Astrologaster, be a medieval fortune teller [PC/iOS/Switch]

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Hipolito
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Astrologaster, be a medieval fortune teller [PC/iOS/Switch]

Post by Hipolito »

In real-life Elizabethan England, there was a physician named Simon Forman who used astrology to counsel his patients. He was controversial and the Royal College of Physicians tried to bar him from practicing. But he was also popular and had some high-profile clients.

In Astrologaster, you are Simon Forman. One by one, a client comes to you with their problems, you do a "reading" of the star charts to see what they say, then you choose one of two or three recommendations to give to the client. Depending on whether the client likes your advice, their opinion of you will go up or down. If you get a client's opinion rating all the way up to 100, they'll write a letter of recommendation. If you get eight of these letters, you'll be granted a medical license and the College of Physicians will stop breathing down your neck.

This is a humorous, dialogue-based story game. The best part is when a client visits you. The game plays a brief choral song about the client. The lyrics are often ribald and satirical, and the singing is wonderful. Each song is uniquely composed. I can't praise the music enough.

The fully voiced dialogue between Simon and his patient is often funny and risqué as well. Quite often, you'll have to tell the client what they want to hear rather than what they need to hear. And since some clients are in positions of power and know each other, you can get inadvertently involved in their affairs. It's interesting to see how people's lives play out, for better or for worse, depending on the advice you give.

But the game is tedious and frustrating as well. In the astrological portion of the game, you're just clicking on icons to see what they reveal. There's no skill or judgment involved in reading the stars. Then you have 2 or 3 dialogue choices, and how the client reacts can be a real crapshoot. You can give the client the obvious truth, and they'll hate you for it and their opinion of you will go down. Or they might come back later and admit you were right, and their opinion of you will go up. I did manage to get my 8 letters of recommendations, but only barely; all my other clients stopped seeing me before my rep scores with them reached 100. (Knowing a bit about Elizabethan history actually made a difference and helped me make some correct decisions.)

I can't quite recommend this game, but I did find it interesting. If you bought last year's itch.io Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality, you already have this game and might at well try it.
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LawBeefaroni
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Re: Astrologaster, be a medieval fortune teller [PC/iOS/Switch]

Post by LawBeefaroni »

Very intriguing, thanks! Probably don't have time to play the game but I bought the soundtrack.


Listen here. Lyrics included.


Though she never went to school
And she's kind and never cruel
Do not take Alice for a fool
Alice Blague, she is no fool.

Alice Blague, she likes a drink
She does care not what you think
Her head may end up down the sink
But Alice cares not what you think.

Alice Blague, she feels no shame
And, forsooth, is she to blame?
If we were her, we'd do the same
Alice Blague, she feels no shame.

Alice Blague is on the make
Mayhap even on the take
Could it be for her family's sake?
Seriously, give her a break

...
" Hey OP, listen to my advice alright." -Tha General
"No scientific discovery is named after its original discoverer." -Stigler's Law of Eponymy, discovered by Robert K. Merton

MYT
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Hipolito
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Location: Chicago, Illinois

Re: Astrologaster, be a medieval fortune teller [PC/iOS/Switch]

Post by Hipolito »

The music is quite fun to hear
Mayhap whilst quaffing ale or beer
Though if you'll play the game, pray stop
Some lyrics will quite spoil the plot!
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