 | Anchorhead, by Michael Gentry
22 votes
"Ridiculously intriguing" [+]"Ridiculously intriguing: Great writing and characterization" ( ) --glassmice... "Infocomesque" [+]"Infocomesque: A must-play for Lovecraft fans." () --Puddin Tame... "Balanced, atmospheric, well implemented, big and fair" [+]"Balanced, atmospheric, well implemented, big and fair" () --tekket... "Even if you don't..." [+]"Even if you don't play to completion, Anchorhead provides a rare balance of atmosphere, characterization, long-form story, and compelling puzzles." () --Emily Short... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --Archbaron... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Dave Chapeskie... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --flap... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --zer... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --namekuseijin... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Azazel... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sam Kabo Ashwell... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --Bernie... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --Xervosh... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --jahilia... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Jordan Magnuson... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --shornet... (No comment) [+](No comment) --akaisha0... (No comment) [+](No comment) --itsdnoftheworld... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Denk... "Epic, well-done,..." [+]"Epic, well-done, very nice coding, generally good. Also no more than one undo allowed, as with other Michael Gentry games." --Terrabytten... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --BlitzWithGuns... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Shank...
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 | Zork I, by Marc Blank and Dave Lebling
17 votes
"You are likely to be eaten by a grue" [+]"You are likely to be eaten by a grue: To the extent that I consider an "IF aficionado" someone who gets most of the IF inside-jokes (if there's a point to being an "IF aficionado" that doesn't involve humor, it eludes me), there can be no more crucial a game than Zork I for getting some of the most persistent ones about grues, mailboxes, twisty passages (all alike), thieves, trolls, zorkmids and more. To speak the language of IF, you must - among other things - speak the language of Zork. I would examine my opinion in more detail, but I find only a small tag proclaiming it a product of the Frobozz Magic Opinion Company." () --Ghalev... "Classic Original" [+]"Classic Original: Humorous play, bizarre landscape, historical experience for early IF fictioneers" () --DallasBrianK... "It's Zork!" [+]"It's Zork!: A true classic, but also legit fun. If you don't Zork, you don't know IF." --PNervous... "In the beginning, there was ZORK" [+]"In the beginning, there was ZORK: It's the one that started it all! As an intro to IF it's a must-play!" () --Puddin Tame... "Never really got old" [+]"Never really got old" --Ant-Fan... "Throwing that leaflet" [+]"Throwing that leaflet" --Someoneoro... "It's a classic, maaan!" [+]"It's a classic, maaan!" --Wanderer... "A timeless classic" [+]"A timeless classic: A fun adventure that's vital to understanding the genre." --Integer Man... "When an IF game..." [+]"When an IF game tries to be "not just a cave romp", "not just a treasure hunt", "about role-playing", "about NPC interaction", what it really means is, "not Zork". Even today, Zork is the IF (no, sod it - *text adventure*) against which all others are ultimately measured, for better or for worse. And it's still great fun." () --JonathanCR... (No comment) [+](No comment) --SharkFighter... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Bernie... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Xervosh... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Fredrik... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --DJ... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Denk... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Xavid... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Spike...
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 | Photopia, by Adam Cadre
16 votes
"fiction, puzzling narrative, great writing" [+]"fiction, puzzling narrative, great writing: Linear or not, being there in the shoes of several characters makes all the difference. The tension of slowly understanding it all coming together like pieces of a huge puzzle. Definitely touching." () --namekuseijin... "Very well-made" [+]"Very well-made" --Someoneoro... "So hugely..." [+]"So hugely influential on story-telling in the form that it must not be missed." ( - Full review) --Emily Short... "Easiest to get..." [+]"Easiest to get into, with a great story and use of medium." () --Michael R. Bacon... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --madducks... (No comment) [+](No comment) --J'onn Roger... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sam Kabo Ashwell... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Victor Gijsbers... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Jordan Magnuson... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Karl Ove Hufthammer... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --DJ... "Historically..." [+]"Historically vital to understanding the community and its evolution. Also, it's a f***ing glorious game." () --Steven Watson... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --BlitzWithGuns... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Witchy W... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Shank...
