Final Week of the Interactive Fiction Contest! March 24, 2009 3:48 PM   Subscribe

Reminder: Only 1 week left for the MeFi Interactive Fiction Contest! Get your entries in soon (okay, by midnight MeFi time on March 31st), or sign up to become a judge/voter of submitted games!

It's not too late to whip up something short, fast, and sweet in Inform. Everyone who submits something to the contest gets a official signed certificate of participation.

Results will probably be posted mid-April but until then this thread will be used for updates and the like, so confirm your interest/participation by posting in this thread if you want to see updates in Recent Comments.
posted by Deathalicious to MetaFilter-Related at 3:48 PM (56 comments total) 1 user marked this as a favorite

I'm disappointed with Inform 7's documentation- it feels like there are a lot of things where you have to look at examples of how they're done to learn to do them, rather than actually, you know, being documented.
posted by Pope Guilty at 4:31 PM on March 24, 2009 [2 favorites]


One week?!

> undo

> undo!
posted by lucidium at 4:41 PM on March 24, 2009 [2 favorites]


Pope Guilty, I got that impression too. While I initially liked the conversational tone of the documentation, I sometimes find myself wishing they'd just give you a bloody cheat sheet for what they're explaining.

But it's understandable, seeing as the language itself is still a work in progress. I think I saw the writer explain somewhere that he does want to provide better indices and summaries at some point, but it's not a feasible thing to do until the language is much more crystallised.
posted by lucidium at 4:47 PM on March 24, 2009


Awesome, I've got a whole week left to learn Inform and come up with a story idea and write and test and debug it.

I am procrastination's Grand Poobah.
posted by middleclasstool at 4:59 PM on March 24, 2009


I broke ground on mine...don't think there will be enough time to write it all though.
posted by Kirklander at 5:32 PM on March 24, 2009


I'd love to judge, but I doubt I'll have time. Plus, man am I awful at text adventures. Ugh.

I'll just play the submissions after the GameFAQs are up.
posted by graventy at 8:40 PM on March 24, 2009


Kirklander: don't think there will be enough time to write it all though
Don't worry about writing it all...write what you can, end with an intriguing "To be continued" and keep working on it for yourself...better to have something up on the contest site than nothing at all, right? Otherwise, how will we know you were working on it?

graventy: I'd love to judge, but I doubt I'll have time.
Judging consists of playing whatever game you want and giving it a score of 1-5 beans. You can play just one game, or several. Not exceedingly time consuming. I'm probably going to add a memo field so that authors can put in either hints or a walkthrough so that you can still figure out what to do if you're stuck.
posted by Deathalicious at 9:12 PM on March 24, 2009


Also, just out of curiosity, who is planning on actually submitting something to the contest?
posted by Deathalicious at 9:14 PM on March 24, 2009


That's a good idea. Maybe I'll just work on getting an intro out, sort of like the beginning of "Seastalker" lol.
posted by Kirklander at 10:11 PM on March 24, 2009


Oh no, I've done nothing on this. :[
posted by flatluigi at 1:20 AM on March 25, 2009


You might want to extend the deadline.
posted by BrotherCaine at 2:04 AM on March 25, 2009


Nah, I think extending the deadline would defeat the whole purpose of the contest.

Though I'd love to see more contests in the future, themed perhaps!
posted by lucidium at 5:57 AM on March 25, 2009


I'm still working on mine. Progress is slow however, I've had my laptop at work so I can work on it while I have lunch. I've only had time for lunch 4 times this month.
posted by substrate at 6:35 AM on March 25, 2009


Ah man, I've got Acts I and II of a three-act game "finished," meaning that they're mostly-written, mostly-functional, and mostly-un-playtested. I might wind up hacking out the epilogue or dropping it altogether.

I did have a friend play through Act I, though, which exposed three separate and unrelated unwinnable states. Which is good. Act II might be unwinnable, though. The ideal test case works fine, but I'm sure there are situations that will break it.

I will almost definitely turn something in by the deadline.
posted by uncleozzy at 6:55 AM on March 25, 2009


I do agree about the I7 documentation, though. You've got to be Sherlock Holmes just to figure out which code snippets would be helpful to combine.
posted by uncleozzy at 6:56 AM on March 25, 2009


You've got to be Sherlock Holmes just to figure out which code snippets would be helpful to combine.

