Portcullis

Portcullis
by Robin Johnson profile

Fantasy
2016

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Reviews and Ratings

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

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Number of Ratings: 13
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1-13 of 13

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

Putting the "Good" in the "Good Ol' Days", March 23, 2021

by Blake

This game is awesome. The prose is just right: simple, evocative, but never terse. The puzzles are very solvable; I needed no hints to beat the game, though I may peek at them if I can't get at all three endings on my own. It really hits that sweet spot; it feel like Zork in puzzle design and writing, but without descending into self-parody or fourth wall-breaking, or constant references to the games it's celebrating.

I really do love those puzzles. Not only are there multiple solutions, but the solutions are all plausible and funny. Funny? Yeah, I laughed out loud at both the silliness of both the solutions and their outcomes. Perfect example of cartoon logic done right. They're zany ideas, the kind that you think of and go, "That could be it, but there's no way, that's too clever, it's probably something more boring." Fortunately, Johnson is no boring designer, and your imaginative or fanciful solutions actually work here! Of course, your mileage may vary. Moon logic notoriously varies from person to person. But man oh man, when you and the game are on the same wavelength, it's a great feeling.

I can think of few better games to show a new player to introduce them to old-school text adventures. They can play it on-line easily and it needs no additional documentation. The parser is great, supporting UNDO and a convenient browser save. And it's not some super-easy game that will hold their hand, either.

I can't say enough good things about this little quest. Smart but not smarmy, it's just what a throwback should be.

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- nf, November 21, 2019

- erzulie, October 10, 2019

- Spike, March 24, 2017

- Audiart (Davis, CA), March 5, 2017

- Xavid, January 31, 2017

- Sobol (Russia), May 29, 2016

- Denk, May 11, 2016

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

A Scott Adams/Zork-type web parser game about a local necromancer, March 28, 2016

by MathBrush

This game is in green text on a black background and is a home-brew web parser. However, it is more polished than most such games.

You play a simple village resident who decides to help some adventurers defeat an evil necromancer. By dealing with some clever puzzles (a color-based code, some animals, a trading game, etc.), you can deal with the necromancer and your adventurer friends.

The puzzles were occasionally too clever for their own good ((Spoiler - click to show)I'm thinking of the mummy solution, or the hellhound), but this should appeal to the game's main target demographic of old school fans.

Strongly recommended for fans of Scott Adam's games.

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- E.K., March 12, 2016

2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

The best within the Text Adventure Community. , March 11, 2016

by Bishopofbasic

I am sitting on the edge of my seat. Smoking a cigarette for the experience I have just had. Robin, you are by far one of the greatest authors of Text Adventures I have ever seen. Keep it up. We need more people like Robin Johnson to maybe open this genre to a large audience. Not to full of himself and not to stuffy. Five stars.

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

Goldilocks of Games, March 10, 2016

by XanMag (Ohio, USA)

I'm glad the previous review was one of the first reviews I've seen since joining this site. I was lucky enough to find the game a few months back and give it a go. It has an old school feel which I love. Very nostalgic. The simple artwork suited the game perfectly.

As for length, difficulty, and design? Not too long or short, not too hard or too easy. Not simple and not overly complicated in design. Everything was just right! I'd recommend this to all IF fans.

Well done.

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

A nostalgic and witty tribute, March 10, 2016

by FoldsFive (UK)

Johnson's* wit has never been in doubt (anybody who has ever played "Aunts and Butlers" can testify to that) but here he's chosen another topic ripe for satire, that 35 year old Infocom adventure classic Zork.

From that oh-so familiar cover to the charming simple illustrations dotted throughout, it's a wry look at some classic fantasy tropes, and I genuinely laughed out loud on more than one occasion. It's a rare game indeed where even the 'game over' screen raises a smile. It's also running under an excellent parser and I only struggled over the puzzles, not how to word their solution. Top notch all round, and thoroughly recommended.

* - As an aside, isn't it odd how it's acceptable to refer to somebody by their surname when you're reviewing their work. I'd never dream of calling him Johnson to his face.

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