MAGS August “Borders and Boundaries” (VOTING)

[GoldenAxolotlStudios]

Sorry for the delay in closing the contest. My mind was in other places over the summer, but I'm here now.

'Tis okay, Mr. Stupot--stuff happens. I was getting worried about you. I hope everything is going okay!

I was also getting worried that MAGS suddenly died. That would have been very sad too. (I JUST STARTED )

[heltenjon]

Here are my thoughts this month:

Bounded Realms:

Spoiler

The game works as intentioned, and it's an interesting prototype/piece of programming. But it's not much fun to play now - perhaps further down the line if developed like the author intends.

[close]

RoN on Ice:

Spoiler

Glad to see Jwalt back with more RoN lunacy. As our dimensionally displaced heroes are not starring in this entry, my headcanon says this happens while they are away. I got the good ending first, then played to see the funny stuff. It's political satire this time. The game is very much on rails, especially in the dialogues, but the point is more of being funny and stating an opinion than to provide the player with much of a challenge. The flip side of this is that this kind of political comedy only works if played by someone with a similar opinion. So I don't expect this to be a hit among every player.

[close]

Border Cafe:

Spoiler

Brilliant idea! The game takes a limited idea and puts in lots of lore. GOC Games has done this before in other games, too - you simply need to investigate and learn to make progress. The difficulty is just right, as well, which actually is a very impressive feat in a game of this type. And that's a lot of walkcycles! Fun to play despite the limited scope, a very good fit for a MAGS contest.

[close]

The Escape:

Spoiler

Sierra-esque in playing style and graphics. I found it fun and entertaining, especially for a first game. There is a lot of walking to and from, and my main problem was finding the exits, as they weren't really spottable in a lot of locations. The puzzles seem to put the cart in front of the horse a lot of the time, making me grab an item with no idea how to use it until later in the game. Still, I was entertained and found this a solid entry.

[close]

I voted for

Spoiler

Border Cafe. I considered The Escape, given it was the longer story, but decided on BC because of the sheer creativeness of it all. And the playing time may be just as long!

[close]

[jwalt]

heltenjon pretty much expressed my feelings about the games.

Spoiler

I had to vote for Border Cafe. It was a delight to play through, and I absolutely loved the cafe sounds in the background. Well done in a number of ways!

[close]