On the brink of insanity, you wake within your own mind, with no knowledge of what events led to this point. The three aspects of your mind are your only hope of leaving its confines, but at what cost?
Posted by edosan at 2009-10-01 20:16:11 Voted 8.00 on 10/01/09
A really well done short story of a mod.
Posted by Erdrick at 2009-07-19 00:48:50 Voted 8.50 on 07/19/09
This module was a real surprise! I almost quit it early but decided to give it a chance since it was a contest winner. I wish there was more of an introductory setup... I found it difficult to figure out who to talk to and make sense of the situation even after initially talking to the characters. As I played through it, I progressively become more interested and I can totally understand why this was a finalist. The decision you force the player to make is a pretty weighty one. I think it's one hell of a way to end a primary quest line. Only suggestions I would make would be to tidy up the writing and offer more choices in dialogue. Other than that, great concept. :-)
Posted by Yanos at 2009-04-17 22:45:13 Voted 10.00 on 04/17/09
This is the most brilliant short mod I've played. It should had been #1.
Posted by Okgenuine at 2008-04-06 21:46:44 Voted 8.00 on 04/06/08
I got frustrated but I couldn't stop playing, and then it actually payed off! Nice!
***Spoiler***
This would be the perfect ending for a chaotic evil character in an epic module.
Posted by meba at 2007-10-08 15:09:04 Voted 10.00 on 10/08/07
I am speechless... this module was lovely and awful and original and ... and ... just wow...
I actually had a hard time deciding how to end it and felt emotionally involved. I am still a little choked.
Thankyou Neilan.
Posted by Yanos at 2006-08-25 12:17:39 Voted 10.00 on 04/17/09
WOW! Amazing, someone should do a full "mental adventure", it would be fun!
Posted by bloodsong at 2006-05-13 09:42:00 Voted 9.25 on 05/13/06
this module really disturbed me -- good going! very well-wrought, but at times, the conversations seemed a little forced. of course a structured conversation can't cover ALL the possibilities that would come into a player's mind. but i was surprised that one of my choices/decisions was the ONLY choice in one conversation branch. surely not EVERY player (with every character) came to that same junction? but, within those limits... wow, powerful work. great job.
Posted by DAFace at 2006-05-04 10:56:20 Voted 10.00 on 05/04/06
Brilliant module. Giving up any one of the mind's four aspects is terrifying. I elected to keep logic in the end. I can function without creativity and memory, but without logic, I'm just a gibbering wreck. With memory, I remember everything that happens, but I can't react to anything. With creativity, I just do random things that don't make sense.
However, with logic, though my actions never vary and I don't keep a record of what has gone before, I do things that make sense, and, therefore, will probably survive. _________________________ I hold it to be of great prudence for men to abstain from threats and insulting words towards any one, for neither the one nor the other in any way diminishes the strength of the enemy; but the one makes him more cautious, and the other increases his hatred of you, and makes him more persevering in his efforts to injure you.
Posted by DanteC ( 80.41.xxx.xxx ) at 2006-04-28 22:42:30
Congratulations on your nomination. I remember downloading it months back and enjoying it emmensly. Reminds me a little of Planescape:Torment, with the philosophy behind it.
Jess, I would agree that my "multiple" endings are the weakest part of my module - but unfortunately I saw it as somewhat necessary. For emphasis I wanted the module to end as soon as the choice was made, with only a hint of what the implications were. I felt that the conclusion was best left up to the player.
Thanks for playing and reviewing though!
Posted by Jess_ at 2006-04-24 13:22:40 Voted 7.50 on 04/24/06
I can't give more than "7" to a mod which I don't understand the end and so the tenants :(
It is well-written and an original story but I don't see the difference between the choices in the end.
Posted by Jess_ at 2006-04-24 13:22:33 Voted 7.50 on 04/24/06
I can't give more than "7" to a mod which I don't understand the end and so the tenants :(
It is well-written and an original story but I don't see the difference between the choices in the end.
