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50 YEARS OF TEXT GAMES: FROM OREGON TRAIL TO A.I. DUNGEON

Aaron A. Reed



 

Since a winter morning in 1971 when a teacher wheeled a teletype into his classroom to debut a game about the Oregon Trail, people have been telling interactive stories on digital platforms. From text adventures to VR poetry, MUDS to mobile romance sims, and chatbots to roguelikes, these games without graphics have pioneered new techniques for interactive storytelling, engaged imaginations with clever engines and beautiful prose, and explored the new terrain of fiction you can play.


50 Years of Text Games: From Oregon Trail to AI Dungeon picks one text-based game from each year between 1971 and 2020 and studies how it works, what it's about, why it's special, and its lasting legacy. From famous classics to overlooked gems, from personal stories to million-word epics, and from games printed by teletypes to games downloaded on smart watches, this is the fascinating story of interactive fiction's first half-century.

 

PUBLICATION DETAILS

LANGUAGE

BINDING

EDITION

ISBN

YEAR

PAGES

English

Hardcover

9798985966107

2023

642

English

Paperback

9798985966114

2023

642

English

eBook

N/A

2023

642

 

TAGS Authors: #AaronAReed Publishers: #ChangefulTales (Changeful Tales) Languages: #English Format: #eBook #Hardcover #Paperback Accessibility: #TextToSpeech #ScreenReader #EnhancedTypesetting

Year: #Year2023

Genres: #Adventure #Compendium #EarlyYears #GeneralHistory #PCGaming Companies: N/A Public Figures: N/A Games: #80Days (80 Days)

#Achaea (Achaea) #Adventure (Adventure) #AIDungeon (AI Dungeon)

#AMindForeverVoyaging (A Mind Forever Voyaging) #Choices (Choices: The Freshman)

#Curses (Curses)

#DigitalALoveStory (Digital: A Love Story)

#DwarfFortress (Dwarf Fortress) #ELIZA (ELIZA)

#ElMuseoDeLasConsciencias (El Museo de las Consciencias) #FallenLondon (Fallen London) #Galatea (Galatea)

#HisMajestysShipImpetuous (His Majesty's Ship Impetuous)

#HowlingDogs (Howling Dogs)

#HuntTheWumpus (Hunt The Wumpus) #KingOfDragonPass (King of Dragon Pass)

#LambdaMOO (LambdaMOO)

#LieuxCommuns (Lieux Communs) #Lifeline (Lifeline)

#MonsterIsland (Monster Island)

#MUD (MUD, Multi-User Dungeon)

#Nested (Nested)

#PatchworkGirl (Patchwork Girl) #Photopia (Photopia)

#PirateAdventure (Pirate Adventure)

#PlunderedHearts (Plundered Hearts)

#PRESTAVBA (P.R.E.S.T.A.V.B.A.)

#ROCKET (ROCKET)

#ScentsAndSemiosis (Scents & Semiosis)

#Screen (Screen)

#ShadesOfDoom (Shades of Doom)

#Silverwolf (Silverwolf)

#SoFar (So Far)

#StarTrek (Super Star Trek)

#Suspended (Suspended)

#TheBeast (The Beast)

#TheCaveOfTime (The Cave of Time)

#TheFireTower (The Fire Tower)

#TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy)

#TheKingdomOfLoathing (The Kingdom of Loathing)

#TheLordOfTheRings (The Hobbit) #TheOregonTrail (The Oregon Trail)

#ThePlayground (The Playground) #TradeWars (Trade Wars 2002)

#UncleRoger (Uncle Roger)

#UniversalPaperclips (Universal Paperclips)

#Versu (Versu: A Family Supper)

#Violet (Violet)

#Weyrwood (Weyrwood)

#Zork (Zork) Misc: N/A

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