Yeah, it's weird that, seems like more of a point-and-click adventure aesthetic.
posted by chrismear at 8:05 AM on March 25, 2009


Crap, that's this month? I thought it was next month. Oh well, maybe next time. Meanwhile keep beavering away at it, you actual getting something done people, you!
posted by majick at 8:19 AM on March 25, 2009


I probably won't have anything worth subjecting the judges to in time for the deadline. I'll definitely help out by rating any games that are submitted though.
posted by burnmp3s at 11:37 AM on March 25, 2009


I won't have an entry, but I'm grateful for the contest, because it got me interested in Inform. I'm reading through the documentation and will eventually create something (just not in time for this contest).

I think the natural-language programming is cool, and I'm sure it is much less scary to non-programmers than a regular programming language. But as a programmer, I keep finding myself wishing there were two versions of it: one, the natural-language version; the other, a more formal version.

Instead of writing "the spooky chamber is a room that Southwest of the main hallway," I'd like to be able to write something like...

var spookyChamber = new Room("the spooky chamber");
spookyChamber.northEast = mainHallway;

It's not that I have a code fetish. It's that I like to understand the structure of the language, and I find that the English-like syntax obfuscates it. At the very least, I'd like a translation guide that maps the natural language syntax onto some sort of pseudocode that is more like a traditional programming language.

I totally get that non-coders will prefer the English-like version, which is why I think there should be two versions.
posted by grumblebee at 12:46 PM on March 25, 2009 [2 favorites]


grumblebee: Inform 6 is a bit more like traditional programming languages and, interestingly, forms the underpinning of Inform 7. The I7 compiler actually first translates your I7 code into I6 code, and then uses the I6 tools to compile it into Z-code. The long and short of it is that you can still write in Inform 6 syntax and compile to Z-code (the tools are still being maintained, since they're included in every I7 installation).
posted by uncleozzy at 1:02 PM on March 25, 2009


as a programmer, I keep finding myself wishing there were two versions of it: one, the natural-language version; the other, a more formal version.

I found the natural-language aspect off-putting as a programmer too. One hacky way to get around it without even needing to change Inform 7 would be to write a parser that would take some made-up psuedo code language and spit out normal Inform 7 code. That way you could use the cool I7 IDE, import I7 extensions, etc. without needing to actually write natural-language code.
posted by burnmp3s at 1:13 PM on March 25, 2009


Well, Here is the BNF of Inform 7 [PDF] if you're into that sort of thing.
posted by blenderfish at 3:09 PM on March 25, 2009


I should add
warning: your head asplode.
posted by blenderfish at 3:10 PM on March 25, 2009


I actually kind of like the I7 syntax as a programmer. Although sometimes you get fooled that the syntax is more flexible than it really is, it is fun to write code in English sentences. I would have been interested in writing a game if:
1. I had any good ideas.
2. I didn't have an article deadline the beginning of next week.

Nevertheless, I'm still looking forward to judging.
posted by demiurge at 3:29 PM on March 25, 2009


In the spirit of inclusion (and also, a lack of desire to go in and program a date-sensitive shut-off switch for the submission form), I'm allowing people to submit stories after the deadline with the understanding that they will not be eligible for actual judging.

I would like to see as many people as possible submit, so even if your story is a work in progress and nothing happens yet, submit anyway, so we can see a little bit of your storytelling and writing. I'll leave the submission forms up so that you can submit "Story version 2.0" later on if you have a chance to polish it. I imagine after people's feedback, the authors will want to post some corrections or minor fixes, and I'll allow these within reason (fixing a bug in the code is okay, adding more parser rules is okay, adding additional rooms or puzzles not okay).
posted by Deathalicious at 12:45 AM on March 26, 2009 [2 favorites]


I find what bothers me most about the language is when the sheen of natural language wears a little thin, and you get the impression that all it's doing is sticking a veneer of words on top of the code. I think the option for more heavy-handed code highlighting would really help here until you get used to the "phrases" and other special words it uses.

But then when it does work well, it still amazes me with how clever it actually can be. I get the impression that in a few years' time, once the language is really settled, the parser will be able to be a lot more lenient and probably a lot more intelligent.
posted by lucidium at 12:51 AM on March 26, 2009


I present to you my first official submission, Jeffrey, the Homicidal Mimic, a fun, mostly one-room puzzle game that's meant to be fun to play with. I hope it inspires you all to get something out.

