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| Another game, another serial number |
| Quick Info | |
|---|---|
| Reviewed by: | Mark Goninon |
| Developer: | Infocom |
| Publisher: | Infocom |
| Release Date: | 8 Jul 1983 |
| Time played: | 3 hours (2 hours for 1 playthrough) |
A Good Place to Start... Or is it?
As I continue to explore the early 80s in my backlog, I have stumbled across yet another Infocom interactive fiction (IF) game. It's not Zork though, but in fact a sci-fi IF game called Planetfall. This is the first game developed by the renowned Steve Meretzky, and he would go on to develop many games that are considered classics such as The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (with Douglas Adams), A Mind Forever Voyaging, Leather Goddesses of Phobos and Spellcasting (with Legend Entertainment). While I never played his earlier games, I did experience ones he developed in the 90s under Legend Entertainment including the aforementioned Spellcasting as well as Frederik Pohl's Gateway (which he apparently assisted with, but wasn't a main designer).
Reception for the game was generally positive claiming it was an "excellent" and "funny" adventure and what I was most glad to see was Computer Gaming World's claim that it was "a good place to start for those new to interactive fiction". Not that I'm by any means "new" to interactive fiction, but those that played interactive fiction back in its heyday were made of sterner stuff, which I'm definitely not! It meant I might actually have a chance at finishing this game without a walkthrough!
Boy was I wrong.
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| Famous franchises are referenced in Planetfall |
Sins of the (Interactive Fiction) Fathers
I am playing the GOG version of the game that is included as part of The Zork Anthology. While there are a few digital "feelies" included in this pack, it seems to be missing anything Planetfall related; most importantly, it's missing the manual. Sometimes the game manuals provide helpful hints. For example, the other day, after reading a comment left by a reader on this website, I was made aware that the solution to the "hello sailor" puzzle in Zork III is much easier to figure out if you've read the Zork manuals.
Not that any of that would've mattered in the end since it seems that Planetfall suffers from the same flaws that are commonplace in early interactive fiction and adventure games: hidden items, hidden exits and hidden sentences. To be more specific, the game has instances where looking in an area won't reveal every item that you can acquire (i.e. hidden items), nor will it mention all exits available (i.e. hidden exits). The parser is also not always forgiving either, requiring you to use specific verbs and grammar in order to accomplish certain tasks.
Not to mention early interactive fiction and adventures relied on RNGesus during certain sequences (usually combat) but thankfully, these moments are rare, especially in Planetfall.
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| It became apparent that I was going to need more than a map to solve this one |
After fumbling around for about 30 minutes, I eventually decided to give the Universal Hint System (UHS) ago and after spending another 30 minutes playing and coming across a puzzle I would have never figured out (even with lots of time and trial and error), I realised I would need a walkthrough. And that's usually the tipping point for me: when a puzzle is not solvable without a huge leap in logic or what would normally take several hours of trial and error, typing as many random commands into the parser that you can imagine.
If you're ever looking for an example of an interactive fiction game done right, check out Thaumistry: In Charm's Way by Bob Bates. It shows that you can make a great interactive fiction game that can appeal to modern audiences.
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| If you've read about Planetfall, you've probably heard about Floyd, your robot sidekick |
Sci-Fi So Good
But what of the story itself? Is it any better than Zork? Well, I think so. Not by leaps and bounds mind you, the great Underground Empire of Zork is definitely a wacky and unique setting, but being a fan of sci-fi makes Planetfall a more appealing and familiar setting to get my teeth into. In fact, playing the role of a janitor fleeing an exploding spaceship and crash landing on an alien planet reminds me of another game that came out a few years later called Space Quest. And no, for those of you, like me, who thought somehow the Guys from Andromeda (Mark Crowe and Scott Murphy) were somehow inspired by Planetfall, according to this interview, apparently they were not.
As I played the game further, exploring the ruins of a previous civilisation and discovering what fate had become it, kept me engaged. A blatant Douglas Adams reference also didn't go astray but the best addition to the game, the one you'd probably hear everyone raving on about in reviews of the time, is the robot sidekick Floyd. Now, while many sci-fi games nowadays have endearing robot sidekicks (Beneath a Steel Sky and Primordia are two that immediately spring to mind) I'm guessing Planetfall was a bit of a pioneer in this area. Not only does he make the usual exploration of an interactive fiction game a less lonely experience but there is a truly touching scene later in the game too, which again makes it stand out from the rest.
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I found Planetfall's sci-fi setting a more appealing one to Zork and exploring the ruins of a forgotten civilisation with a plucky robot sidekick, is a refreshing change of pace. However, the game still suffers many of the usual tropes of early interactive fiction such as hidden items, hidden exits and hidden sentences, so if you didn't grow up on these kind of titles, you're probably better off playing it with a walkthrough, which of course takes a lot of fun out of figuring puzzle solutions for yourself. |
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