GOLDILOCKS IS A FOX
by Jason Guest

Review: David Whyld (1)

Impressive and amusing Now this I liked. A comedy game in which you play the part of a seriously hot Goldilocks!!! The attempts at humour weren't always successful but they were cute enough to get away with it most of the time.

Overall the style of writing was way above average and there were some interesting and amusing characters (the big bad wolf continually popping up in the wrong fairytale quite often had me smiling).

Puzzles were quite logical and, best of all, the game originally came with a walkthru for those too lazy to figure out things the proper way (pity it doesn't work in relation to the secateurs but I guess you can't win 'em all).

All in all, a decent, original and comical game that (sorry for saying this, Mystery) should have won KF's competition hands down.

7 out of 10

Review: David Whyld (2)

From the title, you might get the impression that this is a rather silly game. You'd be right, too.

Goldilocks Is A Fox is a strange mishmash of various fairy tales: the Goldilocks of the title, a big bad wolf, three bears, a fairy godmother, Sleeping Beauty, Prince Charming, etc. References to the three little pigs also pop up from time to time.

The story is pretty much nonsense from the word "go", but it's handled in such an amusing and charming manner that I found myself not minding how ridiculous and farfetched it all is. In fact, part of the game's charm is that it's written strictly tongue-in-cheek and isn't afraid to let it show.

As the game begins, you, as the eponymous Goldilocks, have just returned from a crazy art party and have decided, as you do, to walk through a dark wood on the way home (well, I *did* say it a was nonsense storyline). The wood is pretty much just a way to get from the start of the game to the three bears' cottage -- where the game begins in earnest -- but it has a few interesting set pieces that add to the humour of the game: Goldilocks' cry of "ooh, I'm so scared" popping up in the location description, the big bad wolf (my favourite character in the game) appearing and mistaking Goldilocks for Little Red Riding Hood (who is, alas, missing from the game). Indeed, the wood is an interesting set of locations in its own right.

The game properly opens up when you reach the three bears' cottage and have to figure out just how to get inside and what to do once you're there. Getting inside isn't easy but shouldn't cause too many problems if you try just about everything. One interesting thing I found when I finally got inside the cottage was how much larger on the inside it was than on the outside -- a kind of magic cottage crossed with Doctor Who's Tardis perhaps?

Of the various fantasy characters encountered during the game, my favourite had to be the big bad wolf, who was the sort of character you could probably base an entire game on. He mistakes Goldilocks for Little Red Riding Hood and then turns to up at the three bears' cottage demanding to see the three little pigs (for "see" read "eat"). There are several other characters in the game (Prince Charming was amusing) but none left quite the same impression as the big bad wolf.

The original version of the game was entered in the ADRIFT Summer Comp 2002 and came in second (a strange occurrence, really, as the game it lost to wasn't half as good). That version of the game came with a detailed walkthrough, which was something of a good and bad idea at the same time: good because it allows you to get past some of the harder puzzles in the game (some of them very hard indeed) but bad because it also spoils much of the enjoyment you get from solving them yourself. Goldilocks Is A Fox isn't an overly large game but the solution is a lengthy and convoluted one, often requiring players to double back on themselves and reuse the same item time and time again; in this way it generally gives the impression of being a far larger game than it really is.

Unlike so many comedy games, Goldilocks Is A Fox doesn't just go for the quick humour and forget about the gaming side of things. Take away the comedy and the general silliness and there is a very well constructed game here. There are some quite intricate puzzles (the one with the large chair being a particular favourite of mine) and while not every puzzle is logical or straightforward, for the most part they don't require too much thought on the part of the player to solve. That said, this isn't a game that you're likely to solve in the space of a single sitting, which is probably just as well as there are a fair number of good ideas here that would be ruined if you played the game through too fast.

Review: David Whyld (3)

From the title you might get the impression that this is a rather silly game. You'd be right too.

Goldilocks is a Fox is a strange mishmash of fairy tales: the Goldilocks of the title, a big bad wolf, three bears, a fairy godmother, Sleeping Beauty, Prince Charming, etc. And references to the three pigs also pop up from time to time.

The story is pretty much nonsense from the word go but it's handled in such an amusing manner that you find yourself not minding how ridiculous and farfetched it all is. In fact, part of the game's charm is that it's written strictly tongue-in-cheek and isn't afraid to let it show.

As the game begins, you, as the eponymous Goldilocks, have just returned from a crazy art party and have decided, as you do, to walk through a dark wood on the way home (well, I did say it was nonsense). The wood is pretty much just a way to get from the start of the game to the three bears' cottage - where the game begins in earnest - but it has a few interesting pieces that add to the humour of the game: Goldilocks' cry of "ooh, I'm so scared" popping up in the location description, the big bad wolf appearing and mistaking Goldilocks for Little Red Riding Hood (who is, alas, missing from the game). Indeed, the wood is an interesting set of locations in its own right.

The game properly opens up when you reach the three bears' cottage and have to figure out just how to get inside and what to do once you're there. Getting inside isn't easy but shouldn't cause too many problems if you just try everything. One interesting thing I found about the cottage was how much larger on the inside it is than on the outside!

The original version of the game which was entered (and which didn't win for some inexplicable reason) in KF's mini-competition contained a walkthru. Using this if you get stuck is a handy way to get around the harder puzzles in the game (and a few of them are hard) but it also spoils much of the enjoyment you get from solving them yourself.

Unlike so many comedy games, Goldilocks is a Fox doesn't just go for the quick humour and forgets about the game side of things. Take away the comedy and the general silliness and there is a very well put together game here. There are some quite intricate puzzles (the one with the large chair in particular being a favourite of mine) and while not every puzzle is logical or straightforward, for the most part they don't require too much thought on the part of the player to solve. That said, this isn't a game that you're likely to solve in the space of a single sitting; which is probably just as well as there are a fair number of good ideas here that would be ruined if you played the game through too fast.

Logic: 7 out of 10
Despite being essentially a nonsense game set in a world where fairy tales come to life, Goldilocks is a Fox had a nice logical feel to it.

Problems: 10 out of 10 (10 = no problems)
I didn't find any bugs in the game and, believe me, I looked and looked.

Story: 8 out of 10
Even though the source material - Goldilocks, the three bears, etc, etc, - is hardly original, Goldilocks is a Fox has had enough work expended on it that it comes across as a whole new experience.

Characters: 8 out of 10
The big bad wolf was the sort of character you could probably base an entire game on. He mistakes Goldilocks for Little Red Riding Hood and then turns to up at the three bears' cottage demanding to see the three little pigs (for "see" read "eat"). There are several other characters in the game but none quite as amusing as the wolf.

Writing: 8 out of 10
Way above average and with some interesting location descriptions and dialogue with the characters in the game.

Game: 7 out of 10
A close tie with Wonder Wombat and Troll! for best comedy ADRIFT game.

Overall : 48 out of 60

Review: T. Mulkerrins

Effing Marvalous

The storyline is fun and quirky and the writing crisp, simple and to the point. The game is full of original, well thought out puzzles that challange and give you a real sense of achievment when you solve them, and nearly every action you could think of has been covered, from looking at the cows face to getting a little too friendly with the big bad wolf (if you know what I mean).

I found the game a joy to play and is most definetly one of the best I've played. A quality game.