The Newcomer

by Jason Love profile

2001
Inform 6

Go to the game's main page

Review

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
An unfinished IFComp 01 game in a fantasy setting, June 17, 2016

In this game, you are in some of paeduo-roman setting where an Oracle has incited everyone to violence.

This game is known for unfinished room descriptions such as "$$$". There are two npcs that do almost nothing unless you guess the right verbs.

However, the story that is there is interesting.

As to finishing the game...
(Spoiler - click to show)After 5-10 turns, you die. If you type XYZZY, time stops, but you can't win.

There are two ways to win: type Z over and over again, or SING over and over again.



Because of these unusual features, many speculated that this was a joke game. Its hard to know.

Was this review helpful to you?   Yes   No   Remove vote  
More Options

 | Add a comment 

Comments on this review

Previous | << 1 >> | Next

<blank>, June 17, 2016 - Reply
I'm curious, could you link me to the "many" who speculated this was a joke game? Apart from O'Brian's review?
MathBrush, June 18, 2016 - Reply
"MEIN COMP
Eric Mayer continues on at tedious length about Comp 2001
(Part 3 of 4)
Note: This material can be found online at the Trotting Krips web
site:
http://joltcountry.dreamhost.com/trottingkrips/ik2k1-
ericm.html
Jason Love sounds like a pseudonym and if I'd entered NEWCOMER
I'd be in hiding too. I don't mean the game is exactly disgraceful
but, so far as I can see it is a joke, and a real groaner. Or maybe a
comment on lack of interactivity? What can I say without giving the
game away? Well, if you've "played" Beal Street there's one form of
utterly minimal interactivity. Newcomer offers a somewhat different
form. Mind you, it appears to be much more. There are some nicely
drawn locations. I'm not sure what to make of it, to be honest. It is
one solution to what to do with that practice file, with all the
locations, that you decide you don't feel like turning into an actual
game because how many moves does it take to make a bunch of static
locations into a game. Oops. I'd better shut up now."

There was one other person who considered the idea that the game was entered as an intentionally bad piece, but they did not use the word 'joke' explicitly.
<blank>, June 18, 2016 - Reply
Very interesting, thank you! I do wish those reviews were linked at the IFWiki, or here, or someplace.
Previous | << 1 >> | Next