Ratings and Reviews by manonamora

time for bed is a relatively short parser game with a simple objective: get ready for bed. To do that you need to get into your pyjamas, drink a warm cup of milk, and brush your teeth. The map is pretty small: bedroom, bathroom, living room, kitchen. There are multiple endings and achievements to find while playing the game. It also has a fairly limited vocabulary (no synonyms).

On top of this, it’s got some pretty fun humour, that got my chuckling quite a bit. Like starting with the tutorial but not the game, doing the suggested commands, searching through the rooms. Something you’d definitely expect of that kind of simple, slice of life, chill puzzle game. Also, it was nice to get an obvious visual for when to press to continue and input the next command.

Except… I am not sure the game can be actually finished. On multiple occasions, I would get a server timeout or my window would just close mid-way through giving me a response (like wear pyjamas was impossible!). There are also issues of unresponsive commands (can’t examine/interact described objects), and some friction with the commands (can only put something in the microwave with the open microwave command).

Shaaaame… :_:

'Steading of the Hill Giant Chief is a short fantasy parser game where you play as a wizard just back from a beating by a giant. Though your ego is a bit bruised (and maybe your body is too), nothing will stop you from defeating those perfidious creatures… you just need a new plan and get ready.

Using a (very) limited list and ample hints, the puzzles are fairly easy to complete. You just need a good weapon, a fitting costume, and maybe a potion for extra help. Some of the commands even do extra steps (like taking an ingredient will also put it in the cauldron). Always a bonus point for including a cat and letting us pet it.

On the other hand, some objects are not always quite obvious (like the exact ingredient listed somewhere else but that general descriptions) or not described (though, they don’t really matter, so that’d OK). But if you read the responses properly, it isn’t really difficult to go around it.

Finally, the writing. It’s fantastic. It hits just the right balance of hilarious, but in that kind of old TTRPG/Fantasy game style. I didn’t even finish the intro that I was already laughing so hard. It was so much fun, I was disappointed to see it end so quickly!

LIMBO is a short binksi piece, in which you incarnate a visa-applicant waiting to hear back from the government. In this setting, you are provided with housing (or more like, locked inside) until your case has been approved (or denied). Today marks a year since you’ve been stuck here. Will you get the email you’re hoping for?

It was really fun to explore the room, bump on the different furniture to get a glimpse into your psyche, hopes and wishes, or interact with the different objects. It feels really claustrophobic, with how cramped the room is (I don’t think I would have managed to stay the year), and dystopian (how can you be locked in the room for so long!!!). And the different endings freaked me out…

I liked it quite a bit!

Room 2039 is a horror short game where you are stuck inside a locked room, with only a monitor to interact with. With no other way out, you need to follow the screen’s instructions for a chance to escape. But if you fail, you will spend the eternity in the void. Essentially, you need to play a game of chance for your life.

The game itself is essentially one of chance, with die to roll. Winning rolls bring your closer to freedom, while losing ones to the void. There is a bit of strategy to it, as the game includes some limitations, but you still need to be lucky with your die.

Interjected are comments from the monitors depending on the rolls you get, coupled with some jump scares (even if you expect them to be there). It’s pretty sudden and quick.

Throne is a micro fantasy piece where you are an unnamed ruler of an unnamed kingdom, crushed through rebellion. Alone and deserted by who you trusted the most, you walk around your castle and interact with different items, reminiscing on how you got here.

With so few words, the prose does a great job comparing the then and now, and showing everything has gone haywire so quickly. And I liked the slightly open ending, where you sit on the throne, as if waiting for the rebellion to get to you, waiting to fight (and maybe succumb to) them.

PARANOIA is a short spot-the-difference parser, where you are tested on your attention and memory skills. Set in a testing chambers, you are tasked to spot differences between the first version of the room and any other potential changes between rounds. You will need 13 correct answers in a row to finish the game. But if you make a mistake, you’re right back at 0.

The game is pretty easy, with the differences quite obvious (or at least the one I got): something appears or disappears, something looks different, something sounds different. While you can use all your senses, I got by with only examining the room (and even, it didn’t feel necessary, I just went and double-checked just in case). If it hadn’t been made in just a week, I would have wished there were a bit more of the less-obvious differences.
EDIT: APPARENTLY I MIGHT BE INCREDIBLE LUCKY WITH ME RUN! THANK YOU RNG GOD!

BUT because of the error rule (sending you back to 0 if your make an error), the further you get into the test, the more anxious you become: you don’t want to make a mistake and have to start it all over again. It is a bit insidious how such a simple premise just creeps up on you and hold you by the throat like this. I felt so proud getting to the end in one go!

If the game is ever released as an extended version, I will play it as soon as it comes out.

Ghost Hunt is a puzzle game made in Twine where the goal is to catch a ghost inside a locked as quick as possible. Take too long and it will scare you instead! Each playthrough randomise the location of the ghost, but it is always hidden inside of an item. Sounds easy? There are many items in the room. At least two dozen hiding spots. And so very little time. See that creepy eye at the top of the page?

But not to worry! There are levels of difficulty, giving you either more clue or more time to help you find the ghost. This game is as much about your reading skills (and figure out what are red herrings and actual clues) as it is about luck (the ghost can really be anywhere in the room). Waste your time in the wrong direction (or send yourself to the otherwise of the room by mistake), and you’re toast! This really makes for an exciting gameplay!

While the concept of the game is fun (baring my anxiety for timed quests), I had a lot of troubles navigating the room. And figuring out what was where (I gave up on remembering which item was where, too many to stick). The game uses two different type of directions: absolute (coupled to a micro minimalist map, ex: top-left corner) and relative (to where you are, ex: left), which you can toggle in the settings. Still, with either, I found myself quite confused about where I was in the room most of the time (you can’t always return to the last location). It also became problematic when I would click on a link and it would send me to the complete opposite side of the room.
A map with indication of the main furniture (rather than single square blocks), at least for the easiest difficulties, would help a ton to navigate through the room! Maybe even include a NESW form of direction?

I can’t imagine how hard it would be on higher difficulties… I gave up after finding the ghost once! And it took me 15 tries… on Easy.

Aethers End is a relatively short sci-fi Twine game where you play as an astronaut in deep space, and worst still: in a broken ship. Adrift, with no way to safety, and completely alone… except you might not be? In your final moment, an unlikely being reaches out to you. There is truly no way out, but you might find comfort in the end?

I am very afraid of death, and anything reminding me of my mortality makes me anxious as hell. But this was so nicely written, strangely poetic. The choice of your name and that being is quite a smart nod (which is pointed out in the writing). And the minimalist illustrations are equally creepy and grabbing.

This was neat!

College Fever is a short slice-of-life story where you, a recently graduated art student, are back home ruminating about your life situation and the different feelings one can have. It is a fairly short and linear piece with a handful of choices exploring those different feelings, like the nostalgia for more exciting days, the fear of not being ahead enough, the guilt of being unable to do things…

I found myself relating with those feelings, remembering my post-college days, seeing things work out and some other not. It can be a pretty depressing period.

Terminal Point is a mostly linear Visual Novel, where you find Cassie dozing in a bus, realising that something isn’t quite right with the bus itself, or where they are going (not anywhere, the bus isn’t moving). They also meet a colourful small cast of characters, each trying to help in their own ways.

The blurb says it is a story about grief and heartbreak, and you really do feel that with the Cassie’s reluctance to accept their fate at the start (twice they need to be told they are dead, though it might not be on purpose), or dealing with past experiences. It is very bittersweet in the way things develop in the game, and very touching (the voicemail pinched my heart a bit).
I liked this one quite a bit.