# Hadean Lands — Interactive Alchemical Fiction

> Complex text-based adventure game with alchemical puzzles and interactive fiction. (iPhone/iPad app by Zarfhome Software Consulting.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hadean-lands/id918958300 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Zarfhome Software Consulting](https://appshunter.io/developer/457956106)
- Category: Games, Books, Puzzle
- Price: $4.99
- Rating: 5.00/5 from 15 App Store ratings · 18 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 9+
- Requires: iOS 8.0 · 18 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2014-10-31
- Data updated: 2026-08-13
- Monetization: paid
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hadean-lands/id918958300/reviews.md

## What is Hadean Lands?

*Winner of the XYZZY Interactive Fiction Awards for Best Puzzles, Best Setting, Best Implementation, and Best Use of Innovation for 2014.*

*Hadean Lands* is interactive fiction — a classic text adventure. No graphics! No menus! No point-and-click! You type your commands, and read what happens next.

This is the most complex puzzle structure I’ve ever designed. It’s the culmination of four years of work. I launched *Hadean Lands* as a Kickstarter project in 2010; it was a runaway success. Now it’s ready for you to play.

- Fluid interface designed for comfortable typing and reading.
- Full-length puzzle adventure with interlocking alchemical challenges.
- Pop-up palette of commonly used commands.
- Built-in game map — tap to go directly to any explored room.
- Journal tab records all the recipes and rituals that you’ve discovered.
- Full support for VoiceOver (speech output) and dictation (speech input) on devices that offer these features.

“The overall arc, for me, was that I spent the first bit of the game really excited about the possibility space, and then the next several hours feeling like my head was going to explode... This game ranks off the charts on the ingenuity measure.” — Emily Short

“The bottom line is that Hadean Lands makes great strides towards perfecting the classic adventure game — not just the text adventure.” — Steven Watson, AdventureGamers.com

## Key features

- Classic text adventure gameplay
- Complex alchemical puzzles
- Fluid typing and reading interface
- Built-in game map
- Journal for discoveries
- VoiceOver and dictation support

## Recent user reviews (10 of 18)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hadean-lands/id918958300/reviews.md

### 5/5 — Unique and absorbing

*2023-05-14*

This game is unlike any other adventure game I have ever played, combining a mystery adventure, puzzles, a new take on the sci-fi genre.

Think Myst meets WH4K crossed with Simon the Sorcerer.

### 5/5 — Love It

*2018-02-16*

I have been playing this type of game since the early 80’s. If memory serves I think I began with ‘Bored of the Rings’ on the ZX Spectrum. So I am very happy to see quality games like this arriving for iOS.

### 5/5 — VERY DIFFICULT

*2018-01-07*

This game is brilliantly crafted, the mountaintop of Interactive Fiction. I found it to be very difficult and time consuming. I’ve considered myself to be fairly adept at Interactive fiction, but I eventually had to resort to walkthroughs, as I had run out of personal time (and energy) to play this.

The play is fair, creative, forgiving and well written. The alchemical aspect, as well as the unique time-space malleability make for a world with almost an almost dizzying array of options, and a dimension of problem solving (layers of cascading dependencies) I hadn’t encountered before. 

If you are a beginner at Interactive fiction, or (like me) you enjoy a casual puzzler now and then, you may want to skip this for now, and save this title for later. But DO PLAY it when you can dedicate a level of time, concentration and dedication that a master puzzle requires.

### 5/5 — Incredible work

*2016-10-03*

This is one of the deepest and cleverest pieces of interactive fiction every created. The iOS version has some very nice ease of use features, like being able to see a log of things you have learned, a map with tap-to-move, and the option to tap a word in the text to insert it into the prompt. This might be my favorite version of the game, but I recommend playing it with a Bluetooth keyboard if you can.

### 2/5 — Not well adapted to iPhone

*2015-04-22*

TL;DR: Does not cross over well from PC, would not recommend

I love interactive fiction, and the story is enjoyable -- but this game is an exercise in tedium on the iPhone.

To play you need to type in long spell incantations that autocorrect can't help you with, as they are often made up words. Therefore, autocorrect must be disabled (or fought with) making general play a pain due to typos. 

The spellings for the components of incantations and spells are split amongst multiple references you carry with you, but which are hard to access due to poor interface design, making the construction of phrases extremely annoying.

Sorry, would not recommend even with a Bluetooth keyboard. Does not cross over well from the PC.

### 5/5 — Innovative yet classic

*2015-02-04*

I've played a lot of interactive fiction games, but I've rarely beaten them.  Usually, I get stuck on a difficult puzzle and I am not interested in the fiction enough to stick with it.  This game haunted me for several days until I beat it.  

On the puzzles - they are very challenging, and the game rewards you for exploring and does a good job of giving you hints through the game world itself.  You feel really smart when you figure out the little twists you can do with some rituals. I did need a couple of hints, but once I got them they were head-slappers I could have figured out myself.  

I think a lot of the reason this game was enjoyable all the way through for me was the unique and interesting setting (a wrecked alchemical starship stuck in some kind of time loop).  It made all the room locations and equipment overall locale very interesting all by itself, even without interaction.  

On the writing, part of what makes the game great is that it really plays to the strength of the format - if this game had graphics, it wouldn't be as good.  The text works in the brain in a way that is much more immersive and moving than a graphical game can be, IMO.  Stylistically, it's sharp and concise, without lacking detail.  It also is playful to interact with the world and your inventory and the game feels very responsive.

On game design and coding - the "flow" of the game comes across at a very enjoyable pace.  I found myself making many sections of great strides, punctuated by short gaps of having to dig deeper to discover what to do next.  Every discovery leads to the next, and there are many tidbits that you can see but not use right away that make it intriguing to puzzle through.  

I also liked how the reset mechanism worked as a game mechanic AND a literary plot device.  And it's great to see many people furiously discussing the ending and debating what REALLY happened aboard the Retort.  And I love that there IS no set answer for it - the plot itself is a puzzle and it changes as you play.

The technical innovations for this type of game - with the short cutting of known rituals and being able to jump around using the map were big pluses for me, having been a longtime fan of IF - it's neat to see an old dog doing new tricks, as it were.

I could go on and on - it's a great game.  If you've loved IF in the past, this game will make you love it again.  If you've never played IF, this game will make you love it (or hate it) but it will spoil you, as it might well be the best IF adventure game yet made.

Super great work, Zarf.  Make more like this and I hope people buy them enough to support you to keep making them.  Your love of the format and skill at it, through years of previous games, really shine through.  I think it's a kind of masterpiece.

### 3/5 — Fascinating

*2015-01-30*

This is a wonderful and atmospheric piece of interactive fiction that I would love to play through.

However... The early tasks feel like *work*. Yes, there are shortcuts, but these are not easy to access nor flexible enough to solve obvious puzzles efficiently. There is a significant need for repetition with only minor variation.

Although the parser is excellent, the iPhone is not the ideal device for this. The largest font size is too small to read comfortably, with non-dictionary words the auto correct spoils my carefully crafted phrase around 50% of the time, requiring a rewrite.

I award this 3 stars for the scope and writing, but I fear the genre does not work on this platform with this interface.

### 5/5 — Text adventures, reinvented

*2015-01-23*

Immersive, innovative, inductive, and packed with subtle wordplay, Hadean Lands is one of the landmarks of interactive fiction.  (It might also be a wry exploration of the search for truth via the scientific method, but I might be overthinking this.)  Over the course of this novel-sized game, the protagonist learns new information about the world.  This shifts gameplay from simple tutorial puzzles (find and combine the right things to open doors) to an intriguing question of the best order to perform actions with scarce resources.  The game engine uses previously acquired knowledge intelligently, so in the endgame saying two words may lead to the game computing and performing dozens of prerequisites in the right sequence.  After this, much other interactive fiction seems like an exercise in masochism.  Gripping and addictive, this kept me busy for dozens of hours.

### 5/5 — Deeper than it looks

*2015-01-17*

On day 1, you'll think this is an interesting little text-based adventure game.  By day 3, you'll realize it's the best such game ever written and will set the bar for all future games in this genre.  Incredible.

### 5/5 — Delightful and brilliant

*2014-12-07*

Fun fun game. Zarf has outdone himself.

## Frequently asked questions about Hadean Lands

### What kind of gameplay does Hadean Lands offer?

Hadean Lands is a classic text adventure where you interact by typing commands. It features a complex puzzle structure centered around alchemy, requiring strategic thinking and exploration.

### Is Hadean Lands playable offline?

As a text-based adventure game, Hadean Lands does not require an internet connection to play, making it fully playable offline.

### What devices support Hadean Lands?

Hadean Lands is supported on iPhone, iPad, and iPod devices, offering a classic gaming experience across Apple's mobile platforms.

### How much does Hadean Lands cost?

Hadean Lands is a premium application priced at $4.99. This one-time purchase grants full access to the game's content without any in-app purchases or ads.

### What is the age rating for Hadean Lands?

Hadean Lands has an age rating of 9+, suitable for younger players and adults interested in its puzzle-solving and narrative elements.

### Does Hadean Lands have ads?

No, Hadean Lands is ad-free. As a paid application, it provides an uninterrupted gaming experience without any advertisements.

### When was Hadean Lands last updated?

The latest version of Hadean Lands was released on December 31, 2018. While not recently updated, it remains a stable and complete gaming experience.

### What makes the puzzles in Hadean Lands unique?

The game is renowned for its complex and interlocking alchemical challenges, described as having an "ingenuity measure" that ranks off the charts. It offers a deep puzzle structure that has won multiple awards.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 1.2.3 — 2018-12-31

Updated for newest devices and current iOS.

### 1.2.2 — 2018-01-24

Updated for iOS 11.
Support for all device sizes, including iPhone X.

### 1.2.1 — 2017-01-10

- Supports all iPhone and iPad sizes.
- A single tap on the text no longer closes the on-screen keyboard. That was annoying. (You can still tap to open the keyboard.)

### 1.2 — 2015-01-02

You can now exchange HL save files between devices, or between the iOS and desktop versions of the game.

Select “Share Saved Files” in the Settings tab. The Share button allows you to export save files via AirDrop, or to file-storage apps like Dropbox or Air Sharing.

To import save files from such apps, select “Open In...” and choose Hadean Lands.

When transferring save files from the desktop to iOS, you must make sure that they end with the “.glksave” suffix. Gargoyle uses a “.sav” suffix for save files, so you must rename them before importing them into the iOS app.

### 1.1 — 2014-11-10

Optimized for iPhone 6 and 6+.

(This update does not include gameplay fixes or typos. Just the iPhone 6 support.)

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## More apps by Zarfhome Software Consulting

- [Meanwhile: Interactive Comic](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/meanwhile-interactive-comic/id458451517)
- [The Dreamhold](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-dreamhold/id517870810)
- [Pocket Storm](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-storm/id547095034)
- [Leviathan: Interactive Comic](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/leviathan-interactive-comic/id6444325089)
- [The Beyond: Interactive Comic](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-beyond-interactive-comic/id6738063234)

All apps by Zarfhome Software Consulting: https://appshunter.io/developer/457956106

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-13.*