, Every day I get emails is a blend of horror and humor set in an office. It has simple design, linear gameplay, and an uncomplicated story, and yet, it has suspense as (Spoiler - click to show)we slowly realize the implications for the protagonist as their coworkers steadily vanish.
However, while I enjoyed it, I didn’t find it to be particularly earthshattering, either. I think the ending could be more fleshed out. Then again, the author only had four hours to make it, and it definitely feels like a finished product. So, take my criticism with a grain of salt.
I've been a fan of the author's work ever since The Curse of the Scarab. Some authors have a signature style where if you play one of their games without knowing it was created by them, you still think, huh, this reminds me of so-and-so's work. That's how I feel about this author. I love the custom parser and scenery-oriented puzzles that reward the player for paying close attention to details in their surroundings.
And so, I was delighted to try The Horrible Escape Room of Horror. It's an Ectocomp 2025 entry in the La Petite Mort category, which means it was created under four hours.
"Well Rhoda", you think to yourself, "this is even worse than that time four years ago in Egypt."
You are Rhoda. As in Rhoda Tarcrew who may sound familiar to anyone who has played The Curse of the Scarab. But instead of exploring an entire tomb, this adventure involves escaping a room after snatching the Staff of the Owl. (Spoiler - click to show)Well, two rooms, technically.
In a corner is a deep pit. There's also a cabinet here with a papyrus laying on top.
Despite what (Spoiler - click to show)the title suggests, I was delighted to see that there are two rooms available to us. While I'm going to steer clear from outright spoiling the puzzles, I still suggest that you try the game first before continuing.
(Spoiler - click to show)Puzzles for the first room were intuitive and streamlined, and I solved them quickly. The subtly of Staff of the Owl was a highlight. Second room was more difficult, largely due to implementation. Examining the table and then examining each of the four notches felt tedious. Then again, this was made in four hours.
I'll be honest. I have no clue as to how the wall mosaics correlate with the owl statuettes and the table notches, or why tasting the statuettes is supposed to be useful. I solved it by making a chart of possible combinations and went down the list. Luckily, it didn't take as long as I thought it would.
That said, the application of the vials was one of my favorite parts of the game. If you drink the vial depicting the cocktail glass, you become slightly intoxicated. To illustrate this, the text temporality blurs! Clever use of visual storytelling. Also, I quickly solved the skull puzzle and initially thought it was optional- something amusing to do- since I managed to light them before I discovered the wheel. However, players may struggle with lighting all six.
You have an uncanny feeling as you leave.
Nothing to worry about, I’m sure.
Story is limited to our objective of escaping. Instead, it focuses on puzzle solving, and I think this is a good balance considering it’s a rather short game. In fact, the (Spoiler - click to show)table puzzle took up most of my time.
That’s about it! I had a lot of fun stepping into Rhoda’s shoes once again. I’m taking off a star because the implementation could be sharper and I saw some spelling errors, but I do so reluctantly because the game was created under four hours. I was quite impressed.
...except we have no choice...
You are on a road trip to start a new life. The plan is to move in with a friend and see where life takes you! Who knows, maybe you'll stop having those weird dreams. Then your car breaks down.
At night. In the middle of nowhere.
A man appears. A mechanic. He was just passing by. He wants to help.
Sparks Fly embraces a staple of the horror genre: Car breaks down, a stranger offers help. Main character has no other choice but to accept. We find ourselves in that exact position.
No choice left. You have to get out of the car.
The stranger is Andrew. A homely yet muscular man who informs us that he’s a mechanic with a shop at his house. He proposes that we come with him and, given how late it is, spend the night and figure things out in the morning. (Spoiler - click to show)It doesn’t take long for us to realize that this was a really, really, really bad idea.
I’m just going to rip off the band-aid.
(Spoiler - click to show)Andrew takes you to his home where he lives with his grandmother, Lydia. The bedroom they give you is oddly tailored to your personal tastes… but you’re tired and fall asleep. You have one of your recurring dreams.
