=================================== Just what is interactive fiction? =================================== .. highlight:: transcript .. epigraph:: | *A was an archer, who shot at a frog;* | *B was a butcher, who had a great dog.* Before we start learning to use the Inform system, it's probably sensible to consider briefly how IF, which has many narrative elements, differs from regular storytelling. Before we do *that*, though, let's look at an example of a familiar folk tale. "There was once a man called Wilhelm Tell, from high in the he lived by his skills Swiss Alps near the town Altdorf. A hunter and a guide, proud mountaineer, in tracking and archery. It happened one day that Wilhelm visited the town to buy provisions, and he took his son Walter with him. The region was at the time governed by Hermann Gessler (a vain and petty man appointed as vogt by the Austrian emperor), who attempted a show of power over his subjects by placing his hat on a pole in the town square, for everyone to salute. Reluctant citizens were "encouraged" by a troop of the vogt's soldiers, who made sure that their bows were sufficiently respectful. Wilhelm knew of the hat, and of the humiliating exercise in obeisance. So far he had managed to avoid the town's square, sure that -- given his open dislike for the vogt -- his refusal to bend the knee would cause trouble. Today, however, he needed to pass near the pole to reach Johansson's tannery. If Wilhelm had hoped for a lucky break, we'll never know. The square was filled with market-day crowds; the soldiers were especially keen in their salute- enforcing duties, challenging everyone with loud shouts and the occasional coarse expletive. Wilhelm threw a protective arm over his son's shoulder and walked determinedly without looking at the pole or the guards. A soldier called to him; Wilhelm took no notice. Other guards focused their attention on the archer. "Salute the vogt's hat," he was told. A tense silence followed. Wilhelm tried to keep going, but by now he was surrounded. The men knew of him; one counselled Wilhelm to give a cursory nod towards the hat and be done. Everybody in the vicinity was watching, so the disrespect could not be ignored. There was a long pause. Wilhelm refused. Word was sent to Gessler, who rushed to the square with reinforcements. The little man was delighted at the chance of making an example of the trouble-maker. He mockingly recounted the many skills of Herr Tell, speculating that such mastery maybe accounted for the pride that prevented acknowledgement of the Emperor's authority. The vogt understood all that, and would give him a fair chance. If Wilhelm were able to shoot true at an apple from fifty paces, Gessler would be inclined to show mercy; however, to make things interesting, the apple was to be balanced on Walter's head. Everything was set up. Wilhelm selected and mounted an arrow and slowly raised the bow, conscious of the motionless and brave stance that Walter was displaying. He pulled, feeling the tension mount on the string and his fingers, through his hands, into his arms. He'd made much more difficult shots in the past, at fleeting deer, at soaring birds; but this was the life of his son... he could not fail, would not fail. Wilhelm let loose. The arrow flew straight and true, violently pinning the apple to the tree behind the boy. The crowd exploded in a roar of relief and admiration, and Gessler, disappointed, had no option but to let them go. Years later, Wilhelm led an uprising against the vogt... but that's another story." And now an extract from the same tale, this time in the form of a tiny text adventure game. If you're new to interaction with text adventures you'll find some general instructions in "How to play an IF game" on page 209, and you can see a complete transcript of the game in the "William Tell" story on page 219:: A street in Altdorf The narrow street runs north towards the town square. Local folk are pouring into the town through the gate to the south, shouting greetings, offering produce for sale, exchanging news, enquiring with exaggerated disbelief about the prices of the goods displayed by merchants whose stalls make progress even more difficult. "Stay close to me, son," you say, "or you'll get lost among all these people." >GO NORTH Further along the street People are still pushing and shoving their way from the southern gate towards the town square, just a little further north. You recognise the owner of a fruit and vegetable stall. Helga pauses from sorting potatoes to give you a cheery wave. "Hello, Wilhelm, it's a fine day for trade! Is this young Walter? My, how he's grown. Here's an apple for him -- tell him to mind that scabby part, but the rest's good enough. How's Frau Tell? Give her my best wishes." >INVENTORY You are carrying: an apple a quiver (being worn) three arrows a bow >TALK TO HELGA You warmly thank Helga for the apple. >GIVE THE APPLE TO WALTER "Thank you, Papa." >NORTH South side of the square The narrow street to the south has opened onto the town square, and resumes at the far side of this cobbled meeting place. To