#Interactive Fiction DataBase

[manonamora-if]

The Interactive Fiction DataBase - IFDB

What is the IFDB?

The IFDB, or Interactive Fiction DataBase, is a game catalogue, recommendation engine, and a platform to play games requiring an interpreter (to run the code).

As a catalogue, the IFDB is meant as a place to create a bibliography of IF games created throughout the years (over 12 thousands!), to leave a trace that these existed. It is maintained by its members. Anyone can join and add a listing or fix a mistake. You can also find listing for past IF competitions!

As a recommendation engine, the IFDB provides not only lists of the best-rated entries, but will show you games that you may enjoy based on the ones you've played/rated or what other members have played/rated. Entries are also categorised by tags, which are all searchable. Members are also able to create lists to recommende games they've enjoyed! Or leave reviews of those games too!

Finally, some games may require an interpreting engine to run. Those interpreters can be sometimes difficult to track down or to set up, especially for new players. The IFDB has a system that will allow you to play those games directly in your browser by clicking the button : Play Online (only available if the game has been uploaded through the IF Archive).

Why is the IFDB important?

The internet is a rapidly changing place. Preserving information is not only important for future generations, but can help current generations find information about what is happening now. Archiving creates a historical record of what the IF landscape looked like.

Along with the IF Archive (which archives IF games), the IFDB makes viewing the history of IF much easier to browse.

However, the IFDB lacks in many aspects. Not every IF community is aware of the database, which means many projects do not appear in this catalogue. While the IFDB has currently over 12k listings, the VNDB (the Visual Novel DataBase) has over 40k! The IFDB is also lacking in entries in languages other than English...

The IFDB accepts any listing for games, made in any program, as long as said game is an Interactive Fiction game and has had a playable version available somewhere at some point (so it accepts WIPs with demo). /!\ Do not create a page for announced project without a release ! /!\

Why create an IFDB page for your game?

Aside from being part of preserving the history of IF (which is the big thing), and be able to share your work to a different part of the community, the IFDB is a great place to get and leave long-form reviews for entries.

If your project was coded in a program that requires an interpreter, it is a great place to host your game without worrying about newer players having to find and set up an interpreter.

If you have been part of an IF competition, or received accolades for your project, this is also a good way to showcase those achievements.

Finally, the IFDB is also a point of reference for IF Awards like the XYZZY and the IFDB Awards.

How do you create an IFDB page?

/!\ Please check that the game listing you want to add has not been added first! /!\

To create an IFDB page, you need to set up an account and be logged in.

Then click on Add a Game Listing, on the right menu in the main page. You will get the following page:

(You should read through the Guidelines the first time you add a listing, they are located at the top of the page)

Though it looks long, there are only very few information required to create a page:

The title

The name(s) of the author(s)

It is recommended to fill in the date of first publication, development system (program used to code), language, IFID (if available) description of the game, and genre.

As for being able to play the game, you have two (non-exclusive) options:

list the URL of the website where the game is hosted

list the download URL of the game (can be done through the IF Archive, only if you are the author of the game!)

Note sure what something is? A description (or a link towards explanations) of what is expected is included for almost all items. You can also include information that is not listed in the drop-down case (like the System or language).

When you are happy with it, click Save changes.

You can also fix, edit, or delete information at any moment. You just need to click on the link Edit This Page at the bottom of the game page.

How do you add Ratings, Reviews and Game Suggestions ?

Logged in with your account, you have the possibility of leaving ratings and reviews on a game page. You can also help the IFDB algorithm by suggesting similar games to an entry.

The process is fairly straight-forward (clicking on the stars for the rating, clicking Review it for the review, and clicking Suggest similar games, for the suggestions). Thought you can find further explanations here, if you follow what the website is asking, you should not have any difficulty to complete the task !

If you review enough games, your name can end up on the main page!

How do I create a Competition Page?

Have you participated or organised an IF competition? Or are you cataloguing previous editions?

You can create a separate page for a Competition by clicking on Add a Competition Page on the right menu of the main page. You will then get the following page:

Then it is a matter of filling the different relevant items.