…and wake up with Andrew laying on your chest. His skin is alarmingly hot, and as he continues to invade your personal space, you cannot help but notice that he has no pulse. He’s some sort of “automaton” of flesh and machinery, as is Lydia.
And their dog, Leo.
And a deer, resurrected after being killed by Andrew’s car.
All of this was accomplished through a twisted surgical procedure. Andrew reveals that he anticipated your road trip and prepared the bedroom because you’re going to be joining the family! Which means you only have a short amount of time left before Andrew puts you under the knife to make you one of them.
Now that you know what you’re in for, I’m going to deviate from how I usually structure my reviews.
Strengths
Opening scene
Sparks Fly makes a strong first impression with its opening scene by capturing our vulnerability and isolation of being stranded from human civilization. We can stall for time, but inevitably we must follow Andrew to his car.
My stranger danger alarm was running at full power. Has anyone experienced the sudden, quiet realization where a voice in the back of your mind says, hey, do you realize that you’re in a stranger’s car, they’re the one driving, and no knows where you are? This scene went and dug all of that up. He also asks to see your license, and this sharing of personal information only makes it more nerve-wracking.
Or maybe we’re assuming the worst because of our less-than-ideal circumstances. Jumping to conclusions, perhaps?
(Spoiler - click to show)However, any consideration that he might be genuine quickly evaporates when his car hits a deer, injuring it. He “consoles” us in manner that indicates his lack of regard for personal boundaries.
"Between you and anything that could pop up on the road," his hand, large and rough from years of work, rests on yours, thumb moving to rest on your inner wrist as gold brown eyes burn into yours, "I'll pick you."
(Is it too late to run?)
And then he runs over the deer to put it out of its misery. He’s oddly nonchalant about it.
You're left to sit with this for the rest of the drive.
Talk about an opening scene. (Spoiler - click to show)No one is fooled by Andrew. And yet, we don’t know what his intentions are. What’s going to happen to us? Nicely done.
Writing
The author has a talent for writing horror. The story’s premise is good, but it’s the writing that pulls it off. I would describe the writing as quiet, dawning horror.
This is because there’s a strong dissonance between your situation and how Andrew and Lydia act. If you lash out, they respond as if you are a child throwing a tantrum. The fact that their plan involves surgically altering you…
"Come on back inside now, dear. You have a long procedure ahead of you." She walks to towards you, unthreatened.
…only makes it worse.
My favorite is this scene:
(Spoiler - click to show)Grabbing a blood covered tool, you call, "fetch," and throw it as far as you can.
With a bark, Leo flies across the grass for it. Realizing it's coated in deer's blood, he sits with it, licking the treat.
"That's nice, it's been a while since he's had deer."
This scene deserves an award. I just burst out laughing. I love its casual morbidity.
Characters
Animals aside, the only NPCs are Andrew and (Spoiler - click to show)Lydia.
Lydia is unsettling, but Andrew? You don’t even want to be in the same room as him. His characterization makes every scene uncomfortable. He’s decided that you’re his soulmate and has no concept of personal space. You’re all his! In fact, the player can get kind of anxious just thinking about it. But for a horror game, this works well.
I think many players will be rattled by the scene where you wake up to find Leo sleeping on top of you. You go to stroke his fur only to realize it’s human hair.
This is hair, not dog fur.
Andrew, not Leo.
The player starts to panic. Are we really going to be trapped here? (Spoiler: There are four endings. Thankfully, one of them involves escaping all of this.)
As for the protagonist, we know little about them. However, their portrayal is heavily rooted in the notion of starting over and forging a life of your own choosing. This is partly what makes (Spoiler - click to show)Andrew and Lydia so infuriating: They want to choose your life for you by making you “part of the family” and surgically altering your body against your will. Ending 2 “Freedom” puts an emphasis on you regaining control over your life.
