IF final essay

Final essay link: Interactive Fiction: The power of choice

Bandersnatch: Straight Mind Trip

Netflix's Bandersnatch, directed by David Slade, is a side movie from the show Black Mirror, which is also on Netflix. Its a interactive, science fiction thriller that gives the viewer the power to make decisions for the main protagonist Stefan who's a gaming programmer trying to make the next big gaming hit. He comes across a fantasy novel called "Bandersnatch", he then gets the idea of turning this twisted fantasy novel into a game. In the process of making the game weird shit starts to happen. Stefan is going through a psychological epiphany about free will and reality itself. Throughout the moive, the viewer/player is making decisions for Stefan which multiple endings are influenced by these choices. This is actually one of the big topics discussed in the movie, the simple fact that free will is a form of an illusion. As the players have control of Stefan's decisions, free will does seem like an illusion. Another thing that is discussed in the movie is the effects of making a decision.

Bascially when one decision is made another alternate universe is created. So in one world a person could wear a blue shirt but in another that shirt could be green. With the previous decision being made once again another world was created. This is called the pitch fork effect, when you have multiple decisions that have an outcome. One decision can be a outcome that effects a later part in the story. Below is the story map to the Bandersnatch movie. The movie has its original ending with alternate endings and even bonus endings. I actually got to the original with him going insane and being taken to a mental facility. Another ending that I wanted to get to was the special one that related to the movie being on Netflix. This ending broke the fourth wall by making Stefan realize that the movie is actually on a streaming service called Netflix. This movie will definitely captivate its viewers with its philosophical thinking and thoughts about gaming and reality.



Overall, I believe that movies like this should appear more in netflix and even in movie theaters. This really helps the viewer get interested in the story and want to participate more to dig deeper in the story. Honestly this might be the next thing up for movies when it comes to the viewer making the decisions. Everything that the protagonists or other characters go through are in the viewers hands. That's a hefty job because the story is effected which ever path is chosen. I would reccomend this movie to those who love interactive fiction and getting towards multiple endings.  This is just a great story on the power of choice. Viewers should definitely be prepared to go on a mind trip.

Interacting and analyzing an e-lit piece titled "Coming out"

"Coming out simulator" by Nicky Case, is a mock up of a representation on what its like to come out to someone. In this piece it seems to be the main character coming out to the friend and wondering if he will be accepted by his parents or not. The player goes through the process and hangs on the edge of there seat for the outcome. Its a great to be in someone else's shoes and get a different perspective. Below is a link to see my walkthrough of the piece.

COMING OUT Walkthrough

Within the piece, you are a protagonist who is coming out to their parents. It begins as you are talking to your presume to be lover. You guys started out as friends and it progressed into something more. The protagonist seems like this was his first time encountering something like this. Due to the friend/lover being more experienced, he urges you to tell your parents everything. One thing I like about most interactive fiction pieces, is that it's almost like a choose your own path game. That path is followed by how you want to tell your parents about your sexual beliefs. Also, I noticed that the family you are a part of is a different ethnicity, maybe Asian decent. It's a complete different experience. As there are multiple ways to come out, I chose the path to be upfront and tell the parents about how the main character was seeing his best friend Jack. To me this seemed like an unrealistic path because there were options that had a way to hide you really were. I just chose the not being afraid path. It might've been a result of me watching too many movies, but I believe people shouldn't be afraid of who they really are, regardless of what others think. Just stay true to yourself. As the I chose the brave way, things got out of hand, the mother was sobbing because she knew and the father just thought about punishing the protagonist. Although it seemed bad, I thought wow I give a lot of credit for those who aren't afraid to tell their truth. 

Not only did this have a good story but this piece gets a bonus on its style. Everything that is said are in text box's. Which is cool because it all starts with you texting your lover Jack about coming out to his parents. He was also afraid to call Jack. Having the dialog be in text box's was in a way a millennial way of communicating. It relates to modern times and shows how things can change and how perspectives can one day change. Overall, great game would recommend that every player should listen to all three story endings. Peace Out!!!!!

