A linkdump of games I especially enjoyed this year (in no particular order).
According to Cain by Jim Nelson. Travel back in time and use alchemy to investigate the first murder. A clever, poignant retelling, and my favorite game of last year’s IFComp. More thoughts…
Pentiment from Obsidian Entertainment. A murder mystery in sixteenth century Bavaria. Also, an illuminated manuscript brought to life. Possibly the best-researched game I’ve ever played? More thoughts…
The Roottrees are Dead by Jeremy Johnston. Research, the game! Reconstruct a family tree by digging through archival materials. Besides a good time, this is an early look at what one person can build with generative AI.
Patrick’s Parabox by Patrick Traynor. Finally got around to this sokoban about recursive spaces, and devoured all 364 puzzles in about four days. Exemplar of gradually teaching new concepts through level design.
Immortality from Half Mermaid. A staggering project, three feature-length films interactively recut into a Hollywood thriller, that ventures into horror territory by playing with the box. Can be slow, but hides some of the best moments of the year.
Repeat the Ending by Drew Cook. “A sort of polyphonic epistolary wrapped around a parser game.” A singular authorial voice and a core mechanic imbued with meaning made this Spring Thing entry stand out. There’s also a lot of effort to make the work accessible even if you aren’t into IF. More thoughts…
Slice & Dice by Tann. A fantastic mobile-friendly roguelike that reminds me a bit of Terry Cavanagh’s Dicey Dungeons. “Combat dice” is a hard idea to get right! This one’s super addictive, packs in tons of variety – my new waiting-for-stuff game going into 2024.
Heat: Pedal to the Metal by Granerud and Pedersen. I waiting about six months for my copy of this popular new board game. Happy to report it’s great fun! And has a well-tuned solo mode.
HRO: Adventures of a Humanoid Resource Officer from Worthing & Moncrieff. Created by a friend of mine, this send-up of trek lets you make one, challenging choice per story beat – but choosing well requires getting to know the characters and anticipating their actions.