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 | Galatea, by Emily Short
15 votes
"Best NPC and conversation." [+]"Best NPC and conversation." ( - Full review) --Michael R. Bacon... "Renewed my interest in the form" [+]"Renewed my interest in the form: A really eye opening game about the potential of the medium and also very moving" --PNervous... "A must-play for..." [+]"A must-play for anyone interested in conversation systems in IF." --Molly... (No comment) [+](No comment) --SleepyEmp... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --madducks... (No comment) [+](No comment) --J'onn Roger... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sam Kabo Ashwell... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Bernie... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Karl Ove Hufthammer... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Steven Watson... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Ghalev... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... "To see what IF..." [+]"To see what IF can achieve when it focuses completely on NPC interaction and characterisation." --Christina Nordlander... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --fallen-avengers... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Nathaniel...
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 | Blue Lacuna, by Aaron A. Reed
11 votes
"More an experience than a game. Immerse yourself." [+]"More an experience than a game. Immerse yourself.: So rare to find an IF that reads as good as if plays. The game flows so smoothly with it's inclination towards natural acceptance and use of nouns. An obvious, but overlooked future direction of IF." ( - Full review) --gruelove... "Impressive on so many levels. Especially impressive is how nuanced the game is. Desicions that I didn't at first think of as important affected my relationships, etc." [+]"Impressive on so many levels. Especially impressive is how nuanced the game is. Desicions that I didn't at first think of as important affected my relationships, etc." --J'onn Roger... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --brattish... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Divide... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Azazel... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Victor Gijsbers... (No comment) [+](No comment) --PNervous... "A landmark..." [+]"A landmark long-form game." () --Steven Watson... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --fallen-avengers... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Denk...
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| Spider and Web, by Andrew Plotkin
9 votes
"Top-notch puzzling narrative and puzzle-design." [+]"Top-notch puzzling narrative and puzzle-design.: Exceptionally good puzzle design, excellent prose, "gradual narrative" and the constantly shifting tension between player and player character." () --namekuseijin... "A classic" [+]"A classic: perfect blend of storytelling, puzzles and mood, with some unique twists" --Christina Nordlander... "Tells a great story you couldn't tell in another medium." [+]"Tells a great story you couldn't tell in another medium." () --Xavid... "This whole game is pretty much a cold open " [+]"This whole game is pretty much a cold open " () --Ismarus... "The game that..." [+]"The game that made me realise that IF could be a literary form." () --Sam Kabo Ashwell... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --DJ... "Challenging, but..." [+]"Challenging, but not cruel. Has a wonderful premise and plot that should appeal to most." () --Steven Watson... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Shank...
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 | Adventure, by William Crowther and Donald Woods
8 votes
"The original." [+]"The original." () --Fredrik... "Xyzzy. Twisty little passages" [+]"Xyzzy. Twisty little passages: most of the stuff people wrote in praise of Zork are (even more) true for Adventure - Zork itself copied so much from Adventure, including most of the stuff it is credited for in this poll.." --Biep... "The first IF..." [+]"The first IF game, and the most influential." --baywoof... (No comment) [+](No comment) --DJ... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Ghalev... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --shornet... "If you're into..." [+]"If you're into IF, you should play the ur-ancestor at least once" --Christina Nordlander... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Xavid...
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 | Trinity, by Brian Moriarty
7 votes
"A brilliant from The Infocom era" [+]"A brilliant from The Infocom era" () --zer... "One of the most deeply engaging commercial computer games ever" [+]"One of the most deeply engaging commercial computer games ever" --namekuseijin... "Infocom's finest hour" [+]"Infocom's finest hour: A must-play for those wishing to go beyond just playing a game." () --Puddin Tame... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Gemma Bristow... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Walter Sandsquish... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --Form 27b-6... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Spike...
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 | Curses!, by Graham Nelson
7 votes
"One of the early 'modern' works of IF" [+]"One of the early 'modern' works of IF" --Rose... "A big original Infocom-quality game with plenty of puzzles and good prose" [+]"A big original Infocom-quality game with plenty of puzzles and good prose: Face it, Curses! pretty much single-handedly rebooted the whole IF scene after the commercial demise. Until then, only very amateurish AGT efforts were seen or pastiches of old puzzlefeasts -- except for 1 or 2 TADS good commercial games from Adventions.
Curses! was original and refreshing, a puzzle-feast without mazes or fantasy obsession. The setting was perfect, the writing great, the humor and the surrealism top-notch as well as multiple funny endings. It also followed pretty rightly the "Players Bill of Rights" with its clean design.