Ready Player One: Virtual Reality gets slapped with reality

In ready player one, it's a story that touches a lot on the concept of virtual reality. Its set in a dystopian world that is almost, if not, consumed by virtual reality. In the real world new outbreaks of diseases and low resources is effecting the world as it is slowly deteriorating. As a result of this, virtual reality is a way to escape reality. This virtual world is called the Oasis. It's more like a usual gaming world. You make an avatar and give yourself a gamer tag. Everything in this world the player can experience it in full effect. All five senses is used in this gaming world. When reading this it amazed me on how advance the technology was. Honestly I kind've excited for the future of virutal reality and how far it could go. Back to the story, here comes the main protaganist Wade who is one of the top gamers. He meets other gamers and most teens like him like going into the oasis to escape the real world as well. On a series note just like in the real world, people still use this platform to hide there identity.



Although virtual reality is a revolutionary way to get connected to games, it is also a gateway for people to go under false identities. This reminded me of a show called "catfish", which plays on MTV. What they is help those who want to know whether or not the person they reach out to on a social media platform is real.  This show represents how powerful it can be to hold an identity and to make it relate to you in real life or someone you think you should be. Power like that obviously in the catfish show seems to land in the wrong hands. It seems like a rarity on the show to actual find someone who actually is the person they say they are. It kindve scary too because when finding love on social is that ever really a good idea? In addition when speaking about virtual reality, this is similar because your character can have any elements that you want to add on to it.

For instance, if someone is within the gaming community considers themselves as transsexual, they have the capability to be who they see themselves as in a game. This actually gives them a sense of freedom, but honesty should come in to play. Its great to see gamers wanting to escape reality, on the other hand misleading others is when there should be limits set. If the person is afraid, they should not be at fault. A lot pros and cons can come into play. Other factors like being afraid to be judged based on skin color or sex correlates to identities being hidden. In the book one of the gamers who portrays herself as a white male and is one of the best gamers. Even the main character, Wade, is a white male who seems to have the power of privilege more likely than others. We should be able to build a safe world where no one should be judged and be who they want to be. It all stops when it gets in the wrong hands. To me I support anyone who want to be true to themselves no matter what. Overall, I liked the book and I think this should stay in the interactive fiction lesson. There is so much gamers and non-gamers can learn about the virtual world, sometimes reality always catches up.

As humans we have the capability of "change"......

Recently one of the pieces that I looked at was called "Maybe Make Some Change" by Aaron Reed. It was an e-lit piece about how in the late 2000's there was a huge presence of US soldiers in Iran and Afghanistan. As a result there were many instances in insubordination within the platoons. An issue of unlawful killings motivated by profiling the indigenous people there as threats due to recent terrorist events. Also, I don't know exactly but there had seem to be some psychological factors involved as well. Many soldiers within their platoon were afraid to tell and kept their mouth shut about it. Well that type of soldier is representing within the game and it's based on a real story.

To represent this real world issue within a interactive format, the player starts out as a soldier and apparently this soldier seems to be on trial because the background noise is the actual soldier who witness everything speaking. Also, there are multiple voices speaking of the events that occurred. Some of them sound like lawyers or some legal people in a certain position to speak about it. There are news segments used as background noise as well. Certain actions can be used in order to progress through the game. One thing that pointed out to me about this piece is the first action you have to do is shoot. This specific action right there explains the whole purpose of the piece. Without using any other actions they shoot first and ask questions later. As the player it was hard for me to keep to keep typing in the shoot command. Honestly this part really pulls the player in the soldiers shoes. Once the "shoot" command is used a couple times then comes hear. Hear almost seem like you were a witness to it instead the one committing the killings. Is to say the player hears it but can't do anything. Then I think comes warn. Warn still seemed like the witness to me and maybe even the victims point of view. Various actions come available to the player as they progress throughout the piece.

