Reviews by ChanceOfFire

When I first read the description, I was expecting a game where you are given a fixed amount of money and then have to make choices on the right things to buy. The game also tries to string you along by giving you that impression with the first few choices. Still, it does not take long to notice that something is amiss.

Halfway though the game, the reveal occurs, and really hits you as to the true reason why you’re doing grocery shopping this very day and browsing all the largely bare shelves. It was a fairly interesting twist. You get a few choices in the game, around buying stuff, but as far as I can tell, it doesn’t have a huge impact on the game.

Well… it’s a short read with an interesting twist. Sorta like the Super Duper Mart in Fallout 3 without a bunch of raiders trying to kill you.

Despite the game’s description, this story is largely linear. You travel to an island with a companion, dealing with some challenges on your way, ultimately culminating in a final showdown with a few choices including seizing power, perhaps by betrayal.

Choices in the game affect your stats, listed at the bottom of the screen. Having lower stat scores may impact your access to certain choices later, but this is not very elegantly communicated, with a red line of text where the choice should be indicating the unavailable choice and which of your stats fell short. You have a choice to fight your companion at the end, and I think your stats affect the outcome, but the endings as a whole felt pretty short and anticlimactic.

Some parts of the game also didn’t make too much sense. For example, at one part, you encounter an unstable bridge, and can locate unstable parts of it by shooting at them with a pistol to find out. This doesn’t strike me as very realistic or practical. Yes, that helps you get across the bridge safely.

The overall story felt somewhat mediocre. The stat system was ok, I guess, but some of the choices around them weren’t good from a writing standpoint. It’s a short read if you want to take a look. The undo button is handy, I suppose.

Note: This is a review of an Introcomp entry, and therefore, I will not leave any star ratings.

This was actually pretty fun. With simple but charming art, sweet music which adds to the vibe, as well as an interesting story, I think this was worth the additional effort for a download. This introductory game also ends on a cliffhanger, right when things get exciting. I'm certainly eager to see what lies beyond the portal.

There was a slight bit of choices and branching in the introductory segment, along with bad endings if you chicken out instead of taking that leap forward. There was also a character approval system, and a dice roll system, and it would be great if all these mechanics get expanded for the rest of the story. Text rollback is another plus, and if you want to cheat, you can always use it to roll the dice again if the numbers didn't work for you the first time.

All it all, it's a very sweet entry. I'm keen to see what happens next. The little gameplay mechanics mentioned earlier were also nice to have, and hopefully have a place in the completed version too.

Note: This is a review of an Introcomp entry, and therefore, I will not leave any star ratings.

Hmm... this one is tricky. You wake up in the middle in the woods. A Guardian of life, with senses which extend throughout the forest and the power to manipulate nature and build a physical form for yourselves. Suddenly, you see intruders approaching. You get a choice, then the introductory segment ends.

Unless I ran into a bug, the introduction ends with a blank. This is a pretty short introduction, which left me plenty curious about the world and the setting. Actually, being able to read a blurb or something would be nice, and I think the game could tell us more about this place we are in. Some degree of mystery is good to keep my interest up, but at times, I was also a little confused about what was happening.

I'm curious to know what comes next, but I think after the intro, the game could also take the opportunity to flesh out the lore and setting of this world. It seems that there could be some really interesting stuff under the hood. Let us know more about it.

Note: This is a review of an Introcomp entry, and therefore, I will not leave any star ratings.

You find yourself the sole survivor of a major accident. Now, stranded in the wilds, you will have to figure out some way to survive.

The game opts for a minimalistic black background and white text, but somehow, it fit the disaster vibe pretty well. As far as I can tell, while you get a few choices here and there, the game is largely linear. Unless I stumbled upon a bug, the introductory segment ends at a blank page, right as you are figuring out how to survive.

The premise here is pretty good for a contest like Introcomp. After all, when playing as the survivor of a major accident, I'd be dying to know what's gonna happen next. On the other hand, there is another scene which indicates that you survived in the end, which does dampen the suspense and uncertainty.

Well, I'm curious to know what happens next. Hopefully, we'll find out.

You start out at home, playing a wonderfully traditional musical instrument which absolutely does not invoke images of a rock star. Nevertheless, you are bound for greater things. Working with your sibling, you pick up some cooler instruments and try a show. After an unfortunate incident with law enforcement, you decide to form a band and set out to make a name for yourself. Get a manager, sign a deal and rock your way to stardom. As this is a choicegame, you get to pick a name for your band and your songs, as well as yourself.

The story's pacing felt pretty rushed, and individual scenes sometimes felt pretty compressed. The amount of playtime is about what you'd expect with the wordcount, but I think this game could have benefitted from having more words with more time to explore different scenes. There is some flirting and romance, but none of the characters really caught my attention in this department.

At some points, important people will approach you with a contract for your band. Read it quickly, then sign. Still, these folks are in a hurry and do not take kindly to negotiation, so as far as I can tell, your best bet is to sign.

In one case, refusing to sign the contract led to an abrupt game over. No epilogue, no bad end scene, just the rating page. I feel like this could have been handled more elegantly, and I also feel that there could have been some option to hold out for better deals, or perhaps to compare multiple contracts and decide who you should go with. As far as I can tell, it's best to sign on the dotted line and not complicate things for yourself.

The game (minus that abrupt end) has a few endings, including choosing to go it alone or start over. The story and writing was enjoyable, but I can't shake off the feeling that the entire experience felt really compressed. Giving this a star rating was very tricky. I did enjoy the read, but I still feel this could have been better in some areas. Still, you might enjoy it if you take a look.

