OtisTDog

Top 50 Reviewer
Member since February 27, 2008
Last visited April 19, 2024
Profile ID (TUID): 8tqtppvpzluoq2jf

I've got some strong opinions for someone who's never shown the courage or skill to publish any IF of my own. Nonetheless, I am a big fan of the medium -- which I think is going to be rediscovered by the mainstream at some point -- and I hope you enjoy my reviews.

Here's a brief guide to my rating system. It is unusually harsh:

5 stars -- a piece so incredible it effectively defines the genre or technique that it introduces or perfects. Very, very few works will get 5 stars from me.

4 stars -- a work that is significantly above average and achieves something notable. In general, a game that excels but does not quite reach the apex of its class. A relatively small number of works will get 4 stars from me.

3 stars -- a game that is competently put together and enjoyable to play, but lacks the special something that would make it stand out. Best summed up as "good, not great". Many games will get this rating from me.

2 stars -- a passable attempt that is deficient in one or more qualities that would make it truly enjoyable. Basically, something that could have been a 3-star game but fell short in some way, or otherwise falls into the "blah" category. Many games will get this rating from me.

1 star -- a work that, in my mind, has no redeeming qualities or is so horribly non-functional that any such qualities are not relevant to the playing experience. Very few games will get this rating from me, as I try to find something good about most games.

I am most harsh in my reviews when a work shows little evidence of effort on the part of the author. Conversely, I am inclined to generosity when I feel like the author tried hard to realize an interesting goal, even if he or she was not successful in doing so.

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Reviews by OtisTDog

Mother Loose, by Irene Callaci   April 4, 2024

"Mother Loose is one of those games that was developed as a labor of love and then subsequently released to the world. Its public debut..." - See the full review

A Flustered Duck, by Jim Aikin   February 1, 2024

"A Flustered Duck starts out seeming promising enough: The PC, a downtrodden pig-boy working on the farm of the tyrannical Granny Grabby,..." - See the full review

Plundered Hearts, by Amy Briggs   January 29, 2024

">SHOOT THE PIRATE This is the first line of Plundered Hearts. It is not a player command, but it looks like one. I don't know of any..." - See the full review

Lists and Lists, by Andrew Plotkin   January 14, 2024

"From time to time, Andrew Plotkin has written works that are more about demonstrating what is possible from a technology standpoint than..." - See the full review

Improv: Origins, by Neil deMause   January 14, 2024

"There is something deeply endearing about the Frenetic Five franchise to me. If there was anyone out there long-awaiting another episode..." - See the full review

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