IFComp 2024 Impressions is a series where must-play entries from the aforementioned jam are showcased for your convenience. Final Arc would like to give a disclaimer that it does not encourage readers to vote for any particular game mentioned in this series.
The name Chandler M. Groover rings a lot of bells for folks in the interactive fiction (IF) community. Those who know him remember some of the most memorable IF games in recent memory, such as Toby's Nose, Midnight. Swordfight., and Eat Me. All three of these made it onto the Interactive Fiction Top 50 of All Time (2019 edition) list, with two of them being IFDB's highest rated games as of September 19, 2024. Try any of these and you'll understand that their rankings are well deserved accomplishments.
Each time I play a piece by Groover I'm blown away with what he's able to accomplish with the parser. And he has style, to boot! Just look at the aesthetics of his other IF games. It's no wonder then that when I decided to cover IFComp 2024 I put his game on my list without hesitation.
What is The Bat?
>x master
New Gothenburg's most eligible bachelor. Noted philanthropist. Notorious playboy. Master Bryce does have his eccentricities, but when you are the sole heir to the Wyatt Dynasty, it's amazing what people are willing to overlook.
- Text by Chandler M. Groover.
Groover's entry, The Bat, is a parser text game where you play as a servant under your wealthy playboy employer, Master Bryce Wyatt. His influential friends are coming over to enjoy themselves and cough up some donations for the New Gothenburg Widows & Orphans Fund. However, there are two slight catches. First, you're the only servant left, meaning there'll be no help at all. Second, the Master of Wyatt Manor is... "under one of his moods" again, so you'll have to make sure he doesn't terrorize any of the guests.
Master Bryce is attempting (rather unsuccessfully, one might remark) to exit the room by fluttering through the closed bedroom window. He keeps bashing himself against the glass, flapping his arms.
- Text by Chandler M. Groover.
Here's the good news, though; your character is an experienced valet—not to be confused with a butler—who's been through worse conundrums. Thanks to his skills in the art of wrangling chaos into submission, there's only one major command you need to keep in mind: ATTEND TO guests.
[To accomplish most tasks in this game, the command attend to (something) is all you will need. You can abbreviate attend to by typing only the letter A…
- Text by Chandler M. Groover.
The Bat threw me for a loop at first because I associated it with an old play also called The Bat (1920), an adaptation of a lesser known mystery classic, The Circular Staircase1. After playing the game I was shocked to discover that I was right. Groover states in the credits that the cover image is taken from a poster for the 1926 movie adaptation of the play2. He also mentioned in our correspondence that the aesthetics and plot sensibilities were influenced by the 1926 silent film.
Those familiar with the world’s greatest detective may also recognize some familiar names and personalities. Groover says that both Batman (himself inspired by an adaptation of The Bat) and an operetta called Die Fledermaus (which means “The Bat”) inspired some of the characters and themes. But there’s one character only opera buffa (think slice-of-life with comedy in opera form) buffs might recognize. Here’s a hint: Polish baritone Mariusz Kwiecień played him in Don Pasquale.
Metal veins run through the floor: nickel, cobalt, iron. These veins form the mosaic, which is a giant bat. Marta Wyatt adopted the bat as the family crest to honor the colony that roosted in the caverns her husband was excavating. Those caverns, of course, contained something more valuable than bats.
- Text by Chandler M. Groover.
Yeah, there’s a lot of bats involved. But if my game took at least four years to make like Groover’s, then it would probably collect a whole cauldron3 of them, too.
One big thing The Bat does well
>think
At the moment, you need to:
• Attend to Baron Twombly.
• Serve a drink to Emilia Ives.
• Keep an ear out for the doorbell.
An aspect of The Bat that resonated with me right away was how accessible the gameplay was. For those who don't know, classical adventure game puzzle design became infamous for puzzles with outlandish solutions, referred to as "moon logic". I'm happy to report that The Bat avoids this trap. The puzzles are all embedded, meaning they make sense within the context of the story. Everything you have to do is what you’d expect the lone servant of an entire manor to do.
>x cabinet
Well stocked with enough alcohol to lubricate tonight's soirée. Because there is no butler on the premises, your role has been expanded to encompass both pouring and serving the drinks.
- Text by Chandler M. Groover.
I'll cheat a bit and include a second thing that's more specific to his style than this game only. The Bat, like Groover's other games, deviates from the standard expectations of parser games without becoming incomprehensible. I won't claim that he's innovating entire new ways of playing with the format. After all, The Bat takes its limitations from the limited verb subgenre. However, I will say that he incorporates what makes his influences work while still adding his own spin. This is the mark of a talented artist in my book.4
Who should play The Bat?
[Before the guests arrive, you'll need to illuminate the other rooms, as well. Take this time to familiarize yourself with Wyatt Manor. Once the party starts, you'll have quite a few tasks to juggle, and it will be useful to know where everything is located.]
- Text by Chandler M. Groover.
IF fans who enjoy the tightness and creativity that limited verb games are known for will love The Bat. It accomplishes so much with so little. It's hard to remember sometimes that you're traveling around the same house with the same people for the entire time!
… She has a small favor to ask. Of course, there's nothing questionable about this little favor, because it's your duty not to question anything.
Not even why someone would need so much oil.
- Text by Chandler M. Groover.
Newbies to parser games who are turned off by how insane classic puzzle design logic can be will also have a blast with The Bat. It's simple enough for you to understand but also complex enough that you'll spend a good amount of time figuring out how to perform your tasks when other ones keep getting in the way. The game's a fine introduction to the wonderful world of parsers.
Before you hurry off for more drinks…
Excerpted from the New Gothenburg Post:
...good character wanted to fill vacancies in domestic staff, including such roles as chauffeur, housekeeper, gardener, &c. Candidates seeking employment should…
- Text by Chandler M. Groover.
The Final Arc mailbox received5 a copy of the New Gothenburg Post while I wrote this impression. The paper ran an interview with Chandler M. Groover about The Bat and I wanted to share a small part of it with you:
"One of my top priorities for The Bat was to make it beginner-friendly. Simple commands. Easy puzzles. Clear goals. Interactive fiction is an incredible medium, but parser games can be tricky. Hopefully The Bat will help open the door for new players—and also work as an entertaining parody!"
Oh, dear, you must hurry. The guests are starting to cry for alcohol, and Master Bryce is biting the drapes again. You can play The Bat through the IFComp website or IFDB.
THE BODY & THE BLOOD
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Notes
1 Mystery aficionados should read this one.
2 There's a bunch of adaptations of adaptations going on with this franchise. I recommend The Bat (1959), a black and white film adaptation of the 1920 play featuring Vincent Price.
3 A group of bats can be called a cauldron!
4 It's also my article, so for all intents and purposes this is a certified FACT™. No, I am not accepting feedback-
5 There was also an invitation for a duel at midnight but we won't go into that.
Justin's many things: Memer, designer, developer, game maker, Tarot reader, writer, and more. Now he's a keyboard monkey for Final Arc (don't tell them he said that). Website: heyjustinkim.com
