Looking for non-action non-arcade recommendations

[Tijn]

#11333

I’ve had my first go at ZZT yesterday and… it’s kicking my ass haha

So much of the gameplay is about avoiding enemies and not dying, which I can see the appeal of, but that style is not really for me.

I rather play something more narrative / puzzle-focused, something that doesn’t hinge on fast reflexes and the like.

Or possibly something about managing stats, building something, more of a manager-type thing.

Basically I’m looking for recommendations that don’t have a big arcade/action element. If you’ve got any, please share and I’ll check them out!

[asie]

#11334

Here are some recommendations I crowd-sourced with the ZZT community:

• Ana (2017) – a modern ZZT puzzle game
• Little Square Things (2001) – an older ZZT puzzle game, well regarded back in the day
• Winter (1999) – a classic ZZT puzzle game
• Faux Amis (2018) – a ZZT adventure puzzle game
• Atop the Witch’s Tower (2017) – short narrative story with a few puzzle elements
• When There Is No More Snow (2021) – this is essentially a visual novel written in ZZT.

Due to ZZT’s programming limitations, there are not many “stats games” in the original engine, but I think there are a few made in WiL’s modern fork, Weave. Of course, that isn’t exactly ZZT, but for the sake of completeness (and because it has been catching on over the last few years), I am linking a list here – you might want to check them out at some point as well, even if to see what the same people can do with fewer constraints.

[RT-55J]

#11336

Howdy! I’m a ZZTer with some recommendations of my own:

– CAT, CAT, THAT DAMN CAT (2009) – Neat hybrid of a sort of Game-and-Watch style game and adventure game. (There’s a slight bit of action at the very end, but the game’s basically done by then.)

– ZZT Encyclopedia Online (2001) – Not a game, but a large reference of things one can do in ZZT by clever scripting and taking advantage of its quirks. Some of the info is dated or inaccurate, but 10-year-old me was fascinated by the ingenuity on display.

– The Secrets of Raventhorpe Manor (2025) – A silly riff on the old “purple key” worlds of yore. You might get a chuckle playing one this after suffering enough through those.

– BUYSO (2020) – Christmas shopping at not-Daiso (oops this would have been topical in December). (Also, I made this (sorry for the self-promotion).)

– Play ZZT (2025) – This is a Weave game that reimagines the original 4 ZZT worlds as a deckbuilder (dicebag-builder?). There’s a bit of a learning curve, but it’s not too hard once you get the hang of it.

There’s plenty of more stuff out there, but these are a few things that immediately come to mind.

[butterburp]

#11338

Nice! That Buyso one looks interesting, I might check it out. Also, while browsing the bottom of the B section at ZZT museum, I came across one called Butt. Wonder what that’s about…

[Tijn]

#11339

Thanks for all the recommendations <3

I'll go check them out and post my findings!

[Tijn]

#11340

Oooh I’m already loving Little Square Things, gonna spend some time with this one!

https://museumofzzt.com/file/view/lst/

[Tijn]

#11341

Also no worries about self promotion, RT-55J! I love seeing games people made themselves. I played BUYSO, it’s very cute! Very happy with the 90s Socks and Flipping Spatula I got haha

[Tijn]

#11342

That Damn Cat is also very interesting! I’ve reached an ending, but I don’t think it’s the good one because I ended up in outer space haha

https://museumofzzt.com/file/view/catcat/

[tinybird]

#11344

I really liked this one that my friend made: https://farawaytimes.itch.io/worms-a-love-story

[Tijn]

#11348

Awww that’s adorable, I played Worms: A Love Story all the way to the end in one go because I was so captivated haha

[tinybird]

#11351

me too, it’s super cute!