Posted by gaoneng at 2006-04-16 00:15:36 Voted 9.50 on 04/16/06
Personal favourite among the 5 winners. I can relate to lunacy easily. :)
Posted by SisterCyan at 2006-04-15 06:42:14 Voted 9.00 on 04/15/06
This is the most intriguing contest module I played. It was interesting and even a bit thought provoking. I'm not sure a person with two of those aspects would be sane after losing them. _________________________ SisterCyan
Posted by herrjeff at 2006-04-13 07:15:06 Voted 8.25 on 04/13/06
This module is unusual, very abstract (even for a dream) and thus difficult to rate comparatively to other submissions. The interaction with the NPCs is consistent with their respective "personalities", and even if the role of Creativity appeared a bit unbalanced, it can be justified in those circumstances. However, I found only one path to complete the scenario and consider it too linear for my liking.
Congrats Neilan! I didn't play this module myself, and I would have thought it out of the running. Way to be a dark horse! I think I will have to give you a try now.
Wow. Just... wow. Going by community votes I was all ready to walk away with my head held high. Then this...
Placing third from Bioware's judges is an honour for which I'm extremely grateful. Thank you to everyone for the encouraging comments that led to a minor edit here and there, and also for all the negatives - I've definitely learnt things that I'll keep in mind.
Thank you to those who took the time to play my module (even if you didn't review it), it's greatly appreciated. It's been fun taking part in the contest and if that had been all I'd got from it, it would have been worthwhile.
Finally thanks to Bioware for the contest and for the recognition.
Cheers,
Neilan Naicker
Posted by The_Krit at 2006-03-26 13:40:22 Voted 6.50 on 03/26/06
I found this module interesting, but highly linear, often with too few choices for PC responses. Technically, there are three resolutions, but the difference in the endings is negligible.
Otherwise, I liked it.
Posted by Boozehound Blue at 2006-03-21 22:59:32 Voted 10.00
An original, metaphysical storyline, �thoughtfully� done. Quite a bit slow in the beginning, but outcome was a very nice set of hard decisions for PC to make. Would have like to quicken dialogue with memory (use intelligence to speak in past tense). A bit contradictory that memory says, �I remember you� �present tense. Still, characters well developed, writing relatively above average. Some dialogue linearity. Would have like a better conclusion. All in all, pretty cool side quest (8.75)
Posted by Kirian at 2006-03-14 15:38:50 Voted 7.25 on 03/14/06
Four aspects of my mind vie for control: I feel intruiged, impressed, annoyed and gigglish. The annoyance stems from two things: my dislike of heavy symbolism, and the sometimes painfully slow advancing of the story. The first annoyance was slightly alleviated when I found out about the madness: the whole thing could be interpreted not so much as symbolism, but as the mad ramblings of an insane person. The second annoyance stands.
Also, I am a bit gigglish, as your analogy or symbolism was sometimes a bit silly in my opinion. Perhaps the fact that I am a philosopher of mind and science explains this.
Still: there were some excellent ideas in this module, and it was well written. And I really liked the end: unexpected and powerful.
In the end, none of these aspects gets the upper hand. The result, an average vote, does not do you justice. This is a mod of extremes, but unfortunately I cannot express these ends of the spectrum (what spectrum?) in my mark.
Haven't been posting any comments here, forgive me.
First off, thanks to everyone who's played and reviewed it.
Just to comment on the primary criticisms:
- I had a definite story I wanted to tell, which makes it somewhat less open ended than I had hoped.
- Criispin, I don't think it's fair you gave the module a rating considering *you didn't finish it*.
- MikeLM, I actually intentionally avoided "who am I". It's more about discovering the nature of your entrapment.
- To everyone that enjoyed it, I'm glad I gave you at least 10 minutes of entertainment. It was fun to make, and I've definitely learnt from it.
Posted by MikeLM9215 at 2006-03-02 21:21:12 Voted 6.75 on 03/02/06
Another who am I module? Lots of running back and forth. Did all three endings.
_________________________ The road to Ravenloft is paved with good intentions.
Posted by Kenrae at 2006-03-02 03:16:02 Voted 9.50 on 03/02/06
Impressive mod. Very original.
