Test Subject: Synaptix

This is a nice-looking Twine game set in a dystopian near-future where most fun jobs are taken by AI and humans are given Universal Basic Income that lets them scrape by but without much purpose in life.

You are given the opportunity to do some experimental trials for a shady company. The trials have to do with a kind of neuron-affecting chemical injection, but to find out what it is, you'll have to proceed with your trial.

I found the writing engaging and the story interesting. It doesn't last too long. I just wish it either had a more solid ending or more options for interactivity. As far as I could tell, the majority of interaction was 'do this interesting thing' or 'stop the game early'. I just checked (stopping in the middle of writing this review) and tried replaying with a different first option and saw that it changes a good deal of the story, which is actually pretty neat. So I'll bump up the rating for that. But all 4 ending variations I've seen seem really anticlimactic, which is rough because the rest of the story flows so well.

This was great. A believable situation (a character desperate to earn a bit of extra money) in a future which may not be too far away: one where most jobs are done by robots, and most people are living precariously. Images of people on a website are computer-generated rather than real; people have temporary tattoos to confuse facial recognition software. There are several nice little observations on life in this world:

It’s pointless, making the effort to write your name neatly and with flair when you’re writing with your finger on a touch-pad, but you do it every time. Maybe people need small, pointless things to feel proud of.

There are two main areas of choice for the reader: a choice of three different reasons why you want to earn extra money (a dog requiring medical care; a bad living situation; a hobby), and the different choices for how you act, leading to one of a few different endings. The former of the two (Spoiler - click to show)doesn’t exactly change the outcome, but it’s a nice touch: your decisions make the game is more interesting upon replay, and it affects the strange dreams that you have when you are under the influence of the test drug. These are some of the most sinister passages in the game, and it’s worth playing all three versions (dog/roommates/hobby) to get the full effect.

Recently, I have seen a few IF games include mentions about AI, automation and how it could possibly lead to mass unemployment. Well, now we have once which puts this topic front and center (more or less, I suppose). You need money for... (the game gives you some options here)... and there are pretty much no jobs left for you to take to earn that money, due to the AI and employment crisis. Well, maybe except one. Being a medical test subject.

This game is pretty short, although there is a slight bit of branching where you can choose to back out halfway, screw the big corp with an illicit deal and so on. It's somewhat thought provoking, particularly in the context of a world where you need money and are running out of ways to earn it.

It was a fairly good read, and certainly gets one thinking.