Review scoopings 3/5 · Mar 31, 2022
Another Tedious Text Adventure, But Interesting And Well-Done
Play: 7/10 Wow, gotta love these more advanced parsers. One of the main things getting me to still play text adventures. Plus, they seem to be realizing they need to stand out more and be more innovative with each one. And this one certainly is innovative. You control a set of robots that basically represent the senses, as you try …
Play: 7/10 Wow, gotta love these more advanced parsers. One of the main things getting me to still play text adventures. Plus, they seem to be realizing they need to stand out more and be more innovative with each one. And this one certainly is innovative. You control a set of robots that basically represent the senses, as you try to keep as many humans alive above ground as possible.
On a space settlement named Contra, a human being serves as a regulator for the planet's vital systems: he controls transportation, weather, and manages resources all while being in a deep sleep, through the neural power of his brain. Such a regulator is called Central Mentality. However, after five hundred years of stasis, the current Central Mentality suddenly awakens, greatly troubled by reports of computer malfunctioning and resulting problems in weather condition, food production, and transport. He must now act, and act quickly: the crew members assumed that he has gone insane, and are coming to disconnect his mind. But what can he do if his state of suspended animation prevents him from moving?
Suspended is a text adventure game with a twist: instead of navigating the protagonist, the player indirectly controls six robots that do his bidding, exploring the environment and interacting with it. Each robot has different functions and has its own way of seeing reality and reacting to events around it. Iris is the only robot that can see and therefore visually describe locations and objects; Whiz can provide technical information obtained from computers; the sonar-powered Waldo is good at holding items; Auda is an expert in sounds; the cryptically speaking Poet senses the flow of electric currents; finally, Sensa can detect magnetic and photon emissions. The player advances in the game by using the different abilities of the robots and solving puzzles.
What could be tedious, is relieved by the facts a) it's innovative and b) it's surprisingly logical for an ostensibly convoluted text adventure. I figured this would be one of those games where it's better on paper/in concept than reality. Only got a bit tedious near the end dealing with the different inch cables etc etc., even just typing that out was a headache! Heh
Feel: 8/10 This could have been cool with graphics, but I suppose it wouldn't make much sense given the premise and Iris' role etc heh. Still, could've been cool, cuz I love those Apple II colors and graphics. I love love love the Poet's ontologically dramatic comments about the state of being. And the way you "control" catastrophes is just fun and interesting. What a well-executed "big idea" for a game: usually they fall very flat for this era. Sometimes it pays to stick to the basics like with realizing this big idea with text adventure gameplay. Only got a bit
Attachment: 7/10 Welp, I wound up having to use a guide to truly finish the game, but I had fun playing it for a good 30-45 minutes blind and trying to solve things on my own ha. Brilliant yet logical; classic yet innovative; expansive yet tackle-able. I love it! So epic and cool you get the Reset Code, and just all around memorable. Even if text adventures wont be one of my go-to genres to play for fun or for get-togethers, this will definitely be one I don't forget! And on the list of ones to replay.
Completion: 100% Playtime: ~1 hour 30 mins