The Bones of Rosalinda

At the risk of losing all suspense in this review, I will start by saying I was absolutely captivated by The Bones of Rosalinda by Agnieszka Trzaska. I was literally held captive by this wonderful work of interactive fiction and could not drag myself away from my computer until I had finished it.

The story covers dark wizardry and the unlikely pairing of a skeleton (Rosalinda) and a mouse (Piecrust) to save the town of Greywall from an army of the dead. Despite the dark fairytale theme, the story is joyful and told with humour and features some really memorable characters (the demon with an unfortunate but appropriate name was my favourite).

Interactive fiction presents some unique challenges to authors. How can you tell a compelling story that is well-paced and leads to a satisfying conclusion despite the player doing their best to follow a different story? How can you weave in puzzles that make sense in the context of the story and that don’t suspend belief in the player? How can you allow interaction with story characters that doesn’t lead to loops? I am pleased to report that with some smart design decisions by the author it really felt that I was inside the story and I was playing the game that the author intended.

My only regret is that I reached the end of the game and was left with some unanswered questions, particularly around the origins of Rosalinda and her backstory as this game’s focus was really on Piecrust’s story. However, I am excited to see that Agnieszka Trzaska has written a follow-up game, The Trials of Rosalinda, so I can’t wait to immerse myself once more in her beautifully-written world.

Wonderful, just really wonderful!