Overview
The Summer 1999 24 Hours of ZZT contest was held on June 25th, 1999. The competition was hosted by Misteroo, who had won the the previous 24HoZZT. Participants were given 24 hours to create a ZZT game which was in some way related to the topic of Space. 36 entries were received*, and then rated by Misteroo and three of the four other volunteers who took on the role of judge.
This event was not only the most successful 24HoZZT yet by the number of submissions, but would go on to hold that title throughout the competition's lifespan. More than twice as many entries were received than in previous events! Whether this was due to a well received topic, a natural result of the competition's increasing popularity, effective promotion, or just plain dumb luck remains a mystery.
The original scores are available. Sort of...
While the contest was quite successful for the participants, the judging process was more much fraught. A text file containing the judge's scores only contains feedback from four of the five judges. Many games are missing scores, commentary, or both. Some judges appear to have judged a game which is not included in the release. A game referred to as "ebb" by the first judge, and a game credited to an author "ar9matt" scored by judges two and three. This is presumably the same game, but given the missing data for preserved entries, it can't be guaranteed.
Most likely the game is a junk entry that was disqualified, though even its mediocre scores are considerably higher than the 0s and 1s typically given to such games. These orphaned scores are shown below in the order they appear in the original text file.
cute concept, but it just... doesn't work in the 24hozzt.
wtf?
Another mystery is coolzx's entry which is not included in the zipfile. The reason is straightforward enoguh, multiple judges noted that the entry they received was Redcoats, his entry from the previous 24 Hours of ZZT event. This is most likely a mistake when compiling entries on the host's side. More pessimistically, coolzx may have sent in the wrong file by mistake and never have been given the opportunity to correct it. Again, some of the judges reviewed it regardless.
anyone reminded of the winter 24hozzt?
it was a good game... for the other 24hozzt. nothing about the topic, though. why did he resend it..?
... space? oh well... anyway, the engines were decent, but quite annoying, and the graphics were ok.
Then, there's also a seeming discrepency in the scores when averaged from the text file suggests that Knightt's Stupid RPG Episode 2 should have received first place, with Koopo's Spaze Invaders in second which conflicts with the top three entries as listed on the Interactive Fantasies 24HoZZT archive. The text file is missing a 4th score for Stupid RPG. More complete judging must have happened at some point, which remains lost.
Evidence that Spaze Invaders was indeed the winner comes from Knightt himself who wound up hosting the next 24HoZZT. Its webpage conveniently mentions losing to Koopo thanks to a score by HM of an 8.3, the missing score from the text file. This has allowed the identity of one of the judges to be settled.
Judges
- Misteroo
- HM
- Lemmer
- Skullie
- Tseng
Scores
Click a heading in the tables below to sort by that field. Filename links will open the file the in the Museum's File Viewer. Title links will jump to the entry descriptions found later in the article. Authors and companies will lead to directories of other ZZT releases credited to them.
Official Results
This results table has had its scores compiled from the data present in the original text file, save for the lone addition of the missing 4th score for Stupid RPG Episode 2, which identifies that judge as HM.
Dr. Dos's Rankings
This contest is covered in volumes 17 through 24 of the 24 Hours To Go series. Each entry was ranked relative to one another on a tier list to provide a modern perspective on the entries.
Hercules and Hydra's Scores
Hercules and Hydra of Interactive Fantasies maintained their own personal scores for the contest's entries. These scores provide an alternate viewpoint to the official scores. Hercules politely did not rate his own submission.
Entry Information
Attack of the Cyan Pi From Space by Masamune
The pi be attacking Washington! President Bob has asked Mr. Smiley for help. Kill them all!
Two boards of shooting tigers. One board of discovering Canada's involvement.
Judges' Remarks
alright, masa, you got what you wanted. /me points to the score.
intentionally bad, but amusing enough to keep me from giving it a one.
No comment provided.
uhm. yes. of course.
Attack of the ZZOwlboy II: Owlz in Space by ZZBlue
A short game about the author attempting to destroy the galaxy via black hole. You play as a space cop to stop him, getting launched into space via catapult, boarding his space station, finding a big gun, and then confronting ZZBlue.
Not actually a lot to do. The space station sequence is quite sparse, and rather than resolve the confrontation, the game sets up a sequel that never happened instead.