Visuals
The author also did a nice job with the game’s visual design. Set in the middle of the screen is the game’s text box. It’s stylized with rounded edges, a semi see-through black background, and casts a slight shadow on the screen. Text is white. Behind the box is a backdrop that changes with the scene. Half of the box’s border is light grey while the other half is darker, the latter of which disappears when the backdrop has little contrast, creating an off-kilter look.
This aesthetic reminds me of the earlier horror Twine games I’ve played. It has a similar vibe as the uncle who works for nintendo. Polished, but not too polished. There’s a slight roughness that reminds the player that there is something twisted going on underneath.
Sparks Fly demonstrates how simple design changes can elevate the player’s experience. Consider the scene where (Spoiler - click to show)you wake up to find Andrew pinning you down: black backdrop… until a closer look reveals two eyes staring back! Now, imagine this with Twine’s default appearance of a black screen, white text, and blue links. It wouldn’t be the same.
Weaknesses
Pacing
After the opening scene and the big reveal, the game begins to branch out and becomes less linear. Unfortunately, the gameplay snowballs and ends soon after.
Confident that we can’t escape, Lydia and Andrew allow us some freedom before our surgery. We can choose to go with Andrew or stay with Lydia.
You'll stay here.
Go to the shed.
This serves as a branching point for the gameplay. Between the two, Lydia offers slightly more content and flexibility. Either way, the player will find themselves at the end of the game after a few moves. Up until now, the narrative gradually unfolded. Ending it like this makes it all feel rushed.
Plus, we’re left with some loose ends. Notably, what is Andrew’s connection to our dreams? Is he causing them? Or are the dreams merely warning you?
You've been having that dream for months. How has he been sneaking into your room every night for a year?
“Sneaking into your room every night.” Is this still referring to dreams?
There are also moments where Andrew appears to read your mind. When you notice that your bedroom is suspiciously personalized, Andrew says, "'Really? Hope you feel at home then,'" even though we never said anything out loud. What’s going on?
Further clarification would be helpful.
Implementation
My main criticism. There were at least two instances in the gameplay where I ran into Twine’s red “Error: <<if>>: bad conditional expression in <<elseif>>” messages that spill across the screen. And while the game is generally well-formatted, there are still some spelling and formatting errors.
There is a rough patch that puts a dent into the game’s quality.
(Spoiler - click to show)It occurs when we choose to either wait with Lydia or go with Andrew to the shed. If you choose Lydia, Andrew leaves. The game then says,
The smell of oil and hot metal linger on you as he disappears behind the building.
However, this passage repeats itself anytime you make a dead-end choice while with Lydia. For example, if you immediately walk to the scrap pile, Leo pulls you back, leaving you at square one. And each time, you get the same message of Andrew walking away even though he already left.
Final thoughts
Sparks Fly is an Ectocomp 2025 submission for the Le Grand Guignol category. It was a game that I couldn’t put down before finding every ending. It’s an intriguing work of horror with excellent writing that builds atmosphere and places the player in some seriously terrifying situations. This is further enhanced by the visuals.
However, this is hindered by patchy implementation as well as how quickly the game ends just as it becomes less linear. If the author slowed down after (Spoiler - click to show)the scene where we receive our “welcome gift,” the game would be much stronger. The red error messages certainly don’t help either. All of this was factored into my rating.
Nonetheless, Sparks Fly is a memorable work of horror that is difficult to forget. I don’t know if it is the author’s first work, but if it is, this is a fantastic start.
You just wrapped up explaining to your girlfriend Amanda that ever since she plugged her TV into the cable its been plotting to kill her.
Problem is, she thinks you're crazy.
And has now gone back to her apartment...
...where her TV is waiting.
Only you can save her.
Gameplay
When the TV decides to Murder your Girlfriend - The Game is actually an adaptation of a book of the same name. It’s also a submission to Ectocomp 2025.
We begin in our own apartment. (We're Todd, by the way) The first half of the gameplay takes place here, and its puzzles center on the objective of leaving your apartment. The second half is set in Amanda's apartment (Spoiler - click to show)where we prepare to duke it out with her evil TV.
