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Full original version and special edition demo
anchor.z8
For all systems. To play, you'll need a Z-Machine Interpreter - visit Brass Lantern for download links.
AnchorheadDemo.gblorb
"Special Edition"
For all systems. To play, you'll need a glulx interpreter - visit Brass Lantern for download links.
anchmap.zip
map in GUEmap format
GUEmap file. Requires the GUEmap viewer - visit http://www.cjmweb.net/GUEmap for information. (Compressed with ZIP. Free Unzip tools are available for most systems at www.info-zip.org.)
anchor.sol
solution

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Anchorhead

by Michael Gentry

Lovecraftian
1998

(based on 95 ratings)
6 member reviews

About the Story

From wikipedia:

"It is loosely based on the Cthulhu mythos. Anchorhead takes place in a New England town by the same name that bears a resemblance to Innsmouth, Arkham, and other fictional towns created by H.P. Lovecraft."

Game Details

Language: English (en)
First Publication Date: May 1, 1998
Current Version: 5
License: Freeware
Development System: Inform
Forgiveness Rating: Tough
Baf's Guide ID: 17
IFIDs:  ZCODE-5-990206-6B48
F76B2529-27F8-44ED-B643-C5F03492881D
TUID: op0uw1gn1tjqmjt7

Awards

Nominee, Best Game; Nominee, Best Writing; Nominee, Best Story; Winner, Best Setting; Nominee, Best Puzzles; Nominee, Best Individual NPC - 1998 XYZZY Awards

Editorial Reviews

Baf's Guide


Lovecraft-inspired gothic horror at its best: a small town full of secrets, a gruesomely deformed monstrosity, a vast uncaring force awaiting its day. Despite the overblown style typical of the genre, this game generally works, and can get quite unnerving at times (especially in some of the NPC interactions). Highly open and explorable environment (aside from an abundance of locked doors), puzzles well-integrated into the storyline (including many optional puzzles and alternate solutions), lots of backstory revealed in an impressive variety of ways. Gets a bit sticky towards the end, with many tight time limits. Has a Sierra-style time system: the day ends when a certain point in the plot is reached. Features a female protagonist, two small mazes (one optional), references to incest, and a certain amount of strong language, gore, and really bad things happening to people.

-- Carl Muckenhoupt

Play This Thing!
Anchorhead is a rare achievement in interactive fiction, a well-designed puzzle-rich game that nonetheless leaves you mostly remembering the story.

Michael Gentry's game is based on the locations and ideas of H. P. Lovecraft, but the result has its own unique vision and integrity.
See the full review

Necessary Games
Overall, the experience of playing Anchorhead was incredibly rich and memorable—not for the difficulty navigating, or for the puzzles, but for the immersive experience it provided. It compared very well with any interactive experience I have ever had, and came in well ahead of the graphical adventures I have played (with the possible exception of Myst). My distaste for horror in general may have curbed my appetite slightly, but only slightly: this game manages to rise above horror, and the experience of playing it is beautiful as often as it is frightening. I would highly recommend the game, though if you have no previous IF experience beware: read the help, use the map, use a walkthrough when needed, and stick with it if you feel overwhelmed early on. It’s worth it.
See the full review

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Member Reviews

5 star:
(70)
4 star:
(20)
3 star:
(3)
2 star:
(1)
1 star:
(1)
Average Rating:
Number of Reviews: 6
Write a review


Most Helpful Member Reviews


5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
Brilliant game with one single flaw, December 25, 2008
by Peter Pears (Lisbon, Portugal)
And that flaw is this - that compared to the rest of the game, the entire ending sequence is too easy to botch up, too easy to die in, WAY too easy to leave the game in an unwinnable situation.

There, I've said the one flaw. Now I am free to point out that this game is a shining example of what a story-driven game should be like. By story-driven, I mean it is the plot and characters that drive the game onwards, not the puzzles. The puzzles do exist, and are, without exception, some of the finest I've ever encountered. However, they serve the plot, instead of having the plot be an excuse for their existence.

I know the game has been out for years and pretty much has already been said, but having just replayed it I simply couldn't *not* come here and praise the quality of the writing, short enough and descriptive enough to make your hair stand up and your flesh crawl on the right spots in the game; the quality of the game design, where you are relatively free to wander about and discover things at your own pace without ever having to worry about unwinnable situations (until the end of the game); the meticulous implementation of the keyring, the umbrella, and all the little details that Michael Gentry felt Anchorhead could not do without; the flesh-and-blood characters, with whom an ASK/TELL system manages to feel like a *conversation*.

It is only a pity that the endgame is not as forgiving as the rest of the game - in effect, the player is taught, throughout the game, not to worry, the game will take care of you and not let you do silly things unwarned. But it's so very easy to miss a couple of actions that will make the game unwinnable. Still, within context, it is a decision that makes sense - the ending is fast-paced, and a sequence of terrible scenes, whose effect might be diminished if the game kept holding our hand.

