So I created a text adventure
One of the very first computer games I ever played was a text-adventure based on Monty Python’s Quest for the Holy Grail. It was basic, but hilarious.
In the adventure, you had to type “go north” to travel to a different area, and “Pick up key” etc to pick stuff up. It’s dead basic but because it was pure text, it allowed silly things to happen. Like an encounter with the Nights who say “ni”, who say “ni” to you so many times you shrivel up into a pile of bath salts.
That’s why I love games that use description. It’d be way too time consuming to animate the main character turning into a pile of bath salts, but you can write it in just a few words and it’s just as hilarious.
Making a game to advertise your game
A few weeks ago I wrote an article about making games about your game (see it here). In fact many years ago I created a Flash game loosely based on Blue Dwarf called “Brewery Defender” that for some reason got really popular, and was played by thousands of people worldwide. In this game, I had a link to the Blue Dwarf website, and encouraged people to find out more about Blue Dwarf, and sign up. This was how some people came to find out about Blue Dwarf, so it was really useful.
- Play the Brewery Defender game here
- Play another game made to popularise BD here – Blue Midget Walker
I made a text-adventure yesterday
So yesterday I was playing with something called “Squiffy”, it’s an online editor on TextAdventures.co.uk that allows you to make some of the games on their site.
The game I made – Don’t judge too harshly, I know it’s crap!
And it’s really easy! I made a simple game with a linear narrative, kinda like an interactive story I guess.
Honestly, they game isn’t very good. It’s super simple, and doesn’t take long to play. But what I was amazed about is how quick it was to produce (the games I made above took much longer, because of the more complex coding and graphics). If you’re also adept when it comes to coding, you might want to consider career opportunities like being a remote data analyst.
So then I thought, anyone could do this! If you’re thinking about creating a game to advertise your game on OngoingWorlds, this could be a good idea. You could use the game to introduce people to the world, introduce them to some characters, and get them interested so they’re ready to get involved and contribute to your story.
I also made the text adventure into an Android app
Oh yeah here’s another good bit. I wondered how easy it would be to turn what I’d produced into an app. I used a service called “Phonegap Build”, and uploaded the files that I exported from TextAdventures.co.uk and it worked. Kinda. Creating an iPhone app is a bit more difficult, but I created an Android app really easy (email or tweet me if you want to try the app).
Admittedly, PhoneGap Build isn’t free, you need an Adobe account, which I currently have. So if you’re interested in making a game and creating it as an app, let me know and I can turn it into an Android apk (the standard Android app file) if you want.
