Firebird

This was the fourth parser game I played. Having now gotten a grasp of some of the conventions of the genre, many of the early puzzles had solutions that came to me fairly quickly. When they did not, the game allowed me to bumble about until I found the solution. However, while the first puzzles seemed fairly logical to me, the later puzzles were more difficult – mainly the ones of the sort where one just has to guess at both nouns and verbs.

In some of the more critical plot points, the author has done an excellent job of allowing multiple solutions. I thought I had found the way through the game, only to discover when reading more about the game after finishing it that there were many more ways to go through it. Some mistakes will get you stuck (and the game tries to hint at this although I didn't catch the hint...), but other mistakes simply let you pick a different route to the end.

I also liked how even some of the more obvious failure states are not complete failures – the game takes the opportunity to teach the player a mechanic by allowing some observation after death. I know this is frowned upon in modern design, but it worked well for this game.

I enjoyed the setting greatly, even when it took a turn for the more mystical or abstract. I think this is a tale I will carry with me for a while. That said, there are a lot of details that yearn for implementation. Many things mentioned don't exist in the model world and cannot be examined. Some solutions that seem logical do not work unless the exact right verb is found.

In all, a very satisfying game with a compelling story and neat mechanics. If a few more details were implemented, this would get a five-star rating from me.