But it brings on the headache that was coming!
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I knew that Tin Star would get a perfect review from you. It is indeed as close to a perfect CSG as I think is possible.
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It’s so, so good—and a tad underrated, isn’t it? I hardly see it discussed on the forums or Reddit when it is THE blueprint for so many design choices. Gosh, I wish the author published more! You are so right; it really is as close to perfect as one might get.
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Totally agree, Tin Star is probably the best ChoiceScript games ever made. I’m not big on replaying games, but Tin Star is one of those I go back to over and over again. Best part is that the author made every path equally satisfying and every branch has equal amounts of content. Being a baddie is just as fun as being the ideal marshal, which is so hard to pull off imo, but Gies did it.
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Did you play the same game I did? The only things I remember of the game were that I kept dying around every corner, the RO I was interested in somehow didn’t like me back despite giving it my all, and getting paralyzed with indecision from having so much to do. I had heard good things about it, which is why I picked it up, but I got so mired down by all the content that at some point I just gave up.
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Real. I did get killed by a bear three times in a row, though things were pretty much smooth sailing after that.
I think starting the romances were the tricky part; you have to choose to see your RO during an Interlude maybe about 30% way through of the game. I did, however, have the option to start a romance with all four of them, which was pretty flattering, I admit.
Real! I was surprised with how much content there was. But, I dunno, I just treated it like I was actually a cowboy marshal: jaunter down this path, see what I can find. For the town management stuff, you don’t have to engage with it, if you don’t want to! But if you do, there’s no time management aspect, if you’re worried about that. You’re not “locked out” of visiting the blacksmith if you visit the gunsmith. Give it a reread in the future; you might enjoy it!
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Allen is lead writer on Burden of Command, a WWII-era turn-based tactics game with a lot of CoG/Twine-style interactive fiction (Paul Wang also wrote on the main campaign and I’ve contributed to the DLCs). He’s also recently released World War II Armored Recon, set in the same continuity as Burden.
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IMO, the big thing about actions having consequences is that those consequences should be things that happen to your character. If one of the consequences is “some of the characters feel underdeveloped”, that’s a thing that’s happening to you-the-reader instead of you-the-character and so that’s not a good consequence. On the other hand, something like “you never get particularly close to them so you don’t resolve their storyline and they get a bad epilogue” is a character consequence. Your character made choices that meant that they couldn’t help their teammate, so their teammate ends up in a bad spot. That’s fine.
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you reviewed the absolute classic that is tin star, so im going to recommend the other absolute classic that is choice of robots. those two are the duo of peak CoG products. other things id recommend in no order are:
. choice of rebels, very detailed game, but the winter section might be annoying and trying to read the code is akin to bearing witness to a lovecraftian entity
. zombie exodus, safe haven. one of the very first games i got really invested in so i got a lot of bias for it. very detailed mechanically, all without burdening the player too much (this might have changed in the newer chapters tho, depends on your taste)
. the lost heir. this was THE game alongside life of a wizard that got me into all this so i have immense bias for both, even tho im looking back now and realizing that objectively theyre probably not the best. still a fun time, especially with all the potential builds one could go for.
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I’m a weirdo who likes survival mechanics even in a engine with a ui that’s not really meant for them so I like the winter section, lucky for everyone else Have said that will be the most heavy management section for a while in the series. Also I add Fallen Hero to the list 
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How did I miss this?! Thank you! 
… I already bought it 
It’s in my backlog! I have high hopes; I really liked Kevin Gold’s Choice of Alexandria.
I have it on my wishlist! My only thing is that I tried the demo, and there was a lot of fantasy worldbuilding in the first few pages that confused me. I had no idea what was going on. I do want to take a crack at it, though.
DAWGGGGGG do not get me started on ZE! I fucking love it. I haven’t posted a review because I read it a while ago, but I remember the mechanics being PEAK. Plus, zombies.
By Mike Walter, Life of a Mobster? I’ll wishlist it, thanks for the great recs!
No, this is a perfect description. I’m starting to realize I really like survival mechanics or resource management too! Even though, like you said, the coding/engine must be a major pain in the ass. It’s funny, I thought IF was for narrative-focused works only, but I’ve read some really great games with survival mechanics. They’re not perfect—it can get repetitive or boring—but it scratches an itch in my brain.
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Can’t believe I’m reading these reviews for free. If you haven’t I hope you read/review Kyle Marquis’ works. Man’s a beast when it comes to writing.
Infinity Saga works so well for me with Paul’s knowledge when it comes to military and warfare. As for Kyle, he knows a lot more with whatever subject his stories contains. From Night Road’s cars, Empyrean’s planes, and Book of Hungry Names’ occult and computer science.
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Choice of Rebels is definitely something you should check out then. It rewards smart play in terms of resource management, one of the most ‘optimizable’ games out there. It’s also a really solid story and highly compelling world, but the mechanical fidelity stands out.
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Indeed. It’s a game where “building character” can be taken literally!
…I regret nothing.
But seriously, it’s a good one. Two major branches in the middle and four for the climactic chapter.
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Choice of Robots was a game-changer when it came out, and still the first CoG I recommend to anyone interested in trying out the app.
For my money, Kevin Gold, Kreg Segall, and Kyle Marquis are the most consistently brilliant writers we’ve got. Anything with their name on it is worth trying. 
