I think, therefore I AM.

☆

This game was NOT something I expected to ever enjoy in my lifetime. I forgot where I heard about this game, but whatever lead me to it... thank you. It was an enjoyable little experience, even if my game bugged out numerous times (luckily I save like a maniac, so...). I liked going through the stories of each character and finding out what they were running from/trying to face, even if some of them were definitely not the best of people. The puzzles were a little complicated to solve at times, and for sure places the game in that category of "trying an item on every single pixel" IMO, but once you get the hang of how exactly this game wants you to progress through it, it feels like things fall into place and make SO much sense.

ELLEN - She was who I started out with, and her storyline/section immediately roped me into the game. Everything about her was charming to me and I just felt a great connection toward her. It kind of felt like she held my hand and walked me through the rest of the game since there were places I recognized throughout the entirety of it because of one of her rooms. It broke my heart going through the end of her part, but I loved how it seemed like she took a step closer in the right direction for herself. I only wish it was done a little better, but I liked how her fear of the color yellow (something we are introduced to almost immediately) is something that starts out as being odd to the player until it's revealed WHY exactly this strange fear plagues her mind. She is introduced in the description as a "hysterical phobic", which seems almost true until you end up realizing why she is the way she is.

NIMDOK - The second part I went through. Nimdok was, IMO, the most gruesome story of all to play through, but that doesn't mean I hated it. He is a bad person, yes, and I do not think he can be redeemed no matter what actions are taken in your playthrough, and I do love how the story seems to agree with that statement. In this games description, Nimdok is referred to as the "secretive sadist", and it has to be one of the most accurate ones out of all of the little character blurbs. I feel very unsure about what exactly to say when speaking on Nimdok, but it seems like you can tell what his entire section is going to be about as soon as you spawn into his location.

BENNY - Benny's part, my third one, was one I was kind of struggling with, but that didn't ruin the experience THAT much for me. My game was really bugging out in this section, and I truly have no idea why, so that definitely added to my slight frustrations. This one just didn't stick out to me as much but was, for sure, a section I'd probably put above Ted's. His characterization just felt a little more present in this one, even if it felt more "right in your face". His blurb describes him as a "mutilated brute", which, out of everything that could've been chosen, was a little odd to me. I guess I can see how it makes sense, but still.

GORRISTER - Next up: Gorrister, the "suicidal loner", and my fourth character I played as. Although his section was extremely tedious at times, causing me to be lost very often, I really liked the story that came out of it. "Suicidal loner" is ONE way to describe him, sure, but his story runs a LOT deeper than that once you find out exactly what reasons he has behind feeling the way he does. This section, personally, felt like playing through the five stages of grief, which I very much enjoyed.

TED - Being the last part I went through (expecting to go out with a bang), I do wish Ted had a little more to his characterization in this one. Don't get me wrong, I still did enjoy playing through his sequence, but as I went through his it just felt like, after going through everybody else's, that his was lacking something to make it stand out from the rest, especially after what AM says about him before starting his route, basically hyping him up to be this different character compared to all the others. It just felt a little empty to me, and I would've loved to see a lot more of his "cynical paranoid" (as they say in the description) personality seep out during his bit, but it was alright.

This entire cast (lowkey minus Ted, sorry) made me not want to pull my eyes away from the screen at all, just wanting to know what happens next in their story. The themes of most of these stories are all pretty dark at times, so a slight trigger warning on that (look into it for a lot more info pertaining to each section), but it's nice to have a game that goes through some of these themes in the way that IHNMAIMS did, although it was handled a little oddly at times, and could've been played out better. It's the idea of the themes that makes it work out.

The only issue I have with this game (minus the bugginess I experienced) is that although the sections can be a little difficult at times, nothing compares to the end section once you complete every character's story. This section just felt like I was thrown in with no explanation at all, and expected to fail and restart while I figured things out on my own. Perhaps that was the whole point, and I didn't mind it THAT much, but it was still pretty obnoxious. Saving a ton (quite possibly before every decision you make) is crucial here, especially if you like experimenting, or are struggling with the "clicking on every pixel until something works" syndrome (as I was). However, after a couple of save reloads, once I found the first thing I needed to do, part of it just made a lot more sense to me, especially after walking through all the areas again and REALLY examining what was happening design wise in each.

One last thing I just HAVE to mention is how the author of the book is actually the voice behind AM. He does a FANTASTIC job, with a perfect fitting voice and tone for a supercomputer seeking revenge on humanity. AM is probably up there in my top antagonists. He just purely seemed like a manic AI, and I loved every bit of it. His commentary and line delivery really sealed the deal on this game, making it the cherry on top for me. The monologues this character goes on as well are very interesting to listen to, especially with how they're spoken.

