Scenes from a handful of ordinary lives alternate with chapters of a child's colorful science-fantasy. Sweet and sad, and complex enough that you may need to go through it twice in order to fully understand how all the fragments fit together. Very story-driven, with menu-based conversations and virtually no puzzle content. My only complaint is that it isn't terribly interactive - indeed, you're practically driven through it on tracks, and any actions that you don't take tend to be rendered unnecessary. But the story is intriguing enough, and well-written enough, and moving enough, that this seems a small quibble. This is probably the most successful example I've seen of interactivity at the service of fiction, rather than vice versa.

The author intended this game to be played with colored text. Although I normally dislike such things, I agree that it works in this case. A monochrome version is also provided for those who feel differently.

(NB: The first release of this game credits Opal O'Donnell as the author. This was a deliberate deception on the part of the real author, carried out with the permission of the real Opal O'Donnell.)

Rating: *****

Reviewed by Carl Muckenhoupt (30 Jun 2000)

bug.txt (639 bytes)

Way to avoid a bug in the competition release

photobw.z5 (183.50 KB)

Z-code 5 executable (version: competition release, black and white version)

photopia.z5 (184.00 KB)

Z-code 5 executable (version: competition release)

read1st.txt (1.57 KB)

blurb

photo201.zip (639.67 KB)

Glulx executable (version: 2.01, optional graphics, bundled with Windows runtime)

photopia.exe (235.95 KB)

MS-DOS executable (version: Release 1.22)

ACgamesForPalm.zip (638.44 KB)

Z-code 5 executable (version: 1.22, ported by Trevor Menagh, converted to PalmOS .prc file)

photopia.z5 (189.50 KB)

Z-code 5 executable (version: Release 1.22)

fotopia.z5 (209.00 KB)

Z-code 5 executable in Spanish (translated by José Luis Díaz)

photopia.sol (3.79 KB)

Walkthrough