Judges' Remarks
short. although, the graphics are decent.
the slingshot bit is the funniest thing i've seen in a 24hozzt. Really.
OWWWWLZ IN SPAAAACE
too short, really, and there's nothing really special to warrant that.
Beyond The Clouds by Hercules
Shuari Hyilos spends an evening stargazing. According to those on his planet Urapok, the stars are the people's ancestors, but Shuari thinks there must be more to it than that. He wishes there was some way to beyond the clouds.
On his way home, he notices a strange flower. Stopping to smell it, he then feels lightheaded and soon finds himself falling asleep on the spot. There he dreams of ascending into the sky, reaching space, and landing on another planet. All is not well on this planet however, and he soon finds himself using his pistol to shoot alien creatures.
He wakes up contemplating the meaning of the dream and wondering if there truly is more out there beyond the clouds.
A nice departure from the usual setups of these games, Beyond The Clouds has a unique premise, a number of good looking art boards, and an underwhelming amount of action that feels a bit misplaced in a game about a philosopher's dream.
Judges' Remarks
very nice graphics, i'll give you that. but it's short, and there's very little interactivity.
nice graphics, but it was a little too short.
a very good effort. it was definitely on topic, and the plot was great. a few very minor problems, though.
waaaaay to short. the graphics get it a decent mark.
Cheezy Space ¡Game! by r0b0vine
Robovine opts for an engine-focused game, giving players their choice of several missions to defeat bad guys in space before unlocking a finale. You get Space Invaders, a free-roaming shooting engine where you steer your ship and have to protect freight, and a gunner defense mission where you need to shoot down missiles.
The engines are okay, but the lack of any real story make it hard to get attached to.
The final mission is a run and gun action sequence with an RPG battle to cap things off. The ending is a bummer, though the author then reveals that there is a secret ending to found, which requires players do some really arbitrary actions like touching a locked door ten times.
Judges' Remarks
some nice graphics, and a decent engine…
the rpg engine is surprisingly unbugged, and i like the mission concept.
ehn.
nice engines. functional, but hardly spectacular graphics.
destiny by blazer/gchucky
A ZZT community-oriented game revolving around the aftermath of a netsplit on IRC. Like many meta titles, the IRC channel (#darkdigital here) is depicted as a physical space chatters visit. When the netsplit divides the channel into two, the newbies must band together to survive while in the original channel the oldbies are mostly celebrating the exile of the noobs.
Gameplay involves putting out fires in the channel with a fire extinguishing engine, searching for ZZTer voidght in a dumpster with a dumpster diving engine, and of course an RPG engine so that the newbies can fight voidght and Viovis.
This game makes a very unusual decision for a 24HoZZT game, including a custom font for the game to be played with. The changes are fairly modest outside of alphanumeric characters. It's unclear if the font was created for the competition or used one that was already developed. The former suggests a curious use of limited time.
The game itself is a nice time capsule of IRC culture of the era. The engines aren't the most compelling, but they are all very different from you usually get in community games, giving them some points for originality.
Judges' Remarks
the zeux joke sucks. never was funny, never will be. and, the font was unnecessary. and you guys (chuck, blazer) kept begging me for points.
what the hell was the point of the font?
another mayhem movie.
neato graphics and font, and nifty story (tho it gets a bit old after several dozens of these games…)
Empty Space!!! by anerki
At first glance, another game making fun of newbie tropes. However, once you get past the yellow bordered room filled with tigers, Afterwards, it gets more comedic thanks in particular to an amazing art board showing a ZZT player emerging from a toilet.
Judges' Remarks
i don't know who made this, but i'd like to kill him/her/it.
No comment provided.
No comment provided.
bah. too many yellow normals. even though the story is semi-original, those yellow walls take the game down.
🥉 emptyspaces by myth
A sequel to myth's the winning entry from the first 24HoZZT, Nightplanet. After his harrowing survival on the nightplanet, Mentu Alexendria has been flying alone through space for ages. Upon passing a nearby station, he requests permission to dock to refuel and perhaps trade some cargo.
When he enters the station, he discovers it's been taken over by something. Purple snake-like creatures roam the station, attacking anything they can find, and many halls are blocked off by giant green tentacles. The airlock refuses to open allowing him re-board his ship, forcing him to explore the station searching for a way out and perhaps uncovering the mystery of what happened.