I anticipate with relish all the bugs that are sure to pop up when you play it.
posted by Deathalicious at 4:23 AM on March 26, 2009


I've only managed to poke at Inform a little this month, to my shame. I'm hoping to get in enough productive time to churn out something short and silly by the 31st, but it's not lookin' good. If all else fails, I'll try to be one of the non-competitive deadline breakers.
posted by cortex (staff) at 8:25 AM on March 26, 2009


Is there a preferred system to report bugs, or should we just email the author?
posted by demiurge at 8:38 AM on March 26, 2009


But then when it does work well, it still amazes me with how clever it actually can be. I get the impression that in a few years' time, once the language is really settled, the parser will be able to be a lot more lenient and probably a lot more intelligent.

I think you just pretty much summed up the entire history (i.e. 60 years) of natural language research.
posted by blenderfish at 11:42 AM on March 26, 2009 [1 favorite]


Is there a preferred system to report bugs, or should we just email the author?

Well, if you're registered, you can add a comment on the story's page (at least, you should be able to; haven't tested it just yet). That way other people will know if a bug's been reported or not.
posted by Deathalicious at 12:50 PM on March 26, 2009


Is there any chance of extending this (not the official contest, but the conversation) over the coming months as a chance to showcase new stories or versions thereof, or to keep tabs on new developments in Inform? If Mefi projects would be a better forum, I'd understand, but there does seem to be a sizable group interested in IF.
posted by kid ichorous at 5:34 PM on March 26, 2009


As soon as the official writing period is over I'm posting the site to projects. Brandon Blatcher willing, submissions will be allowed indefinitely but won't be eligible for "cash and prizes". We have a discussions page set up on the site that has basic forum-like functions. I don't have it set up to allow new threads just yet, but it should serve for the time being.
posted by Deathalicious at 9:37 AM on March 27, 2009


I'd just like to send out props to Shii, whose well coded (but somewhat inscrutable) game was submitted March 28.

The rest of you have a little less than 2 days, so get crackin'!

Looking forward to all the submissions. Please, even if you don't think you'll be 100% done, just get it to a playable level and submit it so it can be considered for the contest. I'm allowing debugging and other fixes post-contest, but your game can't be considered for the contest if it's submitted after the deadline.
posted by Deathalicious at 7:18 AM on March 30, 2009


Yeah, I was actually just about to come in here to say I'm not going to finish my game. I will, however, upload the first two sections, which are (functionally) complete. It's a traditional "text adventure"-type game; not at all modern IF. I hope there isn't too much verb-hunting; the puzzles are, for the most part, fairly straightforward.
posted by uncleozzy at 7:45 AM on March 30, 2009


I'm starting tonight.
posted by chrismear at 10:20 AM on March 30, 2009


I'm starting tonight.

That's the spirit! Go, everyone, go!
posted by Deathalicious at 1:32 PM on March 30, 2009


I just haven't been able to decode the INFORM documentation enough to figure out how to do what I wanted it to do. I am very disappointed. :(
posted by Pope Guilty at 1:48 PM on March 30, 2009


And honestly, I'm not all "rawr, fuck INFORM!" or anything; clearly other people have figured it out, and done some neat things with it. I just haven't managed.
posted by Pope Guilty at 2:06 PM on March 30, 2009


Would a pure HTML story, navigated by links, count as interactive fiction?
posted by kid ichorous at 2:10 PM on March 30, 2009


Would a pure HTML story, navigated by links, count as interactive fiction?
Mayyybee. We don't discriminate on medium. Just submit the story as a link instead of an Inform file. But if it literally is just a linear story with "Next" and "Prev" links that's stretching it. On the other hand, a non-linear hypertext story is a-okay.
posted by Deathalicious at 4:01 PM on March 30, 2009


Thanks. I have a bunch of interlinked text, and it definitely forks, but I haven't found the time to learn Inform 7 this month either. Worse, I've played enough Emily Short to have my inner ear calibrated to an impossible standard. Galatea has moods, sounds real; my NPCs do not at present. If I can do it any justice by tomorrow night, it'll be on your & Brandon's desk. If not, I'm going to spend a few weeks doing it properly.
posted by kid ichorous at 5:21 PM on March 30, 2009


Yeah, my game's not going to be up by deadline, but the concept, story, and rudimentary puzzles are fixed in my mind so it will come to fruition eventually

also seconding Emily Short and company making me feel inadequate
posted by flatluigi at 6:38 PM on March 30, 2009 [1 favorite]


Mine's not really playable yet. Took me a while to figure out how to make Inform behave the way I wanted (in this case, to present a series of multiple choice questions to the user). If I don't get it playable enough for tomorrow, I'll still keep working on it. Either way, happy to have started toying with IF, and looking forward to seeing how the other projects turned out.
posted by rottytooth at 7:14 PM on March 30, 2009


Mine's going to be a simple three-room thing and is probably just the start of a larger project. It will make you all feel much more adequate... right before it slams you in the face with awesome.
posted by pokermonk at 7:29 PM on March 30, 2009


Resident Evil 5 is really, really good it turns out.
posted by cortex (staff) at 7:41 PM on March 30, 2009


Resident Evil 5 is really, really good it turns out.

