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Another mission. Just when you had settled in for a nap.
9th Place - 12th Annual Interactive Fiction Competition (2006)
Nominee, Best Puzzles; Nominee, Best Individual Puzzle - 2006 XYZZY Awards
| Average Rating: based on 34 ratings Number of Reviews Written by IFDB Members: 5 |
A solid and entertaining puzzle game requiring multiple play-throughs and an inventive twist on classic time travel. The framing of the game is maybe a little disappointing -- there's less of a story here than it originally appears, and so much effort goes into the solution that it would be nice if the ending offered more narrative reward.
All the same, a polished and technically accomplished piece of work, with some inventive game-play.
This time travel game has been compared to many other such games, including ones before it (like Sorceror's and Spellbreaker's puzzles) and those after it (such as Fifteen Minutes). It works, and it is simpler than many, but the story is a bit weak.
You are a member of the Galactic Marines investigating a lab. The rest of the review is in spoilers, though it doesn't give away more than the first ten or twenty turns.
(Spoiler - click to show)You soon find yourself stuck in a time loop, where a critical event sends you back in time every few turns. You see the previous version of yourself, performing your last set of actions. You have to figure out how to stop the explosions, and how to interact with you doppleganger, and the interactions can occur in strange ways.
I recommend it, but not for everyone. Mostly those who enjoy puzzles.
Don't be mistaken by the plot-driven intro. This is actually a one-room, one-puzzle game.
The actual puzzle is quite original and well implemented, (Spoiler - click to show)based on a time machine, repetition, and multiple copies of yourself.
The parser is perfect, the writing is clear, and the game is short and fun (IF you like puzzles).
Only three stars for me tough because at times I found it frustrating, and the 'time limit' is really unforgiving, even if you can't really die. When I had already an idea of how to solve it i just checked the walkthrough.
As a member of the Drop Team Beta of the Galactic Marines, you are send on a mission to some research institute. For some reason, your team mates do not arrive there. As it turns out, you need to shut down a temporal reactor. The only catch here: there is more than one reactor to be shut down...
The game's only meta-puzzle is a time-travelling paradox, which is set up in such a way that, on one hand, it's possible to die, but on the other hand the player has an unlimited number of attempts to solve it. The puzzle as such is very logical, challenging and creative. While the puzzle-oriented nature of the game doesn't leave much space for plot and setting, the little bits of characterization that are there are brilliant. All in all, it's definitely worth playing, at least if you're not an absolute puzzle-hater.
-- Valentine Kopteltsev
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