Jinxter Revived

Jinxter Revived is an authorized enhanced remake of the classic comedic text adventure Jinxter by Magnetic Scrolls, updated with a modern touch-screen UI and set in the fantastical yet contemporary land of Aquatania. Players embark on a quest to undo the curse of the Green Witches by reuniting four charms, supported by new illustrations, fast-travel automap, compass navigation, icon-based inventory, multiple undo levels, and intelligent word suggestions—with the Guardian returning to assist.

Jinxter Revived: Review

Introduction

In the twilight years of the 1980s, when text adventures reigned supreme as the pinnacle of interactive storytelling, Magnetic Scrolls emerged as a defiantly British contender to Infocom’s American dominance. Their third opus, Jinxter (1987), was a masterclass in comedic absurdity and world-building, a game that felt less like a puzzle and more like a surreal, Monty Python-esque romp through a land where luck was both currency and consequence. Three decades later, Strand Games undertook the ambitious task of reviving this cult classic with Jinxter Revived (2019). This authorized remake doesn’t merely dust off the digital artifacts of yesteryear; it reimagines the entire experience through the lens of modern interfaces and sensibilities. While the core narrative remains unchanged, the game is swaddled in a 21st-century UI, new visuals, and quality-of-life features designed to enthrall both nostalgic veterans and curious newcomers. This review delves into the intricate tapestry of Jinxter Revived, examining how it honors its legacy while charting a course for the future of interactive fiction.

Development History & Context

Magnetic Scrolls, founded by Anita Sinclair in 1984, was a studio synonymous with ambition and British eccentricity. Jinxter emerged as their third major release, originally conceived as a direct challenge to Infocom’s spell-based Enchanter series. The development process was fraught with drama: initial writer Georgina Sinclair (sister of Anita) departed due to creative differences, forcing a near-total rewrite in just three weeks by Michael Bywater, a scribe known for his work on The Guild of Thieves and the satirical The Independent Guardian newspaper bundled with the game. This chaotic genesis is reflected in the game’s tone—a madcap blend of high fantasy and suburban British satire.

Technologically, the original Jinxter pushed the boundaries of 1980s hardware. Its illustrated versions featured hand-crafted graphics using primitive tools: artists like Geoff Quilley and Duncan McLean meticulously placed individual pixels on 16-color palettes, often employing stippling techniques to create depth and texture. The parser, while advanced for the time, was constrained by the era’s limited processing power and memory, demanding precise, often verbose, input. The game launched on a staggering array of platforms—from Amiga and Atari ST to ZX Spectrum and Apple II—a testament to Magnetic Scrolls’ commitment to accessibility.

The 2019 revival by Strand Games was born from a dual mission: preservation and modernization. Operating with the blessing (and possibly assets) of Magnetic Scrolls, Strand sought to address the accessibility barriers of the original while honoring its artistic quirks. Constraints of the modern era were different: high-resolution displays demanded scalable art, touch interfaces required intuitive redesigns, and contemporary audiences expected features like maps and undo functionality. The result is a game that bridges the gap between the stark, pixelated world of 1987 and the sleek, multi-device landscape of 2019.

Narrative & Thematic Deep Dive

Jinxter unfolds in Aquitania, a whimsical realm that feels like a fever dream of early-to-mid 20th-century Britain—a place where bakers and postmistresses go about their mundane lives while the fabric of reality frays at the edges. The plot begins with the protagonist’s life spiraling into chaos: run over by a bus, sprayed with a cheese sandwich by a supernatural being, and hurled into an artificial waterfall. This isn’t random misfortune; it’s the work of the Green Witches, led by the malevolent Jannedor, who have shattered the legendary Bracelet of Turani. This artifact once distributed luck throughout Aquitania, keeping the witches’ dark magic in check. Now, with the bracelet’s four charms scattered, luck is draining, and the witches’ power grows. The player is recruited by a perpetually flustered Guardian—an immortal member of the “Association of Registered Stochastic Executives” (ARSE)—to retrieve the charms, reassemble the bracelet, and defeat Jannedor.

