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Fiction Competition 2000 Reviews by Greg D'Avis These
aren't all the games I played, but just a few that brought out a particularly
strong reaction or made me think. A Crimson Spring isn't covered here,
since I beta tested it, although I will express shock and dismay that no
reviewer yet has commented on Robb's phrase, "semen-sipping jackhole."
If I would've bet on any part of that game to produce angst in r*if, that
would've been it (other than the AIDS Archer, of course). My Angel -- I'm still shocked that this piece didn't win; after I played it, then played it again, I more or less figured it was a lock. Creative, well-written and beautiful. I didn't particularly like Mulldoon, which I found sorta sloppy, so to see the same author produce something like this was inspiring. The only quibble is that My Angel works far better in novel mode; which, unfortunately, is a bitch to read. But along with ACS, this was my favorite of the comp. Prodly the Puffin -- I've never read "Pokey", so the references are lost on me, but who cares? I laughed and I laughed and I laughed. I'm hard-pressed to think of a funnier game. And the Waves Choke the Wind -- This has been compared to a movie preview, which is apt. I often like the previews more than the actual movies, so that didn't really bother me. Yes, I'd like to see more, but what's here is atmospheric and unsettling, and by God, the hobby needs more good horror games. Being Andrew Plotkin -- I haven't seen "Being John Malkovich", I don't hang out on ifMUD, and I haven't even played all of Plotkin's games. So this is another one where the in-jokes are zipping right by. But it's also another one that kept me interested through most of the game. The End Means Escape -- The first game I played, and I'll have to go back to it with more time and a clearer head. I was absolutely taken with the first scene, and I think that perhaps carried over a bit too much; at this point I don't remember much of the remainder of the game (one of the ones I did finish). But, hell, that's one great first scene. Punk Points -- This is my idea of a good teenage angst game. Yeah, there's some sloppy programming and impossible-to-even-know-what-you're-doing puzzles, but the whole attitude of "Yeah! I'm punk! Don't fuck with me! You don't think I look stupid, do you?" reminds me of, well, me at age 14.
Rameses -- Initially, I thought of this as this year's A Moment of
Hope. Then I decided that was simplifying it too much. But, the two games
have a lot in common, and while I wouldn't really say I enjoyed either, both
provoked similar reactions.
Kaged -- I always feel guilty because Ian Finley puts more effort into
each of his pieces than I put into large portions of my life .... and I still
don't like them. "Kaged" is another game set in a future dystopia,
which I'm always a sucker for -- put the next "lonely teenager" piece
in a dystopia, and it'll get high marks from me!
Jarod's Journey -- Is there any other game that was more doomed to lose?
I don't have the inherent bias others do against JJ; I believe in God,
though I'm likely not near as close as the author of JJ would like, and
if IF is a medium for people to express their loneliness, their interest in
S&M, or whatnot, then I have no problem with someone expressing their
Christianity. The Trip -- This game reminded me of about 700 people I knew during my last stint in Boulder. The only way it could've been more true to life would've been if it asked me for change so it could go see Widespread Panic. As such, I was pretty firmly biased against it from the start. Asendent -- There are some things I instinctively know not to do. I know not to eat petroleum jelly. I know not to lay my face atop an oven burner. I know not to shampoo with crushed glass. I know not to lay any money down on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, no matter how sure a thing it may seem. And above all, I know that if I ever actually write a game, it shouldn't be a Rybread Celsius parody. Contact Information:
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