ADRIFT GAMES
The
Adventures of Space Boy! Volume 1 by David
Parish as "thatguy" [This review was previously published in the Reviews Exchange #6. Reprinted with permission.] I have to admit that I never got around to playing Version 1 of "The Adventures of Space Boy! Volume I", after hearing on the forums that it was a bit buggy. However, after seeing that an improved Version 2 had been released, I thought it was time to take a look. My first thought looking at the file size was that this was probably a large game. However, after playing it, the game is reasonably large but not too much so, with most of the large file size consisting of pictures, which often add hints to the puzzle solutions in the game. The star of the game is Space Boy who is looking for his Wonder Dog. Apart from this there isn't much story to this game, so it is a puzzlefest. I don't mind puzzlefests, but I prefer a clearer motivation as to what my goals are. The motivation behind actions was not always well done here. I ended up doing stuff because it was there, more than doing it because I was after a specific goal. It was only after completing some actions and ending up with the consequent necessary objects, that it was finally explained why I was doing what I was doing. The game also seemed to throw in puzzles for the sake of throwing in puzzles, rather than because they added to the game. The puzzle difficulty wasn't actually too bad. I needed a few hints, but I mostly found that I was on the right track, I just hadn't quite figured it out yet. The writing is reasonable and the game is friendly, it just isn't that exciting. I hate to admit this, but I found myself wondering midway through, when was the game going to be over, which is never a good sign. It wasn't that there was anything really wrong with the game, it just didn't really interest me. Still, I shouldn't be too negative here, as I was glad that I did decide to keep playing, and the setting may interest other players more. This game could still have been implemented a bit better, as not every phrasing is accounted for in the tasks and objects. For example, it took me a while to figure out that (changed slightly to avoid spoilers) ‘greenpurpleorange' was not a synonym of ‘greenpurpleorange tile'. The room descriptions are not that long, with not many items in each room. This could be increased to add more atmosphere to the game. A few spelling mistakes also remain in the game. None of these issues are that serious, but are areas where the author could improve in the future. Overall the game is reasonable, and there is a promise of a sequel at the end, which wasn't a surprise given that the game has a subtitle of Volume I. Would I be interested in a sequel? Well, based on this game, I would give it a go. SCORE - 5/10 The
Annihilation of Think.com 3 by Adam Dundas Having not playing the first two games in this series, I may be unqualified to review this game, but a collection of one-star reviews on the official Adrift site suggests otherwise. The game makes no attempt to explain its confusing story, does not implement most objects or characters it mentions, fails to recognize almost any words you care to put into it, has very poor grammar and writing, and is more or less completely unplayable. I suspect the game was written by someone very young, so I'll leave it at that; players should avoid. Can
I Do It? by chillindawg [This review was previously published in the Reviews Exchange #7. Reprinted with permission.] I wasn't expecting much from this game. The author had written two games prior to Can I Do It? One was removed from the main ADRIFT site before I got the chance to play it, although from what I hear of it I didn't miss much. The other? Oh dear... Let's just say it was bad and leave it at that. So I didn't have high hopes for this one. It started off better than I expected. Nice introduction (although it would have had my old English teacher (the one with the grammar obsession) fairly spitting blood) but fails a little as it doesn't actually say what the aim of the game is. I figured it out from the title of the taf ("Heist") but it would have been a good idea to make it clearer in the intro. Can I Do It? is a better game than the previous one I'd played by the author, but it's still got more holes than some very holey cheese. There are lots of newbie annoyances – GET and TAKE mean different things, so if, like me, you type the former as opposed to the latter, you won't be able to finish the game. A crucial item required to trigger the end game event only works if the TAKE command is used. I used GET, so even though I was carrying the item in question when I left the store the game wouldn't finish for me. Some of the other problems with the game were minor, but annoying all the same. In one location, there is a food rack and a magazine rack, yet examining either of them just gives you the description for the food rack. There were a few lapses in logic that were pretty