Posted by Lance Botelle at 2006-02-25 17:04:50 Voted 8.00 on 02/25/06
8.00 ASPECTS (156TH TESTED MODULE)
This is my updated scoring system structured around the format provided by Bioware. The final score is still consistent with my old system, but I hope to give clearer feedback within the new guidelines. NB: Judging any material is always subject to personal taste. I have tried hard to be as objective as possible. Remember, this is only my opinion; Bioware�s is the one that counts! If you believe I have scored your module unfairly, or I have missed something of importance, please email me at �[email protected]� and I will consider any comments made.
All nine Bioware points can score a maximum of 1 point each, leaving 1 point for my personal interest/like of the module.
Text of Module: (2.5 out of 3)
The Writing: (I do not scan the writing looking for errors, but if I notice something while reading it, I will note it here.) I noticed a couple of minor errors, but not enough to deduct. (1.0)
Characterization: I enjoyed these characters. (0.75)
Dialog Flow: The flow was sometimes a little linear, but mostly good. (0.75)
Concept & Execution: (5.0 out of 6)
Originality/Creativity: Quite original and a concept I like and enjoyed. (1.0)
Logical Flow: The flow appeared as if it worked. (1.0)
Drama: The �mind� coming together all added to the drama. (0.75)
Pacing: Pacing remained fairly constant, but the mysterious concept kept it moving. (0.75)
Character Development: The three aspects did develop as I interacted between them. (1.0)
Multiple Paths: Although there were three choices, the end result was much the same. (0.5)
Conclusion: Technically, this module scored above average in the writing in my opinion (2.5/3). The story scored above average in my opinion. (5.0/6). My personal score is 0.5 out of 1.0 � I liked the idea of a broken mind portrayed in this way.
MY SCORE SYSTEM (IMHO):
< 5 Not up with the competition.
5 - 6 Average.
7 - 8 Above average.
> 8 An exceptional piece
PERSONAL SCORING FACTORS (IN ORDER OF MY PRIORITIES):
GRAB FACTOR: How quickly am I involved in the action? Do I have direction?
PLOT: Is the story engaging? Is subject interesting? Varied conversation choices?
CHARACTERS: Are they easily identifiable? Are they rounded/memorable?
SPELLING & GRAMMAR: Is the text easy to read? Are there quite a few errors?
OTHER FACTORS (MINOR INFLUENCE): Design for atmosphere & scenery, including sounds & props. Quality of module stability; does it break easily? _________________________ World of Althéa Blog: Link
Posted by JohnSnow at 2006-02-21 16:14:34 Voted 9.75 on 02/21/06
Wow I really enjoyed playing this. I got some good laughs out of it... I actually laughed out loud heh. Good work man
Posted by lifeandtimes6 at 2006-02-18 15:45:05 Voted 8.75 on 02/18/06
This module is excellent. It is one of the best of the 17 that I have played thus far. The premise is interesting and the characters are engaging. I liked having a lot of options available to me. The dialogue was quite strong and was a pleasure to read. The multiple endings were good, although I agree that they were similar. I didn't find the endings to be "foregone conclusions." The setting was fantastic and created a sense of uneasiness. Great work!
Posted by Criispin at 2006-02-11 15:06:11 Voted 5.25 on 02/11/06
Novel concept...The way the dialogue was strung together made the player work too hard to find the next set of dialogue trees. I couldn't figure out how to finish this one and my patience didn't last long enough for me to go through all three aspects trees for the third time.
Posted by Llyranor at 2006-02-10 11:07:27 Voted 9.25 on 02/10/06
An interesting concept. At first I wasn't too happy with how the conversation flowed: the PC usually had few or no dialogue options to choose from. I would have preferred a more dynamic and interactive session. However, as I played through more and finished the mod, I can definitely say that this quite surprised me. Despite my previous complaint, I found the writing to be very good. The quest design was nice as well - it felt quite natural and intuitive. Given the constraints of the contest, it's understandable and appreciated why the focus was on this instead. The final decision was a hard one, and I was left there thinking about it for a while before making up my mind. Seal of approval earned indeed.
Posted by Darric ( 196.22.xxx.xxx ) at 2006-02-08 13:29:28
No problem, SoLD. :o Just to confirm, no expansions are needed for this; it was made on a basic install of NWN.