Spring Thing: Lady Thalia and the Seraskier Sapphires

 

Lady Thalia and the Seraskier Sapphires is a choice-based work by E. Joyce and N. Cormier that was entered into Spring Thing 2021. (Joyce has a previous creation, What the Bus?, that was in IFComp 2020.)

This is an intricate heist story where the player navigates branch-and-bottleneck structures to conduct a series of thefts. Strong writing supports the narrative while disguising the code running behind the scenes, and it feels like there are multiple ways to achieve your objectives.

Most of the player’s time is spent Getting People to Do What You Want — the main character flinches at describing it with a crass term like “manipulation.” It feels like a combat system for conversation (Convat? Combersation?), and success reveals useful information. In the evenings, that information helps the next heist run smoothly.

Lady Thalia is confronted with a few puzzles during her adventures, but players who find them too difficult can use alternate solutions. I especially liked the scoring mechanism, which is embedded in playful banter between friends.

Additional excitement comes from the interactions with Thalia’s nemesis, a consultant with Scotland Yard. (Thalia’s pseudonym comes from muse of comedy, and her pursuer is regularly referred to as Melpomene.)

The overall enjoyment of this work is going to depend on personal preference; I may not be the world’s biggest fan of cucumber sandwiches, high tea, or drawing room repartee. However, those sequences were nicely offset by nighttime skullduggery and daring escapes from the law.

Waiting for the Day Train: ParserComp 2021

 

Waiting for the Day Train is a text adventure from Dee Cooke that was entered into ParserComp 2021. 

This story establishes its stakes immediately — the early text and graphics show what will happen if you miss the Day Train. Then it transitions into the game’s main environment, which is serene and natural, but the introductory sequence has added a feeling of tension that keeps things moving.

Although the train platform is only a short distance away from the player’s starting point, not much time is left before the train departs. The countdown felt like it was managed effectively, leaving me with just enough time to work through challenges while still feeling like it would be a close call.

Waiting for the Day Train presents a few puzzles in a small, well implemented environment. Descriptive details add depth without confusing or distracting from the major challenges. The strength of this work comes from its simplicity.

Spring Thing: Misty Hills

Misty Hills is a choice-based work by Giuliano Roverato Martins Pereira that was entered into Spring Thing 2021.

The player is returning home after completing a quest “off camera,” and a clock on the side of the screen tracks the time while they wait for the next tram.

The author’s note describes it as a chill game that players are meant to enjoy at their own pace, and the implementation supports that experience. (Misty Hills also received an audience award for being the “most relaxing” Spring Thing entry.)

I enjoyed how Misty Hills provided a low-stakes opportunity to explore a fantasy environment that was engaging mix of the familiar and the magical. Although I wanted to catch the next tram, it didn’t feel like a life-or-death challenge that determined the fate of the world.

I also appreciated how there weren’t any unpleasant surprises or unfair traps. These structures have been described as confirmation-required choices — you might end up missing the tram, but it will be the result of deliberate decisions that you made while exploring.

Misty Hills is an inviting, complicated world that holds the potential for (mis-)adventure without antagonism.

Snowhaven: ParserComp 2021

Snowhaven is a text adventure from Tristin Grizel Dean that was entered into ParserComp 2021. 

This entry used effective storytelling to deliver a complete experience in a small set of locations. The player uses simple objects to complete some basic tasks, but relationships and memories add narrative weight to the proceedings.

Snowhaven’s story strikes a balance between important physical details and the emotional components that motivate the main character. I appreciated its clean, efficient writing.

Black-and-white graphics make effective contributions to the story’s wintry atmosphere without becoming a distraction — subtle animations in a few locations reinforce the impression of frozen stillness everywhere else. I initially thought that one challenge required a solution that could only be found in the game's images, but some later digging uncovered alternative clues elsewhere in the text.

A few parts of Snowhaven felt like the infamous “kill the dragon with your bare hands” sequence from Adventure, and I’ll be interested to see how a wider audience receives them. Had I cleverly guessed the correct sequence of phrases to solve a series of under-clued puzzles? Or were these obvious solutions that shouldn’t need to be telegraphed? (If it’s the latter, then I salute some brilliant design work that made me feel good about myself.)

This entry offers an atmospheric experience that focuses less on puzzles and more on details. Overall, it’s a short, polished story that was satisfying to complete.