frustrating. I'm able to find a bag and wear it then wander around the store with it on, yet the shopkeeper doesn't think there's anything unusual about this. I'm also able to pick up items (steal them really) and leave the store without the shopkeeper doing a thing about it, yet I'm still expected to buy the items to move the game forward. I'm also kind of dubious that the shopkeeper would tell a customer where he keeps his gun just because you give him some candy. For that matter, why is the gun even where you find it and not somewhere closer to the shopkeeper? A gun out of reach isn't much use in the event of a robbery. Some bits of the game were in past tense, others present tense which made for a jarring read at times. It could also have done from running through a spell check, and the frequent grammar errors were trying. But all in all, it's a step in the right direction. By no means a perfect game, Can I Do It? is a marked improvement on the author's previous works and shows that, if he can start writing some proper sized games (this one was 5 KB), test them properly beforehand, and fix his spelling and grammar, he might actually have potential. 3 out of 10 Crazy
Old Bag Lady by Sprite [This review was previously published in the Reviews Exchange #6. Reprinted with permission.] A not very serious concept, which pokes fun at the IF convention of picking up any objects that you see, even if there is no use for them. In fact it makes jokes about the title character being a computer game player gone bad. Now she just collects objects for no reason, but still doesn't like dropping anything. The starting inventory is an amusing collection of useless junk. Of course if the joke was only that there was a random picking up of objects, it wouldn't be enough to sustain a game. So, she actually has to solve puzzles as well with these objects. Actually, very few of the objects, apart from those that you start with, are red herrings. Almost all of them are used towards solving the aim of the game, which is the search for the golden trolley. I was almost hoping for a few more funny red herrings, but I admit that it would take a lot more work. Where this game is strong is in the humour and writing, with this game being very funny. The names especially are amusing. Just look at the title of the game for an example. Unfortunately there are quite a few problems, which blight this game. There are a number of spelling mistakes, which is something I am always very fussy about. There are points where the scenery could be a bit better implemented, especially in the corner shop where there seem to be no objects at all. A small bug is that the conversation with Ollie does not change after the task he asked for is completed. The worst bug is obviously a game killing bug with the newspapers, where no newspaper appears after the task is completed. This bug appears to be fairly late in the game. It is a pity, as I was enjoying it before my game playing experience came to an abrupt halt. Due to the good writing, I would like to give a higher score to this game, but with the current level of bugs, I can't. The low score below mainly reflects the game killing bug, rather than the rest of the game, which I would rate closer to a 6. Hopefully, the author will fix up some of the remaining problems. If she does, I look forward to completing the game in the future. SCORE - 3/10 In
The Claws Of Clueless Bob by David
Whyld [This review was previously published in the Reviews Exchange #5. Reprinted with permission.] When David Whyld posted a new game announcement I was all excited, until I read the post more carefully and found out that the new game was in fact the latest in his Clueless Bob Newbie series. For those who haven't played the previous games, Clueless Bob Newbie has starred in a series of 1 and 3-hour Comp games, where he tries to inflict his terrible games on anyone in sight. I have played through some of this series, and I have to admit that they are not amongst my favourite games. Still, I decided to give this game a try. "In The Claws of Clueless Bob" starts out with you trying some of Clueless Bob Newbie's games, which is reminiscent of David Whyld's previous effort "The Worst Game In the World Ever...". Although these games are funny in their poor design to start off with, the poor design also means that they are nearly impossible to win without resorting to hints, and they become annoying very fast. However fortunately, the game moves on outside this setting later, although only if you pay close attention. If you are like me, then you may get stuck for a while trying to figure out how to survive the horror. And it is horror, as I hope I never have to see games like this for real. The second part of the game features the great escape from the claws of Clueless Bob. The humour improves, but it is still very illogical. At the end you find out that you will have to wait for the next part in the epic Clueless Bob Newbie saga. I'm not sure whether to look forward to this or not. I should say here that David Whyld maintains his usual high standard of writing throughout the game, but I'm sure you already know that he is going to do that. Unfortunately I found this game very difficult to solve without looking at the hints, especially the initial escape. This game is reasonable, but not great, especially when compared to some of David Whyld's recent efforts such as Second Chance. However, for some short term fun whilst you wait for the next great David Whyld game, it is worthwhile to give it a go. SCORE - 5/10 Laboratory
