TimeQuest

Timequest is a classic open-world, puzzle-filled text adventure set across six different regions of the world and nine distinct time periods. With 50 different areas, each containing a handful of accessible locations, it is a very large game. It took me several play sessions over the course of a month to complete it. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, which evoked that old-school feel of working through puzzles and making meaningful progress each time I played.

On the Zarfian Cruelty Scale, this game is classified as "nasty," meaning you can encounter unwinnable situations. However, the game always informs you when you’ve made a critical mistake, which makes for a surprisingly pleasant experience. I always had a clear sense of what I was supposed to achieve in each area and what to avoid.

The puzzles are challenging, but they never felt unfair. As I explored more of the enormous world, I naturally solved more puzzles. Generally, the puzzles weren’t too hard, but they were clever enough to require creativity and thought. If I couldn’t solve a puzzle immediately, it was often because I hadn’t yet explored the areas necessary to solve it. Since there were always plenty of other tasks to focus on, I never felt stuck.