Time to clear out some clutter!
After the lack of new titles last time, we've actually got too dang many this time. Four titles that showed up seemingly out of nowhere, and a fifth that hasn't been sitting around for too long so I'm letting it chill while the rest can be visible on the front page for a bit.
Most of the new material comes from Vacek, who made his first release in the last community game jam, and now has taken an interest in the longstanding tradition of finding some weird quirks of ZZT and coming up with ways to turn that into something for gameplay. So we get a few creative mini games that are ideal for playing in the browser right away.
And of course, the usual mishmash of new finds. Some wrasslin', some pukin', and then some stuff that personally held my interest a bit better on the streams.
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“The Wrath of the Color Eraser” by Vacek (2024)
A mini game that takes advantage of the color of empty spaces left behind when destroying a breakable wall. Blast your way through an ever-changing screen, making sure your selected color matches the wall you're aiming for. Fail to do so, and suffer the Color Eraser's wrath!
“The Teleported Ruffian Puzzle” by Vacek (2024)
Whack-a-Ruffian in this unusual mini game that challenges your reflexes while demonstrating a strange quirk of ZZT's priorities that allow the player to push an enemy rather than be harmed by it!
“The Case of the Banged-Up Banana Truck” by Ezektiel Ewell (2024)
Your banana truck has broken down in every meaningful way. Flat tire. Cracked windshield. Overheated engine. Empty gas tank. Your job is to get it fixed. Explore. Get past a number of unusual obstacles along the side of the road, and perhaps you can make it to work on time.
“Into the Forest I Go” by Snorb (2024)
A pleasant trip through the forest, with interaction of interesting-looking objects encouraged! Snorb's submission to the DOS Games July 2024 Jam. Explore a colorful forest across through the various seasons.
“Warlock's Unfinished Games” by Warlock93
A collection of unfinished games in various states of playability. See the stream description for more details.
Of note though are Baillios, a game about a sleepover with kidnapped friends that need to be found around the Baillios family residence that's filled with comic books, SNES games, and other things this real life friend group was into at the time. In addition, Fun In Jazz which brings the same group together again at their local high school where you get another glimpse into their lives with a very nice looking band room.
Also Sleuth! A ZZT port of the DOS game that only offers one fixed game, but is a lot of fun to try and piece together the clues, even if I'm too inept to do so.
“Joel's World 7 & 8” by Joel M. Smith (1999)
The eagerly awaiting missing sequels of the Joel's World series. These two cap things off with the series at its best, with a strange murder mystery where you travel the world in search of evidence of killings, and then a Zelda-inspired finale with an overworld to explore and enemies from children's TV programming. (No Barney!)
“WWF” by Denny Brown (1994)
It's a Royal Rumble with a number of early 90s pro wrestlers as depicted on the title screen. A single screen uh shooting game that invites you to take on the Hulkster, Bret Hart, Lex Luger, and the Quebeckers. Features the greatest "I don't know how to use #endgame" game over screen I've ever seen.
“WWF Warrior's Rage” by Jason Gironimi
Another wrestling game that wants to be a little more involved, but struggles to communicate its ideas. Players see a number of rooms with ruffians and lions, but the board titles hint at parking lots, locker rooms, and rings that you're wrestling in.
“WWF King of the Ring (Incomplete)” (1995)
An incomplete wrestling title, but don't fret! You can still become King of the Ring in this alternate release.
“My World (v1.2)” (1994)
A "my first game" kind of game. Harass a tree and get sent to the desert, or just go to the desert of your own accord. Fight the usual giant centipede, deal with a ring of lions, and then have the final board be unreachable because its yellow border blocks entry. Not that the boss is able to move in the forest even if you could get there.
A surprising number of objects for a game of this style though. Enough that I was interested to see how the sequel would go.
“My World 2” by Jago360, Jesse Murphy (1997)
A notable improvement that still has the aesthetic of figuring out what you can do with ZZT. A dark maze title screen brings players to a cruel zoo which I have no tolerance for. That poor elephant!
Then you adventure through a mix of boards with creatures to shoot (now in more sensible numbers) and some simple boulder/slider puzzles as well as boards that are just the author trying to create whatever is on their mind with little regard for gameplay. This ends up working pretty well though, providing reason to care about getting past creatures when it means visiting M&M palace, Pizza Hut, tennis courts, and more!
“Puke's World” by Firehawk (1998)
The start of a trilogy of gross-out humor games. After finding yourself flushed down the toilet and landing in a water park, you need to make the most of your day before your demonic mother arrives to take you home. Plenty of toilet humor and being a little brat to underpaid employees, but even for fans of the style, there's more than its share of jokes that are rather... dated today.
“Puke's World 2” by Firehawk (1998)
More of the same. Find your brother and beat up some thugs. Jokes about sticky computers, marijuana, and dated ideas about gender! A true relic.
“Puke's World 3” by Firehawk (1998)
The incomplete final chapter. You can pet the cat. (I am shocked there's no "pussy" joke.) You can get run over by a car. Fitting.