This is one of those game that will have you breathing hard as you uncover the mystery (and such a pacing as regards the mystery! You piece it together, piece by piece, and by the end you are astounded by your own deductions - almost at no point does the game actually *tell* you anything, forcing you to make your own connections, and the result is astoundingly immersive). I am unfamiliar with Lovecraft's works, other than a sketchy knowledge of the Cthulhu mythos - which did not in any way diminish my pleasure with this game.

This game is a *must* for anyone even remotely interested in horror IF. If you like Lovecraft as well, that's merely an added bonus - and if you're unfamiliar with Lovecraft, then the story will seem more original and unpredictable... not that it doesn't already have many memorable elements in its own right, (Spoiler - click to show) in particular the tragic figure of William.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
Lovecraftian Horror at its Finest, January 4, 2008
by Matt Kimmel (Cambridge, MA)
Anchorhead is most certainly a jewel in the crown of the Lovecraftian horror genre, up there with such favorites as The Lurking Horror and Theatre. First and foremost in this game comes the prose; the author has lovingly crafted a deep and memorable world, which is slowly revealed in paragraphs that give you, as a player, all the information you need, while keeping you on the edge of your seat. Additionally, the author knows well the principle behind Lovecraft's works: that nothing he writes on the page can possibly be as horrifying as what you can imagine. Hints, suggestions, and half-glimpses of the evil lurking in the town of Anchorhead are what you're treated to--not outright descriptions that inevitably fail to live up to your expectations.

There is also a depth of information about Anchorhead's world that's rarely found in interactive fiction. Details on every aspect of the town and its inhabitants can be found from a multitude of sources. This serves to immerse the player in the horrors that are unfolding, but it's not just window dressing; much of the background information is integral to the plot.

This is a primarily literary work, and although the puzzles are fun and require some thought, they're not tremendously difficult. My only complaint about the game is that not all of the puzzles are made obvious. The game progresses as you cause various events to take place, and there were a few points where I felt a bit lost because I didn't know what to do next, and therefore could not move forward in the plot. In retrospect, I could probably have figured out most of those situations by looking a bit harder, but there are one or two puzzles that require a bit of an intuitive leap--and you won't be continuing until you make that leap.

Still, this is a minor complaint about a beautifully written work of IF. I highly recommend this game to any serious player of interactive fiction, whether you're a fan of the horror genre or not.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Pitch-perfect Lovecraftian horror, February 19, 2008
by cklepac (Seattle, WA)
If you're a fan of Lovecraft's stories, you'll be delighted at all the familiar tropes this game has on display, many of which directly or subtly reference his classics (the shopkeeper's violin is one small example). The text is moody and the locations evocative, and several parts are very chilling. Obviously a labor of love from a big fan of HPL and horror fiction in general.

The puzzles put you in the mindset of a Lovecraftian investigator, so if you enjoy researching dark histories and putting the pieces together, you'll be right at home. Taking notes on important names and dates is recommended.

The game gives you a lot of freedom early on, but it has clearly divided time segments, and you may find yourself having to restore in the late game because you didn't do some small thing you needed to when you needed to do it. In a few places I could see where someone new to IF could get frustrated, and I wasn't able to beat it without peeking at a solution once or twice, but overall the puzzles in Anchorhead are fair and don't unduly disrupt the creepy atmosphere of this well-told tale.




See All 6 Member Reviews

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Recommended Lists

Anchorhead appears in the following Recommended Lists:

Commercial Shouldabeens by GameDesigner
Games that most likely should have been commercial rather than free.

To begin by Fra Enrico
If you are new to the IF, I suggest to start with a bunch of games. Some are easy to play and to get into the thing, some are so great that make you fall in love with the genre.

IF that's a pleasure to READ by Maureen
I have a soft spot for "literary" IF. Good writing can draw me into a story that doesn't really have much game to it, and amateur writing can wreck an otherwise good game. That's not to say I like puzzle-less IF or text dumps. I enjoy...

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Polls

The following polls include votes for Anchorhead:

Artistic Games by WriterBob
I'm interested in games that take the fiction of IF to new levels. These are not straightforward, plot driven games. Think instead of games that play like poetry, or games that focus on a character's revelation.

Must-play games by Jeff Sonas
I am looking for the games that, in your opinion, you simply must have played in order to really call yourself an IF aficionado. Or if someone wanted to play N number of IF games in order to get as good an overview of the IF classics...

Vivid games by Jeff Sonas
I'm looking for games that evoked strong feelings or strong mental images that stayed with you long after you finished the games.

See all polls with votes for this game




This is version 11 of this page, edited by Jordan Magnuson on 19 August 2009 at 6:01am. - View Update History - Edit This Page - Add a News Item