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Story File
The latest version.
Requires a Z-Code interpreter. Visit IFWiki for download links.
Walkthrough
For the latest version of the game.
Story File (old)
The original competition entry.
Requires a Z-Code interpreter. Visit IFWiki for download links.
Walkthrough (old)
For the original competition entry.
Walkthrough and maps
by David Welbourn, for both releases 1 and 2.

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Moon-Shaped

by Jason Ermer profile

Fantasy
2006

(based on 37 ratings)
5 reviews

About the Story

In this game partly inspired by Little Red Riding Hood, you play as Rosalind Wechsler, a girl on the cusp of her 13th birthday. What begins as a trip to Grandmother's house in the woods leads to disturbing family secrets, and may end in a family reunion, death, or both.


Game Details


Awards

5th Place - 12th Annual Interactive Fiction Competition (2006)

Nominee, Best Story; Nominee, Best NPCs - 2006 XYZZY Awards

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Member Reviews

5 star:
(9)
4 star:
(16)
3 star:
(8)
2 star:
(4)
1 star:
(0)
Average Rating:
Number of Reviews: 5
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Most Helpful Member Reviews


9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
Less Disney than the Brothers Grimm, July 10, 2008
by Ron Newcomb (Seattle)

When thirteen year old Rosalind tires of her mother's angst, she sets off to grandmother's house for good food and better company. But upon arriving, she finds an empty house, a half-twisted quilt, and a full-on mystery. Thus begins her quest through space, memory and a closet full of skeletons.

Moon-Shaped is a typical puzzle-based interactive fiction, save that it favors fuller prose over fuller geography. Puzzles are of moderate difficulty and clued fairly well, and a menu interface offers progressive hints. A wonderful annotated walkthrough is also available separately, though experienced players will likely not need it. The overall result is a work that favors readers over game players and thoroughness over lateral thinking.

Two things kept me from granting Moon-Shaped a full five stars. One, a compass rose and/or a GO TO command would be greatly appreciated by us beginners who disorient easily. But more importantly, I never really felt close to anyone in the work despite the time I spent with it and the spacious in absentia flashbacks. I felt that each such scene was afraid of giving away too much, and the reticency caused me to rely on my knowledge of fantasy instead of the knowledge of the particulars of the work. Consequently, I saw where the work was headed far too soon.

Regardless these idiosyncratic nitpicks, Moon-Shaped is a good work, and I especially recommend it to those who enjoyed Emily Short's Bronze.

(This review is for release 2 of Moon-Shaped.)

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Retelling of Little Red Riding Hood, December 6, 2015
by verityvirtue (London)

In this retelling of Little Red Riding Hood. You are Rosalind, the girl with the red cape, tasked to deliver food to your grandmother, who has been ill of late.

All is really not as it seems, though, and this is no walk in the, well, woods. What I liked about this were the refreshing twists on the story we’re so used to. The idea behind the game was creative enough, and, after playing, still remains ingenious. The story is mostly linear, though it contains several alternative endings, all determined by the endgame.

However, several things detracted from enjoyment of the game. There are alarmingly long stretches of text in the form of ‘visions’, which seems, above all, to be a rather lame attempt to force a lot of backstory into a few actions. This, unfortunately, occurred several times, especially toward the end of the story. Part of the moral of the story feels very heavily laid on in the beginning of the game, to the effect that it sounded very artificial. Yet nothing was said about this moral in the endgame.

The game also felt slightly glitchy at times. Some descriptions did not change even after performing actions which should have changed the object; some actions must be performed at specific locations to be able to progress with the game. The game could have been more robust if it were more flexible for the player, but this is really a small matter.

Don’t get me wrong: Moon-shaped is enjoyable in parts and does have an interesting story, but it was let down by the textwalls of backstory.

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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
A memorable mid-length fairy-tale game with sparse implementation, February 3, 2016

Moon-shaped is one of those odd games that is a little bit lacking in most categories but somehow pulls together to be more enjoyable than many more polished games. It has that elusive quality that makes you remember it and want to play it again.

Moon-shaped begins as a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood, and branches out from there. Puzzles are enjoyable, with a nice flashback system. But the game is somewhat sparse. The world feels empty, with short descriptions.

Perhaps I enjoy this game most because of the great storytelling in the flashbacks. The multiple endings involving big moral choices are also good.

I recommend this game to everyone.

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See All 5 Member Reviews

Moon-Shaped on IFDB

Recommended Lists

Moon-Shaped appears in the following Recommended Lists:

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Polls

The following polls include votes for Moon-Shaped:

More than it appears to be... by dacharya64
I'm looking for games that aren't exactly what they seem. Perhaps they come across as simple or romantic or anything really, the point is that things take a turn for the worse (or perhaps the better) and everything begins to change....




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