Armed with a plasma pistol, players get to do just that, fighting rooms filled with hostile creatures, operating strange machines, and eventually discovering that he's not the only human on the station. Him and his new companion work together to self-destruct the station and flee away to safety together.
As with its predecessor, myth creates a chilling atmosphere of ...empty spaces, now with a touch of action to keep those with itchy trigger fingers engaged. With a survivor on board, the game is better able to tell the tale, no longer having to rely on dusty computer terminals and personal diaries. The puzzle designs are unique and challenging (and one number puzzle that doesn't use base-10 has been mistaken by more than one player as being bugged when working as intended). It's a game that really comes together and forms not just another excellent contest entry worthy of high marks, but a truly great ZZT sci-fi adventure.
Judges' Remarks
your run of the mill action game. some nice graphics, though…
fantastic work. even though that number thing in the center of the station didn't work.
this has to be one of the best 24hozzt games i've seen. the challenge is there, the plot is there, the gameplay is there.. what more could you want? music, yes. but hey, we've got snake things and green tentacles to make up for it.
what can i say. extremely good game. the game has a nice dark feel. good music. a worthy sequel to nightplanet. thanks to myth for another wonderful game.
Episode 1 Fever! by Man_of_Swine
Spencer Brinks, Star Wars freak can't wait until tomorrow, when The Phantom Menace premiers in theaters! Discover the sorts of memorabilia and garbage collected by a late 90s nerd, then head to the theater only for everyone to be abducted by aliens! Fight the aliens, receive credits.
There's not a ton to this one. The aliens' motivation is never really explained nor does Spencer have much to say about the situation. IMO he should've seen The Matrix instead.
Judges' Remarks
the graphics... my eyes!! ow ow ow!
i kinda expected a star wars-related entry.
No comment provided.
it was rather weird. and short, and plotless.
Infinite Space by DarkFLR
You awaken in a strange place with no idea what's going on. The only thing you can remember is someone saying "SPACE". Explore your surroundings speaking with others in hopes of getting some answers, though none of them seem all that concerned with where they are.
A few puzzles, a touch of shooting, and some surreal colors keep players guessing until they can learn what's going on. A strange one, though the puzzle where you construct a shape by pushing a bunch of objects together stands out as something you don't see very often.
Judges' Remarks
nice graphics, but that puzzle with the green lines was incredibly annoying.
the statue thing was well-programmed. but the game is generally lacking.
weird.
... yes. obviously. it is ... uhm... weird. very weird. some nice original touches
Last Hope by Smiley13
Cargo deliverer Chris Phino is about to have a bad day.
A computer virus corrupts his ship's AI, redirecting his navigation systems to Earth with plans to explode the ship and poison the planet in radiation. Your goal is to buy some time by disabling ship systems and then find a way to prevent the crash.
The game's main hook is that you are on a time limit for the entire duration of game. Each room of the ship contains a task to perform which while simple, is amplified due to the timer adding stress to reflex tests, brute forcing passwords, and ensuring life support systems remain online despite the AI's interference.
Sadly, a missing passage at the end prevents the ending from being reach in normal play.
Judges' Remarks
No comment provided.
too bug-gedededed.
No comment provided.
No comment provided.
Name That Space Tune by butterwhore
A game that takes quite a different approach from most, by making a ZZT game show. The player is one of the contestants as a charismatic(-ish) host plays PC speaker adaptations of music that players have to identify correctly, sometimes asking for the title and other times asking for the composer.
While ZZT's lack of text input does mean that all questions are multiple choice making them far easier to guess, the game show format means players first need to buzz in to give an answer, adding a time limit to each question where opponents may beat the player to the punch.
The songs are recognizable and well done adaptations of the Imperial March from Star Wars, Mars the God of War, and other appropriately on-topic tunes. It's a pretty clever idea for a game that only suffers for the extremely limited number of songs in the game.
Judges' Remarks
very good music. bravo, bw.
probably the best concept of the 24hozzt. but it's rather lacking in anything else.
No comment provided.
great music and a really, really original game. oh, and did i mention that the music is awesome?
