Commonplace

IFComp

The annual Interactive Fiction Competition (held at https://ifcomp.org). I've played quite a few of these entries over the years, and even entered a game in 2022.

IFComp 2021

My IntFiction.org thread

I made time to judge the 2021 Interactive Fiction competition. I played and rated 10 entries:

Used this rubric:

Interactive (up to 4 points)
+1 Novelty within the medium
+1 Interactions are fun and/or consonant with the theme
+1 No distracting bugs
+1 Polished; quality-of-life features (e.g. hints) that enhance the experience

Fiction (up to 4 points)
+1 Effective prose
+1 Well-sketched setting
+1 Compelling plot
+1 Memorable character(s)

Bonus (up to 2 points)
+1 I like this!
+1 I admire this

IFComp 2022

IFComp 2023

IFComp 2024

Disclaimers this year

All of my reviews are spoilery. I always want to know what people really thought and read reviews after I've played a story, so that's what I write.

Personal bias ahead. I'm writing and scoring based on what *I want* out of IF, which I recognize is not universal. Things I look for, in no particular order

  • Are the interactions fun and/or consonant?
  • Does it try something new (mechanically, narratively or thematically)? Or perhaps: Is this work aware of its place within the medium?
  • Does it include quality-of-life features appropriate to its form and scale?
  • Does it have a well-sketched setting?
  • Is the plot compelling?
  • Did I find the characters memorable?
  • Does the prose serve it well?
  • Do I like this?
  • Do I admire it?
  • Did it give me something to think about?
  • (Negative) Does it have enough bugs, typos, or other issues to distract from the experience?

I'm cherry-picking this year. Life intrudes, so I'm jumping straight to entries that look interesting and skipping ones that probably aren't for me (especially anything horror-themed or with lots of content warnings.)

I also want to caveat that I'm feeling less patient than usual this year with high-friction experiences. I'm going to share raw impressions because as an author I'd want to know when someone bounced off my work. There are probably entries I'd have found more rewarding if I had the energy to push through a rough start, but there's just too much to see and too little time this go-round. I want to acknowledge my responsibility in that up front and hope there's no personal offense given.

Games