You Metafilter Thought Police are really creeping me out. I have to raise my hand and hang my head in shame on this one.
posted by pokermonk at 8:52 PM on March 30, 2009


It gives me comfort to know that whenever I've been slacking off because of an excellent video game, other people on mefi are right there with me.
posted by cortex (staff) at 9:56 PM on March 30, 2009 [1 favorite]


It gives me comfort to know that whenever I've been slacking off because of an excellent video game, other people on mefi are right there with me.

Well this Shadow Priest isn't going to level himself.
posted by Pope Guilty at 2:56 AM on March 31, 2009


"Official" Policy:
If you want your certificate of participation (and I'm sure you do), simply post the game without the story file but with the Inform source text and that will be enough to guarantee you recognition. Instead of submitting the file if you really, really don't want to, just put a link back to your profile page instead (or a page of your own) and put a brief synopsis of the game there.

Obviously without a game you won't be eligible for the actual "prize".

In my opinion, the point of this month was to get people trying out IF, and so if you did you deserve recognition. However, I will expect you guys to update your story soon after that with an actual game file. With the threat that if you don't submit something soon after that, I will compile the source code you submitted myself and have that be your final submission.

Does that work for everybody?
posted by Deathalicious at 8:34 AM on March 31, 2009


Pope Guilty: I too have found the documentation a little bit rusty.
Have you checked out the Phrasebook, which basically lays out everything in inform?

You might find this helpful:
  1. Create a new blank project, and add a room only, something like: "Foosball" by Deathalicious Foosball is a room.
  2. Click the compile/run button.
  3. Now, click the "Index" tab on the side, then the "Phrasebook" tab on the top.
  4. The Phrasebook lists all of the default actions, the default kinds, syntax for loops, etc. Basically, if it is something you can type in Inform, it is listed in the Phrasebook.
Personally, I found it really useful. If you try using the Phrasebook while a full game is loaded, it will include all of your rules in the phrasebook, which makes it a bit more complicated. I had no idea that there were so many default actions and kinds available.

If you run into problems while trying to get a player to do something, enter the command ACTIONS and see if you're being blocked by one of Informs many helpful rules:
> give gold to Julie
[giving the chest of gold to Julie]
Julie doesn't seem interested.
[giving the chest of gold to Julie - failed the block giving rule]
So now, you just need to make sure that you add something like:
Before giving something (called the gift) to Julie:
     ignore the block giving rule;
You can see all of these pesky Rules by clicking on the Rules tag right next to the Phrasebook.

All of the built-in actions are available from the Actions tab. Same with Kinds.
posted by Deathalicious at 9:39 AM on March 31, 2009 [1 favorite]


The big thing I couldn't puzzle out was speech. The game I want to make involves a fair amount of talking, and I simply couldn't figure out from the documentation how to work it.
posted by Pope Guilty at 9:47 AM on March 31, 2009


I also found speech really hard to manage. I ended up having the game go into a multiple-choice mode when a conversation starts, and then go back to the regular commands when the conversation ends, rather than trying to create believable speech based on looking at individual phrases that the player writes.

I created a table with each choice, the response to print, the next table to move to, and the end state, if that's a choice that ends the conversation. With every turn during the scene, it prints the response, and the list of choices in the next table. Then I have a variable for the end state of the conversation, and based on that, carry out the next action.

There are probably better ways to do it, but I'm very new to Inform.
posted by rottytooth at 1:06 PM on March 31, 2009


I'm giving up tonight.
posted by chrismear at 3:41 PM on March 31, 2009


I had all intentions of writing one over the course of the month. My first idea turned into an epic. It wasn't long before I lost hope.

I gave up for a while until I started a new game last night. It's not much of a game; rough and untested... possibly unplayable... but, I did it! I beat the challenge! I made a frinking text adventure!
posted by run"monty at 3:51 PM on March 31, 2009


The contest is officially over.

Congratulations to all who managed to get their submission in before the deadline, and props to everyone who made an effort as well. Submissions are still welcome but no longer eligible for the contest.
posted by Deathalicious at 2:10 AM on April 1, 2009


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