+======================================
+ 1: Just what is interactive fiction?
+======================================
+
+.. 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.