Well, even though lots of nice ZZT games have been released this month (Stupid RPG Disc 2 SSCE, Spork Man 2 Demo, Regeneer Caverns, Within v1.9, Stupid RPG Third Flavor Demo, just to name a few), they were all either demos or remakes, which means no actually new and cool full games have been released... The only exception were a couple of random dungeon games, but to be honest, I'm getting a bit tired of those games (as long as they don't bring something new, like Run-on did last month). I was doubting for quite some time which game had to become GOTM; should it be the Stupid RPG Third Flavor Demo or Within v1.9? My choice fell on the latter, even though I normally never make remakes GOTM...
Within, made by Wayward, is a game which was originally made during the Fall 24 hours of ZZT of 1999 (of which the topic was fantasy). Personally I think that neither I, nor the judges back then, gave this game the score that it deserved. Now, a completely spiffed up version has been released...
The plot/storyline is what really matters in this game. The story deals with Thomas, a typical day-dreamer, and his friends Alicia and Thomas. The storyline gives you the 'Matrix-feeling'; while playing you're constantly doubting if what you're seeing is 'real' or not. I'm not giving away more details about the storyline here, because that would really ruin the fun. You should just play it for yourself, believe me, you'll like it! The only thing I don't like, and would have done otherwise if I had made the game, is the ending... I can't explain why, because that would mean giving away too much of the plot, but anybody who wants to know, feel free to mail me (click on my name below to send mail).
This game has (not counting the simply horrible-looking title screen) some really great graphics, which was what the original 24HoZ game lacked... As said before the storyline is awesome, and overall it's just a generally cool game to play. It is, however, a game that the die-hard action fans probably won't like, since playing mostly comes down to reading long dialogs... Overall, I can only recommend you to check this one out!