The narrative operates on two levels: a straightforward quest narrative and a sprawling, satirical exploration of Britishness. Characters are caricatures: the Guardians, clad in herringbone overcoats, lament their inability to spend time with families they despise; NPCs like the prim postmistress or the burly baker are oblivious to the world-ending crisis, consumed by trivialities. The dialogue, penned Bywater, is a masterclass in dry, absurdist wit. Descriptions sprawl across multiple screens, blending practicality with surrealism:

“This cool spring, surrounded on all sides but the west by steep banks, bubbles up from underground. It looks entirely artless and natural, belying the fact that Xam’s crazed gardener constructed it by means of an intricate system of dams and hydraulics, initially flooding half the neighbourhood and leading to a series of acrimonious lawsuits lasting several years.”

Thematic depth emerges from the game’s treatment of “luck.” It’s a tangible resource—losing it through risky actions (like surviving a fall) can render the game unwinnable. The protagonist is “lucky” only by cosmic accident, a pawn in a bureaucratic game played by incompetent immortals. The tragicomic ending—where vanquishing the witch only returns the player to the bus stop for a fatal collision—underscores the theme of fate as an inescapable, often absurd, force. Jinxter is not just about saving a world; it’s about questioning the nature of heroism, the arbitrariness of destiny, and the peculiar, comforting absurdity of British life.

Gameplay Mechanics & Systems

Jinxter Revived retains the original’s core text adventure mechanics but layers them with modern innovations. The gameplay loop remains: explore locations, interact with objects and NPCs, solve puzzles, and collect the four charms to restore the Bracelet. However, Strand Games has fundamentally reworked the user interface to cater to contemporary sensibilities.

Core Mechanics:
– The Parser & Interaction: The original parser required precise, often multi-clausal commands (e.g., “SMELL DEAD FLY THEN LICK IT”). While Jinxter Revived includes this classic parser mode by default, it introduces a groundbreaking touch-text system. Players can tap hyperlinked phrases in the text (“open the door“) to execute commands without typing. This bridges the gap between text and point-and-click, making the game accessible on mobile devices. An intelligent word suggestion bar further streamlines input, offering context-aware commands.
– Inventory Management: The original featured a cumbersome text-based inventory. The revamp replaces this with a sidebar icon-based inventory, allowing drag-and-drop interactions. Items are visually distinct, and the “carry-all” container now functions more intuitively (though its quirks, like items still occupying space inside it, are preserved in classic mode).
– Puzzles & Luck: Puzzles are largely unchanged—logical, often multi-step, and occasionally obtuse. The Luck mechanic is central: surviving hazards (e.g., a 2,000-foot fall) reduces luck. Insufficient luck locks players out of the endgame, a design choice that sparked debate in 1987 and remains in classic mode. Modern mode softens this with multiple endings but retains the original’s tension for purists.
– Spells & Charms: Finding charms grants access to spells like “Wossname” (transformation) or “Watchercallit” (telekinesis). These tools serve as both puzzle solutions and toys, allowing players to wreak havoc on NPCs or the environment—a delightful echo of the game’s anarchic spirit.

Innovative Additions:
– Compass Rose & Automap: A dynamic compass displays available exits at all times, eliminating guesswork. The automap auto-generates as players explore, with fast-travel to previously visited locations—a godsend for the game’s sprawling, sometimes disorienting map.
– Undo System: Multiple levels of undo prevent irreversible mistakes, a critical QoL improvement over the original’s single save slot.
– Classic vs. Modern Mode: Players can toggle between the unaltered 1987 experience and the modernized version, which includes bug fixes and new endings. This dual approach honors the original’s design philosophy while accommodating modern expectations.

These systems transform Jinxter from a niche artifact into a vibrant, playable experience. The parser remains robust enough for veterans, while the touch interface and automap lower the barrier for newcomers, proving that text adventures can evolve without losing their soul.

World-Building, Art & Sound

Aquitania is a character in its own right—a meticulously crafted realm where the mundane and the magical collide. Its world-building is a triumph of environmental storytelling. Locations like the animated furniture-filled protagonist’s house, the labyrinthine underground passages, and the artificial waterfall evoke a sense of place that feels both fantastical and oddly relatable. The game’s Britishness is omnipresent: from the bureaucratic jargon of the Guardians (“ARSE”) to the pub-centric puzzles, Aquitania is a love letter to the quirks of UK culture.

