So what am I going to do with myself now? I hope these reviews have, at least in some ways, been occasionally useful to the authors. I mentioned at the start that I don't really have any 'form' in doing reviews. It is interesting looking at and playing, in-depth, 77 games in such a short … Continue reading IFComp 2018 Round-up : Games →

This is an unusual game. We are a spy - the Silver agent. We wake up in a hotel room with no memory, but we quickly are given a mission to undertake. Then there is a knock on the door. It becomes apparent very quickly that we can't complete this game in a single play … Continue reading Six Silver Bullets →

A lengthy parser game, written in ADRIFT, Anno 1700 advertises itself as 'longer than 2 hours'. It's right. I play for 2 hours, but don't reach an ending. I quickly turn to the walkthrough. This game is big. And very difficult. Often, I feel, somewhat unfairly. We play as a student on a years sabbatical … Continue reading Anno 1700 →

So I've finally got around to downloading and running ADRIFT. It gives a worrying 'Uncaught exception' system error when I run a game, but I ignore it and it seems to go away. I haven't used ADRIFT before for some reason. I see there are three ADRIFT games in this years comp - two of … Continue reading Stone of Wisdom →

In this lengthy choice game, you are playing as Jacob Morris, occult detective. This game is a nicely realized take on the hard-boiled noir-ish chandleresque detective stories with some interesting twists. There is a significant amount of gameplay here. I've been through the game once, and it has taken me nearly the full two hours. … Continue reading Grimnoir →

This is quite fun. I'm a bank robber planning a heist and I need to choose my team. Each of them has different specialties. I can choose between Francis who is a demolitions expert, but has little regard for human life, or maybe Randall, who is willing to make an ass of themselves to divert … Continue reading Let’s Rob a Bank →

A mid-length choice game, this takes base aboard an 'anatomically correct' spaceship. At the start we join three stoner engineers who, in their drug induced state, decide to mutiny. Then aliens appear and someone becomes the Star Son. I have no idea what's going on. Through the course of the game, we flick in and … Continue reading H.M.S. Spaceman →

Ho! An Infocom pun. I like that. I also like the game A Mind Forever Voyaging, despite its faults. At least it was trying something new. As does En Garde. But there the similarity ends. The second game by Jack Welch, the second time the Inform+Vorple = something a bit different. The immediate impact on … Continue reading En Garde →

I've started and re-written this review several times. I'm not entirely sure that projecting my gaze onto this discussion will, in any way, advance the conversation. Of course, I agree wholeheartedly that personal agency is fundamental - specifically around the agency to choose whether to accept a societal 'norm' of family, or not. But I … Continue reading A Woman’s Choice →

Playing as a reporter for a small publication, we are able to write stories about ghosts. Stories that release them from this plane and help them find peace. We can see the ghosts. Talk to them. Touch them. This mid-length choice game explores the impact of sexual assault. Playing as a bisexual character, we are … Continue reading Bi-Lines →