Newbies Invasion by Dragonlord
Earth is being infected by the newbie virus, a virus unleashed on the planet by a race of newbies from beyond the stars. You get all the typical newbie humor, which even lands in the instance of the newbie ship's exterior looking like a nice ASCII ship only for the reveal of the interior to show that all the rooms inside are empty and yellow bordered. BHirsh13, perennial community punching bag who hadn't been seen in years by this point is their leader, and he succeeds in infecting the entire planet.
The player luckily lives on the moon, giving him time to prepare for the arrival of the newbies, sneak aboard their ship, and steal the antidote to the virus which is used as the basis of a puzzle to find a way to mix a larger batch of the substance to restore Earth back to normal.
While a bit overdone, the execution is sound. It's a silly little game with no real issues to worry about.
Judges' Remarks
uhh, it was ok, i guess. nice graphics…
impressive graphics. and the concept works, too.
this game was neat. it got slightly off topic towards the end, but not too far.
some decent blending and stuff, and of course great gameplay =) however, the gameplay wasn't that original, and the graphics weren't superb or anything, and it was short.
Oriax space and other assorted shit… by C_A
Oriax is a self-insert game in which a ginger ale addicted teenage has been chosen by the military to be sent into space to defeat the evil Dr. McMichael and destroy his base on Jupiter before he blows up the Earth. C_A has been chosen due to have a personal feud with McMichael, which causes friction as he wants revenge more than he wants to follow mission orders.
Before being sent to another planet, players receive some high tech training by playing Space Invaders. Passage errors cause problems for getting through the game, though there isn't much more to see with the game abruptly stopping when the author realizes they were out of time.
Rushed, but well-intended.
Judges' Remarks
buggy beyond belief. graphics are barely on par.
No comment provided.
No comment provided.
No comment provided.
Outer Emergency by Viovis
Viovis continues his experimental ZZT works in another surreal 24HoZZT game. This time, you play a sentient mech torn between his two loves: poetry and killing people.
Players get to make the choice for the protagonist, either participating in a poetry read or shooting a few fools who have the misfortune of entering the mech's crosshairs. It's a rather odd game, though once again Viovis's writing carries what should be goofy nonsense and transforms it into something to remember.
Judges' Remarks
the graphics are incredibly keen.
the best title screen of all time, and it's really freaky, as well.
the graphics were trippy as all hell.... but.. i mean, what the fuck?
it was... totally phreaky. and non-linear, as well. but, it was pretty much random lights with no real storyline.
Richie Neptune, Tina, And Tonga In Space: Not just for smart people anymore!!!! by Zamros
A game that was a bit too crass to stream on Twitch. Richie Neptune flies through space finding spots to have sex with his two lady companions. Aliens capture the ladies and in the skirmish, one of them is killed. The other gets infected with an STD. Captain Neptune has no more to live for, offs himself, and then wanders around as a ghost until he gets bored and reincarnates as a caveman where he becomes a sex legend!
Features some gratuitous ASCII nudity, depictions of suicide, and a "humping" "engine". It tries to be offensive and succeeds.
Judges' Remarks
if this is supposed to be a joke, then it's not very funny.
an amusing game, but it's not likely to win anything.
TRIPPIN
t is too unplayable, and short.
Space Avenger by Kyledsk
Aaron Katplane's father, Michael Katplane was an avenger and was killed! Now you are an avenger! And you will avenge your father! Find your dad's old "Saber of Light" and end those who ended him.
This is a game with a wild introduction filled with grammatical errors, name dropping, and attention to pointless details that makes it clear from the very start that it's going to be a strange journey. Most of the fun comes from the intro, with the actual game consisting of fighting some "Henshmen", blasting off into space and dueling a ship from far too long a range for aim to be relevant, and then finding and fighting the man who killed your father.
If you like ZZT games where the author operates at 100% intensity at all times regardless of what it is that actually happens, then this one is for you.
Judges' Remarks
what is it with people and blinking stuff nowadays?
overly cliched, and i hate blink walls.
No comment provided.
graphics weren't up to par, way too short
Space Crap by j0sh
A tale of modern workspaces where a spaceship's engine is in need of repair but you can't tell the captain about it because he'll flip out. Instead, you need to perform a series of fetch quests to gain access to the parts of the ship you need to be in to prevent a disaster.
Trade sodas, step into the ring for some WWF with guns, and be careful not to faint from the heat in the engine room!
