Games much improved in later versions - an IFDB Poll
by Karl Ove Hufthammer
RSS FeedMost IF works are only available in ‘version 1’, but some are released in updated versions. And a few see a large amount of bug fixing, rewriting and polish. This is a poll for highlighting these games, games that the authors have taken time and care to greatly improve in later releases, either through major changes to the plot or the puzzles, or just through a lot of bug fixes and overall polish.
| Guilded Youth, by Jim Munroe 4 votes "I couldn't understand why everyone was complaining about the wonderful ending I'd just played, until I realized it had been added in the second version." [+]"I couldn't understand why everyone was complaining about the wonderful ending I'd just played, until I realized it had been added in the second version." --matt w (Matt Weiner)... "New ending is worth it" [+]"New ending is worth it" --Andrew Schultz... "Later releases..." [+]"Later releases include epilogues, fixing what was previously a vaguely unsatisfying ending." ( - Full review) --Sam Kabo Ashwell... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol...  Vote for this game | |
| Kerkerkruip, by Victor Gijsbers 3 votes "A roguelike still..." [+]"A roguelike still in active development. Each version contains new content and gameplay tweaks." --Molly... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Emily Short... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Karl Ove Hufthammer... Vote for this game | |
| PataNoir, by Simon Christiansen 3 votes "Interesting, fun, original" [+]"Interesting, fun, original: The help system and similes have been extensively re-worked based on user feedback. The end result is satisfying and engaging." ( - Full review) --streever... "Better help, more intuitive puzzles" [+]"Better help, more intuitive puzzles: Worth a replay if only to see how the help works. V5 tutorial is well done without feeling teachy." () --Andrew Schultz... "Currently..." [+]"Currently available in its 4th release, and polished to perfection. Lots of improvements based on testers’ feedback, with reworked puzzles, hints and new custom responses to various commands." () --Karl Ove Hufthammer... Vote for this game | |
| Transparent, by Hanon Ondricek 2 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Floating Info... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Andrew Schultz... Vote for this game | |
| Curses, by Graham Nelson 2 votes "Greatly expanded " [+]"Greatly expanded : The initial release of Curses! was for z3, and had a fraction of the content of the z5 version." --baf... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --shornet... Vote for this game | |
| Fine-Tuned, by Dennis Jerz 1 vote "The version..." [+]"The version released to IFComp was widely panned for being buggy to the point of being unplayable, but later releases fixed the bugs and is now very stable." --Juhana... Vote for this game | |
| A Comedy of Error Messages, by Adam Le Doux 1 vote "Kind of an infamous example of this trope" [+]"Kind of an infamous example of this trope: The author kept updating this throughout the 2011 IF Comp to the point where the final version became almost a completely different beast." --Molly... Vote for this game | |
| Surface, by Geoff Moore 1 vote "Balanced out the..." [+]"Balanced out the randomness of one scene which could previously have gone on way too long." ( ) --Floating Info... Vote for this game | |
| The Believable Adventures of an Invisible Man, by Hannes Schueller 1 vote "Runner-up for..." [+]"Runner-up for Most Improved in 2009's Post-Comp Competition." --DB... Vote for this game | |
| A Roiling Original, by Andrew Schultz 1 vote "note: self-vote" [+]"note: self-vote: new area (1 puzzle, 1 director's cut,) better error checking, more sensible puzzles" --Andrew Schultz... Vote for this game | |
| Dream Pieces, by Iam Curio 1 vote "Many neat features added" [+]"Many neat features added: Toggling the rhymes, clarifying alternate solutions--several in-comp updates make this game worth a look. Can be played online if you don't have Quest." --Andrew Schultz... Vote for this game | |
| Andromeda Awakening - The Final Cut, by Marco Innocenti 1 vote "Technical and aesthetic improvements" [+]"Technical and aesthetic improvements: The sequel is nicely improved with an extra ending too." --Andrew Schultz... Vote for this game | |
| Shuffling Around, by Andrew Schultz (as Ned Yompus) 1 vote "note: self-vote" [+]"note: self-vote: hint-by-object, bug fixes, buffers for good guesses, LLPs, hint-device cleared up, more silly random text" --Andrew Schultz... Vote for this game | |
| Threediopolis, by Andrew Schultz 1 vote "Tacky to add my own?" [+]"Tacky to add my own?: New ways to organize/view the list, added alternate scenery mode, story added, logic document and clues polished, new hint-giving items" --Andrew Schultz... Vote for this game | |
| Six, by Wade Clarke 1 vote "In its 6th (!)..." [+]"In its 6th (!) release the game has lots of improvements to the prose, and many new custom responses and bug fixes, making the game polished to perfection." ( ) --Karl Ove Hufthammer... Vote for this game | |
| Scroll Thief, by Daniel M. Stelzer 1 vote "Lots of bugs..." [+]"Lots of bugs squashed and alternate solutions added." ( ) --Floating Info... Vote for this game | |
| Anchorhead, by Michael Gentry 1 vote (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --Matt W... Vote for this game | |
| Savoir-Faire, by Emily Short 1 vote "Went through a..." [+]"Went through a rapid succession of bugfix updates shortly after release. " ( ) --Sam Kabo Ashwell... Vote for this game | |