Reviews of the 2004 “C32” Z-Code Competition

     To give weight to my ratings, and to avoid top-heavy score distribution as found in my IF Comp '04 reviews, I decided to score the best game a 10, the next best a 9, and so forth, with the bottom game still getting a respectable 5. In theory, it was a good idea. In reality, I found it difficult to rank three of the games (coincidentally, the three I beta-tested). At least one of the six scores lower than it deserves. Another scores significantly higher. But, rather than claim that I made no such judging decisions, I have also listed the "unofficial" score. This is the score I would have given based on my scoring guidelines for IF Comp '04, and as such, I opted to go for half-points again. The real score, in bold in the right-most column, is the score I submitted to the contest.

     Above, the games are listed twice. First, they are shown in the order created for me by the C32.Z5 contest front-end. For three of the games, this meant playing and reviewing in order. For those I beta-tested, this meant playing again, and working my thoughts into a review. Next, they are in order by rank, with official scores appearing in the last column. To see all reviews on a single page, visit my C32 Comp Review journal. Otherwise, access each review individially using the links above.

     The competition was a blast for me -- from helping test three of the entries, to playing the others, to writing the reviews. I highly recommend the top four games, and I would recommend the fifth if the author works to improve it for a follow-up release. Congrats to every author, and good luck to each in ranking highly when the votes are counted.

     Bonus: Here are links to other reviews of the C32 Competition games.
     Enjoy! Dave Bernazzani | PJ | Jason Dyer | Dan Shiovitz | Jimmy Maher