[Non-Reviews] 1893 and others
ems...@mindspring.com
I've tried to be very diligent and review any and all non-comp games I
happen to play to completion.
Unfortunately, this doesn't cover nearly all the games I *start*. A
lot of times I try a game, expect and hope to like it, and even find
much about it commendable, but wind up giving up on it.
This is not a position from which it would be fair to write for SPAG
or IF-Review, since reviewing things implies that you have, in fact,
seen the ending, or at least *an* ending. Still, sometimes I have a
fair amount to say about these games and why they didn't quite work
for me.
Therefore, I am trying an experiment, for a bit, of offering comp-like
feedback on some non-competition games. In all likelihood I will
either lose the stamina to keep up or be deluged with death threats
from irritated authors, but from talking to people lately the sense
I'm getting is that *any* feedback is better than the apparently
sullen silence that sometimes occurs after the release of one's opus.
Please bear in mind, folks, that these are just my opinions, and that
in many cases I did like what I saw; just not enough to get me through
the effort of playing the whole thing. A disproportionate number of
the games I don't finish are long ones. You do the math: I'm lazy.
Anyway. Point is, there is now a page here:
http://emshort.home.mindspring.com/Unfinished.html
and it contains my comments upon: The Island of Infinity, Murder at
the Diogenes Club, When Help Collides (The Geisha Section), 1893,
Insight, and The Mulldoon Legacy.
I was actually guilted into starting this by 1893, which I recognize
as having taken a hell of a lot of work and being, in many ways, an
extremely cool effort -- yet one that seems to have gone largely
unreviewed. So I'm appending my non-review of it, and maybe people
can tell me how much I missed the boat.
----
1893: mystery set on the grounds of the 1893 Chicago World's Fair.
Here's a game I expected and desired to like, started several times,
and still couldn't get into. I respect the historical accuracy. I
respect the ambition. I respect, most of all, the incredible amount
of work that went into it, not only because of the sheer amount of
coding, and testing, and more coding and more testing, but also
because of the polishing and packaging it with feelies and the website
and everything. Wow. It makes my brain hurt to think about the
effort that went into this, because I've been through something
similar with City of Secrets, and it's enough to drive anyone nearly
insane.
So why didn't I get anywhere with it? For one thing, the scope of the
map: I wandered around and soon found myself completely and totally
lost, without a sense of what I should be focusing on in my
explorations. I did go to the scene of the crime first, and poke
around there, and try to find out some things, but that experience
left me without a lot of guidance for where to go next. So I just
wandered vaguely, got very confused, and quit. Further tries didn't
advance the cause very much. I think there would have to be some way
to force the player to proceed more linearly, just for the sake of
making the game accessible at all.
I realize this suggestion runs counter to one of the main points of
the game, which is to allow you to explore this big,
accurately-represented historical space. But I guess one way to have
approached it would have been to impose some constraints, at least
during the early part of the game, not in the form of locked doors and
barriers that didn't exist in the real geography of the fair, but
perhaps in the form of escorts or guides for the player character who
would restrict the range of options to start with. Once the player
has gotten used to one portion of the map, and is comfortable with how
things are laid out within that space, it would be reasonable to open
it up more broadly and allow him to explore at will.
Perhaps then there could also, theoretically, be a mode one could
switch to in which the plot would be, as it were, switched off, to
allow for free-form exploration if that's what the player/interactor
most wanted to do.
I don't know. Maybe not; maybe if I were a more diligent player I
would've found my way past it. I still may go back and play this
through with a walkthrough at some point. Or I may order the CD
version and see if I find it more tractable with pictures and an
accessible map. Maybe if I could affix images to these locations, I
could get somewhere.
-----
-- Emily
Brendan
(ems...@mindspring.com) wrote:
>Given the much lamented lack of feedback for non-competition games,
>I've tried to be very diligent and review any and all non-comp games I
>happen to play to completion.
>
>Unfortunately, this doesn't cover nearly all the games I *start*. A
>lot of times I try a game, expect and hope to like it, and even find
>much about it commendable, but wind up giving up on it.
>
>This is not a position from which it would be fair to write for SPAG
>or IF-Review, since reviewing things implies that you have, in fact,
>seen the ending, or at least *an* ending. Still, sometimes I have a
>fair amount to say about these games and why they didn't quite work
>for me.
