This was a WILD read and a lot of fun. The murder mystery is a classic, and I just love the aesthetics of an old luxurious mansion being inexplicably the interior of a very important colony ship running with a skeleton crew.

The personal drama of the characters, the nonstop escalating new revelations, the insane way things start escalating more and more once shit starts hitting the fan... I feel like the author had a lot of fun setting it all up, and that bled into my enjoyment of reading it too.

My reading group had a lot of fun guessing who's the murderer, and while we couldn't predict the exact way the plot will go bananas later, I'm proud to say that we did get parts of it right.

I think the latter half with the revelations felt weaker than the initial setup, but my brain was already so fried at that point that I was ready for anything. The wrapping up of all loose ends is messy, and some just unceremoniously fade into the background (Jamboree kinda gives up on doing anything in the story, especially if you don't pursue the USB stick plotline).

The messiest parts are all related to player agency. This goes for the generally tangled USB thread, and the choice of renaming the player, having a little completely separate (and inferior) branch as opposed to keeping him named as Conway is a baffling addition. Maybe I just dislike it because it deprives you of Conway's game of life, adapted into Ren'py for no reason other than to flex and make me cry at night??? Who just casually makes something like this in a game jam 😭

On the opposite end, I think that denying the player of a choice during the final scene (well there IS a choice, but I don't mean that one) is a strong choice. All characters already made up their mind, and standing firm and not indulging the player makes for a more impactful final punch.

 Insane minigame aside, I was in love with the presentation and little animations used. The dramatic scene transitions whenever a big revelation happens, the careful positioning of everyone around the dinner table, the peeking through the keyhole, or Rowan approaching through the hallway... All very fun visuals that made the experience even more fun.

Any issues I have with this entry are completely overshadowed by how much pure, unadulterated FUN I had reading it.