Chapter 4 - Hannah Prevost

 Chapter 4 stresses the shared history that electronic literature and computer games share. While computer games didn’t come until after generative poetry was well established, “text adventure” games like Zork were some of the first of their kind to be able to be played on a personal computer. With the demand for games with graphics increasing drastically, text adventure games gave way to what we know as IF, or interactive fiction games. These games involve the interactor, or the person playing the game, solving puzzles or overcoming a set of obstacles seen on the screen to achieve a desired outcome, like leveling up or defeating a boss. The IF community has persisted in becoming one of the largest and most well-loved gaming communities today and has been known to outperform TV shows and movies from time to time.

 

While playing Zork, I was very confused about how to get started at first. When I clicked on several different areas on the screen to see if anything would happen, it wasn’t until after a while that I figured out that I was supposed to click next to the “<” symbol and type text in the box. From there, it prompts you to type different verbs into the text box, and you are supposedly aiming to get to a point where you fight monsters. I did not get to this point and instead felt that I was going in circles playing this game. It kept telling me “You cannot go that way” or “You cannot see such a thing” and the only scenery it would offer me would be a forest. I wish there was a bit more direction to playing this instead of blindly trying to get somewhere.

 

For my bring-to-the-table this week, one game that falls into the IF category that I have absolutely adored for many years now is The Last of Us. While the common textual interface of many IF games is absent, the player is still undergoing an adventure and following a story to achieve a desired outcome. This horror survival game takes place in post-apocalyptic America, where our two main characters, Joel and Ellie, are journeying across the states to try and save humanity from a fungal outbreak caused by cordyceps. HBO is currently airing its TV adaptation of this show, and I’m very invested in that right now as well.

Comments

  1. CJ VFebruary 27, 2023 at 7:29 PM

    I also had this problem with Zork, I think that that is one of the challenges of old E-lit. There was so much limitation with the technology at the time and the UI suffered. Still, it makes for a really cool experience.

    ReplyDelete
  2. suchana sFebruary 28, 2023 at 2:41 PM

    I love the last of us, I am so happy its getting a tv debut and I hope they keep some aspects of the story the same. That's similar to my example too, I'm glad you mentioned it.

    ReplyDelete

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