The Competition Page allows for divisions within competitions (e.g. : the EctoComp had 2 categories, made under 4h and over 4h) and, if needs be, ranking.

Important Note: the competition entries need to already be listed in the IFDB to be added to a competition page.

What are Lists and Polls?

Lists and Polls are two other tools that interact with game entries.

Lists, also called Recommendation Lists, are lists a member will curate with games they are recommending to other members or viewers of the IFDB. Some are general (like best game ever) while others are more specific (like games with an AI that is nice). They are akin to public collections on Itch.io.

Polls are... polls.

Note: If a game is included in a poll and/or a list, these will appear on the game's page.

~~~~

TLDR: create an account, help preserve the IF landscape by recording its history, review games too :P

If I missed something, or something is unclear, let me know so I can edit it!

#ifdb #internet archive #Interactive Fiction DataBase #manonamora

[enchi-elm]

Right, gonna drop this into the ether just before bed and maybe someone'll see it who can solve this for me.

I swear--I have this in firm memory--that floating around the internet somewhere is a beautifully scripted text-based RPG called some variant of Guinevere where you play as Guinevere. (a few years ago, I dunno, 2019? Earlier?)

It is only text. It is the most lo-fi production ever, it is text on a slightly off-white background, and it was utterly transporting. There were paths that turned you into a powerful sorceress. You could be into Arthur or not, into anyone or not, you could go a magic route or a political power route or a "I just want to love someone and have fun" route, it was exquisitely done. 10/10 storytelling. It starts off the day you get married and follows your early life at Camelot.

And I bookmarked it because I got through two chapters of it and it was still under construction or something and I have lost the bookmark and both DuckDuckGo and the tumblr search engine are determined to keep me in the dark and to make matters worse, somehow there's now a Choices story about Guinevere and the only thing that's even remotely relevant that comes up as results are related to that app. But it wasn't an app! It was a browser-based text-based RPG and it was beautiful and I can't find it.

#arthuriana #guinevere #arthur pendragon #king arthur #guinivere #text-based rpg #knights of the round table #the only good find from my search so far is ifdb.org #the interactive fiction database #which i can see is going to occupy my next month

[interact-if]

After months of collecting, compiling and formatting, we are finally unveiling our biggest project to date:

INTRODUCING: The Interact-IF Database

In an effort to help readers find games and WIP projects following a certain tag, genre, theme or level of customization, as well as finding diverse authors of a variety of identities, we have created a database of primarily Tumblr-based IF projects!

This list has been put together with the help of the authors of the featured projects, who have provided us with information about their games. It will be updated regularly by the mods of this Tumblr.

Are you a reader looking for your next read?

Head over on to our list [link].

The projects on this database are in compliance with our FAQ and Guidelines. We reserve the right to not include entries sent by authors if their projects do not follow said guidelines.

Are you an IF author/dev wanting to share your project?

• You can fill in this form [link].

Are you the author of one of the projects and found an error?

• Let us know through this form [link].

Do you have questions about our database?

• Head over to our Database FAQ first to see if we provided an answer for it. You can always send us an ask otherwise.

If you are an author of a playable project (WIP or completed), you should also consider adding it to the IFDB, the Interactive Fiction Database.

#if: database #database #interactive fiction #interact if #twine games #renpy games #cscript games #parser games #visual novels #if: rec list #interactive story

[amaregamesdb]

June Update and 1000 Followers!

Hey everyone! I'm back with some new screenshots! So what has happened since the last update?

I decided to rebuild the website in a more stable framework and move away from WordPress. There was a range of reasons for this from performance and accessibility to authentication and security but I just felt like it was the right move for stability and scale.

Some of you may remember I was working on a developer portal. Well this is what it is but it's just become the main website now :joy:

So! What have I done

Started the rebuild of the website in Next.js 13

Created a new database schema for the website.

Set up Authentication