R.A.T.S. by Christy Henshaw [This review was previously published in the Reviews Exchange #6. Reprinted with permission.] "Laboratory R.A.T.S." is a short one room game. There is only one puzzle, and it is not even really a puzzle. It is just a matter of figuring out the right sequence of commands. More alternatives should probably have been included to better hint the player towards these commands. However, it is not difficult to figure out if you examine the microscope carefully enough. The single room is a detailed environment, and it is fun to examine everything to find out more about all the characters and what they are trying to achieve. Most of the story is integrated into the descriptions. It is also necessary to explore closely, as mentioned above to figure out what is necessary in order to progress. There are fun background conversations between several NPCs, which add character to the game. The story is well done, but unfortunately the game ends, just when it is beginning to get really interesting. As a brief diversion, which is what this game is aimed for, "Laboratory R.A.T.S." works well. However, it is very short, and I would have preferred for the game to keep going from where it ended. SCORE - 5/10 Marmalade
Skies by evil_flagpole I was unable to finish this game, because I ran across a particularly maddening bug where further progress seemed impossible. I asked about this on the ADRIFT group, but nobody there said that they had ever played the game. I also tried to write to the author, but got no response. I am left to wonder whether anyone has played this game but me. Has even the author tried to win it? It certainly does appear unwinnable. I could be wrong about this, though, and if anybody finds out otherwise, let me know, and I'll update this review. Why do I think this game is unwinnable? [Bad spoiler begins here: Highlight the following paragraph to read it.] I wouldn't recommend this game anyway. Why? Never mind. It seems a waste of time to describe all the flaws in a game that's unwinnable anyway. Provenance
by Corey Arnett [This review was previously published in the Reviews Exchange #7. Reprinted with permission.] Provenance starts off well: a nice introduction which does an excellent job of setting the scene (although the final line "AND WITH THE NIGHT COMES THINGS THAT GO BUMP" rather spoiled the mood). The game had a professional feel and it's obvious a lot of time and effort has been put into its making. It also comes bundled with a lengthy PDF file containing the game's background and some advice on playing interactive fiction in general. A nice touch. At first impression, it seems like a horror game. You arrive on the brick walkway leading to a large mansion with eerie feelings hanging over you. Something tells you it's a bad idea to go further, but go further you do... The game doesn't credit any betatesters which, for the first game by an author, isn't perhaps a wise thing. To begin with, it didn't seem to affect things too much as I was able to wander around a large number of occasions, perform all manner of tasks, examine things all over the place and all without running into any kind of problems. Later on, though, a number of bugs crept in. A good deal of them have now been fixed (the game is up to version three at the time of writing this review), but quite a few still remain. The game is quite picky about what it will and won't let me do. A list of items I found advised me of things I needed to collect, although the reasons as to why I was collecting them weren't revealed until the very end of the game. Provenance comes with a number of frustrations that I'm sure the author had a good reason for including but which I can't figure out myself. There's a hundred plus location maze which I imagine will have people bashing out QUIT in droves. There's the item restriction, meaning that you can only carry a certain amount of items and have to spend half the game trekking back and forth picking up different items for different puzzles. Depending on which version of the game you're playing, you might well find that ADRIFT's in built map has been disabled – in a game which boasts two hundred locations, including one hundred in a maze(!) of all things, this is a bad, bad idea. And there are no hints. No. None at all. So when you get stuck, you're stuck. Later versions thankfully enable the