For a Change

“The sun is gone. It must be brought. You have a rock.”

So begins For a Change, one of the most unusual games in recent memory: the language is distinctly nonstandard, in an e.e. cummings sort of way, and figuring out exactly what’s going on requires some lateral thinking. (Another example of the syntax: “This subsection of the inset brightens and flickers. The shadows . . . walk the cordstone walls; they move and excite.”)

While it’s not as accessible as most IF, it’s still a richly rewarding playing experience; once you learn to think in the same off-kilter way as the game’s written, it all comes together. The puzzles are a mixed bag–some make more sense than others–but generally this works both as a game and as a linguistic experiment, and rewards the imagination.