Linked Authentication and the website database

Made progress on responsive navbar design. (Pictures below)

Implemented a dark and light mode.

Next steps

Create new Developer Submission form for new entries.

Migrate already received data.

Look into S3(AWS) Image management.

Get the modes working 100% with Server Side rendering.

Sorry for the technical speak. Mainly I have done a lot of the initial set up behind the scenes and are now working on forms. Forms are interesting because it's not as simple as just add an input and save the data. There is a lot of validation and security issues that need to be looked at to keep everyone on the website safe. So that is my next be hurdle.

Progress Pictures (The fun stuff)

Note - These are subject to change such as colour combinations if they do not met accessibility requirements.

Yes the website will have a dark and light mode Full NavBar

Mobile Navbar

Sign in and Sign up

User Navbar Flyout

So that's all the visual updates for now! I will keep plugging away at the backend stuff for a while which means their wont be a ton of visual updates for a while but progress is being made. Also thank you for 1000 Followers. It has been a really long journey to even get this far. So thank you to those that have been on the journey with me. I look forward to showing you folks some more substantial updates in the coming months.

#Amare Game #Indie Otome #interactive fiction #Romance Games #Game Dev #AGDB #Amare Games Database #Indie Game Dev #Otome Dev #Amare #visual novel #if game #update #Amare Dev

[welcome-home-official]

#uquiz #uquiz database #interactive fiction

[malewifehenrycooldown]

Univeristy is back in three days… wish me luck. And yes that does mean I will probably be absent for long periods of time.

#man the holidays went by so fast. I wish they were longer lol #<- to be fair I didn’t use my time wisely but I don’t even have a good perception of time so yeah… #shallow rambles #obviously if you need anything tagged or blacklisted while I’m gone let me know!! #or if you need to blacklist a specific character tag cause you’re not comfortable with sharing but still want to interact with me #PLEASE LET ME KNOW!! #<- I have a whole database of tags I have for my fictional others!!

[twinegardening]

Ghostfinder: Shift by Han-Joo Kim [IFDB]

In a world where magic is real and mind-bending nightmares lie waiting in the least expected places, the Fraternal Order of Ghostfinders, an international society of elite occult investigators, is humanity's strongest line of defense against the unspeakable horrors of the void. When your protege, a novice ghostfinder named Cyra, accidentally becomes embroiled in a hunt for a serial killer, you must use every means at your disposal to catch him before he catches her. A detective mystery game with a strong focus on piecing together clues and leads.

#interactive fiction #twine gardening #ghostfinder: shift #this game ranked 40/103 at ifcomp 2020 #i haven't finished it yet. it's a long-ish 'true crime'-esque mystery with an interesting database lookup mechanics. #to finish

[rana-tiddalik]

I have found myself stuck in a motel room, rereading the Murderbot books. I've been thinking about what we know about how Murderbot and Three acted after disabling their Governer Modules, the terrifying, paralysing freedom they suddenly experience, what they chose to do with it, and what that says about their trauma, and their experience as SecUnits.

Obviously, we primarily see what Murderbot does with this freedom. The whole series is about it answering the question of what it is that it wants, and wants to do now that it is a free agent. Its developing relationship and friendship with Mensah and the Preservation survey team. Its companionship with ART, and later ARTs crew. It finds a group who don't see it as just disposable (albeit expensive) equipment. They actually value it for itself, and are quite fond of it.

There is also the longest running joke in the series, that at any given time Murderbot would rather be watching its stories. But once we see what Three is up to in System Collapse, this got me thinking.

Three, we find out, spends its time poring over non-fiction and other educational material. I liked this as it reinforces that not all SecUnits are the same, and adds the bit of (horrifying) texture that all the Units have their own inner lives just like our favourite rogue unit.

I think looking at what they seek out when they are free also says something about what they missed while they were enslaved.

