In Which I Muse On IFComp 2010

It's voting time in this year's contest, and
There still are games I haven't played, but that
Won't stop me rating what I did. Some bland,
Some very near unplayable (Oh, drat!),
And some that started strong but finished poor -
These I shall not call out here, but of those
I've played and liked, I'd say there's three or four
Which stand out. Some have had scenarios
Beyond inventive; others made me laugh;
Still others challenged, in the best of ways,
My faculties. While there's a bit more chaff
Than I'd expected (I'm new to this craze),
That makes the good ones shine.
Now one more game with Paul, then vote by nine!

Gris et Jaune: In Which Grey And Yellow, Kill A Fellow -- Or Do They?

A walkthrough --or a shamble-through -- should not

Be vital to enjoyment of a game.

That is the case, alas, though, if you're caught

By all the flavor in this one, by name

Of Gris et Jaune. A zombie's point of view

Is decently explored until one leaves

The house in which the game starts. Once that's through,

The player's free and aimless. This achieves,

Perhaps, more mystery and atmosphere,

But secret goals are just annoying. While

It can be cool when who to trust ain't clear,

It isn't this time. I do like the style

And setting, but I yawned, having to guess

If what I'm doing might lead to success.

In Which My Aotearoa Vacation Lives Up To Expectations

New Zealand, were it full of dinosaurs,

Unspoilt, exotic - some of that is true,

And while this year has thrown a lot of bores

At judges, I played this game right on through.

Aotearoa, chock full of charm

And creatures one must placate and befriend,

And clear allies and enemies. My warm

And most sincere regard to Wigdahl! When

He made this game he clearly took all pains:

There's atmosphere, a story, goals, and -- yes! --

A lack of bugs. It starts slow, but it gains

In intrigue once the boat is left. I'd guess

That this will be the winner. If it's not

I wonder what there's left that's near as hot!

In Which I Attempt Something Rather Silly

The story genre is "a sonnet." The

Release number is 1. The headline is

"An Inform 7 sonnet". "So, you see

I seek to write a poem that, on his

(Or her) compiler truly can be played".

Include Custom Library Messages

By David Fisher. "Oh, but now is laid

A cunning trap, baited with sandwiches".

The Iambtrap is a room. "There inside

You see a rhyming dictionary and

A list of words that aren't iambic. Slide

It open, read, and do the best you can."

The dictionary is an object here.

"Dare you to take it, or do you feel fear?"

Sonnet Review: Gigantomania

I like ambitious games, and this one brought
More than a little literary flair.
Gigantomania soon had me caught
Within the gears of Stalinism. There,
I played first as a farmer, then a brute
Stuck making steel, a Politboro type,
And Stalin at the last -- as his acute
And incoherent madness came to light
Amidst a chess game, I soon grew annoyed
(Not just because I couldn't interact
In meaningful ways). Till then, I'd enjoyed
The bleakness and dilemmas, and, in fact
I praise it for these, though I'm sure my friends
Went into it for somewhat diff'rent ends.

In Which You Learn About Inform 7

My reading for this day's been feather-light,
As I begin to teach myself a new
Computer language. I have plans to write
Some games in it, in hopes that someday you
Will play them. There's still ought to be desired:
This seventh version of Inform still leans
Toward the second person - it's still mired,
The IF tribe, in dogma that the means
Toward player immersion's in address;
The player must be "you." The disconnect
This generates is unnoticed, I guess,
By those who've long been members of this sect,
Accustomed to its foibles. I, though, move
That Paul and have something, now, to prove.

The Warbler's Nest

A peasant woman, searching through the reeds

Begins this interactive fairy tale.

One isn't sure at first just what she needs

Except for eggshells. This one's modest scale --

Just four "rooms" -- seems a limit, but within

This tight parameters, a story's told

Of faeries, changelings, temptation to sin

And possible redemption. I'm left cold,

Though by some game mechanics: "search" and "look"

(Or, if you like, "examine") often are

Just interchangeable, but this game's hook

Depends on using both. You won't' get far

Just using one. The Warbler's Nest, for me,

Gets decent marks; so far in my top three.

Sonneteer's note: If you find yourself playing a lot of these games I'm reviewing during the 2010 Interactive Fiction Competition, check out the competition as a whole and vote. There are more games than I'm getting around to sonnetizing.

In Which I Get A Little Heated By A Game

I cannot say I've always wondered what

'Twould be to live a grungy bach'lor's life --

I sort of knew from dating 'mongst them, but,

Comes Heated, where Tim Peers shows me its strife.

My goal's to get work on time without

A loss of temper, and I'd best look well.

My foes are my own stuff and home, about

Which things are strewn that I need. What the hell?

Some normal is abnormal, like the sink

In which I rinse my keys but cannot wash

My hands? More effort's gone, I have to think

To atmospherics -- and they're far from posh,

As I have said. I won't say this was fun,

(The grammar's poor), but it's not poorly done.

The People's Glorious Revolutionary Text Adventure Game

I like a laugh when I fire up a game,
And I'm a serious Marx Brothers fan,
So, though it's got a most unwieldy name
For sonnetizing, I will say the span
Of time spent playing passes pleasantly
As one goes forth to stir up discontent
Amongst the masses (Played in company
Such as I had, it's even better), meant
To choose Red over other hues, one finds
A to-do list of challenges, each one
To win the people's hearts and sometimes minds.
The toys you get to use are lots of fun,
And though it's communism you must spread,
You're forcing Groucho quoting in its stead.

12:54 To Asgard

A funny way to die begins this game,

And there are funny quips along the way

About a leak, one's pique -- more I'll not name,

Forgoing spoilers, but I have to say,

This game wants leaps of logic I can't make.

Each turnstile leads me to a realm where I

Must do something I can't intuit, take

An object I would never keep, or try

To pair ideas that don't match up that well.

I'm frustrated and bored, and many things

I'm told I see are suddenly not there

When I try to investigate. This brings

Me to my point: I cannot recommend

This IFComp game to a foe or friend.

In Which I Get My Lamp!

You're in a cave, it's dark, what will you do?
GET LAMP, that's what! This film both made me smile
And stirred old wistfulness; the timeline through
Which we are taken largely took place while
Computers were unheard of where I dwelt
(Excepting those typesetting beasts employed
By newspapers). You'd best believe I felt
Deprived as I read how others enjoyed
Computer gaming in those early days,
How stories weren't just read but lived by those
Who solved their puzzles in ingenious ways,
How smart people were having fun! "But," crows
My fav'rite pusher "It is not too late!
(I paraphrase)" And thus he's sealed my fate.

In Which I Lose My Mind But Gain More Time Sinks

I'm told I have a tendency to spin

Scenarios with little data, so

I should not be surprised that I am in,

Hip-deep, a new obsession. We all know

I'm prone to those as well, so, no surprise

When someone turned me on to these new games,

These interactive fictions, a few tries

Had me quite hooked. Rejoicing in such names

As "Jigsaw", "Edifice" and "Fragile Shells"

And puzzling me at ev'ry turn, these things

Have eaten up my brain for longer spells

Than any have in months. It's running rings

'Round bad TV and neuroscience class

In my obsession race. I hope to pass!