Tricks of light in the forest

This game is coded with Gruescript, so memorably used by Robin Johnson to write Detectiveland which he won IFComp with. As a result this game too is a sort of parser/choice hybrid. At the bottom of the screen you get a status section, showing where you are, exits you can use, objects you can interact with and verbs you can use on them. The main response text of the game appears in the upper part of the window. And neatly there’s an in game map you can show if you want to. And that updates as you play more.

In the game you’re a young child exploring the forest on your own to gather samples and photographs for a school project. And the game is about exploration. But also light puzzles. You find objects that you want to photograph and/or collect for your school project. But equally you find other objects that you can interact with, and puzzles to overcome.

I really liked a lot about this, though I don’t think I played it as deeply as I could have done. At one option I was given the choice of continuing exploring or returning home. I went for the latter. Quite a number of scary things had happened before this, and “child” me wanted to get back to the safety of home! So maybe there’s more out there that I might have uncovered. But I really enjoyed my exploration of the world. And the interface was neat.

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