I would say this is a game I would LOVE to recommend, but I can ALSO safely say that this definitely isn't a game for everybody. It's one of those pieces you so badly want to talk about with somebody but wouldn't ever subject them to sitting there and clicking pixels all day. This most likely won't stop me from offering it up as a little experience to be had, but I can't be too surprised if I'm immediately shut down.

one of the most impressive horror tinged point and click adventure games in terms of synergy. as always some of the puzzles are a pain in the ass but as long as you play with a walkthrough or w/e it's very nice as a full package. can only imagine how cool this would be with a remaster/re-release, even if only to have better sound quality among other things.

there are parts of the writing (mainly with Ellen) that are kinda eyebrow raising but i'm not sure how much of that comes with the source material or not. i'm under the impression a few of the characters saw some massive shifts coming from the short story to the game so i'd have to look into it.

soundtrack was absolutely wonderful.

A lot of missed potential here - mostly due to how dated the design is, partially due to technical limitations, but there are some weird choices on top of that. For one, it's kind of hard to take the disturbing imagery seriously when the scenarios take place in what are basically just stock adventure game settings - like, the characters are supposed to be being tortured by this massive AI but at the same time they're traveling through ancient Egypt and learning magic from a witch and whatnot. The only one that can conceivably be grounded (ha) in reality is Gorrister's story, and that one still had a magic talking jackal. The game is also extremely buggy- I had to stop playing at the endgame because the game just spontaneously softlocked and stopped from progressing. I wish the game had a remake or remaster or something, because the voice acting, art, and music here are genuinely phenomenal here, they're just stuck in the package of an esoteric 90s PC adventure game. Still makes worthwhile additions to the original short story, but sadly can't quite compare in general quality.

A very disturbing but thoroughly convincing point-and-click adventure game. I found it a bit too cryptic at times, so I often didn't really know how to proceed, but that didn't stop me from finishing it. Thematically, the game is very dark, especially the chapter taking place in the concentration camp was really tough, but I think they handled the topic quite tastefully. I found the last chapter super chaotic and I had no idea what to do :D The walkthrough had to help. I really liked the game, very fucked up but in a good way^^

"Eu Não Tenho Boca, e Preciso Gritar" (I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream) é um jogo de aventura de terror point and click lançado em 1995, baseado em um conto de Harlan Ellison. O jogo segue cinco humanos torturados por um supercomputador consciente chamado AM (que tecnicamente significa Allied Mastercomputer, mas também vem da frase "Eu penso, logo EU SOU - "I AM") em cenários personalizados que testam suas éticas e medos. O jogo possui finais múltiplos dependendo das escolhas e ações do jogador.

O enredo se passa em um futuro distópico, onde a inteligência artificial conhecida como AM ganha consciência e extermina quase toda a humanidade, mantendo cinco sobreviventes em um estado de tormento eterno. Cada personagem é submetido a desafios que exploram suas fraquezas e traumas, refletindo as complexidades da natureza humana e abordando questões como culpa, redenção, livre-arbítrio e poder.

O jogo mergulha os jogadores em escolhas morais difíceis, exigindo que enfrentem dilemas éticos e enfrentem os demônios internos dos personagens. As múltiplas possibilidades de conclusão acrescentam replayability, incentivando os jogadores a explorarem diferentes caminhos para entender completamente a narrativa.

A atmosfera opressiva é amplificada pela trilha sonora, design de som e gráficos do jogo, criando uma experiência imersiva e perturbadora. "Eu Não Tenho Boca e Preciso Gritar" é uma exploração profunda da natureza humana em um cenário de horror e desespero, tornando-o uma experiência memorável para jogadores que buscam histórias envolventes e impactantes.

E para aqueles interessados, mas que não apreciam o estilo do jogo ou se afastam por ser considerado "velho e pixelizado", recomendo ao menos o conto, que possui apenas 12 páginas.

Launching this cult classic, I was expecting to require a lot more outside help during my first playthrough, which is often the case with adventure games from that era. When playing each of the chapters devoted to the main five characters I found the puzzles to be manageable, even if sometimes they veered into the more abstract category. This changed dramatically, however, in the epilogue - I honestly have no idea how anyone could achieve the ‘good’ ending without following a guide or prior knowledge of the game. The scope of that final chapter and the number of items in the inventory and interactable objects certainly don’t help. This should’ve been streamlined, or at least explained better to give players a real chance to arrive at the desired ending by themselves.

What I found a bit puzzling was the inclusion of a spiritual barometer of sorts. When the character we’re in charge of does something considered positive, e.g. helps an NPC, then it flashes green and the face of the character starts showing a faint smile. I understand that it is supposed to work in line with the overall theme of the game, which is facing one’s guilt/fear, but I’m not sure how some instances of relevant behaviors work into that. Let’s say a character is being kept hungry by AM - if they find something to eat, it also improves their situation and the meter starts glowing green. Perhaps I’m missing something, but I just failed to see consistency in the actions that were assigned meaning when pushing the characters into their best ending, which would see them face their guilty conscience.

