EXCERPTS FROM AN
INTERACTIVE FICTION GAME
SIMILAR TO HOUSEQUEST!

A SAMPLE TRANSCRIPT OF HOW THE GAME WORKS

Below is a sample of a fictional game who's type is similar to HOUSEQUEST!, provided here to give you an idea how to play. It is not an excerpt from HOUSEQUEST! and will not reveal any secrets.

NOTE: The computer text is in green. The text the player types is in white.

CAVE ENTRANCE
You are at the entrance to the scary cave, which lies ominously to the east. To the west is the road back to town. Thick vines cover the entrance.

You see:
A quarter

You can go:
E, W

> s
You can't go that way.

> e
The vines are too thick to get through.

> pull the vines down
That sentence isn't one I recognise.

> pull vines
They're too tough, you can't break them.

> examine cave
It is eerie and covered with impassble vines.

> examine vines
The vines have really thick stalks with dark green serrated leaves. They are most likely poisonous. There appear to be some brown splotches here and there. Perhaps they are diseased.

> eat quarter
no.

> eat vines
There is no way you could gnaw through them. Anyway, they are probably poisonous.

> get clippers
I don't see any clippers here.

> get quarter
You are now 25 cents richer.
Taken.

> w
BIZARRE
You are standing in the middle of the bizarre. There are many merchants here screaming at you to buy their items. The road continues to the west toward the town square. To the east it narrows to a dirt road and heads up a dreary looking hill.

> buy clippers
After haggling back and forth with the merchant over the cost for half an hour, he finally he agrees to sell you his cheapest and oldest pair for 25 cents.
Taken.

> i
You hold:
a pair of clippers

> examine clippers
These are common plant clippers except that they appear to be very old. They are rusty and dull. I doubt they could cut anything.

> sell clippers
You wave them in the air, shouting that they are a bargain. Quickly a shifty old man rushes over and anxiously agrees to take them off your hands. All he has to trade however is a can of green paste.

...done
The man runs off laughing loudly...shouting something about having gotten a set of priceless ancient clippers that were thousands of years old.


> e
You head along the dirt road up the hill and out of town.

CAVE ENTRANCE
You are at the entrance to the scary cave, which lies ominously to the east. To the west is the road back to town. Thick vines cover the entrance.

You can go:
E, W

> put paste
You smear the paste on the vines. It seems to have the effect of healing the plant. All the brown splotches are going away. The plant, being now super healthy, lifts all of its vines up towards the sun. They no longer cover the cave, but go straight up the rock wall.

> look
CAVE ENTRANCE
You are at the entrance to the scary cave, which lies ominously to the east. There are some huge and healthy vines here, just above the cave entrance.

You can go:
E, W, U

> u
You scramble up the vines to a ledge above.

CLIFF OF REFLECTION
You stand on a cliff ledge that is high above the ground. The stone is polished in many places, like mirrors.

You see:
a mind reading troll

The troll is standing opposite you, pretending like he just finished a long climb.

> examine troll
(Funny, that's what the mind reading troll was going to do, only he's quicker.)

He looks you over and decides there's nothing special about you...other than you seem to be copying his every move.

> inventory
(Funny, that's what the mind reading troll was going to do, only he's quicker.)

He rumbles through his things and takes stock of all he's carrying.

You hold:
nothing.

> kiss troll
(Funny, that's what the mind reading troll was going to do, only he's quicker.)

The troll kisses you on the cheek...aaawwww that's sweet (but gross).

> kill troll
(Funny, that's what the mind reading troll was going to do, only he's quicker.)

YOU ARE DEAD.

----- GAME OVER -----



END OF STORY