Art Direction:
The original art was a product of its time, constrained by 16-color palettes and resolutions as low as 255×135 pixels. Artists used stippling and halftoning to create depth, resulting in a distinctive, painterly style—e.g., the “Shipwreck” scene, where dots mimic water texture. Jinxter Revived preserves these visuals but scales them gracefully via pixel-art techniques. More significantly, it introduces new vector-based illustrations for locations that were previously unillustrated. These, like the “Green Witch’s Lodge” or “Village Green,” adopt a cleaner, modern aesthetic while retaining the whimsy of the originals. The most controversial update is the redesigned bus scene: the original’s impressionist approach was widely derided for resembling “zombies.” The remake reinterprets it with crisper lines and a more literal depiction, grounding the absurdity in visual clarity.

Sound Design:
The original Jinxter was largely silent, relying on text and visuals. The revival adds ambient soundscapes—dripping water in caves, distant chatter in pubs, the hum of machinery in Xam’s house. These subtle audio cues enhance immersion without overwhelming the text-driven narrative. The absence of voice acting is intentional, preserving the focus on the parser and descriptions.

Together, these elements transform Aquitania from a static backdrop into a living, breathing world. The art and sound work in tandem to amplify the game’s tone: the detailed illustrations invite curiosity, the ambient sounds evoke atmosphere, and the British-infused world-building ensures every location feels grounded in a specific, absurd reality.

Reception & Legacy

The original Jinxter was a critical darling upon its 1987 release. Magazines showered it with praise: Crash awarded it 92%, Your Sinclair hailed it a “Megagame,” and Computer and Video Games scored it 37/40. Reviewers lauded its parser, humor, and puzzles, though some noted the steep learning curve. It was also a commercial success, appearing on multiple “best of” lists, including ACE‘s 100 Top Games. However, its ending drew ire; Computer Gaming World ranked it the 14th “least rewarding” ending of all time for its fatalistic twist. Decades later, it remains a cult classic, revered for its writing and cited as a precursor to games like Discworld Noir in blending fantasy with social satire.

Jinxter Revived arrived in 2019 to a quieter reception. While it garnered positive comments on platforms like Itch.io for its modernization efforts, it lacked the widespread critical fanfare of its predecessor. Its niche genre and retro aesthetic limited mainstream appeal, but it found a dedicated audience among IF enthusiasts. The game’s multi-platform release (Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android) and affordable price point (£2.49) made it accessible, while its “Classic Mode” satisfied purists.

Jinxter‘s legacy is twofold: as a product of its era and as a catalyst for revival. It showcased Magnetic Scrolls’ unique voice—wry, literary, and unapologetically British—and pushed the boundaries of parser-based IF. Its revival, Strand Games’ first in a planned series (including The Pawn and Fish!), underscores a growing movement to preserve and reimagine interactive fiction history. By updating the UI and art while preserving the core experience, Jinxter Revived sets a template for how classics can evolve without losing their identity. It influenced modern IF design, particularly in blending text with tactile interfaces, and proved that parser games could thrive on mobile devices.

Conclusion

Jinxter Revived is more than a mere remaster; it is a renaissance. Strand Games has taken a flawed, beloved artifact and polished it until it gleams, respecting its idiosyncrasies while smoothing its rough edges. The game’s greatest achievement is balancing preservation with innovation: the parser, the wit, and the world of Aquitania remain untouched, yet the automap, touch controls, and new art make it feel freshly minted for 2019.

For veterans, the revival is a love letter—a chance to revisit a world that shaped their gaming youth with modern conveniences. For newcomers, it’s a vibrant entry point into interactive fiction, a genre often perceived as archaic. The game’s humor, puzzles, and themes—luck, fate, British absurdity—resonate as strongly today as they did in 1987. Its few flaws, like the occasional obtuse puzzle, are mitigated by the undo system and mode toggling.

Ultimately, Jinxter Revived earns its place in history as a testament to the enduring power of Magnetic Scrolls’ vision. It proves that text adventures, like Aquitania itself, can be magically contemporary. This isn’t just a revival; it’s a reinvigoration—a reminder that some worlds, and some games, are timeless.