Make Some Change Walkthrough

E-lit pieces like these are more effective on a interactive format. As stated before we got a small dose of what it feels like to be in an soldier shoes around that time. It was as if we were actually acting out the actions we put in. Honestly as a reader and writer, I think interacted with a story like this is better than reading it. Being able to interact with stories looks like is the future for literature. The future looks bright for e-lit, especially if pieces such as this are being created.

Interactivity sneaks into Literature

Previously most of the past class weeks we have been looking into interactive fiction in many game forms. As this course revolves around interactive fiction games, which computer gaming company, infocom, is a huge part of. Honestly Infocm was the catalyst of computer gaming and it hit it peaks in the 80's. It including elements like plot, setting, and the concept of protagonist v antagonist. It was the ground zero of the evolution of gaming. Players who were once readers, actually have the power to go on whatever path they choose. The ending is reflected through the players decisions. Anything the player does reflects the story. So the gaming element combines reading and interactivity. Games like Zork, Advent, and Deadline are a huge representation on the evolution of interactive fiction. This is the startup of the future of modern storytelling and modern gaming. Now continuing on with the term interactivity, it can come in different forms. Forms that are deemed digital literature makes the reader a part of the story and helps them pay more deeply attention. Instead of messages through text, its messages within hypertext or images that appear with a click on a mouse or the tap of a screen.

For instance recent work that we looked at was called "Mr. Plimptons revenge". It was formatted on google maps. This story was about how a student who escorted an editor named George Plimpton. This experience was a living hell for Mr. Plimpton and after that he wanted to forget who the narrator was. Throughout the story this is referenced and the key point to Plimptons revenge. Would recommend this to readers who are newly introduced to this genre of interactive fiction.  It was an interactive story as each location on the map is pin pointed. Once the location is clicked, a story emerges. Order seems to matter in this piece because the narrator tells the story in each location that is pin pointed first. Its fine to go to other of the locations, but the story follows along in a specific order. Some of the pin points can either can text alone or with images added. Stories like these can also be found on other platforms like twine and coding software's.

What's the time "9:05"

When I played "9:05" by Adam Cadre, the ending of the game really pulled me back in. When going through the game and discovering who you really are, was well put together. Honestly my first go through the hints of the ending or closer to the ending, I didn't guess the end. In my mind though once I discovered the body under the bed, being a murderer was a possibility. Like most interactive fiction games like these, paying attention to certain details and commands are important. Going ahead on my second run I discovered that if you examine the body, the game then gives you a little back story of what actually happened. Yea one has to pay attention to detail, but this game isn't too complicated to play. If you are familiar with these types of games commands come naturally and easy. If it's all new then research is important before playing.

9:05 Walkthrough

Adam Cadre, who also made "Photopia", which in this game the identity of the characters are hidden, later in the game these identities are revealed. Of course this is use to shock the player to strengthen the plot. He uses this same concept in the game "9:05", as at the beginning the players identity isn't revealed, but certain clues can be shown to find out who you are. For instance, in the beginning you wake up and you hear the phone ringing. On the stand where the phone is, a wallet and keys can be found. When you open the wallet it reveals the players identity. But the truth about what we have done is hidden. This can be discovered once you type the examine command, it tells you the backstory of the dead corpse under the bed, who is the guy who owns the house. Towards the end, the car chase with the cops tells it all, you are a......(play the game to find out). This modern semi detective game has all the right elements that will keep the player invested.

Infocom's: Deadline

Infocom's Deadline is another one of the interactive fiction game that we reviewed in class. When it comes to infocom this is one of the gaming company's earliest works. It was created in the year of 1982, which is the early start of computer games. This game was one of the first murder mystery interactive fiction games. Deadline is a detective fiction game that challenges the player due to an intense case and limited amount of time to figure who the murderer is. It was a part of the first game installments with a successful plot. In addition, the concept of limited time actually encourages the player to crack the case. This actually makes the plot stronger because every move that is made, time is ticking.

