Blood Island is a choice-based IFcomp 2022 entry by Billy Krolick that describes itself as a “philosophical Dating Sim turned Slasher.”
Blood Island strikes an interesting spot at the intersection between reality shows and self-aware slasher films. They both involve performances from actors who intend to be observed, and this work was an opportunity to ask readers how their own performances might change in the presence of an audience.
However, it might have been helpful to let the readers ask that question themselves. This Choicescript story interrogates readers after almost every passage.
• How do you feel about reality shows?
• How do you feel about slasher movies?
• How do you feel about Final Girl Theory?
Blood Island asked me how I felt about things so frequently that I never had a chance to develop those feelings. The topics switched so rapidly from concepts outside the story to dynamics within the narrative that I was left on uncertain footing.
I couldn't tell whether I was supposed to answer these questions as a character or as the player controlling that character, which left me over-thinking everything: did I need to avoid a killer, or did I need to avoid a killer who was constrained by the rules of slasher films, or did I need to pay less attention to reflective choices so that I could get further into the story?
My obsession with giving the “right” answers prevented me from enjoying the descriptions, which were howlingly funny in several places.
I enjoyed the concept, and I had fun with the atmosphere, but the overall implementation was… questionable.
(I’ll see myself out.)
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