Number of Reviews: 10
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Thought-provoking and polished TADS 3 work, January 5, 2024This is only my second IFDB review, so I'm going to reuse the disclaimer I used in the first one and say that I don't feel especially given to writing insightful reviews, even when I have specific thoughts about a game. (I tried being a reviewer in the '23 IFComp, but mostly devolved into writing limericks for the games instead.)
In spite of that, I'm a recently first-time published game author, and I appreciate when others take the time to tell me (and others) what they thought of my game.
I didn't really have time for game-playing when this game came out in IFComp '22, but as a fellow TADS 3 author, I wanted to come back around to it when life allowed and give a little TADS support and solidarity. So I did, recently, and I was impressed. I like the atmosphere created by the sidebar graphics and the Middle Eastern-sounding soundtrack. One of my favorite parts of the experience was taking in the whole what-if scenario in which the lead-up to Abel's murder seems very plausible, and one sympathizes with Cain's plight. I have no idea if that kind of material exists in legend or if it's all the author's creation, but I appreciated the ingenuity of the story.
The game also gets very high marks for polish and implementation. I hit one point (Spoiler - click to show)where I tried to LOOK UP IRON and failed the puzzle because I was required to LOOK UP METAL, which wasn't otherwise clued at other than through induction/lateral thinking. I mentioned this to the author, so it is very possible that this was accommodated in a more recent update.
All in all, this is an erudite, engaging game that deserves to stand out and be recognized. I enjoyed the experience that Jim Nelson prepared for us to partake of.