Hey there folks, now while I’ve still got E3 moments to cover [ and Comic Con on the way ], I’m still devoted to smaller indie titles that grab my fun buttons. Today is no different, because I’ve found a game which I find quite intriguing. It’s an interactive narrative with Suessical meaning. It’s called Relive Your Life by Matt Ackerman, a game that keeps me coming back again and again. As you’ll see it’s affected my rhythm and verse, which unfortunately for readers, may come as a curse. Don’t believe me my friends? – Well you should try it out first!

What kind of person will you be?

Ackerman’s artistic endeavors and Arin “Egoraptor” Hanson’s narrative prose make for one of the most interesting games I’ve played in a while. Now the game has very simple mechanics, and all of them are keyboard based: “Press X a specific amount of times.”, “Type out this sentence to save your life.”, “Pet a pet in this sequence of arrow keys”, etc. and while it may seem easy I have to say, it’s one of the most frantic games I’ve played in a while. The game gives you a 5 – 6 second window to complete these small keyboard-based tasks. This isn’t a ton of time, and so gamers with motion impairments or slower reflexes will have a tough time completing sections and changing your fate.

I’ll snuggle you for a better life teddy! You’ll be my friend!

Never fear my dear, for there’s something to help!

Their looks are so incredulous, because you’re just that dang AWESOME!

If you ever feel lost or give cause to yelp, well then after a play there’s a “Previous Chapter” A button you’ll press, when the pressure comes after. Heh. Rhyming isn’t helping is it? Well all I’ll say is that if you screw up you have an opportunity to replay the events over again and try for a different ending. There are 29 different stories in all and I’m intrigued enough to play through them all! If you’re totally into narrative storytelling like I am you’ll want to sit down with this little flash title and relive your life over and over again! You can play it for free today on Kongregate or even Newgrounds – both have the game, and I promise you’ll get addicted to a game that even Dr. Suess would be proud of!

Pros:

• Easy gameplay, with about 6 chapters per playthrough. 29 possible endings will keep you quite busy.
• Colors are simple and clean. Easy for viewing and playing. 
• Game runs on keyboard based functions, and while not accessible for all gamers, it makes for simple gameplay.
• Stories are fun, interesting, and keep gamers wanting to reach the end of their fate on each playthrough.
• The interactions and stories are truly funny. Egoraptor’s dialog definitely amps up the enjoyment of this game!
• A previous chapter function allows gamers to replay sections they may have messed up on to hopefully get new endings.

Cons:

• No subtitles for audio, which makes the game much harder for deaf gamers. However: Deaf gamers can read the script: HERE.
• No audio cues. The game has audio that blind players can listen to, but no audio cues for when items are highlighted, etc.
• Quick reflexes are needed for this game to be able to access ALL of the endings. A small window of time doesn’t give you much room.

Enjoy folks! Happy gaming to you all!