IFReviewed by
Andrew Plotkin on 2006-06-25 09:40
"Inform v6.14 Library 6/4"? Come to think of it, The Temple was "Inform v6.15 Library 6/2"... Come on, people, it's not like the current version is a recently-released beta. The older libraries have bugs and Z-code errors. Update!
Okay, the game. This is a one-puzzle, no-plot game: it wants me to get a pot off a pillar without breaking it. But wait, even before I touch the pot, the game says it's cracked. Bug or clue?
I shall look at the help. Oh, it's a bug. Well, that pretty much spoils the game, doesn't it? If there's only one important object, and its description is wrong, we have a problem.
A note about design theory: One clue says, "This is a computer game; The rules of reality need not apply." But that's silly. I have nothing to start from but the rules of reality. If I throw those away, I might as well start typing random strings of characters.
Now in fact, the Clever Idea of this game is pretty clever, and one could set up a scenario in which that sort of surreal manipulation is a good puzzle. This scenario, however, is not it.