The Spy and the Labyrinth

Imagine you’re playing a choicescript game as well… some elite spy. While walking around your spy headquarters, you find a computer terminal and use it. You have the option to look up different email messages on the terminal, shown as choice options. Now imagine if you took out that inbox surfing segment and turned it into a full blown choicescript game. That’s one way I’d describe this game in terms of design.

The Spy and the Labyrinth is not your usual choicescript title. In this game, the story is largely told through a series of documents. There are choices, but all these are simply choices of which document you’d read next. Things will tense up towards the end, but the ending itself feels very abrupt.

I’m really not sure how I should be rating this. I’m all for trying new ideas, but this is one idea which just didn’t fly for me. Reading a story told through a bunch of documents just wasn’t fun, and a game where every choice is to select the next document you read isn’t my idea of a fun choice. The game is certainly more well written and competently coded than many shovelware HG titles, but this is one of those titles which (I suspect) will satisfy its intended audience but leave everyone else scratching their heads.

Honestly, the first few pages will give you a good idea of what you can expect for the rest of the game. You can always give the first few parts a go and decide if that’s your thing.