Quill Atlas: Quickfire, a Timed Word Nuance Game

About Quill Atlas: Quickfire

When the Quill Atlas museum closes for the night, its conservation studio wakes up. Under the raking light of the lamp, a painting waits on the easel, dull with old varnish, and its museum label needs writing again, with exactly the right words.

A shift is three rooms: the Sea Room, the Orchard Room, the Lantern Room or the Winter Room. Each has its own painting and five labels to write against the room’s clock. Every label is a sentence with a gap and four near-synonyms on brass tabs. Tap the one that fits best and the next label follows at once. An exact word wipes a strip of old varnish off the painting; a close one only half cleans it. Every second left on the clock is points, and exact words in a row raise your multiplier.

This is Quickfire. Write five exact labels in a row and the painting comes alive: the sea rolls and the lighthouse beam sweeps the studio, blossom drifts out of the orchard, the market’s lanterns float up out of the frame, or snow falls over the room. Run out of time and the lamp goes out on that room, its unwritten labels left grimy. Want no clock? Switch on Practice on the shift card; it costs nothing. A shift takes about four to six minutes, and your progress stays on this device.

How to play

A shift is three rooms. Each room has a painting on the easel and five museum labels to write.
Each label has a gap and four near-synonyms. Tap the one that fits best, or press 1 to 4. The next label follows at once.
Each room has its own clock. Finish its five labels in time: the seconds left become points.
An exact word wipes a strip of old varnish off the painting. Exact words in a row raise your multiplier.
Five exact words in a row bring the painting to life. If the clock runs out, the rest of the room stays grimy.
Practice, on the shift card or in Settings, takes the clock away. Press Escape or Start to pause: the clock stops too.

Controls

Tap a brass word tab, or press 1 to 4 — write it in the label
Arrow keys or D-pad — move between tabs; Enter or Ⓐ — write the one in focus
Escape or Start — pause (the clock stops)

Frequently asked questions

How is a label scored?

Every word has its own fit for that label, out of 100. The exact word scores in full and close ones score part of it; exact words in a row multiply your points, and seconds left on the room’s clock add more.

What happens when a room’s clock runs out?

The lamp goes out on that room: the labels you have not written stay grimy and your streak ends. The shift carries on to the next room.

How do I make a painting come alive?

Write five exact labels in a row. The streak carries from room to room, so it can wake a painting at any point of the shift.

Can I play without the clock?

Yes. Switch on Practice on the shift card, or in Settings. The rooms and labels are the same, there is simply no clock and no speed bonus. It costs nothing.