map, but there are still no hints to be found. Yes, there are a lot of negative things about Provenance but there are also a good number of positive things as well. It's got a fairly high standard of writing and the storyline was interesting enough to keep me playing long after the many frustrations had prompted me to quit. One of the game's main flaws is that it often requires the player to jump through hoops to attain a fairly simple result for no other reason than the writer has written the game in a certain way and wants the player to play the game that way because... well, just because. Overall I liked Provenance but my positive feelings for it were tempered by the many, many annoyances that marred the game. I'm not just talking about the bugs, but the way perfectly logical things won't work for no other reason than the writer doesn't want me to solve a puzzle in that way. On top of the lack of hints, the maze and the inventory limit, I found getting beyond a certain stage in the game something of a chore. Much as I liked it, it was also an irritating game to play at times. I finished it eventually, with the aid of the walkthrough, although the series of events that actually lead to the game's conclusion are a little confusing to say the least. Granted, I'd seen the items list so I knew which items I needed to collect, but where did it say I was supposed to put them there and what I was required to do next? 6 out of 10 Showtime
at the Gallows by The Dominant Species I liked the author's first game (Can It Be All So Simple?) so I was expecting to like this one as well. But five minutes into playing the game and I found myself becoming more and more disillusioned with it. It's a horror game which flits from scene to scene so rapidly that you barely have time to appreciate the scene you're in before it's over and you're plunged into another one. I did a similar thing with one of my games once, but I'm sure hoping I didn't confuse people to the extent that this game confused me. Part of the confusion arose out of the fact that, for the most part, I didn't really have a clue what I was supposed to be doing. A scene would begin, I'd play for a few moves, and then the scene would end, often without any kind of conclusion or climax that I was aware of, and I'd be dumped in another scene, usually without an explanation for why I was there or what was going on. This other scene would be pretty much the same as the previous one, leaving me with a feeling, after half an hour's play, that while there was a neat idea employed here, I wasn't understanding a bit of what was going on and not liking it at all. There are few actual puzzles in the game (aside from a remarkably unfair one which I'll come to in a minute). Most of the game consists of the player simply tapping out WAIT time and again and the game unfolding. Often you don't need to take any kind of action to move the game on to the next scene. Sometimes, in fact, the game won't let you take any action (nothing you do in the first two scenes makes a blind bit of difference so you might as well just hit WAIT again and again until you're moved to scene three) and instead you'll just quickly realise that the only thing you can do is wait around for something to happen. There are other times when trying an action once won't result in anything happening, yet trying it again provokes the necessary result. Frustrating just doesn't describe it well enough. The unfair puzzle I mentioned earlier? Well, without spoiling it too much for anyone who still wants to play the game after this less than glowing review, it simply involves waiting around for the opportune moment to slip past a killer. Any attempts to deal with said killer end in the player meeting a grisly end, as do any attempts to flee the scene prior to the required time... although how you're supposed to figure out the required time without first getting killed several times is beyond me. The general tone of the game is adult, with repeated swearing and adult references seemingly thrown into just about every scene for no other reason than the writer fancied writing an 'edgy' game. Personally, I don't think he succeeded particularly well. The result might well be edgy, but it's not a very playable game and nor is it a whole lot of fun to play. Fortunately the game comes with a walkthrough which allowed me to see how it ended. It was confusing there as well. In a way, it makes a kind of sense, but Showtime At The Gallows just wasn't a game that held any kind of interest for me by that point. Can It Be All So Simple? impressed me; this one just let me cold. Game one was good, game two was bad, hopefully three will show the writer's potential in a more favourable light. 3 out of 10 A
Spot of Bother by David