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I’ve read and adored Night Road, like pretty much everyone else! Just wishlisted some of his other titles
Hmm, I get the feeling there’s a highly-regarded title I should play, but I can’t quite put my finger on it …
HARD agree, Joel!
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I should have been better at reading comprehension - I meant Choice of Robots as my recommendation, not Rebels. Though Rebels is good too!
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Tin Star is genuinely the game that made me want to write interactive fiction. Peak game, no notes, and thanks to whoever mentioned on the forum in passing that you could romance Preston…
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Fool!
By Ben Rovik
☆☆ (8/10)
What a lovely gem. Wow. Fool! is just pure fun. As you might imagine, you play as a fool. Not an idiot, no, but a real true court fool: a licensed troublemaker in motley, armed with wit instead of steel, free to say what everyone else is thinking and survive precisely because no one quite takes you seriously. You tumble through courtly intrigue, bad decisions, and sharp dialogue where you can become the Royal Family’s trusted advisor or stir up the rabble. While light on the romance, and with a slightly confusing stat system, Fool! is such a joy to read.
Pros:
Early Modern English/Shakespearean English. Not only is the style eye-catching, but Fool! is wonderfully written. My high school English teacher always me Shakespeare was meant to be said aloud instead of read. Now I understand why! Ben Rovik employs a slightly inverted sentence structure—verbs arriving late, clauses unfolding before their point becomes clear—which is just odd enough you’re forced to slow down and cherish the prose. As strange as it sounds, Rovik’s prose is downright musical. Long, winding clauses build momentum—then snap shut with a short, blunt phrase. Elevated diction stretches the line; a plainspoken or cynical ending cuts it clean. The vocabulary itself is tuned for sound. Early Modern English favors strong stresses, hard consonants, and vowel-heavy words. Alliteration, internal rhyme, and parallel phrasing show up constantly. Constantly!!!
For example, I’ve picked this paragraph for your reading pleasure. If you struggle with this paragraph, know the rest of the game is in this style, if not more dense"However, your father discovered that some quirk of moisture, minerals, and sunlight makes your acreage suited to bumper crops of deadly nightshade, crab’s eye, foxglove, and more of nature’s fatal foliage. Ever enterprising, he established your farm as the premier supplier of thoroughly toxic vegetation to all the nobly minded souls in the region with interest in such things: physicians, game hunters, and natural philosophers.When pressed on whether or not he was also likely supporting Brenton’s assassins, murderers, horse-thieves, and suicides, he was wont to answer, “Don’t mind who they are, long as their coins clink.” The clinking of coins being notably connected, of course, to salvation in the hereafter."
Plot balance. As one might imagine from a royal fool, you’ll have to deal with court gossip, politics from neighboring lands, and discontent. Each issue gets its own chapter(s) to shine, and every path given seems well-balanced. Some IFs sometimes show their hand by supporting revolution, but I’m glad I choose to play as a loyal monarchist and was rewarded for it.
Ape companion. Destiny truly is unpredictable. Tell me why I was traveling in a cart and adopted an ape because no one else wanted him. Tell me why I befinded this ape and taught him tricks! Tell me why I made him by best bud and taught him tricks.
Mixed:
Stat system. First, you have two main stat bars: Blood/Melancholy and Phlegm/Bile. These are explained with a sentence each. Second, there’s also five skills you have: Wit, Conditioning, Repertoire, Sagacity, or Stagecraft. Third, you have four bars for your Reputation: Renown, Knavery, Bawdiness, and Surety. The problem is these two stat systems aren’t explained. By the end of the game, I knew what Bawdiness was, but not if it had consequences to being high. Was it better to keep it low, completely? Additionally, the stat checks themselves are difficult to parse. Sometimes, I thought a choice would test my Wit, but it tested my Sagacity instead. Lastly, there’s a new bent to the aptitude system. While your skills determine success or failure, in some cases, your mood determines the overall outcome. So, if your attitude doesn’t align with what you say, it’ll color the action and could count as a fail, even if you have a high percentage. So for example, I have a high Blood stat over Melancholy. If during a check, I choose calm, stoic dialogue, I would fail because I have 60% Blood. It’s interesting! You may want to take stranger decisions just because they are “in-character” and therefore more likely to succeed. However, at times I did feel constrained. It doesn’t help I wasn’t certain what each choice would check.
Cons:
Not recommend for beginners. I adore the dialect, but the Shakespearean English may be off putting at times. The medieval dialect is a little hard to understand sometimes, but it really helps with immersion. I personally had to look up quite a few words, and even the good ole context clues didn’t help much.
Little/confusing romance. I’m still not sure how many romance options there technically are. Four, perhaps. I romance Aubrey, a maid, and it was fine? We exchanged banter, kisses, and hurried rendezvous, but that was literally it. No character development, no actual talking, just … some click to romance buttons. There’s also Tom Fletcher, the male equivalent, who works as a stablehand or blacksmith of some sort. There was one introduction scene with him, and he pretty much disappeared from the narrative. There’s Gwendell, your rival, but the lock-in point of the romance comes rather late. And finally, my biggest problem, Prinxe Hail. I had a high relationship with them. I impressed them after their argument with the king, and choose to run away with them, even! So when trying to kiss them twice, I got rejected—both times! What the hell? It was in a very humiliating way, as well. This is not a game where being rejected is an interesting narrative or design choice; it just feels like somehow I chose the “wrong” option (while somehow having a high relationship).
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I see this is a very humorous game.
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