Ham and Egg Lawyer

I have to say, at first glance, I thought this was going to be a simulation of sorts (even though the author didn't promise one). I think it's most accurate to say it's a "slice of life" game, and at that, it succeeds.

There doesn't appear to be any randomness and you get the same cases in the same order on every play through. Your choices don't change much that happens (maybe an additional screen of text or a slightly different response) but do affect your stats. The stats were a nice addition but underutilized. I think that's what got me expecting more of a "game" than advertised; if you hand a player stats, they're going to assume they'll be rewarded or punished for how they affect those stats over the game. And this wasn't the case.

I think my biggest complaint is the ending; it was disappointing. I played through twice, and after a week of directing this character, I would have liked more than (Spoiler - click to show)a single line of text and my stat totals. Where's the entirely unrealistic to base off one week but necessary for player satisfaction epilogue stating how successfully my character will be? At least tell me what the stats will mean for him over the next few years! I really felt like it left me hanging.

I would also have liked to see a little more of the dramatic stuff (I know, I know, this isn't Law & Order). Maybe a central case that the protagonist sees as a "big break" that you can choose to devote part of each day to (or not), with a court appearance on Friday that your stats and preparation affect the outcome of or something, to break up the call-response routine a little and give some meaning to those stats.

The game as a whole really does leave the impression of spending a week looking over the shoulder of a new lawyer. It just turns out that this is about as exciting as spending a week looking over the shoulder of a new PI or web designer or any other self-employed field. Which is to say, interesting, but not in the way you'd expect if you were a fan of genre fiction. It was definitely informative and worth playing through, if only to see how ridiculous the callers are.