Whyld [This review was previously published in the Reviews Exchange #7. Reprinted with permission.] A Spot of Bother is a comedy game written by David Whyld, but this time with lots of puzzles. The premise of a soldier sent in to disarm traps, is given a humorous turn as the traps are set by a paranoid old lady in her cottage. You need to rescue and wake up the lady who has fainted in the heat wave, as she is needed to stop a nuclear bomb from exploding. I thought that this was a very good setup for the puzzles of an IF game. The writing is well done, as expected from David Whyld, so the real question is how was the gameplay? Unfortunately, as I find most of David Whyld's games, the game starts off more promising than it ends up. In this case, for a few of the puzzles, I can't see how I could have guessed the solution without looking at the walkthrough, and this becomes annoying when you do finally give up and read what the answer was. This notably included the spoken password, portrait and the NPC puzzles. There probably were better hints than what I found, as I did occasionally find very useful hints around the cottage. Absolutely everything needs to be examined closely in this game. The hint system also generally did well at nudging you towards the answer, but not always. I didn't figure out the spoken password despite the hints on the computer. The portrait puzzle could have used better phrasing, as it wasn't until I looked at the walkthrough that I figured out that I had to carry out a series of commands phrased within a single command rather than individually. Another difficult puzzle was that despite exhausting all conversation options, and trying to give him everything, I never did manage to get the only other character in the game to help me. Although I have just listed a series of complaints, there are a lot of puzzles in this game, and it was only the occasional puzzle that annoyed me. Most of the puzzles were reasonably challenging, but were possible and rewarding to figure out. If I couldn't figure one out, I often could just use up one of my five lives to disarm the trap. This was an interesting feature, as it means that if you really couldn't solve how to disarm a trap, then you could trigger it, and then walk past the trap's remains later. You could only do this five times though, as the player character Stavros "The Bulldog" McGrogan can only take so much life-threatening damage before literally falling apart. This feature means that not all of the puzzles are required to be solved, although I had trouble abandoning a puzzle and admitting to myself that I could not solve it. I have to admit that I used "undo" and "restore" fairly frequently at times, so I did not lose any lives. Overall, this is an entertaining game that is worth giving a try. SCORE - 7/10 Veteran
Knowledge by Robert
Street [This is an abridgment of a review previously published in the Reviews Exchange #3. Read the full-length review in the Reviews Exchange #3. Reprinted with permission.] From Three Hours To Infinity I wasn't expecting to like this game very much. It had originally been entered as Veteran Experience in the second Three Hour ADRIFT Competition and came a respectable second and while it was a fair game in its own right (especially for one written by a newcomer to the ADRIFT scene and in three hours to boot), I wasn't sure how it could really be expanded upon to turn it into a full size game. Add a few extra opponents to fight? Change the way some of the puzzles are handled? Make it harder? So I was pleasantly surprised to find that the writer has taken the original idea - that of a has-been wrestler trying to win the world title fight - and fleshed it out into a full size game. The main character, the Veteran, is given a better background than in the original game and whereas Veteran Experience took place wholly in the arena where the title fight is staged, Veteran Knowledge begins outside an alley where you are now begging for a living and expands to encompass the arena later on. The Villain's Point of View There aren't many games I've played where the main character is actually a bad guy. So it was refreshing to play a game where you play first and foremost a villain. And a remarkably unpleasant one as well. The Veteran, your character, is a particularly nasty piece of work and no mistake. A former wrestler gone to seed, he now spends his days begging for money or, when the begging doesn't succeed, mugging people. On top of that, he's got a drinking problem. Hardly your typical hero figure then. The main problem with playing the game from the viewpoint of such a thoroughly unpleasant individual is that it's hard to find yourself rooting for him. While several of the opponents you face are equally despicable, most are closer to the traditional hero figures you'd find yourself playing in other games and it's difficult to sympathise with your character throwing acid in someone's face or bashing them with a crowbar while they're otherwise distracted. Part of me would have preferred a less dubious way of handling some of the game's puzzles, but maybe that's just me. In The Good Corner Aside from the refreshing change to the