Gameplay primarily consists of interacting with household appliances and enlisting their help. It doesn't take long for us to notice that these appliances are A, sentient, and B, haunted. Possessed, maybe?
"Hey, Todd. Who's your favorite appliance? Just kidding. We all know it's me. So, what can I zap up for you?" Slender gray tentacles, like the finest strands of spaghetti, snake out lovingly from behind the control panel.
It did take me a moment to piece together that we're the only ones who can see this. No wonder Amanda thinks we're crazy.
Puzzles are straightforward and evenly distributed throughout the gameplay. They engage without being too difficult. However, that means if you were hoping for a puzzle-fest, you feel may underwhelmed by what the gameplay has to offer.
Mechanics
Made with Gruescript, this is a choice-based game that behaves like a parser. Instead of imputing commands on a keyboard, the player clicks on buttons to perform an action.
You can also see:
- [Your Television] [talk]
- [Cable Cord] [connect]
Exits and anything with interactable content are listed at the bottom of the screen along with your inventory. If you’re holding something that has an immediate application, the game will list it for you. No guess-the-verb here!
You're holding:
[Your Trusty Philips Head] [drop]
This format felt streamlined and easy to use. I adapted to it quickly.
Story
The game’s strengths are grounded in its writing and characterization because, truth be told, (Spoiler - click to show)you can predict the ending way in advance.
In her apartment, (Spoiler - click to show)we find Amanda hypnotized and held captive by her TV. We appear, fight the TV, and escape with Amanda. No unexpected plot twists or developments. And the game doesn’t need any of that. I was satisfied with this trajectory. I think that’s largely thanks to the witty, household appliance characters. If their characterization were lacking, I’d probably feel otherwise about the story.
I do have one complaint. I wish our interactions with Amanda had more depth. (Spoiler - click to show)She’s been hypnotized, so I understand that she’s not going to be particularly alert or responsive. But something about her portrayal feels overly “damsel-in-distress.” Her character doesn’t extend beyond the role of “the girlfriend.” Who also needs to be rescued.
Then again, the game is an adaptation. Perhaps it’s like that in the book as well.
This game vs. The Little Toaster
The storyline of sentient household appliances immediately reminds me of The Little Toaster. Except, I’ve never liked The Little Toaster. Too disturbing. This game? I can handle.
Characters
Characters are the best part.
The toothbrush's yellow tentacles point at its power button, then your eyes. "I'm watching you, Todd."
Particularly, the sentient appliances.
The writing reveals them to be humorous NPCs (a feral vacuum cleaner?). They are fun to listen to and fun to interact with; Important considering their role in nearly every puzzle.
Asphalt, lines, and cars. *Lots* of cars. You find yours cuddled up next to a sexy red scooter. You get the impression the scooter isn't a huge fan but is too kind to roll away.
Characterization-wise, the appliances offer plenty of attitude. A blend of stubborn snark and an eagerness to assist Todd in saving Amanda. And while some of them view you as Amanda’s oddball boyfriend, they all agree that her TV has gone too far.
Todd’s cool, too. After all, he can communicate with household appliances and see when something is haunted. According to the (Spoiler - click to show)car’s dashboard, he has “mind powers,” but aside from that, we get no further explanation. However, this suits the game’s purposes just fine.
Visuals
The game has a clean appearance with a black screen, white text, and orange links set into dark purple buttons. Reminds me of Halloween!
Final thoughts
I had fun with this!
While I haven’t read the book, the overall premise of saving-your-girlfriend-from-a-bloodthirsty-TV certainly piques one’s curiosity. But when taking a book’s concept and turning it into gameplay, there is risk of that concept losing its essence and feeling contrived. Not the case here.
When the TV decides is a well-rounded adaptation that strikes the right balance between gameplay puzzles and overarching story, and the NPCs’ humorous dialog brings it all to life.
Great option for Halloween.
1–7 of 7