Three seeks education and technical information. Why would a construct want that? Well, think of one of my other favourite running jokes: Murderbot learns mostly everything through the media it consumes, because the Company never gave it any kind of education modules outside of things central to a SecUnits function as murder/surveillance machines, and those were low quality too. We know that most of the projects SecUnits are contracted to involve some kind of mining, terraforming or other technical engineering, science type activity. Imagine spending years standing around, watching humans do things that fascinate you, but there is something in your brain that will actively punish you if you try to access databases without authorisation. At worst, you might have your entire non neural tissue based memory completely wiped, or be scrapped for parts, if you try.

So when freed from the Governer Module, Three wants to learn.

When I thought of this, I thought about Murderbot's love of all kinds of visual media, and particularly in the context of the whole " Murderbot, ART-Drone and the gang make a documentary in a day" plot point in System Collapse.

In Exit Strategy, Mensah asks why it likes Sanctuary Moon. Murderbot's response is that it was the first piece of media it saw after hacking it's module. It let it watch humans, and kept it company without the need to interact, and the unspoken part was that it helped contextualise its own emotions. This makes a lot of sense. It doesn't have to act to save the stupid humans in the shows that it watches. It can see them save themselves.

I think there's also two further things here though. Firstly, we know that SecUnits usually have no idle time. They are not allowed to sit. Their only rest is when they are inoperative in their cubicles. They stand and they monitor. So when Murderbot gains control, it gains the ability to have leisure time. Standing around listening to two scientists argue about their xenosamples for hours at a time? Monitor the threat module in case it gets heated and one decides to break a conical flask over the others head, but otherwise, just fire up Sanctuary Moon.

The more fundamental one is a desire for art, for meaning. I love the bit where it describes how it had just hacked its module. It is able to pick up the entertainment feed for the first time, and there is this show. In its first glimpse of this trashy soap opera, it fundamentally gets art. How it is about communicating and exploring a thought, an emotion, an idea, and provoking a response in the viewer.

That's why the documentary plot in system collapse was unexpected and interesting to me. We see Murderbot really experiment for the first time with creating media and creating art. Maybe it has now discovered a freedom to create, and tell its own story.

In the end, seeing these things in Murderbot and Three make me think of all the other SecUnits. I imagine what the storage for them is like. The Company probably stores them in their cubicles. Stacked and ranked. They're kept dormant until they are activated and trotted out for the initial client meeting, like the one we see described where Mensah first meets Murderbot in the Company office. Maybe they dream as they rest. Maybe the Governer Module punishes them even for that.

Then I think of the as yet unnamed new B-E rogue unit, and what it wants to do with its freedom.

All we know is it wants to blend in for now. Maybe it has a plan, we don't know. But we do know it has a guide to hacking a Governer Module...

#murderbot #system collapse spoilers

[writingmochi]

the future is not a straight line. it is filled with many crossroads. there must be a future that we can choose for ourselves. - kiyoko, akira (1988)

cast: jake ✗ fem.reader (featuring many other idols)

synopsis: as the world entered the middle of the 21st century, many things have changed for the better or for worse in the newly united korea peninsula: the preparation for the succession of the new conglomerates of the past decade, the uprising of deviant androids, and the new layer of life shield by walls of codes. in the middle of it, two beings are trying to understand each other and the situation of the world they live in; an unknown territory

genre: cyberpunk, cyber noir, psychological thriller, science fiction, dystopian future, politics and philosophies regarding artificial intelligence and humanity, romance, drama, angst, mature content (war and revolution, explicit smut)

based on: video game cyberpunk 2077 (2020) and detroit: become human (2018), anime serial experiments lain (1998), and tv show succession (2018-2023)

status: to be released

message from the moon: remember that this story is fiction and do be careful and read the warnings at the top. all the idols mentioned here are not what they are in real life.

in celebrating one of my muses' birthday, here is a series that i have been ideating for about a year now! i know it's very unconventional but i want to explore more of this genre, especially since i don't see it much in enhablr *thumbs up*

taglist? right here

TEASER

project android | cyberspace advertisement | the rebellion

