XYZZY Catch-Up: Arcane Intern (Unpaid)
May. 18th, 2016 12:37 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
healygFor the next week, I'll be going over games nominated for the 2015 XYZZY Awards that I haven't played yet. Today, we'll be reviewing Arcane Intern (Unpaid), by Astrid Dalmady.
Arcane Intern (Unpaid) is about a young intern who gets a job at a magical publishing company. The game is slighter than the other Best Story nominees I've played so far; it's a fairly short work, only taking about 15-30 minutes to play through, and I felt the themes of feeling rejected by this magical world could be more fully developed with a longer playtime, perhaps. But it is incredibly charming, and the middle section, where you explore a labyrinth-like warehouse to get some supplies, gives a great sense of character and setting and really brings the work together. Arcane Intern (Unpaid) is the kind of game you play on a rainy afternoon to cheer yourself up, and though I wish it were weightier, it makes good use of it short playtime.
Arcane Intern (Unpaid) is about a young intern who gets a job at a magical publishing company. The game is slighter than the other Best Story nominees I've played so far; it's a fairly short work, only taking about 15-30 minutes to play through, and I felt the themes of feeling rejected by this magical world could be more fully developed with a longer playtime, perhaps. But it is incredibly charming, and the middle section, where you explore a labyrinth-like warehouse to get some supplies, gives a great sense of character and setting and really brings the work together. Arcane Intern (Unpaid) is the kind of game you play on a rainy afternoon to cheer yourself up, and though I wish it were weightier, it makes good use of it short playtime.
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