Home of the Underdogs
About News FAQs Contact HOTU GoogleGroup Music Manuals
Category Applications Action Adventure Education Interactive Fiction Puzzle Role Playing Games Simulation Special Sport Strategy War




Support the EFF
Welcome How you can help
Browse Games
Welcome Random Pick
Welcome By Company
  Welcome By Theme  
Welcome By Alphabet
Welcome By Year
Welcome Title Search
Welcome Company Search
Welcome Designer Search
Recommended
Welcome Freeware Titles
Welcome Collections
Welcome Discord
Welcome Twitter
Welcome Facebook
Welcome File Format Guide
Welcome Help: Non PC Games
Welcome Help: Win Games
Welcome Help: DOS Games
Welcome Recommended Links
Site History Site History
Legacy Legacy
Link to Us Link to Us
Credits Thanks & Credits
Abandonware Ring

Abandoned Places

dungeoncrawlers.org

Creative Commons License


Game #2572
Hall of Belated Fame Inductee  Lethe Flow Phoenix    View all Top Dogs in this genreCollection: IF Competition Favorites
Interactive Fiction   Story-driven

Rating: 8.25 (8 votes)

Lethe Flow Phoenix box cover

Lethe Flow Phoenix screenshot
One of the most atmospheric and well-written IF ever released, Lethe Flow Phoenix is a great game by Dan Shiovitz that is full of mystical overtones, dream-like surrealism, and several nice plot twists. The game begins on one Halloween night, casting you as a solo camper who accidentally pitched yourself over a cliff while investigating strange noises during your nocturnal contemplation. When you awaken, you find yourself in a stranger a strange land, left alone to find out why you are here and how you can return.

The strength of Lethe Flow Phoenix its the excellent prose, which is highlighted in the many lengthy, non-interactive cut scenes that are very poetic and beautiful. Lethe Flow Phoenix recalls a later IF classic Sunset over Savannah, both in the strong writing and the focus on the protagonist’s internal conflicts—you will have to come to terms with your past in the game.

The puzzles in general are fair, I would say just about average for an IF. The game starts with a somewhat annoying find-something-to-eat-before-you-die puzzle, but it gets better from there. There are plenty of hints in the game, so even trial-and-error puzzles can be solved after a few tries. The game is a bit too short, but it most likely feels that way because I was so engrossed in the game that I played it through the first time. (Dan actually thought it was a bit too long for the 2-hour limit of the 1995 IF Competition, which was why he didn’t enter the game that year). Although the ending leaves some loose ends unexplained, in the game’s context it was probably better than alternatives. Overall, if you like a short-to-medium, surrealistic/fantasy IF in which the prose flows eloquently and evocatively, Lethe Flow Phoenix is a must-have.

Reviewed by: Underdogs
Designer: Dan Shiovitz
Developer: Freeware
Publisher: Freeware
Year: 1995
Software Copyright: Dan Shiovitz
Theme: Myth & Legend
Multiplayer:  
None that we know of
System Requirements: TADS
Where to get it:   IF Archive
Related Links: XYZZY News review, Review at IF-Review
Links:    
If you like this game, try: Sunset Over Savannah, Metamorphoses, Tapestry

© 1998 - 2024 Home of the Underdogs
Portions are copyrighted by their respective owners. All rights reserved. Please read our privacy policy.