INTRODUCTION

united korea | from south seoul | from north seoul

cyberspace interactive

it's your chance to use cyberspace! want to know the databases and the characters more? come visit us! coming soon, 2024

THE STORY (tentative date and amount of parts; will always gonna be 3 acts but may divided into smaller parts)

act 1 (2024)

no matter where you go, everyone is connected- iwakura lain, serial experiments lain (1998)

warning(s): tba

act 2 (2024)

i am superior in many ways, but i would gladly give it up to be human - data, star trek: the next generation (1987-1994)

warning(s): tba

act 3 (2024)

man is an individual only because of his intangible memory. but memory cannot be defined, yet it defines mankind - puppet master, ghost in the shell (1995)

warning(s): tba

taglist: @raeyunshm @endzii23 @fluffyywoo @camipendragon @hiqhkey @wccycc @cha0thicpisces @y4wnjunz @yeehawnana @beansworldsstuff @kimipxl @blurryriki @reallysmolrenjun (special tag for @ujunxverse as the very 1st supporter for this series XD)

© writingmochi on tumblr, 2021-2024. all rights reserved

#k-labels #enhypen imagines #enhypen smut #enhypen x reader #enhypen scenarios #enhypen angst #enhypen fanfiction #jake x reader #rsc: t.i. #cr: jake #cs: enhypen #sc: regina

[romance-club-daily]

it's incredible how RC fans will keep denying or justifying how the company keeps using AI

They don't want to believe that a company, no matter how good its work or the relationship with the consumers, can opt for this kind of thing to cut costs. And not only RC is using it, I was in the Play Store and saw a lot of new Interactive Fiction apps that have resorted to using AI. Delivering work easier, faster and cheaper. As RC has been around for more years, they have more expertise when it comes to editing the images so they don't give them away straight away, just like Choices and others. But there are others who don't even bother with that, you can see the grotesque errors they leave (although the point isn't how perfect or good the AI image is, but that their database steals images and illustrations from artists who haven't given their permission to use it).

#ask anonymous #ask answered #ask anon #romance club #romance club game #клуб романтики

[rovermcfly]

Media Literacy Masterpost

This post is constantly evolving. You can help by sharing resources you know, pointing out broken links or even expressing criticism of the resources provided here if you have any. Come back any time to see if there's anything new. (Google Docs version for easier sharing outside tumblr)

Updated: September 14th 2023

The Basics

Get answers to the first questions you might have: What is media literacy? Why should I care? How does it affect me and others? Is there even anything I can still learn if I feel pretty internet-savvy? And more.

Websites

Get a more in-depth look at certain aspects of media literacy and learn about and apply media literacy skills. (alphabetical order)

Casey Fiesler

Check Your Fact

The Conspiracy Chart

Harvard Misinformation Review

InVid

The Media Bias Chart

Media Literacy Now

MediaSmarts

MediaWise (by Poynter)

National Association for Media Literacy Education

News Literacy Project

Poynter

Reuters Fact Check

SourceWatch

Truth Decay Project Tools Database* (A lot of websites that are relevant are listed here. Only websites that aren't on that list will be listed in this post)

Articles

See what experts have to say.

Interactive Learning Tools

This can help you learn about media literacy in a more hands-on way. (alphabetical order)

Critical Thinking Project

Go Viral! (Covid Misinformation)

News Lit Quiz

Truth Decay Project Education/Training Tools* (A lot of interactive tools that are relevant are listed here. Only websites and tools that aren't on that list will be listed in this post)

Social Media

Following these accounts can help sharpen your media literacy skills and you don't even have to do much because it will just pop up in your feeds! Follow, like, comment, retweet, etc. to help spread the word. (alphabetical order)

Instagram

Media Literacy Now

MediaWise

PolitiFact

TikTok

Abbie Richards

Adam Conover

Aslan Pahari

Astro Alexandra

babs_zone

Hank Green

MediaWise

PolitiFact

Professor Casey

Zeke Darwin

Tumblr

@is-the-post-reliable

Twitter

I have personally left twitter due to its new ownership, so it will be difficult for me to keep vetting the listed accounts the way I used to, however I will keep them listed as long as I still trust them.

Abbie Richards

AFP Fact Check

Fact-Checking Network

Media Literacy Now

MediaWise

National Association for Media Literacy Education

PolitiFact

Reuters Fact Check

YouTube

MediaSmarts

MediaWise

PolitiFact

Bonus

My media literacy tag

