====== Bureau of Strange Happenings ======

> Phil Riley
> Played 2024-09-04, [[IFComp]] 2024

Weird science adventures!

This is dense and creative and well-implemented. I find it funny and I'm a fan of the genre it's going for, a sort of X-Files comedy. This should tick all the boxes for me. And yet I found it sort of frustrating, and maybe hit a bad edge case? I didn't end up finishing it.

In particular, I struggled with the sizable middle section of the game, even consulting the extensive hint system and walkthrough. As far as I understand it I'd gathered all the necessary items and put them in the frame, but tapping it gave me a default "Violence isn't the answer to this one" response. I couldn't sort out what I was doing wrong and ran out the comp clock.

The whole thing is genuinely impressive and I liked a lot of it, but just had a hard time with it. I expect it went better for many people and expect it to do very well in the comp this year.

{{tag>videogame played "interactive fiction" "played in 2024"}}