IFReviewed by Andrew Plotkin on 2006-06-25 09:51
"Grant Stern"?!
This is signed, so I guess I can compare it to Galatea... The conversational web is still an impressive device, but I am (as usual) less interested in anything that doesn't have a sci-fi/fantasy edge. I messed around with the dialogue for about fifteen minutes, and then had a sudden spasm of You're-All-Just-A-Pack-Of-Cards and typed "topic sex" just to see what would happen.
I identified enough with the character that I was (mostly) steering the conversation by my own impulses. I was uncomfortable saying anything that I wouldn't say in real life; and the engine was willing to accommodate me, which means that it's probably very flexible in letting the player shape the conversation.
On the other hand, I identified enough with the character that I resented being drawn into this conversation which, in fact, doesn't resemble anything that actually happens to me.
Conclusion: well-written, but not in aid of anything that really interests me.
(Footnote: I spent half an hour trying to dredge up the name of, you know, that statue game that Emily Short wrote, starts with a "G"... Totally blanked. The only answer that was materializing was Giaconda -- and that was clearly leaking in from an alternate universe. I hate when that happens.)
(Giaconda is probably worth playing, though.)
