The Chinese Room is a little like Norman Juster's Phantom Tollbooth in interactive form. Taking place entirely in the realm of philosophical thought experiment, The Chinese Room tackles questions about the nature of perception, the foundations of ethical systems, and the theoretical basis of calculus. If you've ever wanted to meet Aristotle or Karl Marx in text adventure form, this is your opportunity.
As a game, it has some drawbacks. Many modern interactive fiction games try to prevent the player ever getting permanently stuck, a frustrating state where puzzles can't be solved because of some mistake made earlier in the game. The Chinese Room mostly avoids this kind of outcome, but the key here is "mostly": it is possible, through bad luck or bad planning, to land yourself in an unwinnable situation. It's worth saving the game early and often.
The game's content more than compensates, though, for the somewhat old-school style of adventure design. It's full of funny dialogue and odd juxtapositions, and many puzzles can only be solved through a creative interpretation of philosophical positions. What's more, hints built into the game give substantial but engaging background information on many major philosophers, schools of thought, and common conundra.
It's weird and wonderful stuff, and the authors' enthusiastic devotion to their subject matter shines through every line.
Like many works of free interactive fiction, The Chinese Room is available as a downloadable file that can be run on a variety of platform-specific interpreters. Some appropriate interpreters are listed above.