I was ready for the challenge and composed two videos showing how I interacted with the game. In the first walkthrough video I was placed in front of the estate of the man who died. The good thing about interactive fiction games is that when you start a game, they tell you everything that is either north, east, south, or west from you.  I went north to go towards the estate to knock on the door. Once I hit the command to knock on the door,  Mrs. Robner, the murdered mans wife, will answer the door. She tells you the amount of time you have to solve the case, I imagine she stated it was until 8 pm.

Deadline Walkthrough

Overall, this is a great game and very challenging. It was very hard and on some parts I got lost. Honestly with most of the Infocom games so far, I think self research helps out a lot. Learning about these games in class also helps. It's not bad either to watch other walkthrough's of the others playing the game. It gives you more ways to interact with certain parts of the game. Multiple things can be discovered and mysterious can be solved. Be prepared to think like you never thought before. *law and order theme music*



*Feelies that came with the game. This is for the info com super fans.*

Infocom: HItchhikers guide to the galaxy

Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy is another work from the gaming company infocom. Not only is there a game version of this adventure, but  there is also a book and a film adaption. It was made in year 1982 by Douglas Adams and infocom's own Steve Meretzky. This was infocoms fourteenth game at the time. Learning about this game was very interesting because it seems different than other works of interactive fiction. Below are various descriptions and two screen casts that will display details about the game, along with my reactions to certain moments within the game. The version that I played was a visual depiction of it as it was accessible on the bbc network website.

When I first began the game (First Walk through)I noticed that the screen was dark. Then I typed in a command to turn on a light. It worked and then the image displayed a lighted a bedroom. The most important thing was to grab the gown and take the pill that will relive the character. Don't forget the grab other items like the toothbrush and screwdriver.  After a few steps later the character finds out that his house is going to be demolished. I had to research this and probably heard it in class as well, the goal is to lie down until your friend ford perfect comes through. Then you have to ask ford about your home three times and then the guy in the bulldozer replaces you. The pub scene was probably one of my favorites out of the game. I actually died because I commanded the character to drink wait too much and the description of the final moments are hilarious. Once I succeeded ford talks about the earth being destroyed and everything gets started on this part.

In this second video I was captured by aliens and on a spaceship. i was in complete darkness again. This time it took some research to actually know what to do. Apparently when you hit the wait command a couple times its suppose to give you clues. A way of getting pass this part is to smell the darkness. It seems like due to being captured and transported on the spaceship it caused nausea problems. Then everything gets clear and I ended up in a disgusting alien place. This part was actually the end of the video and hopefully I advance from this part and discover more great things about this game. Once again this game is very different and unique, sometimes confusing.

Defining IF and Adventure

After multiple weeks of observing and studying Interactive fiction works, my interpretation of the definition has gradually changed since the first time I entered the class. To me it means to not only have the capability of interacting with story but using various commands and wits in order to experience the full effect. No matter what the work looks like or form, the reader has access to a great story and adventure that will be more than just a game. Honestly, interactive fiction is more than a game because it tests your thinking skills and improves them. Especially most works that do not have pictures. That can be a challenge for the reader as there are no images to go off of. Everything will be relied on remembering what objects in what room and what's North, South, West etc... Imagination is key when playing interactive fiction. It is almost impossible to play this genre of gaming if someone feels they have no imagination. throughout this class I have looked at many games within the interactive fiction genre. Games like "Zork", "Advent" and various other games. Below will be a documentation of me interacting with the game "Zork". A quick history lesson, Zork was seen as the early works of interactive fiction and it was a part of the very early works of info-com. 

ADVENT WALK THROUGH PART 1

The first video is me going through the beginning of the game "Adventure". I'm going through the commands and I'm still getting the hang of the game, but I will recommend self research in the game really helps out. Most things you can discover yourself and it's find to do self research. Having that definitely makes it easier to get through and in the second video I actually made it to the dwarf. I had to pause the jiing session multiple times in order to record a new part of the game that I got to. At the end of the game that 

ADVENT WALK THROUGH PART 2