OtisTDog

Top 25 Reviewer
Member since February 27, 2008
Last visited November 21, 2024
Profile ID (TUID): 8tqtppvpzluoq2jf

I've got some strong opinions for someone who's never shown the courage or skill to publish any IF of my own. Nonetheless, I am a big fan of the medium -- which I think is going to be rediscovered by the mainstream at some point -- and I hope you enjoy my reviews.

Here's a brief guide to my rating system. It is unusually harsh, because I intentionally rate using a power law distribution in which high scores are relatively rare:

5 stars -- a piece so incredible it effectively defines the genre or technique that it introduces or perfects. Very, very few works will get 5 stars from me.

4 stars -- a work that is significantly above average and achieves something notable. In general, a game that excels but does not quite reach the apex of its class. A relatively small number of works will get 4 stars from me.

3 stars -- a game that is competently put together and enjoyable to play, but lacks the special something that would make it stand out. Best summed up as "good, not great". Many games will get this rating from me.

2 stars -- a passable attempt that is deficient in one or more qualities that would make it truly enjoyable. Basically, something that could have been a 3-star game but fell short in some way, or otherwise falls into the "blah" category. Many games will get this rating from me.

1 star -- a work that, in my mind, has no redeeming qualities or is so horribly non-functional that any such qualities are not relevant to the playing experience. Very few games will get this rating from me, as I try to find something good about most games and generally avoid titles that look likely to score this low.

I am most harsh in my reviews when a work shows little evidence of effort on the part of the author. Conversely, I am inclined to generosity when I feel like the author tried hard to realize an interesting goal, even if he or she was not successful in doing so.

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Reviews by OtisTDog

Crystal and Stone, Beetle and Bone, by Jenny Brennan   November 21, 2024

"The intriguing title and premise of Crystal and Stone, Beetle and Bone seem to draw a fair amount of interest (with over 50 people having..." - See the full review

Balances, by Graham Nelson   November 16, 2024

"Balances is labeled as a demo for Inform 6 (originally developed for Inform 5), and was distributed as such along with its source code..." - See the full review

Degeneracy, by Leonard Richardson   November 15, 2024

"This is an enjoyable short puzzle game with an interesting mechanic, but it doesn't do much to realize its author-declared inspiration...." - See the full review

Quotient, The Game, by Gregory R. Simpson   November 12, 2024

"[Update: As the author points out in comments, this review is based on an early release of the game, which has since been substantially..." - See the full review

The King of Shreds and Patches, by Jimmy Maher   November 1, 2024

"The King of Shreds and Patches is the only published work by author Jimmy Maher, who is mostly likely familiar to readers as the author..." - See the full review

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