IF Comp 09: Trap Cave

I'm starting late, since I had Stuff to Do this weekend, but here we go!

Trap Cave is the first in line.

But first, a note. I followed Blogger's instructions for inserting Livejournal type cuts, and it broke the blog.

Big time.

So there's spoilers galore here.

Here be dragons.

Okay, you've been warned.

------------------- La la la not a real cut ----------------------------


Start: 8:40 pm

So the opening note is that the English version isn't fully translated. That is, indeed, an IMPORTANT NOTE. At least it's not an important note about the death of the author's beta tester or something. The note apologizes for the "inconvenience" of not having the game translated.

I do not have a good feeling.

Oooh, ASCII art. Oooh.

Opening paragraph has a dash where there should be a comma, and a slightly confusing sentence structure. Second paragraph has a weird tense issue. "The last thing you remember is your march . . ., as suddenly the floor collapsed . . ."

Irritation: I can't use the enter that I want (the one on the right hand side of the keyboard by the number pad). Can't get mad at the author - I'm assuming this is a program "feature."

Looking at myself shows the first bit of German. Insert your own guess-I-hit-my-head-harder-than-I-thought joke here. Oh, and it resets the room description to German, too.

Okay, it's clear that only the commands have been implemented in English. This is fascinating, as I kick and scream for help and try picking up things until it becomes clear that essentially the whole game is still in German.

Look, I have total sympathy for running out of time. But this is huge - if you're going to ostensibly release the game in English, release it in English. If you're not, don't provide the slightest of translations with an apology. This is not okay. This is unplayable. Also, it's essentially a menu-based game, where your actions are entirely prescribed by the author. I might accept this under other circumstances with protest, but I'm already irritated.

Finish: 8:51 PM
Score: I'm not even sure how to touch this one, as I don't really feel like there was a game to play. The one description I read seemed uninspiring and cliched, but maybe it got awesome later. I mean, the cave had a lattice door in it! That's more interesting than a gazebo. (Zork II, I'm looking at *you.*)