I set out to make a game that told a story and explored the idea of the sentient typewriter. I feel that the game that I made accomplished this well and did show a good story, however, if I were to continue working on this game I would continue trying to further explore the idea of the sentient typewriter and expand it a bit more.
A few times I got stuck while trying to think of where to take the story from where I was at that point; giving myself a break and writing ideas down as they came to me naturally throughout the day helped my creativity to flow.
The puzzles in my game are getting information from the NPCs, using NPC clues to find an object in an unlikely place, and mixing two things together to make a new object (mixed ink). The NPCs are solvable by asking them logical questions about the topics you need information about. For example, you could ask Mrs Bloom about “purple ink” and she would respond with the information you need. The player finds the shiny red clock by using clues from the typewriter. In order to make the mixed ink, the player must learn how to mix the ink from NPCs and must also be given the supplies by NPCs in order to combine the two components of the puzzle (the ink and the spoon).
The game is not easy to solve so the player is constantly failing. The failure dynamic is in play very often in this game because the player will continually fail but won’t be penalized for failing so they’ll keep playing until they don’t fail. Players also have to use logic and think creatively in order to solve puzzles which many people find fun to do.
Lee-Won and a former teacher of mine who wasn’t familiar with Inform beta tested my game. They provided me with a lot of information, such as what a lot of players think is a logical way to solve puzzles in a game or different ways a player might interpret a clue. I was able to use this information to really improve my game and make it more enjoyable for many more people.
I beta tested Lee-Won’s game and was able to show her what it was like to play the game without already knowing which rooms to go into or what objects to examine. By seeing me play the game without knowing what would happen, Lee-Won was able to make her game more playable for people besides her herself.
I’m most proud of how many synonyms and alternative phrases I coded in my game. I’m proud of how people who beta tested my game didn’t have to keep trying different ways of phrasing an idea because I had already coded in their interpretation.
Next time I would spend more time making more complex puzzles as well as experimenting with purchasing things with currency. I’d be really interested in expanding this game in my free time and adding in another puzzle where the player must earn money and buy items for the typewriter.