Dead Like Ants

Baf's Guide

A good game with a nicely fleshed out and unusual world, many Easter eggs, an interesting plot twist - and almost non-existent puzzles. The only problem I saw about it was the following. Beating the game consists of several... uhm... iterations, but the twist mentioned above becomes apparent after the first of them, so that from this point on, it's pretty clear what the rest of the iterations would be about. Also, I felt such an unusual game deserved a more unusual ending.

--Valentine Kopteltsev

SPAG
Dead Like Ants was a joy to play. As short and simple as it is, it packs a great deal of emotion, effortless whimsy, and a strange kind of humor which is dark yet not depressing. In the afterword, the author credits Lewis Carroll as inspiration, a muse whose contribution is powerfully felt without coming across as derivative in the slightest. And the prose is so... the only word I can think of is smooth, by which I mean that it succeeds in being elegantly sparse without sacrificing evocativeness. The parser will rarely give you a response over a line or two long, and yet each description contains all the information you need and still pulls off sounding downright pretty. (by Nate Dovel)
See the full review

- View the most common tags (What are the numbers in parens? | What's a tag?) (Log in to add your own tags)

5 star: (3) 4 star: (5) 3 star: (7) 2 star: (0) 1 star: (0)

Average Rating: Number of Reviews: 3 Write a review

"You are my favourite daughter", January 23, 2010
"Dead Like Ants" is a remarkable little story, with a few gimmicks thrown in, and makes an overall satisfying and thought-provoking experience. The protagonist is an antropomorphised ant, which is not really a spoiler at all - it's pretty obvious from the onset. She is sent forth by the Queen/Mother herself to help rid the colony of five dangers than threaten it every year.

There is a spin to it, of course, which I won't reveal. But it's that spin which makes the game. The following sentences are only mildly spoilery and rather vague, but if you haven't played the game I suggest you don't read them. (Spoiler - click to show)It raises questions of one's identity in the community. It raises question about manipulation by someone who's higher than you in life's hierarchy. It raises questions about manipulation by someone you love, and someone who, you think, loves you.

Gameplay is repetitive, but that repetition ties in beautifully with the issues the game adresses. As the PC appeases the five dangerous strangers, the player is more and more aware of what is going on, distancing himself - a bold move in a medium where "immersion" is traditionally the key to authorial sucess. This distance is the key. It's very Brechtian - Brecht is the one who wanted the audience *not* to connect emotionally with his plays, so they could coldly appreciate and analyze the important political aspect and messages he wanted to convey.

And in the very end, a final twist (which is "the last lousy point", if you will), that gives it all yet another dimension, yet another layer.

Of course, the author himself states, in the afterword, "I'm sure this is all susceptive to interpretations, but I just wanted to portray a day as an ant", blowing any analysis to the winds. :) Ah well.

"Dead Like Ants" is a short game, with almost no puzzles to speak of. The prose is succint, evocative, and a constant mixture of "literal" and "metaphorical". Dialogs are topic-based, relatively limited, but amply suficcient for their purpose. I would recommend this game for anyone who wants a short playing experience that'll keep them thinking about it long after they finished the actual game.

Beautiful if slight little game, November 23, 2009
Dead Like Ants is the only game I know of that uses cylindrical coordinates rather than compass directions, which is logical when the protagonist is an ant living in a tree. More interesting than the physical environment, however, is the social environment of an (anthropomorphic) ant colony, with its lack of individualism. If ant colonies produced literature, it might look like Dead Like Ants.

The game is short and polished, and combines atmosphere and message into an enjoyable package. The gameplay, however, is definitely on the slight side: it consists mostly of exploration, but the exploration becomes predictable rather quickly. Nevertheless, it is recommended.

A nice and easy game. Twisting usual IF conventions., April 6, 2009
And here is a new good game by E.C.J. Pacian.
For those who finished "Gun Mute" and have been very surprised but the main characters motives, don't worry lads ! Even if some characters might quickly surprise you, you won't be brought on the same trend which might not be yours.

There definitally are a few things that E.C.J. is good at : First, twisting the conventions of IF.
The geography is quite unusual, but simple and very effective in that story.
The main mecanism of the game is also quite unexpected. Hopefully, the author added some warnings in the "About" sections, to encourage the player when things look terribly wrong : It is likely that it actually is the way to go.

Secondly, E.C.J. also shows a great ability at describing ambivalent characters. When I started playing, I was afraid of seeing very cliché antropomorphism. Oh yes, for sure there is antropomorphism. But it is perfectly well assumed and brought in a fresh and crispy way. Some simple details, but described with great consistency throughout the game, make perfectly clear the dual nature of the characters.

So, in the end, it is a nice and simple game, to be played in one hour. The story might have you to think a bit once finished. But it failed to create much emotion to me.

However, before my last turn, and feeling the end coming, I thought to myself "Geee, this would make a nice introduction for a bigger story !"

Related Games

People who like Dead Like Ants also gave high ratings to these games:

Polls

The following polls include votes for Dead Like Ants: