Mask of the Plague Doctor

Choice of Games LLC

Contains adsIn-app purchases

About this game

Stop a deadly plague in a medieval fantasy tale of swords and surgery!

"Mask of the Plague Doctor" is a 410,000-word interactive novel by Peter Parrish, where your choices control the story. It’s entirely text-based, without graphics or sound effects, and fueled by the vast, unstoppable power of your imagination.

The town of Thornback Hollow is under quarantine. Its people are unable to sleep, tormented by a disease known as the Waking Death, and the infection is spreading. The Crown has commanded you and two other plague doctors to end the plague, even if that means destroying the town.

In your quest for knowledge, will you try to ease the fear and paranoia of the citizenry, or fan the flames of political unrest? Will your fellow plague doctors become your rivals, allies, or lovers? Will you grasp the true power that watches over the town?

* Play as male, female, or non-binary; gay, straight, bisexual, or aromantic.
* Select from a range of mask designs, or opt for one of your own.
* Specialize in surgery, medical theory, or uncanny mysticism.
* Unearth a cure for the Waking Death, apply traditional medicines, or explore more experimental methods.
* Respect the local deity, or throw your support behind a banished sect.
* Work with the Crown's appointed mayor, aid a revolt, or do your best to avoid political intrigue altogether.
* Find time for romance with one of your fellow plague doctors, or a dashing mercenary.
* Recruit others to your medical cause and perhaps leave a lasting legacy.
* Seek induction into the Fellowship of Royal Physicians, or be happy just to escape with your life.

Thornback Hollow is in peril. Can your healing hands soothe the Waking Death to slumber? Or will the town perish to fire and disease?

Ratings and reviews

I really like this. However, I do have a few issues( that I'm unsure are at least addressed in the upgraded version). First, chapters. I honestly think there should be some kind of chapter select. It gets cumbersome to be reading the text and scrolling down, while accidentally continuing. In order to undo this, I'd need to restart from scratch. Second, (another possible misswipe fix) maybe give an option to return to the page beforehand? These are my main gripes, but overall, this is great!

The writing here is some of the best I've encountered with CoG! The dark humor present in some responses is wonderfully well-done! Main critique: choices are frustrating, as it's not always clear which talents/skills apply, so at best you're often guessing. Lack of clarity has an impact on the plot sometimes. Otherwise, the story is well-crafted and there does appear to be a lot of variation! Romance just kind of happens, and the most interesting character is the reader's own. Worth the money!

1) The stats on sourcing the contagion and finding the cure don't seem very accurate. I finished the game with definitively finding the source of contagion and the cure (confirmed by the dialogue), yet the stats were around 75% and 60%, respectively. Doesn't make much sense. 2) The achievement descriptions are entirely too ambiguous. Most CYOA games have achievement descriptions that are general enough to not spoil, but specific enough to know what you're looking for. These are far too vague.

What's new

Fixed a bug (for real, this time) where the app could lose progress when the app goes into the background. If you enjoy "Mask of the Plague Doctor", please leave us a written review. It really helps!