Judges' Remarks
just as the name implies, this is utter crap.
it had more spelling errors than even god could count.
double wack.
hardly decent graphics, way too short
Space Race by Tricky the Lemming
After years of unchecked pollution, the Earth's days of supporting human life are nearing there end. Plans have been made to evacuate humanity to another planet, but only 20% of the population will be able to make the trip while the rest are left to die. Needless to say, those with the money to afford the tickets are the ones buying the tickets.
Not happy with this, you decide to lead a small group consisting of your best friend and a hired mercenary to lead an assault on one of the launchpads in order to strike a blow against the Evil Society. (That's what the group organizing the evac is called, I swear.)
One of those games where the absurdity of events and dialog make it a real treat to experience even if there isn't much to actually do other than travel from point A to point B and talk to people. Thanks to running out of time, the ending leaves a bit to be desired.
Judges' Remarks
the graphics were decent, although the game itself was pretty bad.
i demand to know why this was called "space race".
No comment provided.
suitably apocaplyptic setting, some decent graphics, and a halfway decent storyline.
Space Station Nariss by Flatcoat Lab
Josh, Max, and Adrian's space ship is grazed by an asteroid as they approach their destination. They soon discover that it's a fragment of an even larger asteroid that struck the space station they've been hired to deliver supplies to. A scan for lifeforms reveals more than 300 aboard, with only two that are human.
Unable to fly safely without repairs, the trio dock with the station planning to grab the two survivors, fix the ship, and get the hell out of there. Players have close encounters with aliens, fighting them off as best as they can, but ultimately are unable to rescue anyone. Perhaps not even themselves.
A really impressive title, taking a survival horror approach to the game with boards mostly lacking enemies, and quickly getting out of hand when even one shows up.
Judges' Remarks
great graphics, and a nice story. plus some action to go along with it. the spelling could have been better, though.
the surprise entry of the day. fantastic work.
wack.
this one had quite awesome graphics, and a suitably evil plotline. it was quite fun.
Space The New Odyssey by fejj
Utopiaville, USA. Young Billy is bored out of his mind. Nothing exciting ever happens in his town. Lucky for him, he's about to abducted by aliens and won't have to worry about that for very long!
While Billy examines his new cell, he commits a little property damage to some alien equipment. He soon discovers his captors are 1) sentient carrot-people and 2) high litigious. Billy soon finds himself in court and goes on a rampage, eating all the carrots rather than deal with the fine.
Afterwards, the ship needs to be cleaned before carrot juice soaks the engines, and Billy discovers that he's not the only prisoner aboard the ship. A very tall alien named Nebulo mistakes Billy for his captor and Billy has to convince him that he's not to blame. The two still fight (as is Nebulo's tradition) and then set off to explore the galaxy in their new ship.
A humorous game where it's quite hard to predict what will happen in any given scene!
Judges' Remarks
some nice graphics and arcade-style gameplay.
for six hours of work, it's still a great game. and the court scene was humorous.
fun.
some nice graphics, but, again, it's too short.
Space! The Polaris Murders by Fishfood
Shortly before the launch of the new Polaris Space Station, two murders occur on board. You are the detective investigating the case and need to find the culprits before the station launches with a killer on board.
Players get to investigate crime scenes, look for irregularities, and interview persons with connections to the victims. Bugs make it difficult to progress through, as does the difficulty in figuring out where to go next. It's worth the effort though, as the game is very unique for the contest as well as ZZT itself!
Judges' Remarks
had some nice graphics, and was pretty decent for a serious game, until the end.
nice concept, but the graphics are lacking a bit.
No comment provided.
nice idea, good graphics. too bad it isn't finished.
Space-Case by Zenith Nadir
When a space station is overrun by aliens, there's only one man for the job. The cheapest most replaceable man that can be found. You.
Mr. Player is given a gun and sent to the station on an impossible mission to clean out all the aliens lurking within. Players travel from board to board, collecting keys to the self destruct system and then make a hasty exit on their craft.
A pure action game with some incredibly brutal difficulty. Enemies more quickly and erratically easily depleting your health if they ever manage to get close, and thanks to them rushing in your direction when aligned, they will get close. Making matters worse, the station is also full of spinning saw blades that will slice our hero from the waist down if he gets in their way, causing an immediate game over.
The background pattern and ending art are kind of cool, but this one is incredibly difficult to play with the limited resources provided.
