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Review
I wanted to like Glik. I enjoy post-apocalyptic settings, and the idea of playing a future archaeologist is appealing. The broad concept was pretty solid. But the execution leaves much to be desired. There's a basic level of competence present that gives the player false hope that the game will reward them, (like the addition of a help menu) but ultimately it fails to deliver.
The player is tasked with looking for their friend who's gone missing (a solid hook), but then is placed at a camp without any clue as to which way their friend might, surrounded by a pretty generic wilderness replete with darkness filled rooms and repetitive meaning-to-be-ominous message.
On top of all this is a highly generic HP+XP 'RPG' system tacked on on top (there were hints of enemies but I didn't meet any). In the end, after lengthy battle with myself and my axe*, I managed to commit suicide. And that's when it got really weird. After opening and exiting the unlit closed 'spirit-realm' container (a cosmic wardrobe?) that I was stuck in post-death, I found myself again in darkness. Having -3 hit points and with no way of telling which way to go, I hit a run-time error and that's when I gave up on Glik.
My advice to the author would be to get rid of the empty RPG-trappings and focus on unpacking the ideas that look so promising in the opening section.
*Apparently, I had an exclusive choice between an axe, hammer or sword. I said 'take all from the chest' and got the first weapon by default.
(Game deserves 1.5 for effort, but I don't currently recommend playing it.)
Comments on this review
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There are some enemies, but they are trivial enough that probably they could be left out of the game and it wouldn't lose anything. Or at least it seems that way to me. (I got further, but I believe I put the game in an unwinnable state.) I did something to a particular scenery object which then disappeared from scope (but still remained in the room description), but I think that whatever else was supposed to happen as a result didn't happen.
Also, a few rooms have exits that are not mentioned, and a few others mention exits that don't seem to exist. With such a big map it's possible I missed a room or two as a result of that, but I don't think I did. Once I realized there were hidden exits, I went back and systematically looked for them.
Still, as first efforts go it isn't too bad. I liked it enough to systematically go through all the rooms and try all the directions looking for the aforementioned unmentioned exits.
As you say, it is good for a first effort (maybe I could have played it more charitably?)- part of the problem is that it's clear the author has it in them to generate good ideas and implement competently, but there's too much letting the game down in its current form.
