The inherent strength of the plot is supported by a skillful use of storytelling devices. The most prominent of these devices is the flashbacks, which set the structure and rhythm of the game. The hallucinations Trilby occasionally suffers provide foreshadowing and references to the previous games, and are the scariest parts of the game. Trilby also comes across a number of documents throughout the case, mostly fragments of a satanic gospel. These are written in mock-archaic English, and although a couple of errors may cause people who wince at the incorrect use of "wrought" to grit their teeth, they set the mood quite effectively. The game is otherwise nearly free of spelling and grammatical errors, and conversations and descriptions are well written.

This is a horror game, and as such, the atmosphere is very important. As it turns out, Trilby's Notes is mildly scary, but not more than most players will be able to easily handle. The dark side of the hotel is creepy at first, but loses most of its impact as it becomes more familiar. There are only a few places in the game where Trilby is in any real danger of dying, and the player is always given fair warning. After I had played for a while, therefore, I was walking around more or less unconcerned by the decay and slaughter that surrounded me. Fear is often about the unknown and lack of control, and as I understood more and more of what was going on and gained the ability to move between the two worlds at will, the game became less and less frightening. On the other hand, the hallucinations, which are unpredictable, provide effective scares until the end.

The sound effects and music add a great deal to the sense of unease. Mark 'm0ds' Lovegrove contributes a spooky MIDI soundtrack—the main title track is especially distinctive—and Yahtzee does the ghostly whispering we know and love from 5 Days a Stranger. The graphics are greatly improved from the previous games in the series. While the backgrounds are drawn in a similar simple style, the characters are more detailed and move more realistically. The resolution is still the old VGA 320x200, so the aesthetic is decidedly retro, but the style looks quite professional. The introduction and end credits also feature several nice drawings, which raise the perceived production values significantly. The level of polish throughout is impressive, featuring a good-looking interface with an appropriate handwriting font, a stylish main menu, and no serious bugs or ugly glitches. My only nitpick is that the dialogue font looks ugly, with the characters all uneven heights.

The production values are even more impressive considering that this is a fairly long game for an Underground adventure. On a second playthrough, knowing the solutions to all the puzzles, it took me about five hours to complete. I am a slow, methodical player, though, and others may not get the same mileage from it. However, be prepared to spend a full evening on the game, especially if you get stuck on any of the puzzles. The length is pretty much ideal. The game feels substantial without overstaying its welcome.

The standard edition of Trilby's Notes is available as a free download. Yahtzee has also created a special edition of the game, which he offers to people who donate $5 USD or more to his PayPal account. The game itself is nearly identical in the two versions; the only difference is a slightly extended cutscene (really just more dialogue) at the end of the game. However, the special edition comes with a commentary (text) track where Yahtzee discusses the game and its production. I found many of his comments pretty interesting, but he does not go into any great depth or reveal anything too surprising. The special edition also includes the soundtrack in MIDI format and a Word file with the documents Trilby discovers in the course of the game.



Given the length, quality and entertainment value of Trilby's Notes, the game itself is easily worth $5. Since it is available for free, however, the extras alone hardly justify that price for anyone but the most devoted fan. I prefer to think of it as an honor system, with Yahtzee letting each player decide how much to pay for the game, much like a performer doing a show in a public square. You can experience it for free, but if you enjoy it it's only fair to give him a few bucks. As a bonus, you get some exclusive extras by doing so.

While it's likely that fans of Yahtzee's other games will already have played Trilby's Notes by now, others who check it out will find a satisfying adventure game with a solid story, puzzles that range from ordinary to inspired, good graphics, even better music, and a high quality of writing and programming. Because of the close ties to 5 Days a Stranger, playing the original game first is highly recommended. Trilby's Notes' imperfections are mostly caused by the text parser, but Yahtzee deserves respect for continuing to try different things, even if the experiment is not wholly successful this time. Despite a few flaws, Trilby's Notes joins 5 Days a Stranger and the white chamber as one of the best horror adventures to come out of the Underground.

Trilby's Notes can be downloaded from Yahtzee's website. The game is about 2 MB in size (2.5 MB for the special edition).