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About the StoryA simple "Escape the room" style game. It is the first of my games that is actually worth publishing. It is not intended to be difficult, and was created for those who are just getting into interactive fiction.Game Details
Language: English (en)
Current Version: 1 License: Free Development System: Inform 7 Forgiveness Rating: Polite IFID: A7E8D6AD-DC4F-438E-AEFC-19CEE5D0B1F9 TUID: 20uwjal4pcde6gfb |
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Member Reviews
| Average Rating: ![]() Number of Reviews: 4 Write a review |
Most Helpful Member Reviews
The player character is inexplicably carrying a key, and the initial gameplay involves the trial and error of attempting to unlock and open various objects, and then trying to guess the obscure verbs needed to perform the obvious actions required by the items inside. (Spoiler - click to show)(You need to OPEN the globe, ATTACK the heart and CHISEL the wall.)
After about forty turns, the game ends in a loss without prior warning. Winning the game results only in a bare 'you have won' message.
Unlike a lot of games of this kind, Asylum has clearly had some thought go into design and alpha testing. I certainly hope that the author continues to develop their skills by reading the many helpful articles on IF design that are available, by playing and studying other IF games, and ultimately by soliciting testing and feedback.

Related reviews: cpuguy89, one-room, short
Don't play it if: you want to play a game with any real level of thought or creative input.
I'm going to go ahead and disagree with the author: this is very much not the kind of game to show IF beginners, and here's why.
First, the game has little to entertain beginners enough to get them interested in more IF. The descriptive text is Spartan at best (the room description consisting of a list of objects, for instance), and there is no story or atmosphere besides a basic need to get out of a room.
Second, there's no fair challenge in the game. Most of the "puzzles" require either a brute-force approach to opening containers and trying keys out in differenet locks, or guess-the-verb minigames. Neither of these are a genuine test of intellect, and as a result neither are rewarding; any prospective IF player is likely to feel frustrated with this work.
Finally, the game's underlying logic is almost non-existent. One has to wonder what kind of asylum would put its patients in a room chock-full of keys or hire staff who ruin your plans for escape on the basis of a clock's alarm. The corners of the desk are sanded off to prevent you from hurting yourself, and yet the room contains (Spoiler - click to show)a fragile glass object, a heavy hammer, and a chisel capable of penetrating a wall, among other things! Not to mention the time limit - (Spoiler - click to show)if there are no doors described in the room, how do the asylum staff get in to "ruin your plans"? Dearie me. An unintentionally hilarious coding error - and one that could have been fixed with a marginally thorough beta-test - is the error message that pops up whenever the player tries to off himself (the kind of response games of this caliber inspire in me, I'm afraid). The "remove player from play" error, in case you were wondering...which is odd considering that the author successfully wrote in a defeat condition!
Hopefully the author's subsequent work will have more in the way of invested effort.
P.S. Perhaps the most bizarre thing about this game is that the author voted for it in a list of Best Short Games. I don't mean to sound...well, mean, but...really?

See All 4 Member Reviews
Asylum on IFDB
Polls
The following polls include votes for Asylum:Fun single-room games by Jeff Sonas
My kids (9 and 12) like to play IF games on my phone during car drives so they are looking for something quick and fun that doesn't require much mapping. What single-room adventures are out there?
Games for Beginners by WriterBob
I'm looking for games that are suited for adults who are new to IF. My purpose is to share these games with friends and let them get experience IF without being frustrated by mazes or guess-the-verb issues. Please avoid children's games....
One room games by cpuguy
I would like to know what one room games are available. I enjoyed the acorn court, and am looking for more similar games.
This is version 1 of this page, edited by cpuguy on 3 August 2009 at 12:35pm. - View Update History - Edit This Page - Add a News Item