On November 16 a shortened version of the program was featured on the main page of Newgrounds.com In two days over 120,000 people played. Here are a few of the hundreds of comments we've received.
"Absolutely brilliant! This is a real think-straight situated game."
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It's fantastically made, I like the music, the characterisation, the sense of atmosphere and the imagery, and the gameplay is wonderful."
"10 out of 10!
This was the best episode I have played to date! The way the scenes moved and the interaction between myself and the characters was seamless. If I got stuck on a part, the hints you give up to the point I ended were beneficial without making it too obvious what I needed to do. Once I saw the way the story was going and summed up the character, it became easier for me to determine the best course of action and I no longer needed hints. It was both challenging and a delight and the smooth flow of the story line and the way the characters meshed (even with the separate stories happening between the main characters) made this as enjoyable to watch and even more so to play out. I look forward to the next release in this series! "
"Beautiful and enchanting adventure game."
"Awesome!
I love your style. It is unlike anyone else's. I love the graphics too. Great job."
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Congratulations, good sirs and ladies at Zapdramatic. You have done it again. Although it has post-poned the release of the long-awaited Trial episode of Ambition, this was worth it! The puzzle was difficult, but I enjoyed the set up, and the ending was incredible! I can't wait to see what comes next now, because that just raised a bunch of questions! Your characters are as enthralling as the ones in Ambition, and although I thought you weren't going to top that series, this may have the potential to. Thanks again!
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"Great!
Finally another Michael Gibson negotiation game. I love these and there hasn't been a new one on here for a while so im pleased with this, especially as it is the best one yet."
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Voice acting is really good, and it's animated very well. damn this is a great flash, i like the plot. but then it ends up being intereactive... way cool! damn that was awesome, that guy in the van followed them and they crashed... great great stuff.
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Become a member of Zapdramatic and view the complete Move or Die parts 1 and 2 as well as the Ambition Murder Mystery and all of our other unique negotiation games. JOIN NOW
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One is only truly able to learn something once they disabuse themselves of the notion that they already know that which they do not. Playing through Move or Die is one of those rare cathartic experiences when one realizes the folly of this mistake. Every time I thought I had the magic formula, every time I thought I had everything figured out, it turned out I had missed something. Before I played this game I thought I was a good negotiator. I had a certain image of what a good negotiator does, how they think and how they act. I followed this mental model and in the process ignored the context completely. I was so cocksure that I was right that I missed the wealth of signs and signals that manifested themselves as the situational context evolved. Often times what seemed to be the right choice was in fact the wrong choice and what was difficult to do and seemed counterintuitive was the right thing to do. The best example of this is when you advise Wilma to use moral outrage to take control of the situation before Syd can begin arguing.
One other thing I found interesting was how one can negotiate successfully, in the sense that one successfully convinces another to act in a prescribed manner and yet end up failing overall. As I played through I found that I could negotiate successfully and yet fail the mission. A key lesson I managed to glean was that it is necessary to have a clear intended result in mind for the outcome of the negotiation. Without this one can easily find oneself being persuaded by the very party one is trying to persuade.
Also I loved how the game so poignantly illustrated how quickly things can go wrong when negotiating, how one slip, one moment of inattention, is all it takes to lose everything. Toward the end just when it looks like clear sailing when the guy in the nursing home truck exclaims in surprise that the old man supposedly dropped the envelope I immediately thought that if I indicated that it was left behind he would turn around to get the money. What I failed to consider was that in telling him that the envelope was left behind I showed an understanding that envelope had some kind of significant meaning and that I must know that it would be worth going back for. By offering to assist the man one displays what appears to be genuine ignorance as to the significance of the envelope.
I come away from this experience slightly wiser by recognizing the simple fact that I cannot know something before it is known, the answers always lie within the question." User on our forum
Currently on-line is part 1 of a 6 part series that will bridge television and the internet.
Each episode will begin as a half-hour animated comedy-adventure on television and conclude as a full-blown negotiation game on the web. Syd and Wilma are brother and sister who have not seen each other for three years. During their time apart both of their lives have become intolerably complicated and both covet secrets, which they must share with the other. Unfortunately, neither knows how to initiate the conversation and fate takes over in the form of a dead man lying in the middle of the road. The television audience will have three opportunities to suggest the best course of action. Unfortunately, Syd and Wilma argue against good advice and choose the most selfish, self-centred course of action. The television show will end each week in tragedy. The audience will then be invited to go to the web to negotiate with Syd and Wilma and change the outcome of the story. The on-line story will advance beyond the television show and Syd and Wilma will survive for another week.