villain's viewpoint, Veteran Knowledge was well written and fairly easy to make progress with. I stumbled in a few places due to non-obvious commands but most of the puzzles are simple and straightforward. On top of that, there's an excellent hints system although you'll kick yourself if you use it and then find that the solution was so easy you could have worked it out anyway. The game layout was easy to get to grips with and there weren't many times I found myself checking the map to keep track of where I was. In The Bad Corner Few games are perfect and Veteran Knowledge is no exception. However, the problems here are all relatively minor and don't let the game down in any noticeable way. The only two areas that I felt needed some work on were the dialogue and the way certain puzzles are handled. The dialogue? Okay, let's be blunt: it's bad. None of the characters in the game come across as real or believable and most have a tendency to sink into Evil Super Villain Rant Mode when speaking to the player. Certain puzzles? I struggled with parts of the game - nothing new as I generally struggle with every game at some point. But this one involved looking 'under' another item. I'd tried looking under items before that one and not met with any kind of success (generally receiving the exact same response as if I'd tried to examine it in the normal way) so when I came to the one item that I did need to look under, it didn't occur to me to even try. It's probably one of those things that doesn't seem relevant to the author but to the poor player it makes a big difference. A Worthy Update? I think the answer has to be a resounding yes. There are several aspects of the game that need working on - the dialogue being the main one and perhaps adding a bit of believability to some of the characters - but other than that this is a solid game in almost all respects. The game understands every command that you might think to try and even surprised me a few times with responses to commands I really didn't expect the author to have covered. 7 out of 10 A
Walk At Dusk by Eric
Mayer [This review was previously published in the Reviews Exchange #3. Reprinted with permission.] A Walk At Dusk is the first new Adrift release of 2005 (where are the others? Stop vaporising, get writing!!) It is billed as an interactive essay (whatever that is supposed to be) and the opening description is nicely drawn. A country road. Hard packed dirt. You can feel embedded pebbles beneath your worn out running shoes. Nice, very nice, but who am I? What's going on here? Okay, I'm out for a simple walk in the country to locate a unique frog that I have never seen. Well, it's a refreshing change from searching for the golden wotsit in the dungeon of the wotsit demon. Here, the more obscure verbs in text adventures - such as listen, touch and smell - have all been implemented and, when used, the resulting descriptions are nicely detailed (and well written) evoking a true sense of just being there. Average writers tell you where you are. Good writers make you feel where you are. So, here I am, but am I enjoying the stroll? Well, yes...and no. It's detailed. It's well-written. It's a small game intended to be nothing more than a pleasant diversion but...perhaps I would prefer to be searching for the golden wotsit rather than looking for a frog in dusky, tranquil surroundings...but I am now noticing a few odd display problems - double spacing appearing here and there and not after comma's. Sometimes I don't notice it. Sometimes it makes the text look a tad disjointed. Anyway (minor spoiler) I have now acquired a plank (no lamp or keys here) and I'm trying to use it across the stream (or the pond). No joy, the stream is too wide, but didn't I see the stream elsewhere? Okay, that's the place, I'm across. At this point I am still enjoying the outing but, equally, I know there is not going to be a dramatic shift in tone or development in plot. This lovingly rendered environment is not about to darken with something malevolent. This is akin to a nature hunt. Nothing more. However, the writing is good so I am determined to finish it. Now I've eaten a strawberry, found another object and I'm trying to fend off rampant poison ivy. Okay, okay, is this any good? Well, it depends what you are looking for. If you want a detailed and pleasant trip through the dusk hunting a rare frog, sniffing and smelling and touching everything in sight, then download and enjoy the well crafted words. If you're hoping the frog will turn into a killer frog and the game will open up into a pretty big adventure then...you might be a touch disappointed. A one shot deal. 6.5/10 The