Excellent idea! This is very useful feedback for writers, and also of
interest for players.
Brendan
Arnel Legaspi
I read the appended review, and I agree with Brendan.
Hope you could finish the game; I wasn't able to either. ^_^
PTN
Emily, thanks much for the feedback and for giving 1893 the ol' college try!
Alas, I'm not sure what to do about the text version of 1893 these days. I
want to have a free version available, and yet after completing and
releasing the full version of the game, I can't really recommend the text
version to anyone anymore. Basically four additional months of work,
including adding all the graphics and embedding all sorts of HTML features,
not to mention bug fixes and game changes, map clarifications, much
additional added description, etc., the amount of work it would take to
bring the text version up to speed is more than I can handle.
For example, when you wrote:
> So why didn't I get anywhere with it? For one thing, the scope of the
> map:
Without a doubt, this is a major challenge of the game. In fact, I consider
its sheer size to be a 'puzzle', in that it adds to the complexity immensly.
To compensate, several of the early puzzles you do find will have very
stereotypical solutions, as sort of an aid to be able to make connections
across such a vast space.
Now, when the text version was originally released, I had a 2MB website full
of supporting documentation, tips to start out, and maps available for
players. I've taken that all down, now, though, and replaced it with a very
tightly streamlined site designed not for users of the free version, but for
buyers of the full version. The clutter was just confusing to folks visiting
the site looking to buy.
As a result, though, the text version is orphaned, for now. The best thing
to do map-wise is to do a google search for one, plenty of Columbian
Exposition web sites have a copy online.
> I think there would have to be some way
> to force the player to proceed more linearly, just for the sake of
> making the game accessible at all.
I understand where you are coming from with this comment, but I was not
interested in this at all. In fact, I know everyone is used to the game
design of a few rooms -- obstacle -- more rooms -- obstacle, but not only do
I find this oftentimes boring, but it puts a strong focus on puzzle solving
when I wanted to keep it on exploration. I've played many a game where you
get stuck at the next obstacle, and have to cheat or just stop playing for
days before being able to proceed. I didn't want this. 1893 forces you to
make decisions on where to go and what to see as if you were really there.
Imagine it -- you would probably go to one of the main buildings that
strikes your interest, and wander around, then go to the next, then the
next. On the other hand...
> during the early part of the game, not in the form of locked doors and
> barriers that didn't exist in the real geography of the fair, but
> perhaps in the form of escorts or guides for the player character who
> would restrict the range of options to start with.
I do agree with you...which is why the full version includes an hour long
(game time, not actual) guided tour that you can take at the very beginning
of the game to get oriented. (Though, it is still optional!)
> Perhaps then there could also, theoretically, be a mode one could
> switch to in which the plot would be, as it were, switched off, to
> allow for free-form exploration if that's what the player/interactor
> most wanted to do.
Funny you should mention this, I actually wanted to create a "scavenger
hunt" mode where a player would be given a list of items to get or people to
meet, instead of the diamond case. But one has only so much life to give,
you know?
> Maybe if I could affix images to these locations, I
> could get somewhere.
I am a huge fan of text-only adventures, but the difference in 1893 startled
me. The photos do so much to enhance the game experience I almost feel
depressed.
Anyway, thanks for sharing. I'm at a bit of a loss for the text version of
1893. On the one hand, I'm happy to share it with the IF community freely.
On the other hand, the experience of playing it doesn't measure up to the
full version, and so it is basically my anti-sales version, making sure
everyone on the fence about buying it gives the text one a try and takes a
pass on the whole thing. Well, marketing was never my strong point.
-- Peter
1893: A World's Fair Mystery
http://www.illuminatedlantern.com/1893
Paul Drallos
there to solve a mystery, not to tour the Expo. Although touring
the Expo might be fun and interesting, it is inconsistent with
the player being called to the scene for purposes of crime-solving.
It seems like you're trying to do both, and they don't really mix
well. You should find a way to separate the two themes.
Paul
PTN
"Paul Drallos" wrote:
> My main complaint with your explanations is that, the player is
> there to solve a mystery, not to tour the Expo.
My explanation is at fault. But in fact, the introduction to the game states
quite clearly you are there to do both, and seeing the Exposition is no
small part in your acceptance of the task.
> It seems like you're trying to do both, and they don't really mix
> well. You should find a way to separate the two themes.
