IF Comp 2016: Roundup

Here’s where you can find my IF Comp 2016 reviews! Once the comp is over and/or I’ve reviewed all the games I can, I’ll post a rundown of overall thoughts about the games, standouts and favourites, and all that kind of thing.

Blurb and Cover Mini Reviews: All games

Black Rock City by Jim Munroe
Mirror and Queen by Chandler Groover
Quest for the Traitor Saint by Owlor
The Skyscraper and the Scar by Diego Freire and Ruber Eaglenest
Take by Amelia Pinnolla

IF Comp 2016: Blurb Reviews

IF Comp is here! The biggest outpouring of interactive fiction all year, and a ton of people writing about it. I’m going to try to write reviews of the comp pieces this year, so here’s an initial preamble inspired by Bruno Dias and Cat Manning before I put down my initial impressions of the blurbs for posterity.

I won’t review everything in the comp, partly because I don’t have the time and energy, and partly because a couple of games contain subject matter that I’m not the target audience for.

I am  not a professional reviewer, nor do I think reviewers (professional or otherwise) have a duty or ability to be unbiased. My plan is to show my impressions, my preferences, and my recommendations to players based on such. Where I make recommendations, recommendations with caveats, or negative comments, I’ll do my best to illustrate why.

I am a social creature, and have friendly chats with many of the authors of this year’s entries. That said…

I am reviewing the games, not the authors. If you feel I’ve made a personal attack on you, please get in touch, but my aim isn’t to be snarky or tear anyone down.

With all that in mind, on with the blurb-judging! To summarise if you don’t have time to read the reams below:

  • Please make sure title and author text are clearly visible on cover art. There are a lot of games where you can barely see the title, which spoils the cover rather.
  • Please don’t be self-effacing in blurbs. It turns me off the game right away.
  • Less is often more. A strong few sentences that say a lot about a protagonist, setting or dilemma can be more effective than overloading the reader with ingame lore, especially for an SFF game.
  • …That said, sometimes it can be too minimal. I want to know what gives the game its spark, vim and vigour. If the art can coordinate with the blurb content to reinforce tone, that’s all to the good.
  • I’m genuinely impressed with the blurbs: although some appeal more than others, I can for the most part see their appeal for other players.
  • To make me instantly want to play something, set it in a desert because I am all over that.

Read more

IF for tough times

What a fortnight it’s been. Here is some free feelgood IF.

Birdland (Brendan Patrick Hennessy)
Bridget, an anxious moppet of a fourteen-year-old, is miserable at summer camp: she doesn’t fit in, she’s tongue-tied around pretty much everyone (but especially the tough-talking teen detective Bell Park), and she just wants to go home. Not only that, sinister birds are invading her dreams and the adults are starting to act very strangely indeed.

Bridget’s behaviour in dreams affects her personality, which in turn opens up different options in the daytime. It’s a really nice mechanic, giving the dreams concrete purpose as well as humour and flavour. It’s written in dialogue only, and in the hands of a less capable writer might not work, but Hennessy’s dialogue zings. I challenge anyone to get through a couple of pages without laughing. Also GAY TEENS WHO DON’T DIE.

Feelgood Factor: HILARIOUSLY ADORABLE.

QUEER TRANS MENTALLY ILL POWER FANTASY (baphomeme)
“TODAY WHEN YOU GET UP IN THE MORNING YOU FIND THAT YOUR BODY HAS BEEN REPLACED WITH A GLITTERING IRIDESCENT MECHA SUIT ENCRUSTED WITH EVERY NICE MESSAGE YOU’VE EVER BEEN SENT”

I play this game every so often and it always gives me warm feelings. It’s about an ordinary day of going to class, being comforted, giving comfort and destroying capitalism whle encased in an iridescent mecha suit.

A short game, it nevertheless packs a punch and, wonderfully, the nice messages from the quote above are crowdsourced by the author, spreading the warmth and love around.

Feelgood Factor: EMPOWERINGLY EYE-MISTY.
Notes: swearing.

Child’s Play (Stephen Granade)
It’s playgroup day and that other baby Zoe keeps stealing your favourite toy. Outrageous!

I haven’t got very far in this because I don’t have much patience for puzzles, but the writing is delightful and getting into the head of a baby is actually quite relaxing. I feel like I have a bit of insight into how Alistair might feel (certainly I felt “cry” was the right solution in a lot of situations…).

Feelgood Factor: BABIES.
Notes: If you are not fond of babies or find them stressful, this is probably not for you.

HIGH END CUSTOMIZABLE SAUNA EXPERIENCE (Porpentine Charity Heartscape)
The breathless, high-octane tale of a CYBER HACKER who just wants their SAUNA EXPERIENCE. It’s nowhere near as dark as most of Porpentine’s games: the dystopian setting is played for laughs rather than the usual feeling of plunging one’s hands into the world’s grimy innards, and it is gloriously shameless about its genre conventions and shortcuts. I love this game for its reeling excitement followed by the delightfully relaxing SAUNA EXPERIENCE.

(I got a huggable manta ray. This is a major life goal for me now.)

Feelgood Factor: REELINGLY ADVENTUROUS.
Notes: swearing, also if you’re like me and are squicked out by plant-human hybrids choose Crystal or Robot hacker rather than Plant.

Tiny Utopias (Caelyn Sandel)
All the Tiny Utopias are good to check out when your mood is low, but Caelyn Sandel’s gentle, soothing landscapes are marvellously meditative. There are four: Palm River, Tiny Home, Tiny Beach and Tiny Sea, and within each are a host of nodes leading to descriptive text.

Sandel includes lovely soundscapes in the background, adding to the sense of gentle relaxation. I return often to these pieces, enjoying the feeling of a few moments of calm.

Feelgood Factor: GENTLY SOOTHING.

(Many thanks to the &if folks for recommendations!)