Games like The Time Crystals of Cythii (TALP)

Introduction You were looking forward to a break from chess, and a holiday on Aunt Clarissa's farm was just what you needed. You may have been the county's youngest chess champion, but those long afternoons hanging around the Wigtown chess tables was not much fun for a ten-year-old. You would much rather be running around on your Aunt Clarissa's farm. Well, it used to be your Uncle Bill's farm, …

Introduction Ever since the Battle of Sekigahara and the rise of the Tokugawa shogunate, the samurai have gradually lost their military function to become courtiers, bureaucrats and administrators. This life was not for you, so you find yourself wandering from town to town looking for work where your sword skills are valued. There's always plenty of work escorting dignitaries, or seeking out weap…

Introduction Woe is you! You've wagged school and spent all day at the carnival and you've run out of money. You were wandering around a quiet area behind all the main rides when you came across a sign over an entrance that said 'Administration'. The sign had been crossed out and replaced with 'Troll's Cave - Admission Free'. What a great gimmick! You couldn't resist the temptation of a free ride,…

Introduction In the days when the Wild West was roamed by bandits and murderers, lawmen had a lot to deal with. Honest sheriffs and brave rangers tracked outlaws over wild terrain, but very often they had to stop at the Mexican border, because they had no jurisdiction in Mexico. Countless gangs of bandits used this to their advantage. They would cross the border to rob and kill in the southern s…

Introduction You feel your brain rattling around inside your head. Someone is shaking you. "Wake up! Wake up!" You rub your eyes and squint in the bright morning sunlight. You vaguely make out the silhouette of your next-door neighbour, Peter the pumpkin eater. "Mother Goose has been kidnapped!" That catches your attention. You spring out of bed. Mother Goose is your other next-door neighbour…

Introduction Mr and Mrs Graham have gone out to a movie and left you to babysit their young daughter, Anna. What could be easier? Anna is in bed, so you settle down on the living room couch and fall asleep. In your sleep, you dream that Mr and Mrs Graham come home and find Anna missing. The police are called, a city-wide search is instigated and you are severely reprimanded...and rightly so. Amid …

Introduction There's a carnival in town and your young son has been pestering you to go. You know that if you do, you'll spend all your money on stupid frivolous things, like candy and fairy floss. The household budget can't afford that and you have a mortgage to pay off. On the flip side, if you don't go, your son will think you're the worst father in the world. So, you consult the missus. She…

Introduction The stories about the Ark of the Covenant are well known, but its current location is a mystery. According to French author Louis Charpentier, the Ark was taken to the Chartres Cathedral by the Knights Templar, but no one outside the cathedral has ever seen it. There may be a good reason for this. You were raised in a small village about 100 km from Chartres Cathedral. According to lo…

Introduction You wake up feeling groggy. Your head hurts. "Blimey. What happened?" You run your fingers through your hair and feel a nasty bump on the back of your head. The last thing you remember was sweeping the floor in the pub before the early morning patrons started arriving. You look around. "What the hell am I doing in the broom closet?" Goal Your first goal is to find out what you're doin…

Introduction The weather is getting hotter and bushfire season is approaching. The animals have to stock up on food and prepare their bushfire survival plans. Every year, the animals appoint a bushfire warden. The bushfire warden has an important job to do, for he or she has to check on all the other animals and make sure that they have their bushfire survival plans in place. This year, it's Kenny…