Judges' Remarks
nice, but rather difficult.
the blades are fucking annoying.
ACTION ORIENEAINTND
lotsa action, some nice graphic touches, and the enemies even were semi-intelligent.
Space-Niño by DarthVagrant/Scribbit
A game that starts with a lot of promise, giving you a nice view from Planet Bortmon V as Planet Bortmon VI unexpectedly explodes in the night sky! Zasron heads to the Capitol building to hear from the king what could have caused the explosion and what's to be done about it. The king explains that anarchists have built a weapon called the NINO GUN which broadcasts CBS news across the planet being targeted. This in turn induces insanity in the populace who then blow the planet up.
A squadron is sent Bortmon VII to find and destory the weapon at any cost. Zasron is one such grunt, led by ...Sir Dancelikeaf*ggalot. Great.
You're sent to the surface first to clear the way of any anarchists. Once the gun is reached, you get the honor of sacrificing yourself by jamming a fork in the toaster that controls the weapon. Sir Dancealot (as I prefer to refer to him) takes all the credit and becomes a beloved hero to the people and eventually becomes king himself.
Half the game is spent talking to random NPCs that do their best with random humor with the actual storyline being introduced and resolved rather quickly. There's also a board that consists of bright flashing walls everywhere intended to annoy the player. Players are given a warning before they enter at least.
Judges' Remarks
nice graphics here, and some decent humor. and how can you resist marilyn manson?!
a very insane game. i liked it.
the effort was there.
semi-original story... non-original gameplay, however. but, it has toasters!
Spacestation 37 by SkyWalkRo/Makev
An aliens have boarded our station type game. It begins with players and survivors barricaded in a control room with no real hope of survival. In a desperate plan, you're allowed to leave
Be warned, this game accidentally uses blinking colors for its walls which make it a real eyesore. Be sure to use F11 in Zeta or some other method of disabling blinking or else this game will hurt to play. For the judges in 1999, they had to suffer.
Judges' Remarks
if this served any other purpose than to give people some major eye strain, then i might have given it more points. be happy, though, i slipped it up a notch seeing as how it's longer than most of the games.
oy. this could be better.
he tried.
lotsa action, but no shading etc, and this extremely annoying flashing background.
🥇 Spaze Invaders by Koopo
The winner of the competition starts off like several other entries, starting things off with a Space Invaders engine as you defend the planet from aliens. The engine does a bit more than its peers with a well-intended if ineffectual stun grenade attack, as well as a better thought out power meter that fills automatically and depletes as you fire, shooting a different number of bullets depending on how full it is when you attack.
But the game is much more than just any shoot em up. Each mission changes the format with Koopo creating engines to dodge asteroids, manning defense systems to shoot missiles before they reach your ship, an RPG engine to fight the aliens head on, and a fast paced escape, dodging debris and slime from the biological mothership.
These engines are really well put together, integrate nicely into the game's story, and a few even manage to incorporate some fancy visual tricks. There's even a small traditional action sequence to keep the game from being nothing but boards with players boxed in between arrows. It's quite impressive and a lot of fun as well! Definitely a game where you can understand why the judges were so enamored by it.
Judges' Remarks
some great engines in this one.
amazing programming. the graphics aren't bad in themselves, either.
now _that_ took work. it had flair, arcade sequences, action, engines..
absolutely awesome zzt-oop programming. however, the basic idea is quite unoriginal, tho the adaptation has some charm in itself, and the graphics aren't anything special. of course, all that doesn't really matter too much with a game with this kind of programming.
Star Trek The Jilted Generation by Dunkinbean
A Next Generation parody. When a Sorg Trapezoid approaches, the usual suspects prepare a mission to destroy the vessel and resume their mission of reaching the NCXB-38 Nebula to get a stick of gum. Captain Ricard is beamed to the ship armed with numerous CDs of N'Sync and the Backstreek Boys. (Why is only one given a parody name?)
There are a few boards of weird-looking Sorg tech, a detour to an on-board pizza parlor, and some light combat of forcing earbuds in Sorg ears while a portable CD player hits them with music that was the scorn of teenaged boys at the time.
Judges' Remarks
the graphics were ok, but too many blinking lines.
no comment.
No comment provided.
too buggy and short, really.