At over one million words, An Unexpectedly Green Journey has plenty of content which will keep you entertained for a long time. Unlike the traditional linear narratives, this game is more of an open exploration RPG in text form, although there is still something of an overarching plot and a big bad who roams the world.

The writing is smooth and does not get overly wordy, which I like. It packs plenty of action and some humor, although the latter is more of the dark kind and may not appeal to everyone. Your formative years in the game are a little more confined, as you build your stats while getting a slight taste of the world exploration in the game. However, once you grow older, you are ready to explore the world and what it has to offer, while slowly drifting towards a purpose, and maybe destiny. The game does a good job of progressively allowing you more exploration with each stage while slowly nudging you towards picking a path.

There are a few major paths in the game, from being a chieftain, being a shaman, an arena fighter and so on. Of course, you could simply pass the time doing unremarkable things in your orc home, which I suppose can be a valid path too. Some of these paths feel like entire games on their own, with an entire city management system in one of these paths. Still, for negatives, the arena fighter path has a very repetitive and tedious combat system, even with an interesting storyline behind it. My favorite is probably the chieftain path, with a good dose of story and management, right down to an ultimate confrontation with the big bad.

Another note, the game can get tough, in terms of difficulty, especially on first playthroughs. Still, there is a very generous checkpoint system here, which allows you to make saves at different points. Whether you die or reach a good ending, the game will always allow you to load a save. This is an absolute lifesaver, as the lack of saves in most choicescript games has been a source of frustration for me personally.

There were a good number of bugs in the original release, but quite a number have been fixed, and the author also added a substantial bit of extra content by later updates.

There is plenty to explore in this RPG IF, and multiple playthroughs are a must if you want to see most of it. I enjoyed the chieftain route, and I think this game is worth checking out. Still, bear in mind that the content can get dark, so it's not for everyone.

You are a Stelleria, with the power to transform yourself, wield magic and enter dreams. Still, all is not well. Nightmares, led by the Empress Nyx, prowl around people's dreams. Your task is to stop them. By the way, you are also an ordinary student, with the usual mundane duties of showing up in class and being a good member of your school club. Interestingly, another writer took over the game from the first one, but the overall story was smooth, and you could've convinced me that this was the work of a single writer if I didn't know.

The worldbuilding and lore is pretty interesting, and got me engaged. Polaris was an interesting animal companion to have, supporting the mc and being around with them to provide guidance. Polaris does remind me a little of (...digs through ancient memories...) Kero in the Cardcaptor Sakura anime, but perhaps with a bit more seriousness and less comic relief. (On another note, Sakura is one of the default names.)

The characters are also interesting. I went with romancing Kit on my first playthrough (something I decided on a whim) but I think the whole 'switch to good side' character arc was pretty good and tied in well with the romance. The game was also solid from a romance standpoint, with dances and flirting.

Gameplay is pretty much what you'd expect in a choicescript game. You try to build a couple of strong stats, and use them to deal with the challenges ahead. My first character was fairly diluted statwise (since I was bad at planning), but I largely focused on Eloquence and Magic, and was able to get through most of the checks with these two. There are a good number of interesting events as you investigate dreams, while being a dutiful member of your club and working on an upcoming festival. My club won the festival, and I managed to score a ride in a nice car, so that works for me. Of course, the bad guys rained on my parade right when things were looking good, but I managed to put a stop to them. (Interestingly, there was a choice to join the bad guys, but it was grayed out for me.)

That said... there is one substantial negative I'll bring up, although it's perhaps more of the YMMV variety. The game doesn't really have the anime vibe to me. At the end, the game felt a lot like an American High School modern fantasy story. The characters just didn't have the kind of cuteness, charm or silly humor you'd see in an anime inspired story. For example, I played The Witch's Bakery (a cancelled choicescript title), and I could really feel the JRPG vibe in the first few pages. I just didn't get it here. It's hard to describe, but there is a certain stiffness in the writing that didn't make it feel like an anime-inspired game.

All in all, I would still recommend this on the basis of the story, characters and writing. Still, if you were hunting for an anime novel, this might not be it.

A short story of a friend (or maybe not) who has trapped you and plans to sell you. Still, he seems to have some regrets... maybe. I mean, times are tough, and he is also planning to save you later (he says).

You get one choice with two options here, broadly described as deciding that he is still yours, and deciding that you hate him. Won't spoil any further details, but it was a fairly interesting short read. Trying out both options should take you five to ten minutes at most, and thankfully, there is text rollback here.

The art is good, and the music was also pretty nice to listen to, although I'm a little mixed as to how much it fits the mood of the game, where you're getting sold and all. Being able to play this without a download is another plus. I could recommend this for a short bit of entertainment.

The third game I'm reviewing from the writer. The first two were really heavy in sexual content. This one however, is a vastly lighter experience in the sexual content department. Actually, it doesn't have much of that stuff at all, instead carrying a melancholy tone while exploring a few thought-provoking concepts of being reunited with a loved one, along with life and the afterlife.

Your wife dies before you does. Nevertheless, you still see her somehow. In dreams or imagination, maybe? However, when your time on the planet finally ends, you find yourself reunited with her. It did explore quite a number of interesting themes around the experience and the rush of feelings when it is all ready to end, as well as the question of whether you were actually ready. Despite the melancholy tones, there is a bit of humor in one part too, which is a nice touch. It was a read which I enjoyed, and which also left me thinking for a while.

This was submitted for the single-choice jam. Still, as far as I can tell, this was an entirely linear read, and I don't recall any choices, even fake ones. Nevertheless, the single-choice rule is probably a maximum, so I guess this passes. Plus, it's a solid read.

Anyway, if you read the writer's other two IFDB entries before coming here, let's just say that this is a totally different ball game. Go on, have a look and enjoy the read.