continue along the street towards your destination -- Johansson's tannery -- you must walk north across the square, in the middle of which you see Gessler's hat set on that loathsome pole. If you go on, there's no way you can avoid passing it. Imperial soldiers jostle rudely through the throng, pushing, kicking and swearing loudly. ... Some of the more obvious differences are highlighted by these questions: * Who is the protagonist? Our example of narrative prose is written in the third person; it refers to the hero as "Wilhelm" and "he" and "him", watching and reporting on his activities from afar. In this sample IF game, you are the hero, seeing everything through Wilhelm's eyes. * What happens next? The regular narrative is intended to be read once, straight through from beginning to end. Unless you didn't pay attention the first time, or you're planning to critique the story, there's generally no need to go back and read a sentence twice; if you do, you'll find exactly the same text. The author leads the way and sets the pace; you, as the reader, just go along for the ride. In IF, that's usually much less true. The author has created a landscape and populated it with characters, but you choose how and when to explore it. The game evolves, at least superficially, under your control; perhaps you explore the street first and then the square, perhaps the other way round. There usually are multiple paths to be found and followed -- and you can be pretty certain that you won't discover them all, at least on first acquaintance. * How does it all turn out? You can tell when you've come to the end of a regular narrative -- you read the last sentence, and you know there's no more. In IF, it's clear enough when you reach an end; what's much less apparent is whether that's the only conclusion. In the transcript from the example game, you win by shooting the apple from Walter's head. But what if you miss? What if you hit him by mistake? Or fire instead at the hated vogt? Or even stand the tale on its head by bowing obsequiously to the governor's hat and then going about your business? All of these are possible ways in which the game could come to an end. The phrase "what if" is the key to writing successfully, and should always be in the forefront of an IF designer's mind. * Where did Helga come from? You'll notice that Helga and her stall don't appear in the regular narrative; she's a distraction from the tale's momentum. But in the IF game, she fulfils a number of useful functions: mentioning the names "Wilhelm", "Walter" and "Frau Tell" (so that you know who the tale's about), introducing the all-important apple in a natural manner and, above all, providing an opportunity for the "I" in IF -- some interactivity. Without that -- the chance to interact with the tale's environment -- the game is little different from a conventional piece of fiction. * That item looks interesting; can you tell me more about it? In the regular narrative, what you see is what you get; if you want to know more about alpine life in the fourteenth century, you'll need to consult another source. IF, on the other hand, offers at least the possibility of delving deeper, of investigating in greater detail an item which has been casually mentioned. For example, you could have explored Helga's stall:: " ... How's Frau Tell? Give her my best wishes." >EXAMINE THE STALL It's really only a small table, with a big heap of potatoes, some carrots and turnips, and a few apples. >EXAMINE THE CARROTS Fine locally grown produce. You see those descriptions only if you seek them; nothing you find there is unexpected, and if you don't examine the stall, you've not missed anything important. Nevertheless, you've enhanced the illusion that you're visiting a real place. Such details would rapidly grow tedious if the stall and its contents were described in full each time that you pass them. * How do I work this thing? Whereas the presence of Helga is an elaboration of the folk tale, the shooting of the arrow (it's in the transcript in "William Tell" story on page 219, not in the extract above) illustrates the opposite principle: simplification. The tale builds dramatic tension by describing each step as Wilhelm prepares to shoot the apple. That's OK; he's been an archer all his life, and knows how to do it. You, on the other hand, probably know little about archery, and shouldn't be expected to guess at the process and vocabulary. Let's hope you know that you need to shoot at the apple -- and that's all it takes. The game explains what was involved, but doesn't force you through each mundane step. Of course, all of these are generalisations, not universal truths; you could find fine works of IF which contradict each observation. However, for our purposes as beginners in the craft of IF design, they represent useful distinctions between IF and conventional fiction. We'll come back to the "William Tell" tale in a later chapter, but before then we'll work through an even simpler example. And before either of those, we need to download the necessary files which will enable us to write Inform games.