Reviews by MathBrush

This is a text adventure version of The Tempest. This is the entire play, just slightly reworded and split up into various pieces. As you move about the game, you unlock different conversations which get pagedumped onto the screen a line at a time.

I love the Tempest, but I didn't really enjoy reading it this way, if anything because Parchment kept scrolling to the top of the screen whenever a new line of text occurred.

You can't really do anything besides try to trigger the next section of the game. However, all of Inform's basic messages are changed around, and the parser itself is changed all around.

You play Prospero, commanding Ariel.

In this game with only 4 or so locations, you have a variety of fishing equipment and have to try to catch a giant old fish called the Old One.

You have a variety of options for bait and weights and so on. The actual puzzle, though, is solved by lateral thinking.

It's interesting seeing this and other games from the very first IFComp. It seems like there was more originality and experimentation in the first competition than in the others, where originality was often localized in a few entries.

Somewhat unfair. Recommended for fishing fans.

The Island is a relatively short surreal game with some straightforward puzzles (guess a riddle, search every item, push everything, follow instructions, etc.). It includes some old-school puzzles that are tricky to program (like a raising/lowering bucket puzzle similar to the one in Zork I).

I actually like surreal creepy games like this. The plot structure was strongy reminiscent of Recorded, from a later IFComp.

The ending implies that (Spoiler - click to show)everything is a loop, with you becoming the new screaming man and the screaming man becoming the new guy in the coffin.

This is one of my favorites. You play as one of four characters who stole a gem from a dragon, and then lost it. You want to get it back. You can also be the dragon.

There is the adventurer, who plays as a Zork-type PC, gathering items and chatting with guards; the thief, who remains hidden and has special tools; the wizard, who can use spells; and the royal, who can command everyone and has an entourage. The dragon does, you know, dragon things.

The game is hard, but you can switch between characters at any time, and one character can see things that will help another.

Location and object descriptions are different with each character, giving the game a really varied feel.

By far, this game is the closest to a straight-up D&D type setting, which I love.

This is a highly unusual game. It is written about Jack Pudlo, an infamous troll on the r*if forums. I think the game hints that he is the author.

The game seems like a big trolling on one hand, while on the other hand, it is highly polished.

For the polish: the writing is smooth and clear, with really vivid images. The game borrows heavily and openly from Shakespeare. It delves deep into Jewish culture. There were no bugs that I noticed. The ending was very clever until the last bit. Overall, a game with a lot of polish.

On the other hand, it trolls you. It uses sensuality and profanity from time to time in crass ways (not to arouse or for art, just to be gross). The character has an odd relationship with God that is hard to describe. And the ending openly insults the player. The ABOUT text is bizarre.

Overall, a weird game. It's like a very nice cake flavored like mustard. I'd love to learn more about its background.

Augmented Fourth is one of those games that everyone hopes for, a longish, well-implemented parser game with great writing and fun puzzles.

You play a court musician cast into a pit. After a couple of linear puzzles, you're brought into a large underground town where you have to complete a sequence of unlikely tasks.

You learn to play a variety of magical musical song spells. These affect the environment around you.

The game is fun, amusing, but also hard. Many logical ideas don't work, and some illogical ideas are needed to complete the game. However, this is normal for oldschool games, and Augmented Fourth is something of a homage to oldschool games.

I recommend it for fans of Infocom games, which is quite a few people. It really brings that same feel.

This game was one of my favorite Ectocomp 2015 entries, and later was polished into a Sub Q magazine game.

In this game, you play a young woman in a post apocalyptic world where humans are hunted down by (Spoiler - click to show)things that mimic human appearance/voice and consume flesh and memories. You

This is effective, similar to the early mind manipulation episodes of Dr Who before it became ridiculous.

The Sub Q release has beautiful illustrations that contribute significantly to the feel of the game.

My favorite Sub Q game to this date. Strongly recommended.

This mid-length parser game is the humorous story of a young woman on a date that gets worse and worse. You have to use quick thinking and a bit of slyness to get past overpriced food and clumsy waiters.

The writing is memorable and funny. The puzzles are a bit underclued, though, and many reviewers (including me) turned to the copious hints.

There are two or three puzzles in quick succession, followed by one big, mega puzzle involving a collection of obstructing waiters.

Overall, fun with hints.

This game is pretty much a short story in parser form; it would likely have been written as a web-based game if the technology was available at the time.

The story is about a boy and a girl conducting a post-mortem on their relationship (although not phrased that way, and not so grim). They revisit their past through flashbacks.

The game was short but fun, and well-written. There was one verb I couldn't guess to end the scene in Peter's house: (Spoiler - click to show)SERVE DINNER.

Recommended to fans of slice-of-life.

This is a shortish game with the almost unique trick of placing a lot of gameplay in darkness in a cave. The only similar game I can think of is Hunter in Darkness or parts of So Far.

You are searching for a magical crystal in an underground cavern. The rest of the story is mainly atmosphere, and it works well. This game was nominated for an XYZZY for best writing, and deserves it.

Overall, a short, simple game, with at least 3 endings depending on your final actions.

Recommended for its fun-to-length ratio.