Interactive fiction refers to a type of text-based computer game popular in the 1970s and 1980s, where players enter text-based commands to alter the outcome. As computer graphics improved, text games became less popular, leaving hobbyists to create their own games. Interactive fiction can also refer to reader choice history books and graphics-based computer games. Players progress through the game by finding items and solving puzzles.
Some people use the term interactive fiction to describe almost any type of fictional story where the reader has a way to alter the outcome. Most commonly, it is generally used to describe a particular type of text-based computer game that was quite popular during the 1970s through the mid-1980s. These text games gave players written descriptions of environments or situations and allowed the player to enter text-based commands that the computer would respond to in a seemingly intelligent way, as long as the commands were within certain bounds. Some people also refer to readers’ choice history books as interactive fiction, and others use it to describe almost any computer game with interactive story elements.
During the mid-1970s, when interactive fiction computer games first appeared on the scene, computers were generally unable to display high-quality graphics. Because of this, text-based games often provided the best way for players to experience a full world design. Since the imagination has no limits, text game writers were free to create anything they could think of, and there were many games created during that time in numerous genres, including crime novels, horror stories, and fantasy adventures. As computer graphics gradually improved, text games became less popular, eventually getting to the point where major commercial companies no longer made them, leaving all the work to hobbyists who still loved text adventures and wanted to make their own games .
Usually, games were built around descriptions of rooms and areas. Within each description, there would be a few words about the details and items in the current room. The player will use commands such as “open jar” or “light game” to perform actions and the game will describe the results to the player. If the game didn’t understand one of the commands, there was usually some sort of clever phrase that would let the player know that he or she had ventured beyond the game’s command perimeters. The player generally progressed through the games by finding items in the game world and using them to solve various puzzles.
There are many different definitions for interactive fiction. The primary use of the term is for text-based computer games from the 1970s and 1980s, but some people also use it to describe novels based on reader choice. These books allow players to make decisions at story turning points and then give them a page to turn to, showing the consequences of their actions. Many people also use the term for graphics-based computer games, which often share similar mechanics to the original text adventures.
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