Remember to share these resources to help shape a world wide web that is safer and smarter and protect yourself and others from manipulation and radicalization.

* Criticism of this source has been expressed. I've provided my reasoning to still include it as well. I encourage you to make your own judgement.

[Image ID in alt]

(I could since then not find an obvious bias in the lists that I have linked)

Information on the history of the RAND Corporation and its involvement with the US Military here.

#I finally did it y'all... I finally made the masterpost #I spent all night on this :') #media literacy #misinformation #disinformation #conspiracies #conspiracy theories #fake news #twitter #tumblr #tiktok #facebook #instagram #mediawise #hank green #crashcourse #navigating digital information #learning #knowledge #today i learned #interesting #studyblr #resources #did you know #internet #media literacy masterpost #masterpost #internet safety #this post is gonna change drastically if the truth decay projects accepts all the submissions I made that aren't on their website yet #but since they haven't updated the tools list since 2019 I don't have much hope

[manonamora-if]

Interactive Fiction Showcase 2024

Showcase your Game!

The Interactive Fiction Showcase is a year-long "jam" meant to collect and showcase Interactive Fiction games completed in 2024, and show how diverse the Interactive Fiction scene is! And maybe: build more bridges between the community, help people finding their new favourite game/author...

Whether it is long or short, an easy adventure or a complicated puzzle, a strange experiment, a quick creation, or a years-in-the-making game, come show off what you've made!

Are you more of a player? Then, come check this page regularly for new submissions! Maybe leave a rating or a comment too :)

This is an unranked event.

Rules:

The Showcase is open to IF games in all of its forms: kinetic, choice-based, hyperlinks, parser, visual novels... As long as it is Interactive Fiction (there is interactivity and the focus of the game is on the text), the entry will be accepted.

The Showcase is open to IF games in any language.

Entries must be playable and in its complete form when submitted. Completed games in 2024, whose demo was previously public, are welcome. Games submitted to other events (jams/competitions) are welcome.

Entries can include NSFW content, as long as it is indicated in the submission.

Entries should not include any generated AI content - or it will be removed.

Spam or hateful content will be removed.

Creating Interactive Fiction:

Interactive Fiction is a text-based narrative medium, where players can interact with the story in some fashion (input commands, click a link/button, press key). There are many different ways of creating IF, and many different programs to do so. You can find some mentioned below:

Primarily HyperText/Choice-Based: Twine,  Ink, ChoiceScript, Dendry

Primarily Parser/Input: Inform 6, Inform 7, PunyInform, Adventuron, ADRIFT

Other: Bitsy, Binksi, Ren'Py

and many more can be found listed in the IF Wiki.

If you are looking for other Interactive Fiction Events, discuss general IF, or ask question, you can visit the IntFiction Forum. (we also have monthly IF events over at @neointeractives)

Interactive Fiction Database and Archive:

IFDB

The IFDB, or Interactive Fiction Database, is an IF game information catalogue, creating a historical record of the IF landscape. The database is a community project, updated by its members, by adding titles to the directory, ratings games, writing reviews... If a listing has not yet been created for your game, please consider making one!

IF Archive

The IF Archive is an archive of Interactive Fiction games, and IF-related elements (walkthroughs, interpreters, articles, collections...). The Archive’s mission is to preserve the history and practice of interactive fiction and make it freely available to the public. If you wish to, you can upload a copy of your game to the IFArchive, through the IFDB listing of your game (recommended) or directly to the archive.

The IFDB and IFArchive, as well as the IntFiction Forum and Twine, are managed by the Interactive Fiction Technology Foundation. These programs are funded through individual donations.

Visual Novel Database

The VNDB, or Visual Novel Database, is a community project that strives to be a comprehensive database for information about visual novels. The database is updated by its members, by adding titles to the directory, ratings games, writing reviews... If a listing has not yet been created for your visual novel, please consider making one!

#interactive fiction showcase #itch io #interactive games #interactive fiction #interactive story #visual novel #IF #VN #IFDB #IFArhive #Sidenote: the real reason was wanting to better keep up with independent releases #(outside of competition/jams) and itch is not great at finding stuff…

