Does “unknown” mean we had never heard of the game, or that we hadn’t played it?
For the quiet play period, I’m going to pick the titles I would be the least likely to click on and start there. One from each division. So, the things that look-- just from their titles-- the least interesting to me.
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The games I hadn’t played before this competition are The Abbey, The Lost Labyrinth of Lazaitch, Over Here!, Sand-Dancer, Dr. Dumont’s Wild P.A.R.T.I.
I hadn’t heard of Over Here! or Dr. Dumont’s Wild P.A.R.T.I. before this competition, but had some vague idea of the others listed above before.
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I’m going to make an effort to get through all of these in time to vote on them in round 1, though I won’t promise to play them all as thoroughly as I’d play a comp game that I was rating if the matchup isn’t a close call.
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I meant to type “completely unknown,” as in “had never even heard of it.”
It’s not possible to change a poll question without deleting the poll, so it will have to stay as-is. However, you ask a good question, so…
How many of the competing games had you played (for at least five minutes) before the tournament?
- 0 - 8
- 9 - 16
- 17 - 24
- 25 - 32
- 33 - 40
- 41 - 48
- 49 - 56
- 57 - 64
0
voters
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For “what games do you play during the quiet period?”, I answered most interesting. For me, those are the ones that have been on my playlist for a (long) while, but I never actually played: Everybody Dies, Alabaster, Tales from Castle Balderstone, A Change in the Weather, Lime Ergot, All Things Devours, First Things First, To Hell in a Hamper, The Moonlit Tower, and Scroll Thief. (There’s a complete overlap here with “games that I have played for at least 5 minutes (but not to completion)”.)
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There are 5 games on the total list that I had never heard of: A Trial, Winter Storm Draco, Over Here, The End Means Escape, and Please Answer Carefully.
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I have played, or at least taken a peak at, 46 of the games on the list, 36 of which I have played to completion.
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Oh, you’re in for a treat! At least if you like zany puzzlefests…
I loved this one so much I posted about how great it is before I even got to the end. Cannot wait until review; must praise this now!
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A factoid about the contestants: how they break out by system.
SYSTEM #
----------- --
Inform 6 24
Inform 7 19
Twine 6
TADS 2 5
Adventuron 3
custom 2
Inform 5 2
ADRIFT 5 1
Ink 1
multiple 1
The same data including all 105 candidates:
SYSTEM #
----------- --
Inform 7 33
Inform 6 32
Twine 12
TADS 2 9
Adventuron 5
custom 2
Inform 5 2
multiple 2
Quest 2
ADRIFT 5 1
AGT 1
iffinity 1
Ink 1
TADS 3 1
Undum 1
The various iterations of Inform cover a full 70% of the contestants, and somewhat less (64%) of candidates. The bulk of multiply-nominated candidates were in one of these, though.
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The actual contestant games aren’t listed in this thread, I don’t think?
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Just the first eight so far. I’ve added links for each introduced game to the top post and will keep it updated as mathbrush adds more each week.
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Special case: To Hell in a Hamper was made in three to four different development systems, first Adrift 4 
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That’s one of the games categorized as “multiple”; the other was Moondrop Isle.
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Ok, I understand now 
The Legend of Horse Girl was a delight. Thank you to its anonymous nominator!
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I’ve been weaving and winding my way along a bunch of different strands in the intricately woven web that is Alabaster. Impressive amount of miniature stories in there!
I got overwhelmed at first by the sheer breadth of the topic-tree. It got better once I dedicated myself to one particular line of conversation per playthrough. Really good piece.
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I finished Inevitable today (yes, I nominated it before doing so). It’s a hard game with no walkthrough anywhere so I’m going to write up some invisiclues for it.
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Wonderful game! Thanks for nominating it.
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Welcome, new PCT Fan Lionstooth!
New fans can sign up via the PCT Fans page at any time. (Just click the “Join” button at top right.) We still have seven weeks of the “quiet play” period before matches begin.
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I read/played Heretic’s Hope back in 2020. Not being used yet to choice-games, I probably gave in to an overly hasty click-hunger that prevented me from diving deep into the narrative.
Having just replayed the first chapter now, it’s clear that I will have to adjust my appreciation for this game (and add a star to its rating to reflect that).
The part I have just played offers a slow introduction to a strange society, gentle nods to your character’s background and possible development. The sudden change of the role of the PC within that society provides an engaging narrative hook for the tension to be explored in the following chapters.
I’ll replay the entire piece to arrive at a fair comparison with Tapestry, one of the earliest IF games I played, and one that I have fond memories of.
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Posted: Invisiclues and map for Inevitable (2003)
…including coverage of the chemistry puzzle in possibly more detail than the author ever conceived it.
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