A top-notch IF to this day." () --namekuseijin... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Fredrik... (No comment) [+](No comment) --DJ... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --shornet... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --MathBrush... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Nomad...
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 | Shade, by Andrew Plotkin
6 votes
"A claustrophobic Role-Playing-Game in the most strict sense" [+]"A claustrophobic Role-Playing-Game in the most strict sense" () --namekuseijin... "Quite possibly..." [+]"Quite possibly the best horror IF written. The game pulls off tricks that are still noteworthy today." () --Molly... (No comment) [+](No comment) --perching path... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --madducks... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Victor Gijsbers... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol...
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 | Planetfall, by Steve Meretzky
6 votes
"Join the Stellar patrol and see...a mop and bucket?" [+]"Join the Stellar patrol and see...a mop and bucket?: Classic Sci-Fi IF with a good sense of humor. A must-play for those who don't think sci-fi has to be deadly serious." () --Puddin Tame... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Xervosh... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Ghalev... "This one one of..." [+]"This one one of the games that build the foundations of IF. Without the success of games like this one, there would be no IF today." ( - Full review) --starfire... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Ant-Fan... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Denk...
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 | Counterfeit Monkey, by Emily Short
5 votes
"Excellent use of medium" [+]"Excellent use of medium" () --Xavid... "My favourite..." [+]"My favourite adventure. Wonderful mechanic, interesting world, glorious puzzles, thorough implementation, great replayability, welcome inclusion of subtle political themes. Perfect... Well, the closest IF has come to perfect." () --Steven Watson... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sam Kabo Ashwell... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Shank...
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 | A Mind Forever Voyaging, by Steve Meretzky
4 votes
"Emotionally-engaging, richly detailed classic." [+]"Emotionally-engaging, richly detailed classic.: There aren't many games that measure up to A Mind Forever Voyaging. Even with its age, I consider it one of the best IF available. Anyone who wants to experience the full spectrum of IF has to play this game." --Archbaron... "A masterpiece" [+]"A masterpiece: An Infocom masterpiece. I was obsessed with this game as a kid. " --PNervous... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Ghalev... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Dave Chapeskie...
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| Mystery Science Theater 3000 Presents "Detective", by C. E. Forman, Graeme Cree, and Stuart Moore
4 votes
"Palatable intro to some of the ways IF can be terrible" [+]"Palatable intro to some of the ways IF can be terrible" () --perching path... "This is absolutely hilarious" [+]"This is absolutely hilarious" () --CHEESEROBOT... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Ghalev... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --DJ...
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 | Enchanter, by Marc Blank, Dave Lebling
4 votes
"Best work of the classic Blank/Lebling collaboration" [+]"Best work of the classic Blank/Lebling collaboration" () --perching path... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Ghalev... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Xervosh... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Xavid...
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 | Metamorphoses, by Emily Short
3 votes
"Set new standards for mechanical puzzles" [+]"Set new standards for mechanical puzzles" --perching path... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --IFforL2... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol...
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 | De Baron, by Victor Gijsbers
3 votes
"Uses several tricks best enabled by IF in service of big ambitions" [+]"Uses several tricks best enabled by IF in service of big ambitions" --perching path... "It’s not for everyone (it’s very dark), but I would still consider it a ‘must-play’ game" [+]"It’s not for everyone (it’s very dark), but I would still consider it a ‘must-play’ game" () --Karl Ove Hufthammer... "The best piece of..." [+]"The best piece of puzzleless IF." () --Steven Watson...
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 | Gun Mute, by C.E.J. Pacian
3 votes
"Shows IF's limits aren't always obstacles to surmount" [+]"Shows IF's limits aren't always obstacles to surmount" ( - Full review) --perching path... (No comment) [+](No comment) --flap... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol...
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 | Babel, by Ian Finley
3 votes
"Thrilling & captivating " [+]"Thrilling & captivating " () --LaFey... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Whispers... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --DJ...
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 | Worlds Apart, by Suzanne Britton
2 votes
"Amazing writing, amazing atmosphere." [+]"Amazing writing, amazing atmosphere." ( - Full review) --J'onn Roger... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --brattish...
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| Main Hall & Beginners Cave, by Donald Brown
2 votes
"First Eamon adventure" [+]"First Eamon adventure: Not the best, but the first. For the best I recommend "A Runcible Cargo"." () --Denk... "The beginnings of a unique series!" [+]"The beginnings of a unique series!: The great thing about Eamon is that you can carry your character, treasure and weapons through literally hundreds of adventures (if you survive, that is). Another recommendation is Thror's Ring, or anything else by Tom Zuchowski." () --Fredrik...