🥈 Stupid RPG Episode 2 by Knightt
Knightt delivers a sequel to his hit Stupid RPG game. The story boils down to Noseblood returns and has the Stupid Crystals, but it has little to do with any of the action. You mostly run from board to board talking to people. There is an agonizingly slow RPG battle as well as a trivia sequence. A side sequence depicts ZZTer Draco being analyzed by a psychologist.
The named-afer-a-slur SRPG character F*gnuts returns for the first board. Plus some racial stereotypes, and a lot of jokes where the punchline is SEX in all caps. Be prepared.
Judges' Remarks
nice graphics, and it's also very funny.
show a devoted stupid rpg fan an entry like this, and he'll give the same score.
neat.
No comment provided.
The Chimp From Hell by Dive-Sama/Kev-San
A monkey sent to outer space as a test subject gets revenge on humanity in The Chimp From Hell. You play as the monkey and work to fulfill his plan to steal a gun capable of destroying the Earth. The gameplay is nothing too special, shooting some generic guards and collecting some gems, but the game is more memorable for its odd sense of humor and bizarre looking art.
The opening begins with the author on a date getting romantic with his girlfriend when the monkey crash lands on Earth, crushing him in the process. Players get to see some crude drawings of the monkey that may show up in your nightmares later. The weirdness found throughout the game make an otherwise average adventure into a much more distinct experience that I found myself enjoying more than I expected to.
Judges' Remarks
some nice graphics, although the chimp itself looks like brown sperm.
nice music, but the deal with the bananas and the airplane are just annoying.
wonk.
some fun graphics, and a quite original storyline.
The Cold Side of the Universe by AKYoshi
A rather wild sci-fi tale that mixes our world with that of Star Wars and a touch of Star Fox. Your family is from outer space, but fled to Earth for a more peaceful life. When your parents were killed by assassins from Dark Wolf, you're given control of the Light Hawk ship where you begin a new life as a smuggler.
Players get to defend the Light Hawk from an incoming assault, with a Space Invaders engine with a time limit as the main ship can only withstand so much damage from enemy fire before it explodes. Afterwards the game ends as the author ran out of time.
There's some decent art in the portrayal of your ship's bridge as well as the depiction of your little fighter used to defend it. The extremely earnest story has its charm as well for those who enjoy ZZT games that operate at maximum intensity.
Judges' Remarks
the graphics are ok, but it's incredibly short.
when you spend more time on the introduction and about author sections, you've got problems.
not enough time spent on the actual GAME, here..
No comment provided.
The Invasion of the Zoonarian by brp13
This entry reverses the typical roles and has players play as the aliens that are launching an invasion against Earth! Before your assault can begin however, humanity spots your fleet and sends a squadron of humans to destroy your ship from the inside. You wake up from cryosleep to stop the humans and fulfill your mission.
On paper, this is a great concept and the decisions players get to make have consequences to make you stop and think before you act. It's possible to to lose crew, repair bots, and other systems which will mitigate your capabilities in the "RPG" engine that has you and other ships fighting off humanity's. The execution does not live up to the lofty plans.
The game is very picky, making it difficult to do much of anything. It's very easy to be killed by invisible enemies that failed to reveal themselves. Waking up the crew or using repair bots requires specific conditions that can't actually be confirmed, making most choices into a guessing game where you'll probably guess wrong and hinder your capabilities in the final fight.
That final fight is also not really functional, so it doesn't matter all that much. This is a game where the author was biting off more than they could chew, and so it's more confusing than entertaining.
Judges' Remarks
ouch. pre-stk crap. i'm sorry, but this was bad.
too bugged for my tastes.
ditto. ("OHMYGOD")
not too great graphics, nice touch on the first engine thingy tho.
The Space Race by Cal Adams
The Space Race takes a literal interpretation of the phrase, putting players on an American rocket to Mars which is unexpectedly passed by a Russian ship! Your goal is to find a way to boost the engine output so that America can get there first.
The game is short, with Cal noting that something happened to his original entry, causing it to be deleted, and having to make a second game in a much shorter amount of time. There are some use-item-on-object puzzles, some violence towards a cat, and the Hope Diamond also makes an appearance.
Judges' Remarks
i'll bump this up a notch considering his original entry got deleted.
too short to win anything, but it was nice.
bah.
waaaay too short. and there's not happening much either.
