Games | ManifestoGames.com

The First True Interactive Drama

For decades, true interactive fiction--an application in which characters' responses to a player's input are determined algorithmically rather than via prescripted sequences, and in which valid stories emerge regardless of player action--has been a holy grail for AI researchers, digital artists, and game developers alike.

Most attempts to solve the problem have been "top down," that is, attempting to handle all sorts of stories, all sorts of personalities, and all sorts of potential actions. The results have generally been never more than mildly interesting.

Andy Stern and Michael Mateas, however, chose to try to solve a specific problem, rather than the general one. They chose a story with one setting (an apartment), two NPCs (a husband and wife), one basic conflict (their marriage is on the rocks), and a limited time frame (you are a friend of the family, visiting them over the course of an evening). By narrowing the focus this way, they were actually to solve the problem. Not, to be sure, in a way that solves the general problem--but in a way that makes of Façade the first really interesting work of true interative fiction.

» read more

FastCrawl

by Pawleyscape Ltd

Game Tunnel's 2006 RPG of the Year

FastCrawl is what the name suggests: a quick-playing dungeon crawler, perfect for a way to kill your lunch hour. One of the parameters you set at game-start, in fact, is whether you want a short, medium, or long game; short ones last about 30 minutes, while long ones last perhaps an hour.

The gameplay is Rogue-like, except that this is, of course, a game with an intuitive 2D interface with decent graphics, playable almost entirely with a mouse--almost like a NetHack designed for the casual game crowd. Dungeons, opponents, and items are randomly generated each time; each turn consumes a unit of supply, and while you can find more in the dungeon, the net effect is to limit the length of gameplay. And unlike most Rogue-likes, you control a party of characters instead of a single one. All in all, a nice, fast-playing hack'n'slash experience.

» read more

Aveyond

Now Updated to Version 2

Vicky: What's that? It looks like Final Fantasy.

Me: No, it's a game called Aveyond.

Vicky (after watching for several minutes): It looks fun. Can I play?

Vicky's right; Aveyond does play a lot like Final Fantasy--maybe about V, since the graphics are 2D sprites in an oblique overhead view. It's a game you wouldn't be surprised to find on your SNES or Genesis.

» read more

Morning's Wrath

If you yearn for the days of Ultima (round about VII or VIII) or the King's Quest games--or if you've plowed all the way through Oblivion and aren't willing to wait for years until the next great, big-budget fantasy RPG gets released--you've just stumbled on a game you will like a great deal. In fact, stop reading now and go play the demo. Maybe I need to insert a rotating spiral GIF here and a deep hypnotic voice intoning "You Will Like It," but it hardly seems necessary. No mental coercion needed--the game speaks for itself.

Morning's Wrath is an isometic "2-and-a-half-D" fantasy RPG, a sassy (if tragic) female protagonist, a story that not only makes sense but you will actually care about, excellent music, and a great deal of fast-paced combat, along with an original and well conceived spell system.

For a small indie team, Ethereal Darkness has produced a surprisingly polished little gem of a game in Morning's Wrath--and yes, the graphics are a little retro, but for that we make no apologies. Gameplay over glitz, remember?

And for a mere $10 bucks. Hard to beat that.

» read more

PlayThisThing	Committee
Events	Forums

Search

Facade

FastCrawl

Aveyond

Morning's Wrath