Reviews for Playing With Letters

[PieceOPi]

It was a fun game. I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll try to be careful but am willing to remove the review if I reveal something I shouldn't.

The atmosphere was simple, but used to great effect. 5 stars there. Even the fact that the words appeared slowly added to the suspense--and this is from someone who abhors that effect.

I like Noel's mocking tone. He writes in one of the letters that the detective almost caught him, though of course you can't believe him. Nobody takes the time to write "AHHHhhhh!" so to speak.

The first puzzle was by far the hardest for me because I thought that part of the clue was one of those red herrings that the intro mentioned. Incidentally, were there any red herrings?

The "riddle me this" answer is a bit odd, considering that the question is "what do I like" rather than "what am I?" The confusion is in changing what "I" stands for.

Lastly, the fire in the alternate ending doesn't make much sense--where did it come from, if you assume that what the perp is trying to portray is really what happened.

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Heh, I'm pretty sure you can't actually remove reviews on Newgrounds without asking the staff or something like that, but don't worry. It's fine.

The atmosphere is one of the most important things I look for in a game of this genre, so it's good to hear that I succeeded in creating a good one myself. I get that the slow text can be irritating, but I think it adds to the mood, and that is also the reason why there are two separate kinds of fast forwarding buttons.

The mocking tone is very intentional. Ironically, there is a spelling mistake in one of the letters. Kinda drags down on his image, now doesn't it, hehhe. I think I'll reveal more of their past interactions in the sequel (which will take a long time to come out).

I knew from the start that the first puzzle would be the hardest for most people. Not only because the concept is still new, but also because it leaves you with little to work with. But I had to use it as the first puzzle, for everything to make sense.
I figured the red herring reference in the description might lead to some confusion. But I decided that that is fine, as that is exactly what red herrings are all about. The red herrings are the single letters that are in most letters, but don't actually have much to do with the puzzle themselves. I can't reveal more here of course, for reasons.

I understand your point about the riddle; it is a valid one. I did think about it though! I didn't want to use "what is", instead of "I am". It is commonly understood that the "I" in a riddle isn't necessarily referring to something living. It's also clear that whether the question was there or not, the objective is to solve the riddle.

I think that saying the fire doesn't make much sense isn't fair, precisely because you don't know where it's coming from. If you knew where it came from, but it was unlogical, then you might say it. But as you don't know, it may have (and has) a perfectly good reason for being there. More about this in the sequel though ;)

Thanks for the review! You focused on some things that hadn't been mentioned before, so nice catches!

[GermanSpy8814]

I admit I did struggle on the last puzzle and I knew what the clues were to solve it it still gave quite the challenge. Wonderful work and a great game! Incredible atmosphere, thrilling engaging soundtrack and a fine balance between mystery and horror. I've been looking for a game like this for quite sometime! Kudos to you and your wonderful work man. Definitely sharing this with like minded friends.

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Congrats on beating the game!
It's great that all the elements of the game pleased you. Thank you for complimenting them! A balance between mystery and horror was precisely what I was going for, especially with the soundtrack :D
I'm happy to hear that my game is what you've been searching for. I always keep my eyes open to psychological puzzle games as well.
Thank you for sharing this with your friends!!

[raechilli]

Great Puzzling. The most difficult for me was when I thought the "Z" for moving on was a "2"... but it's because I didn't read the instructions well. Shame on me.

Really enjoyed both the gameplay and the story. Very creepy, the riddles are legitimate for the characters and the alternate ending... :D

Thanks! Great game!

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Hahha, yeah. My bad XD
The font isn't the easiest to read. I actually made it myself a bit more than a year ago.

It's good to hear that the atmosphere and the characters worked for you. Congratulations on beating the game, and thank you for playing :3

[Yanisolarie]

I love good text-based games and this is certainly no exception. The first 'real' level was kind of a face palm moment for me because I was really overcomplicating it. Glad I managed to figure it out because after ten minutes of not understanding how to solve the puzzle I was beginning to feel stupid.

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

There's no shame in that. Before you're used to the concept and the game, you kind of don't know what to start looking for.
Thanks for playing and reviewing! :D

[xPaleRiderx]

This is an excellent text based game.
Games like this are a rare breed, so I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge and word play.
Well done.
I definitely hope you make more like it down the road, because I think your onto something good here :D
Keep up the great work!

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Thanks xPaleRiderx!
I'm glad to hear you enjoyed the game. As so many people seem to have liked it, I'm sure I'll eventually make more! :D