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A jam submission

Quirky Test (TALP)View game page

Submission for TALP 2025 in Adventuron
Submitted by Andrew Schultz (@anandrewschultz) — 1 hour, 1 minute before the deadline
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Quirky Test (TALP)'s itch.io page

Results

CriteriaRankScore*Raw Score
Implementation#24.0004.000
Writing#34.0004.000
Documentation#33.8183.818
Beginner-friendliness#43.2733.273
Overall#43.6213.621
Puzzles#43.6363.636
Story#63.0003.000

Ranked from 11 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.

Have you written a text adventure before?

Yes

What programming language/authoring system did you use to write this game?
Adventuron

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Comments

Submitted(+1)

I played the game and I liked it, although I needed to use the walkthrough towards the end since I couldn't figure out how to use the inventory. It was the first time I encountered a game where items are automatically put, retrieved, and somewhat combined without direct interaction. Once you get used to it, it works out well, although I had struggled with the word play since I'm not a native speaker.

Developer(+1)

Thanks! I'm always flattered when people whose first language is not English give my stuff a try.

I figured people had enough words to guess without having to figure verbs for the objects too. Though I have enjoyed the entries in this jam (yours included) that have you use a variety of (well clued) verbs to get through.

I really struggled to play this one. I recognised the Adventuron engine but I could not figure out what to do other than 'examine me' and go 'west'. 

I didn't understand where the time travel theme was.

Developer

Sorry to read of your struggles. Hopefully tutorial mode worked better.

The time travel theme was only a suggestion. I had this idea for a while and am grateful the organizer was okay with letting me run with it.

HostSubmitted(+1)

Andrew's game is the most recent in a series of games he's written that rely on word play. You can use conventional two-word input consisting of a verb and a noun, but most of the "puzzles" rely on you recognising Spoonerisms and entering them in place of a normal command. In case you're not familiar with Spoonerisms, this is where the morphemes of two words are switched to create two new words. The first few locations provide plenty of hints that lead to this idea. For example:

* name less -> lame ness

* ooh task -> to ask

* rare thing -> there ring

* veering choice -> cheering voice

* whoa guest -> go west

All you have to do is type the new words to gain points. Some of the Spoonerisms require you to have solved previous ones before they are accepted. So, if a Spoonerism doesn't work in one location, come back and try it later after solving some of the others. The hints are there, but they may be quite subtle. Once you get the hang of it, it's quite fun.