Gregory Weir recently released a new Flash-based adventure game called Bars of Black and White. And here are some thoughts:
- The game’s basic mechanic of using a scanner to read barcodes (found in all kinds of places and forms) is simple and original, and works excellently with the game’s Orwellian theme.
- Speaking of the theme – I like it. Using the room as a symbol of mental and physical imprisonment is something that I have also done myself, and an image that appeals to me.
- The only thing the game lacked for me was surprise, but that’s actually a compliment. How so? Well, that’s because large parts of the game are exactly the way I would’ve made them. It was almost… familiar.
- The use of crudely drawn black and white graphics is excellent. It creates an appropriate atmosphere, and also strongly supports the game mechanics. If the game’s graphics weren’t so near abstraction, you couldn’t believably use the scanner on so many different objects.
All in all, an excellent little game. Gregory has promised to release a game per month for the whole year; I am looking forward to all of them.
Now go have a look.