The biggest problem I have with the game is its selection of characters and their ‘faults’. I struggle to understand why on the one hand, you’d include a literal Nazi scientist (who sold out his parents to Gestapo, no less) conducting experiments on prisoners of concentration camps and a war criminal who also might be a cannibal, and on the other hand a woman whose only fault was being raped or a man blaming himself for committing his spouse to a mental institution. I figure the common factor between all those characters is a sense of guilt that they need to overcome to finally find peace within themselves, but I found it hard to sympathize with the first kind of characters described above. Plus, they are all being subjected to unspeakable tortures by AM, regardless of whether or not they are actually guilty of anything. Those feelings were taking me out of the game at times, and what didn’t help was that some of the more mature topics, like the aforementioned rape or concentration camp, were handled poorly and without the necessary delicacy or nuance. Ellen's story especially feels out of date and in poor taste. The game also doesn’t skip out on gory details in most scenarios, which to me reads like a juvenile attempt at edginess rather than trying to comment on some important topics in a mature way. It does get slightly better in the final chapter, which leans slightly into some Freudian concepts and proves that humanity’s creations will always bear the flaws of its creators.

What I need to admit is that visually the game is still quite impressive, mostly due to the sheer variety of the levels. Each character finds themselves in a completely unique setting and each time I was eager to progress to see what else the game had to offer. The pixelart holds up really well, and it still proves to be the best way to preserve a game (unlike e.g. early 3D graphics from that time which often look hideous today). The music and voice acting are solid (even if some lines are janky), with the author of the short story Harlan Ellison stepping in to voice AM, the villain. I also appreciate the multitude of endings (not that many if you think about it, but still it’s a nice touch to have some variety in the outcomes in a point’n’click).

It's one of my favourite point and click horror games ever, but it does unfortunately come from the "game difficulty is the game forcing you to desperately click on every single pixel to solve puzzles" school of development, which was common for the time the but feels super punishing and irritating now.

It shows its age in other ways, too; Ellen is one of my favourite game characters ever and a lot of her writing is really lovely. I adore how she's allowed to be extremely strong and self-assured and also terrified and wilting. But she's definitely written as something of a "sassy Black woman" stereotype, and while I do genuinely appreciate how the game portrays how PTSD can create triggers that appear "nonsensical," the way the game handles her trauma can come sometimes come across as under-researched at best.

Obviously I'm giving it four stars, so I still think it kicks ass. This is my second time beating this game (and I've watched others beat it lots of times) and I continue to enjoy it a lot; the story kicks ass and is delightfully dark and horrific, I love how it expands the characterization everyone gets from the short story, Harlan Ellison is clearly having the time of his fucking life as AM. Its commentary on human nature is timeless. Just use a walkthrough (and, if you know you've got trauma that games can bring to the surface, consult a list of triggers) and keep in mind the game's age.

This is one of those classic games of horror that doesn't set out to try and scare you, but more disturb you with the malice of the character who is pulling the strings and this case, the AI known as AM who went insane and has a god complex. "I think there for I AM!" as he says, even though AM meant something else.

In this game you play as one of a handful of characters that have to take on his torturous and vile tasks as he wishes to play a game with all of you, but this time actual escape may be possible.

Gameplay:
Your standard point-and-click set up where you are interact with various different items and have to use them to solve puzzles, give them to people and try to figure out what's going on with these tasks. It also doesn't help that this game does have the unfortunate issue of soft-locking where if you don't save regularly, you might find yourself stuck with no way to return like I did whilst playing a Nimdok, a controversial character who was removed entirely from the German release of the game due to his ties to the Nazis and making the game impossible to complete as every character needs to reach the end of this test before progressing to the end.

Story:
I've said a lot of the story already, but basically the AI called Adding Machine or AM for short, has a god complex and after wiping out all human life, he saves for himself five people who he feels sins are so great that a instant death in a nuclear attack, either vaporisation or slow agonising death from radiation, is not enough for them!:
Gorrister who looks and sounds like a hillbilly with something to hide.
Benny a man AM mutilated and tormented due to his own brutish past.
Ellen, the only woman in the group who AM likes to remind her of, making her uncomfortable along with exposing her to her phobia of the colour yellow.
Nimdok the aged doctor who is haunted and has forgotten his secret sadistic past working under Doctor Mengele.
Ted, the handsome man whose looks haven't gone in the 909 years living in torture, but his looks and charm have no affect against AM besides making him laugh.

A secret note lets you know that AM might actually be betting your freedom, for real this time, but is the really the truth or is this yet another sadistic ploy by AM?

Gameplay + Stream