To a Pretty Place High in the Sky by Wayward
Wayward's first ZZT release gives us a game about cavemen that want to launch themselves to the sun that they believe is their god. Namely, the protagonist wonders if all this human sacrifice is necessary and hopes to get a direct answer.
The game quickly finds itself distracted by a sexy cavelady that all the cavemen are quite thirsty for. It gives the introductory chapter of the game a weird vibe, which thankfully doesn't last as aliens show up and abduct the protagonist and his friend moving the game to space.
The player gets to pick which of the two cavemen they want to play as, with each having their own unique escape from their holding cells, though within a board or two they reunite and the game returns to a single track. Your alien captors have little patience for your idiocy so it's not long before the two find themselves fleeing into a time machine in hopes of finding a way home. Should they make it home they will quickly go back to being thirsty about hot cave women.
An alternate ending has the two actually making it to the sun which goes about as well as you'd expect.
Judges' Remarks
it's just a zzt "choose your own adventure". only the correct choices are much less obvious, thus, the game sucks.
i'd like this better if i knew what to do with the time warp guys.
OHMYGOD
fwee. it's non-linear. not very non-linear, but still fun. and it has decent enough graphics.
VOID by JM
A sequel to the previous contest's entry Pit of Darkness. This time, you play as Karma who has been exiled from her planet after beginning to hear voices in her head. Upon arriving somewhere new, Karma makes her way through a multi-board dark cave maze before encountering the entities that plagued her in the previous game.
Features some nice scenery of moons in the sky of distant worlds, as well as some more traditional art boards showing Karma and the mysterious entities.
Judges' Remarks
the graphics were nicely done, although the music and the giggling entity were annoying.
i like the storyline, but the mazes are rather annoying.
No comment provided.
the story is good, again. however, it's quite unplayable, and the playable cave maze part is annoying. but, the music is good, and the graphics are pretty decent, and it's actually not that short.
Wierd Land by Xurethax
Yes, the typo is in the game's title. This is perhaps the strangest entry of the competition to date.
After watching a magic show on the title screen, with some parallels to Mission: Enigma, players are thrust into a chaotic world filled with strange designs, unusual color choices, and a complete lack of any idea what they should be doing. The game is a labyrinthine arrangement of boards where it's hard to tell what's a deliberate exit and what's a mistake in setting passage destinations.
There's a lot of key collecting, some shooting, and quite a number of inscrutable devices whose functions can only be figured out by brute force. This is the kind of game where eventually to see more, you're stuck manually changing boards to reach screens you've yet to see.
And, no, I also have no idea what it has to do with "Space".
Judges' Remarks
considering that this isn't even an original game (at all), i think this calls for disqualification.
what the hell did this have to do with space?
heheh.
the word "utter newbie" springs to mind. sorry, this game just didn't cut it. even though it used stk, it was so newbieish. oh, and it seemed quite off topic to me.
Yellow Dwarf by Vork
A parody of the show Red Dwarf. Explore the ship for a bit in anticipation of "the BIG breakfast". Just as everyone sits down to eat, space pirates board and attack everyone. Players sneak around the ship finding others to head to the escape pods. This includes one woman who was showering mid-attack which the game turns into a running gag as she's nude for the rest of the adventure.
The game contains quite a bit to do and is rather substantial for a 24HoZZT game. There are engines for dodging asteroids and racing along a river in a raft, plus the expected RPG encounter engine as you search for a hidden base. A real engine within an engine.
Features art boards with ASCII nudity! Most of which is conveniently covered up by characters with very long arms.
Judges' Remarks
i'm betting that naked girl was the only way you could possibly fit masturbation in your busy schedule that night...?
another surprise. this entry was very amusing.
No comment provided.
No comment provided.
¡Blaughelm! by AKNeutron
A game filled with nonsense and gratuitous violence! When something aboard your spaceship goes wrong, you're taken out of cryosleep to solve the issue. A number of puzzles await, as do a number of people exploding in space! Very much an AKWare game and of its time, but there are some genuine funny moments to be had.
Be warned, cruelty to a gerbil is mandatory. Rest in peace little dude.
Judges' Remarks
nice graphics, though a little buggy. i liked the ship engine, though.
see, chuck? neutron's not a newbie.
wack.
some very nifty engines, and pretty damn good graphics, and a reasonable size, as well.
it's huge. but that doesn't mean it's any good.