White Singularity by Irene Villanueva [This review was previously published in the Reviews Exchange #6. Reprinted with permission.] 'The White Singularity', a game written by a certain Irene, appeared out of nowhere on the adventure section of the Adrift site. It starts with a nice but rather short intro, which just tells you the basics: you take the role of a famous naturalist who has seen it all. Well, not quite all, there's still this one dream of your childhood... After the intro, the game leaves the player literally in the dark; there's no further description. This happens a few times during the game, and if this would have been my first encounter with a text-adventure, I probably would have quit right then. But so I just tried the standard set of commands, and 'examine room' finally led to a description of the room I'm in, my office. Twiddling a little bit around, I didn't know what I'm supposed to do. Obviously the skills of a famous scientist don't include leaving an office, as this isn't possible, no matter what I do with the keys or the door, which is sometimes locked, sometimes not. As there are no hints available for this game, I was able to progress by chance. After examining some pictures, the player character's wife, coincidentally (?) also called Irene, enters the room. The only possible action is to talk to her, and so an interesting and long discussion ensues. Eight months later (I've told you the conversation was long), things have progressed nicely, particularly thanks due to NESCA, your personal robot assistant. Standing with your wife and the human shaped NESCA by a newly designed ship, your dream ultimately may come true: To make a journey to the centre of the earth! The game then continues, and actually does a good job at using CYOA (Choose Your Own Adventure) elements. Whenever a choice is needed for the story, three standard possibilities are offered. Playing along the chosen path is done through exploring, although most of what can be explored is explained by talks with Irene. In the end, as with most CYOA games, the story can take more than one path, and influenced by the choices and actions the player makes, the ending will turn out differently. Conclusion: This game is a lost chance. The writing is generally good, not only by its quality, but also quantity-wise. Yes, although the game doesn't take many turns to finish, just reading it takes some time. The apparent flaws are easily forgotten and many shortcomings of the game can be avoided once the game is played the way the author probably intended it. Leaving this path does the game no good, however, and can be distracting. Also rather distracting are the used graphics. They appear to be gathered from a quick internet search, and leave a small question mark to the copyright issue. As you might tell, I really want to like the game. It is good fiction. But unfortunately, not so good interactive fiction. Why oh why hasn't the author asked for some beta testers? Wizards
Playground by evil_flagpole [This review was previously published in the Reviews Exchange #7. Reprinted with permission.] Wizards Playground is a small ADRIFT role-playing game. It mostly does a reasonably decent job with combat and magic, but whereas good games are well fleshed-out, this one is skeletal. For instance, don't go examining any of the scenic objects in this game, because nothing has been implemented except that which has to do with combat and magic. Also, even when you can refer to things, it's not always easy. For instance, if you want to look at Master Jibu, you have to type "examine master jibu." If you type "examine jibu" or "examine master," you get the same response as "examine asdf." With all the non-standard commands required for combat and magic, guess-the-verb could have been a problem. Fortunately the author recognized this and tells you what commands to use. Unfortunately, these instructions are given in room descriptions, not in any response to "help" or "about." This is rather awkward. Also, the magic and combat commands have no synonyms, and, in at least one case, were not well clued. Do not type "join' the wizard's guild," as the room description tells you to; you must instead simply type "join." And then, even when you do join, I was not able to figure out how to do anything in the Wizard's Guild's main hall. No clues there, or none that I found. There are some enemies to beat here, and I was able to beat most of them without much difficulty, except for one troll. It might be that you win the game if you beat the troll, but this is just a guess. On the other hand, oddly enough, it is possible to walk past the troll without hitting him and cross the bridge that he guards. Oddly, too, there is nothing special on the other side of the bridge. This certainly does not build anticipation or any desire to try hard to defeat the troll. As a result, I stopped playing this game without winning. There is no story here, nor anything else except whatever is necessary for combat and magic. The game feels sort of like a demo or an exercise in game design. As such, I wouldn't recommend it except to somebody who was interested in seeing what is possible for RPGs in ADRIFT. With regard to that, it's not so bad. Otherwise, though, it doesn't have much to offer. |