6th Annual Interactive Fiction
               Competition Games 2000 - Part 1

                     By Dorothy Millard

Some general impressions.  I am sure many people will disagree
with me but I do find games written in Z Code all look the same.
There is no individuality and nothing to grab my attention.  I
know this is the most popular format and that it is portable
between machines, but the games are so boring to look at - they
all look the same.  I know you can easily change the colour
scheme, font, etc. but it's not the same as loading a game and
knowing immediately how much effort the author has put into the
appearance.  HTML Tads gets around this problem by allowing colour
and graphics but only two games were written with it.  All the
rest, and by far the majority, looked the same when first loaded.
I remember when using the C64 I could usually tell what sort of
game to expect by the colour scheme.  If it was the standard blue
on blue most likely the game was not going to be anything special,
also if it has all the colours of the rainbow!  I know that for
text games or interactive fiction, as it is now called, the power
lies in the text, but I really find some visual clues helpful.  I
would be interested to know what other people think.  I find the
WinTads interpreter easier on the eye, maybe it is the colour
scheme.

Another thing I noticed while playing the competition games is
that in a lot of the games you are not given any indication of
your quest, you are just thrown straight into the game.  I don't
like this, I really like to have some idea of what I am doing.
This is not the "memory loss" type game where it is an integral
part.

I did consider listing the games in winning order but resisted as
I often disagreed with where they are placed.  I found that, for
the most part, a game needs to be written in Z Code or Tads for it
to do well in the IF Competition.  It will also do a lot better if
it leans towards being a literary piece rather than
puzzle-oriented.  Therefore, sometimes, although not doing well in
the IF competition games are of the type (puzzle-oriented and
traditional) enjoyed by text adventure enthusiast rather that
interactive fiction enthusiasts.

Please write in and let me know what you think.  Do you agree or
disagree with my comments above?  Whereabouts would you have
placed some of the games?  Do you agree or disagree with my
comments?  I look forward to hearing what other people think.

@~And if anyone would like to write in with a more detailed review
@~of one of the games, I'd be thrilled! ... Sue

1-2-3... by Chris Mudd (Z Code) - 42nd
I didn't really know what to make of 1-2-3 at first.  It is a
crime story, and, for the most part, is puzzleless Interactive
Fiction.  You just have to input a few directions and ask relevant
questions.  I played it from the solution as I had no incentive to
try to find out the correct questions to ask, but in a weird sort
of way I liked it and found it to be a compelling story.


Ad Verbum by Nick Montfort (Z Code) - 4th
Ad Verbum, as the name suggests, involves wordplay like Nord &
Bert.  With the cantankerous Wizard of Wordplay evicted from his
mansion, the worthless plot can now be redeveloped.  The city
regulations declare, however, that the rip-down job can't proceed
until all the items within have been removed.  Entire room
descriptions begin with the same letter, for example, in one room
you can only use words that begin with "s," however the only way
to leave is to the north but you can only use "s" words.  Other
rooms begin with "n" or "e" etc.  This game took some getting used
to!

Aftermath by Graham Somerville (Tads) - 37th
At the commencement of the game you awake to the cold sensation of
dead flesh all around you.  You struggle to breathe, trapped
beneath bodies of the dead soldiers who once fought beside you.
You must get out - but how?  This game is somewhat gory so if you
don't like references to blood forget it.  Aftermath didn't get
very good reviews following the competition, mainly because people
were stuck at the beginning, but I disagree, as despite the gore I
found it interesting.  There was a little wordplay at the start
trying to find the correct words to get out of the pit, but having
played many Quilled games where it was often necessary to find the
correct words to use, it didn't worry me.  I found the game to be
well-written and fascinating, although there are some
mis-spellings, and would have liked an introduction - a goal for
my actions.

And the Waves Choke the Wind by Gunther Schmidl (Z Code) - 16th
This is described as an interactive horror.  Retching and choking,
you wake up with a terrible headache, to find yourself bound and
gagged in a lifeboat.  This is a prelude to a much larger game
which, presumably, the author plans to release after the
competition.  It is a H. P. Lovecraft-style horror and the story
is told in flashback style.  I didn't get very far in this game as
I couldn't work out what to do and the hints were disabled!

Asendent by Sourdoh Farenheit & Kelvin Flatbred - 51st
This is described as an interactive hallucintory. Everything is
misspelt on purpose (including the title!) I gave up very quickly
on this one when I died for no apparent reason on entering the
"boredroom" and was "fired to a sinder" by an angry red dragon.  I
couldn't work out what I was supposed to be doing, there was no
help or hints, and I couldn't stand the misspelling, even if it
was meant to be that way.  I still don't know, nor care, what it
is about.

At Wit's End by Mike J. Sousa (Tads) - 17th
At Wit's End started off on a baseball field, One false step
renders the game unwinnable.  It appears to be well-programmed
although very hard in places and nigh-on impossible to solve
without frequent use of the save/restore/undo feature.  I "failed
to be a hero" on more than one occasion.  With no knowledge of,
nor interest in, baseball and finding the hints unhelpful, so I
had no idea what to do and no real incentive to find out, I gave
up and moved on to the next game.