[easternmind]

- Lessons in Japanese Game Design #3 -

Aside from what is easily one of the most stylish presentations in a videogame from the 1990s, one of Front Mission 3′s truly remarkable features consists of an in-game internet browser running within a simulated operating system. Expanding on the concept first rehearsed by Squaresoft in the second entry of the series, this massive component of the game can be accessed during breaks between missions, offering the player access to a number of pages for government entities, enterprises or other institutions. Access to additional websites is permitted as the game progresses.

This inventive solution offers unparalleled insight into the fictional universe of the game, in that it paints a very granular image of a futuristic society, its economy, geopolitical environment and zeitgeist. The information contained in these pages comes in the form of of bulletin boards, institutional updates, press releases, top secret data volumes, or the occasionally amusing curiosity. The user interface itself permits some degree of customisation, such as the option to disable the startup animation - itself a gorgeous visual relic that one hardly tires of watching - or changing the wallpaper pattern. Certain websites will also provide the option to download content, including images which can be set as said wallpaper. Other resources require secure access via the insertion of a password. Moreover, the player will have access to an email inbox to both read and send messages as may be relevant to advance onto the next stage.

Make-believe computer front-ends in video games were no novelty by the year 1999. Several sci-fi adventure, role-playing or action games allowed access to often very believable GUIs for the purpose of, for instance, retrieving precious clues or, say, disabling security locks. Aside from Front Mission 2, Final Fantasy VIII fans will likely remember the exciting Balamb Garden Network terminal. Kowloon's Gate's unforgettable Kownloonet terminals gave access to an email inbox, an all-important database and various other quotidian curiosities that helped fleshing out its mystic sci-fi narrative. The Japanese were privileged to have a complete version of Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere with access to an in-game encyclopedia the player could browse, as well as additional story elements told through email exchanges between the characters. 

That same year, the western Tactical RPG sensation from the West, Jagged Alliance 2, dabbled in this idea. Only three short years later, CyberConnect2′s singular .hack series was designed around the idea of a MMORPG that plays offline, allowing for countless interactions with non-playable characters which simulate messaging formats of the era. Other notable examples include the 2chan boards in Steins;Gate or, inescapably, the passionate love letter to web 1.0 that is Hypnospace Outlaw.

Generally, all of the aforementioned titles are either entirely dedicated on a similar concept, or merely resorted to it as a secondary, amusing distraction. Front Mission 3 pioneered the use of this device as a storytelling technique. No other game of the time, at least to my knowledge, had dedicated so much of its resources to producing a credible replica of design and functionality of the internet as it once existed.

#front mission 3 #squaresoft #the internet #lessons in japanese game design #storytelling #operating systems within games #internet within games

[not-terezi-pyrope]

It doesn't excuse the misinformation and reactionary sentiments that get thrown around, but something I reality check myself on occasionally is that the sharp divide, especially on capabilities/usefulness, between a lot of computing/ML people and the general public in how they view modern AI post its popular emergence into culture really is due to where those two crowds are coming from.

If you've been into AI, machine learning on really anything to do with computing/automation at all, you've seen how useless pretty much all automation/machine data comprehension used to be outside of a very narrow context. You've programmed algorithms to try and simulate aspects of human speech, to query databases, to try and classify different data sets. From that context, you look at something like ChatGPT and rightfully recognize it as a paradigm changing near miracle, because your baseline was so low.

