Planet of the Infinite Minds

Baf's Guide

Highly peculiar game that's heavy on the abstract math and physics. You're spun through a variety of cosmic absurdities to no obvious purpose--the author appears to be experimenting with the capability of IF to render concrete and interesting various concepts. In other words, your mileage will most certainly vary. The game itself is quite difficult if you're not on the author's wavelength; absurdism and in-jokes are plentiful. Still, the intentions are good, and those with a taste for abstract science may well enjoy this.

-- Duncan Stevens

SPAG

Er. Um. It's... odd, there's no denying that. It's generally bug-and-typo free, but it's resoundingly... odd. It's what I'd imagine a Rybread Celsius game to be like if it was done, well, right. Some great puzzles, although there's rather a lot of guess-the-author's-mind - I had to use hints several times - we're back to the oddness again; indeed, parts of it kept reminding me of Nord and Bert. Indeed, like N&B, it's at times laugh-out-loud funny - the problems relating to the end of the universe spring to mind.
-- Matthew Clemson
See the full review

SPAG

Sort of a cross between 1950s sf, a physics major's worst nightmares (I'm betting the author is or was a physics major), and a comedy (well, it DID say 'farce'), the basic plot is... nearly incomprehensible, yet, strangely appealing, much like the sideshow freaks at a circus. Watching it unfold is somewhat akin to watching that guy in the sideshow who does terrible things to his own body: you wince, but you watch anyhow because it's fascinating, and you wonder how it's done.
-- Tina Sikorski
See the full review

SynTax
I managed to finish the game without solving any of the puzzles or scoring any points at all! Oh well, back to the drawing board. I restarted and this time followed the gypsy to be drawn into the game.
-- Dorothy Millard
See the full review

>INVENTORY - Paul O'Brian writes about interactive fiction

Not that POTIM is a bad game -- far from it. Its concretization of philosophical concepts makes for some pretty thought-provoking IF, and there are also one or two puzzles that I thought were quite clever and original. However, there is also a slew of strange, random things that seem to serve no purpose to the story. Some of them have the feel of in-jokes, like the references to "MacFlecknoe" that pepper the game text. That sort of thing may have been fun for the author, but it does nothing for me. Other things, well, I just don't have an explanation for, unless they somehow all get explained in the endgame.

In addition, there are a few bugs here and there, as well as some grammar problems, especially the dreaded its/it's error (see my review of Masque of the Last Faeries). In the end, it may just be another case of a game underserved by the need to play it in two hours.

- View the most common tags (What's a tag?)

Edit Tags

Cancel

Tags you added are shown below with checkmarks. To remove one of your tags, simply un-check it.
Enter new tags here (use commas to separate tags):

Delete Tags

Cancel

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

Average Rating: Number of Reviews: 2 Write a review

Planet of the Infinite Minds is a fun game consisting of well-done abstract puzzles and less-well-done wordplay ones. Its ridiculous story shouldn't detract from the the experience if you don't take it seriously. Overall, it's a great example of doing puzzles using non-conventional rooms and objects.

Was this review helpful to you?   Yes   No   Remove vote  

More Options

Promote this user

Demote this user

Plonk this user

Flag spoilers

Flag as inappropriate

Direct link

View my user filters

Explain these options

 | Add a comment 

This game is quite a bit like the old Unnkulia games: snarky or rude to the player at times, obsessed with unfair puzzles, filled with little 'male gaze' comments about women, arrogance about religion and philosophy, and full of 'goofy humor'. I didn't really like it.

It is big and mostly polished, but the puzzles are pretty opaque, more of a 'look how clever I the author am' than 'look how clever you the player are'.

You spend much of the game travelling back and forth through time and your own mind.

Was this review helpful to you?   Yes   No   Remove vote  

More Options

Promote this user

Demote this user

Plonk this user

Flag spoilers

Flag as inappropriate

Direct link

View my user filters

Explain these options

 | Add a comment 

Recommended Lists