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 | All Roads, by Jon Ingold
2 votes
(No comment) [+](No comment) () --namekuseijin... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Steven Watson...
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 | The Hobbit, by Philip Mitchell and Veronika Megler
2 votes
"Limited parser but with flavour!" [+]"Limited parser but with flavour!" () --LaFey... "Revolutionized IF..." [+]"Revolutionized IF for small computers." () --Fredrik...
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 | Adventureland, by Scott Adams
2 votes
"Set the standards..." [+]"Set the standards for games for machines with low memory capacity." () --Fredrik... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Wade Clarke...
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 | The Space Under the Window, by Andrew Plotkin
2 votes
(No comment) [+](No comment) --J'onn Roger... "A unique way of..." [+]"A unique way of using the parser to change the facets of a story. Shows just how different parser-based IF can be from robust >THROW AXE AT DWARF PC-object interaction." () --Christina Nordlander...
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 | Whom The Telling Changed, by Aaron A. Reed
2 votes
"A modern masterpiece" [+]"A modern masterpiece: This entertaining, beautiful story is immensely flexible and immersive." () --AlexisPius... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol...
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 | Savoir-Faire, by Emily Short
2 votes
"truly brilliant, old school-esque" [+]"truly brilliant, old school-esque" ( - Full review) --OtisTDog... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sam Kabo Ashwell...
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 | Deadline, by Marc Blank
2 votes
"The first really good murder mystery" [+]"The first really good murder mystery" --Ant-Fan... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --shornet...
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 | Andromeda Apocalypse — Extended Edition, by Marco Innocenti
2 votes
"This one has it all" [+]"This one has it all: Feelies, a little graphics and music, a modern scoring system, a built-in "InvisiClues" system, and list of exits in each room. Plus all the things which make a great story: heavy emotional impact, just the right length, just the right difficulty, flashbacks, vivid room descriptions." ( - Full review) --mjhayes... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Witchy W...
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 | PataNoir, by Simon Christiansen
2 votes
(No comment) [+](No comment) --akaisha0... "A novel puzzle..." [+]"A novel puzzle system where you interact with the metaphors describing the objects." --Christina Nordlander...
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 | 1893: A World's Fair Mystery, by Peter Nepstad
1 vote
"Colossal and well written." [+]"Colossal and well written." () --LaFey...
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 | A Fire Darkly: Chapter 1, by Louis Rakovich
1 vote
"Dark, beautifully-written and fun" [+]"Dark, beautifully-written and fun: A great new game. Highly recommended." ( - Full review) --SLane...
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 | The Axe of Kolt, by Larry Horsfield
1 vote
"1991 adventure convention award: Best text only 8-bit adventure" [+]"1991 adventure convention award: Best text only 8-bit adventure" () --Denk...
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 | Kaged, by Ian Finley
1 vote
"great plot twists" [+]"great plot twists" () --Denk...
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 | Open Sorcery, by Abigail Corfman
1 vote
"Unique viewpoint and solid mechanics" [+]"Unique viewpoint and solid mechanics" --Nathaniel...
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 | The Lurking Horror, by Dave Lebling
1 vote
"A well-done and underappreciated masterpiece" [+]"A well-done and underappreciated masterpiece: One of the best interactive fiction games I've ever played in terms of setting a mood of horror, yet blending horror and the fantastically mundane My favorite text adventure of all time." () --Integer Man...
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| The Mulldoon Legacy, by Jon Ingold
1 vote
"Clever, Atmospheric Massive Puzzlefest By A Master " [+]"Clever, Atmospheric Massive Puzzlefest By A Master : Great old school puzzlefest. Large, bug free and full of atmosphere. " --Canalboy...
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 | Everybody Dies, by Jim Munroe
1 vote
(No comment) [+](No comment) () --Marshal Tenner Winter...
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 | Mindwheel, by Robert Pinsky, William Mataga, Steve Hales
1 vote
(No comment) [+](No comment) () --Xervosh...
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 | For a Change, by Dan Schmidt
1 vote
"Surreal, Minimalist, Perfect" [+]"Surreal, Minimalist, Perfect: The first game that got me into the genre. Surreal, minimalist. perfect" ( - Full review) --Angharade...
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