This TWINE game is an entrant in the 2020 Interactive Fiction Competition.  Because it’s October, I’m currently concentrating on only playing the horror and fantasy-based entries but I hope to have played and reviewed all of the entries by November 29th.

In this game, you are Lightbearer, Garden City’s greatest hero.  And you are also Promethium, Garden City’s most nefarious villain.  You play both roles in this unusual text adventure.  When Lightbearer finally defeats Promethium, it might mean that she’ll have to leave Garden City and, for a lot of reasons, she’s not ready to uproot her family and make that move.  So, Lightbearer and Promethium make a deal.  Lightbearer will let Promethium go free on the condition that they continue to have regular “staged” battles.  Lightbearer and Promethium meet regularly at a coffeeshop to choreograph their fights ahead of time.  Depending on the choices that the player makes, the hero and the villain can bond over their unexpected similarities or, as the title suggests, trying to trust your enemy can be a complete disaster.

I enjoyed this game.  It took me by surprise and both Lightbearer and Promethium were interesting and well-written characters.  This game explored why a hero needs a villain and vice versa and the story led to some very unexpected places.  It’s not a short game but it is a rewarding one.  It’s well worth the time required to play it.

It can be played here.