Reviews by MathBrush

This game is about a trial in a science fiction setting. You witness a verdict in a courtroom, a friend gets upset, and new people arrive.

There are four locations, a few NPCS with a total of 10 or so topic responses,and a total game time of 20 turns or less.

There are a lot of guess-the-verb problems that mess with the polish and interactivity. Some descriptions are skimped on. And there's not enough information to care about the characters.

This game received last place in the 1999 IFComp due to a game-crashing bug whenever the player takes inventory.

Pressing the "play online" button for this game currently takes to that version. The inventory bug doesn't happen on Parchment, but half of the rooms are in complete darkness.


If you download and play the version in the zip file, you will see that your character can actually see in the dark. This is the version I played.

In this version, the game is quite interesting. You knock on the door and greet a lich (your employer) who takes you to his study and asks you to guard his treasure. He then gives you a mysterious map and keys and then leaves.

The real game then begins. You can wander around a complex and interesting map with many treasures. Quite a few adventurers (4-6) are also wandering around independently, each with their own light source.

I played for about thirty minutes, obtaining many treasures. I experienced more bugs, like repeated "no parent of nothing" messages whenever an adventurer looked behind the clock.

I can only conclude that there are more bugs in the game, as the adventurers never tried to take anything. It's a real shame, because the game seems intricate and fun. If the IF community hadn't been so harsh on Jason Finx and had encouraged him and helped him beta test this game, it could have been spectacular.

This game is a series of essays about "What if major historical events had happened differently?"

It is interesting reading but not polished. It is quite descriptive, however.

The interactivity didn't really draw me in, and I don't see myself reading it again. While the essays were fascinating, I felt no emotional connection to the text.

This game was last place in 1998's IFComp, and has an average rating of 1 star (out of 12 ratings) on ifdb as of this writing.

This game consists of 9 multiple choice questions presented as a job interview. There are several paragraphs of intro, a huge response to XYZZY, and a final score in three categories as well as a salary.

Why was this game so poorly regarded? CYOA in general was looked down upon until Twine and Choice of Games took off. Also, the author has a bitter tone, and includes lines like "That's not how life works" if you try to restart.

But the game is polished. The author spent a great deal of time creating a workable CYOA structure, and it looks good.

The writing is descriptive, and does an excellent job of representing the author's feelings

The game communicates an emotion of frustration, bitterness and helplessness.

However, it is difficult to know how your choices affect the outcomes, and disabled restart is obnoxious. Also, there is not much replay value.

In this game, a serial killer is on the loose, and you have to try and make it out alive.

The game is unpolished, with many unimplemented synonyms and some illogical responses at times.

The writing is somewhat descriptive, but most of the effort goes into making the narrator snarky and insulting towards the player.

This keeps the game from having a strong emotional impact, as it constantly tells you you are dumb or that you don't deserve easy solutions. Also, the final sequence of required actions is somewhat tasteless.

The puzzles are generally "guess what the author is thinking", and I don't plan on playing it again.

The author did put a lot of effort in this game, but I feel that an author that is antagonistic towards the player should reasonably expect negative feedback.

This game seems like it was written quickly, not beta tested, and by someone with not much inform experience at the time.

It is riddled with bugs and spotty implementation. (Spoiler - click to show)You can open a door if you are holding crowbar by typing OPEN DOOR, but not PRY DOOR or OPEN DOOR WITH CROWBAR. Exits don't match up. Doors don't open by themselves.

The writing is sparse and thin.

There is no real emotional connection to the game. Perhaps if it was better implemented, a lower class white life and its issues could take the stage.

The puzzles are not hinted at all. Sensible commands are frequently try ignored.

This game placed last or close to last in 1997's IFComp. Games like these lead to later movements for more beta testing.

This is an excellent gamebook style RPG centered around a dragon's lair. There are two real goals in the game: to maximize a treasure score, and to choose how you interpret the events of the game, by means of various moral choices. This leads to 15 possible endings.

The game gave me the feel of old Dnd modules, the kind where you don't realize that a sword is a cursed demon in weapon form, or where you don't know if trapdoor is safe to open.

I played several times. The game is polished and descriptive, and the interactivity was very effective. But I felt emotionally distant from the protagonist and their life.

Recommended for DND fans.

This game is reasonably well polished and descriptive. You play as a young woman in two worlds, one where she eagerly awaits her Grandfather's visit and one where she explores a forest and island filled with magical creatures.

This is a 30 minutes or less game with two real puzzles, each of which can be solved by gathering or constructing things or by guessing obscure verbs. The game did not draw me in or affect me emotionally.

This game combines an intricate alchemy system with technology aboard a sort of magical spacecraft. This isn't a rocket engine; it's a complex environment that uses magic to translocate in space.

Something has gone horribly wrong on your magical ship, leading to major disruptions in time and space.

You collect what may be hundreds of items in this game, perform dozens of rituals, and visit quite a few locations. In this sense, it ranks with other ultra big games like Mulldoon Legacy or Spellbreaker. However, this game has an advantage in that it simplifies things for you. Any ritual, once performed, can be done again with a single command. There are database type commands that allow you to recall all rooms, all items, all rituals, etc.

The setting is barren and mysterious, with the outside world leading to a variety of mysterious lands.

I couldn't put this game down. Very well done.

In this game, you play a computerized AI trying to head towards earth. There is a linear path to and away from earth, and a few branches along the way.

The main interesting feature of the game is the various choices that you can make. You are the AI of a ship that has been severely damaged, with all crew and colonists in cryosleep. You can choose to go straight home, or to try a variety of other things.

The game is funny, and well-written. At times I suspected it to be a parody of Hoist Sail for Heliopause and Home.

This game is short and enjoyable, and recommended for everyone. I gave 4 stars instead of 5 because I felt like the interactions available didn't really draw me into the world.