Being Andrew Plotkin by J. Robinson Wheeler (Z Code) - 3rd
Speech in Being Andrew Plotkin is handled by giving you a choice
of things to say, ie 1, 2 or 3.  I must admit that I like this as
it takes a lot of guesswork out of choosing what to say, which
usually frustrates me.  The game opens up once you are past the
introduction and arrive "in Zarf's head."  Being Andrew Plotkin is
meant to be a humorous game but I failed to appreciate it or to
understand most of what it was about.  Although it rated well it
did nothing to hold my interest and I gave up half-way though.

Best Man, The by Rob Menke (Z Code) - 15th
You are to attending your best friend's wedding in San Diego but,
of course, something goes horribly wrong.  The problems start when
coffee is spilt on your jacket, but if you are too slow you are
"accidentally" shot by a group of armed terrorists.  The
atmosphere is good and this game is worth persevering with,
although the timer can be a nuisance and some of the situations
were of the "guess-the-verb" variety.

Big Mama, The by Brendan Barnwell (Z Code) - 20th
In The Big Mamma you play a guy who's "bummin'" on the beach after
getting dumped by his girlfriend.  You wander around, talk to
people, and things happen.  It has a menu-based conversation

system which largely controls how the storyline progresses.  There
are lots of little games, some of which can be won in more than
three or four moves, but I didn't feel that this worked.

Breaking the Code by Anonymous aka Gunther Schmidl (Z Code) - 53rd
Well, I got the two pieces of paper - now what!  I couldn't make
head or tail of Breaking the Code.  It left me bewildered.  No
wonder it came 53rd, no-one knew what to do!  It was revealed
post-Comp that it contains code to make your own DVD player - I
wonder why?

Castle Amnos by John Evans (Z Code) - 30th
Castle Amnos commences with you in the wizard's workshop with true
text adventure type objects just waiting to be picked up, a bronze
key, a small cage, a ring and a chalice, but you can't quite reach
them.  It is an open-ended fantasy game which gives you the
opportunity to take multiple paths to find multiple endings.


Clock, The by Cleopatra Kozlowski (Tads) - 38th
Kitty called you up last night at some inhuman time, and implored
you to come over to her house at the edge of town.  You've known
Kitty for many years, but still can't quite make her out. The only
sure thing is that she never fails to get you into some sort of
trouble. But you've finally agreed to stay at her strange house
for a few nights, while she's away on some "extremely important
business."  When you arrive, already in the middle of the night,
you find Kitty in a state of turmoil. Still, she lets you in, and
before you know it, she is gone. Strangely, you don't hear her
open or close the door - in fact, the door leading outside has
been left locked, and you haven't got the key. So it seems you are
trapped here until Kitty returns. You walk around the house a bit,
and find that it is no ordinary house. It is a small clock tower,
so that when the Clock strikes, the sound resounds through the
whole house. You try to get some sleep on Kitty's bed, but the
clock keeps waking you up every hour. However, eventually you
manage to doze off.....


Thus, the game begins.  It is nice to have the scene set before
playing the game.  The Clock is a traditional type of game
(probably why it got such a poor rating) and you do "mundane
things" like read note and examine book to elicit information, I
noticed some spelling and grammatical errors but nothing too
serious.  It isn't "literary" in the way that many of the other
games in the IF competition are, but if it's puzzles you're
looking for then you'll enjoy this one.

Comp00ter Game by Austin Thorvald (Z Code) - 49th
This game is a weird joke, but I didn't find it funny.  I still
don't know what it was about, I just couldn't be bothered reading
any more of the text.  It has appalling spelling and grammar but
this is intended.  Had I voted my score would have been zero.
Play it at your peril!

Crimson Spring by Robb Sherwin (Hugo) - Joint 23rd
In 2015 a costumed superhero named Red Cloud left her apartment
and was brutally murdered sometime between one and three in the
morning.  As it states in the game you control the actions of a
masked vigilante, the Holy Avenger, and decide how to proceed with
the investigation, interpret his moral code and treat the other
characters in the game.  The game itself owes more towards the
"fiction" side of IF and is really meant to be played straight
through.  I played the updated version of this game distributed
following the competition, with additional pictures.  After
playing all the Z Code games which all look alike, this was a
pleasant change - a different layout and with sound too, although
after a while I had had enough and was reaching for the volume
control.

There is a simple menu system to interact with NPCs and the
author has eliminated the need to open and close doors, simple IN
or OUT sufficies - wonderful!  There is a lot of well-written text
to read and it has been professionally put together.  I haven't
got far into the game yet but it definitely looks interesting.

Desert Heat by Papillon (Tads) - 28th
You are warned at the start that Desert Heat is intended for
mature readers and may contain explicit sexual scenes and/or
questionable consensuality.  The game starts with you as a
high-born Arab woman, alone in your room pondering, and it
branches from there.  There are dozens of endings to be found and
several major branches to follow.  It is well written and filled
with well developed characters, including yourself.  Play is
choose-your-own-adventure style.

Djinni Chronicles, The by J.D.Berry (DOS Prompt or Z Code) - 14th
You are a djinni, discovered and summoned by various masters,
whose wishes you strive to grant.  The nature of your existence is
such that you can't stray far from your "container," the vessel
where you reside.  The past-tense takes some getting used to and
picking up on the rules takes a while.  The limitations of the
character are a little frustrating, hence it took me some time to
work out what to do.  Djinni Chronicles is quite linear but the
puzzles are integrated into the plot.  I had to resort to the
hints to get anywhere.  This is an unusual but not uninteresting
game.
@~To be concluded next issue
                              - o -