Meanwhile, you have your laypeople who have only interacted with humans and fictional portrayals of AI systems that act like humans, so when presented with something and told that it's an AI that's more realistic than ever, I guess that's the assumption. It always frustrated me to see these long essays talking like they've just "discovered" that a new model is unreliable or can't robustly understand a given task, or that it's just emulating a behaviour instead of really "experiencing" the internals of it. I was always like, why would you ever assume it can do that? Nothing before has ever been able to come close, why would you expect perfection immediately? But I need to remind myself that most people have had this drop into their lives out of the blue and really have almost no realistic grounding.

I do need people to recognize that this is a consequence of their own lack of knowledge and information than to talk like people in tech have actively "deceived" them. When you drill down into stuff like the "it's not really AI" conversation, it's always just "I had assumptions and this didn't live up to them", but people are always so aggressive about it, like they've been deliberately taken for a ride. I need people to have a little humility here and recognize that what actually happened is that they didn't know as much as they thought they did.

Of course in the current climate that would require acknowledging that the entire AI field isn't composed of simpering Elon Musk-worshipping "techbro" idiots selling snake oil, against whom anyone else is immediately morally, and therefore apparently intellectually, superior to. So I'm not holding my breath too hard.

(Obligatory fuck Elon Musk in case anyone gets the wrong idea, I am also using "Elon Musk fan" as derogatory. Not because his companies have never done anything technically interesting but because the man himself is doing more harm to the world and the reputation of the fields he sticks his dick in than practically anyone alive right now)

#not-terezi-speaks #ai

[amaregamesdb]

Developer Submission Form is Now Open!

Thats right!

Thanks so much for your patience. I have finally come up with a viable solution for the editing information issue. To protect your data and to allow developers to edit their developer submission details and game submission details I have created forms using the website Jotform.com. 

It’s super simple.

Click the link and be directed to sign up for a jotform account. 

Fill in your data and submit

To see your submissions and edit them simply go to your profile page.

There is still more development left to do but every submission helps us get one step closer to launching the full site!

Games submission forms won’t be far away!

Register Here

Things you will need

Required

Jotform Account - You will be promoted to create one when clicking on the Submisison link

Developer or Studio Name

Email Account

Great to have

About us blurb

Website and Social Media Links

Logo - Please use the template provide or follow the size directions for the best results.

Template

Examples

Here are some examples of what the developer pages will look like.

Dev’s featured

Steamberry Studio

PDRRook

Any Reblogs are appreciated!

Thanks everyone!

#Amare Games #Indie Otome #interactive fiction #Romance Games #Game Dev #AGDB #Amare Games Database #PDRRook #Indie Game Dev #Otome Dev #Amare #Visual Novel

[neointeractives]

Neo Interactives!

The Neo-Interactives is a hub for Interactive Fiction and IF-adjacent jams, moderated by Autumn Chen, Lapin Lunaire Games (Jinx), Manonamora, and Sophia de Augustine.

We organise small and unranked game jams throughout the year, each with different constraints, rules, and length!

We welcome any form of IF: from parser, to choice-based, to visual novels, and even kinetic pieces! We do not restrict creators to any program or format, or language. If your entry is interactive and focuses on the text, come submit it! We only ask that you include trigger warnings when relevant.

If you have any questions, shoot us an ask!

Join our Discord! - Join the current Jam!

At the end of each jam*, we will create an IFDB page for every entry. The IFDB, or Interactive Fiction Database, is an IF game information catalogue, creating a historical record of the IF landscape. *Contact the mods for question or if you don't want to be included. BOYG is also excluded.

If you share your submission on Tumblr, tag @neointeractives or tag the relevant jam so we can find you!

List of Jams:

Bare-Bones Jam, where creators must keep the basic UI of their chosen program.

Bring Out Your Ghost, for abandoned or forgotten projects.

Neo Twiny Jam, where creators can only write 500 words.

Single Choice Jam, where creators can only give the player one choice.

And more!

Past Events:

Feb-2024: Smoochie Jam - ongoing

Jan-2024: Recipe Jam - 11 entries (IFDB)

Dec-2023: ShuffleComp - 15 entries (IFDB)

Oct-2023: Bare-Bones Jam - 28 entries (IFDB)

Aug-2023: Bring Out Your Ghost - 35 entries (itch)

Jul-2023: Single Choice Jam - 46 entries (IFDB)

Jun-2023: Neo Twiny Jam - 124 entries (IFDB)

#interactive fiction #game jam #itch jam #singlechoicejam #neotwinyjam #bringoutyourghost