Unseelie

Originally written on the intfiction forums, slightly expanded after getting the intended end state in a second playthrough.

The in-game ABOUT section says this was made as a school project, and they plan on adding more content and custom implementation.

Due to a series of mysterious and sudden events, you fall into a portal to another world, filled with strange fungi and some otherworldly creatures. You must explore this world to find out what’s going on, and how to get back home.

I found it a bit hard to progress, as the game doesn’t give a lot of hints, but the puzzles that had their solutions hinted at (Spoiler - click to show)(luring the creature to the platform, or moving a ladder to climb somewhere else) were satisfying to figure out and solve. The game will end when you (Spoiler - click to show)give a yellow fungi to a prisoner in a cell, but as there is no ending text (the game just says “You have won” and gives you the Restore, Restart, or Quit spiel), I don’t have any idea of what will happen next, or how he’ll use it to unlock the cell door.

…Then I read a hint thread saying there’s an intended solution. I went back to the game, spent a lot more time figuring out what to do, but got stuck with trying to open up a box (Spoiler - click to show)at the top of the slope. I could’ve tried more, but at the time I felt like I had spent enough time with the game to write an informed observation and I had other games to review during the Spring Thing voting period. After the results came out, I revisted the game and made it to the proper ending thanks to further hints. That ending didn't tell me anything new but I was just glad I went back to finish the game in the intended way.

I found an interpretation error with a pressure plate/platform that opens up a door when something is standing on it. You can actually pick up the entire platform and everything on it (thankfully dropping it immediately afterwards makes things work). The aforementioned box’s description was confusing, as the default examine text implies that it’s open when it’s really closed. There are also a few placeholder examination text and descriptions that say something like “this object isn’t implemented and you don’t need to do anything with it to progress at this point.”

So far I liked the atmosphere and there’s some clear objectives (Who are those two ladies at the beginning? (Spoiler - click to show)What’s the prisoner’s story? How do we dispel that glowing energy field? How do we get back home?). If a future version with expanded functionality and story released, I’ll definitely be down to revisit Unseelie.