Don't all adventure games combine exploration with problem-solving? Just
like any other game, you must first explore your world before you can tackle
the problems that face you. And as you explore, you learn things, collect
items, find and solve puzzles, eventually you start to figure out what is
going on, and so on. In this respect, 1893 follows the template of a great
many other games. The only difference between 1893 and other games is the
vastness of the space you are exploring. It can be overwhelming, I don't
disagree with that at all. And although such scope may not work best for all
players, I am confident that it was the best choice for this particular
game.
-- Peter
Arnel Legaspi
> Alas, I'm not sure what to do about the text version of 1893 these days. I
> want to have a free version available, and yet after completing and
> releasing the full version of the game, I can't really recommend the text
> version to anyone anymore. Basically four additional months of work,
> including adding all the graphics and embedding all sorts of HTML features,
> not to mention bug fixes and game changes, map clarifications, much
> additional added description, etc., the amount of work it would take to
> bring the text version up to speed is more than I can handle.
Although I wasn't able to buy the CD version, I got a good look at
some of the features it had when the Home of the Underdogs reviewed
your game. You're right; the text version isn't quite the same. If I
had a good job and a working PC I'd buy a copy myself.
The only regret I now have is the thing you said regarding the
descriptions and the added game changes. When my PC was still up, I
had been playing the last free version (1.5). Looks like I'm gonna
have to find a job ^_^.
> Now, when the text version was originally released, I had a 2MB website full
> of supporting documentation, tips to start out, and maps available for
> players. I've taken that all down, now, though, and replaced it with a very
> tightly streamlined site designed not for users of the free version, but for
> buyers of the full version. The clutter was just confusing to folks visiting
> the site looking to buy.
Ugh! Now _that_ map's been taken down! I was able to get a copy of the
map, but the hard drive broke down. I _do_ have to find a job ^_^.
> I am a huge fan of text-only adventures, but the difference in 1893 startled
> me. The photos do so much to enhance the game experience I almost feel
> depressed.
Those photos do -- just looking at the former 1893 webpage photos you
had was awesome, not to mention the whole historical detail -- it
almost made a history buff out of me.
> Anyway, thanks for sharing. I'm at a bit of a loss for the text version of
> 1893. On the one hand, I'm happy to share it with the IF community freely.
> On the other hand, the experience of playing it doesn't measure up to the
> full version, and so it is basically my anti-sales version, making sure
> everyone on the fence about buying it gives the text one a try and takes a
> pass on the whole thing.
I will. The site will still be up during the next 15 or 20 years, will
it? :D
--Arnel
Paul O'Brian
> Now, when the text version was originally released, I had a 2MB website full
> of supporting documentation, tips to start out, and maps available for
> players. I've taken that all down, now, though, and replaced it with a very
> tightly streamlined site designed not for users of the free version, but for
> buyers of the full version. The clutter was just confusing to folks visiting
> the site looking to buy.
Peter, what about uploading those files to the IF Archive as some sort of
html package feelie? Seems a shame for you to create all that stuff and
then just have it gather dust.
--
Paul O'Brian obr...@colorado.edu http://ucsu.colorado.edu/~obrian
SEE, READ, and MARVEL at the news, reviews, and interviews in issue
#31 of SPAG, devoted to the 2002 IF comp! http://www.sparkynet.com/spag
Al
Paul O'Brian wrote:
Peter, what about uploading those files to the IF Archive as some sort of
html package feelie? Seems a shame for you to create all that stuff and
then just have it gather dust.
Since I bought one of the original Columbus day releases I can mail
you a zipped file of what you're asking for if you want.
Russell Wallace
Interesting comments!
>But I guess one way to have
>approached it would have been to impose some constraints, at least
>during the early part of the game, not in the form of locked doors and
>barriers that didn't exist in the real geography of the fair, but
>perhaps in the form of escorts or guides for the player character who
>would restrict the range of options to start with.
But I'm curious - why do you associate guidance with restricting
options? Certainly it might be helpful to give the player some
optional hints at the start as to what would be good places to go, but
what would be the benefit of trying to stop the player skipping the
guided tour if he so chose, as he could in real life?
--
"Mercy to the guilty is treachery to the innocent."
Remove killer rodent from address to reply.
http://www.esatclear.ie/~rwallace