Midnight. Swordfight.

As the title promises, this game begins with the player character about to engage in a sword duel. As soon becomes clear, the word "duel" is perhaps the wrong choice, because the PC is vastly outmatched by the opponent, known as The Countess. I came close to quitting at this point, because the work presents itself as a "one move" game. However, within a handful of cycles it is revealed that the PC has certain abilities that make it possible to evade certain death.

This game serves up thin slices of rich world-building with its vivid and evocative prose. The universe vaguely resembles ours with notable exceptions. First, everyone seems to be a hermaphrodite in the vein of Ursula K. LeGuin's 1969 novel The Left Hand of Darkness. Second, magic of some sort is real, in that the protagonist is able to perform impossible feats such as (Spoiler - click to show)flying to the moon. Third, the PC has the extraordinary capacity to move about in time as well as space, which is the core mechanic by which the story progresses.

Despite a limited range of locations and significant actions, this piece presents many contemplative and memorable moments to the player, and also many interesting experiments to the would-be author. In particular, a variety of NPC conversation styles are implemented, including a unique menu-driven interface with options phrased around question words (e.g. who, what, when, etc.) and a stripped-down enter-the-topic prompt that I found to be a remarkably smooth improvement over ASK/TELL. A very large number of endings are possible, too, giving it some replay value, which is welcome in a game this short.

Regrettably, the story is at certain points needlessly transgressive, apparently for no purpose other than shock value. It's rather a shame, because it limits my ability to recommend this otherwise exceptional work. Even though it is not suitable for young adults, it's well within bounds as fare for grown-ups, so if you're comfortable with NC-17 movies, you probably won't blink at this. For a more widely recommendable work by the same author, see Toby's Nose.

This is one of the most entertaining things I've come across. I'm glad that I've finally achieved my dreams of (Spoiler - click to show)kissing cocks in this game. It was surprisingly short but had a very unique setting and idea.

After playing for a while, I discovered 15 endings... However, after wandering back into this review section and reading the other reviews, I have noticed that I have missed the (Spoiler - click to show)"Keep Your Friends Close and Your Kielbasa Closer" ending. I'll have to find it another time, though, as it is getting quite late as I am writing this. I adored the dialogue and my trusty motley. Maybe I'll continue trying to find even more endings in the meantime. (Spoiler - click to show)Surely there must be something more significant to being able to speak with Matilda and dab blood on my forehead. I'm also curious if there's any way to hear about the specifics of the rumor.

As I finish this review, it is approximately 45 minutes past the beginning of April Fools Day.

Edit (5/9): I am delighted to announce that I replayed the game today and successfully uncovered the 16th ending I was missing!