Ravine

Ravine is a short (<1 hour) horror game where you play as a corporate investigator at a research station above the Arctic Circle. It has some very good horror elements that bring to mind (Spoiler - click to show) The Mountains of Madness, but for the 21st century . The conversations are written clearly, believable, and easy to understand. (Spoiler - click to show) I particularly enjoyed the use of the click-through technique that allowed me to explore different elements of a scene without progressing. I also really liked that I could explore different options' consequences without being able to go back. I thought the interactions you have with the main villain at the end are excellently written. My only criticism is that I did not know how much or little my choices were affecting the story, but it's such a small gripe that I feel this story deserves five stars for its conciseness, mechanics, and storyline.

This Twine game from 2018 takes place on a research facility in Norway. You are a special agent of the Penumbra organization, a tech firm with some connection to unusual or even paranormal technology.

You arrive at a research station to find out that a group of five people was decimated by an explosion involving a radioactive military cache. But everyone at the station is acting suspicious.

The game has a solid storyline and uses choices to depict the player’s changing amount of agency.

I liked the story. The only thing keeping me from 5 stars is that most of its components have been slightly better in several occasions: the setup, the choice style, the css design. But it was satisfying to play and ones read more by this author.

I really enjoyed this experience - without giving too much away, it employs some classic horror elements from the likes of John Carpenter or Lovecraft to great effect, while tempting the reader to make some dark choices. Well worth a read!