This is a short text adventure about evolving into a new species, depending on which path you choose. It is written in Python. I just started about 6 months ago, and this is my first finished project.
Works in Linux too, you can run it straight from source with "python evolutiongame.py". A major problem is that the command parser is too literal and inconsistent: you have to type "stay in capsule", but neither "stay" nor "stay in the capsule" nor "Stay in the capsule of goop." works, but in the next question, it's not "take desert" or "take the desert" but simply "desert".
may i recommend checking out Twine (if you want to make hyperlink fiction) or Inform 7 (parser-based fiction)? both can run through a browser and not only would you reach a larger audience, but you'd save yourself a lot of trouble. writing text adventure stuff in twine or inform is really satisfying and you can focus on the game itself rather than laboriously recreating something that already exists.
I got frustrated after typing all the permutations that I could think of for 5 minutes without the parser recognizing any one of them. The IF systems that Porpentine mentioned have some nice approaches to orient the player and ease the experience; maybe you can take some inspiration from there. It would be a shame if your work went to waste just because of inacessability.
Hi, this is a cool story, but it really needs to understand more variations of answers.
For example, here's a snippet from me playing:
Do you...
Stay in the capsule of goop. You want to know more.
Jump out of the capsule. How do you know this 'thing' is telling the truth?
> stay
What do you decide?
> stay in the capsule
What do you decide?
> help
What do you decide?
> stay
What do you decide?
> stay in
What do you decide?
I could only continue because I looked at the source code.
In some other cases I could guess the answer I wanted ("desert", "climb") but not always. For example:
What do you do?
Bite the creature's hand so it lets go, then run away.
Bite the creature's hand so it lets go, then scratch its eyeballs.
Do nothing and surrender to the creature.
> bite then scratch
The creature is angry and time is running out... what do you do?
> bite
The creature is angry and time is running out... what do you do?
> bite the creature's hand
The creature is angry and time is running out... what do you do?
> bite the creature's hand so it lets go
The creature is angry and time is running out... what do you do?
> bite the creature's hand so it lets go, then run away
The creature is angry and time is running out... what do you do?
Another case is where the text says I can "Stand motionless" but the actual command that works is "don't move".
* * *
In my opinion, the best way to fix these kind of issues is just to watch someone else play your game. If you are careful to not give them any hints or tips, then watching them will quickly reveal where you need to make tweaks to the game easier to play.
(I also made a text adventure for this Ludum Dare, and I was lucky enough to be able to watch some friends play my game, so I could change a lot of commands to ones that they found easier to understand.)
For example, here's a snippet from me playing:
Do you...
Stay in the capsule of goop. You want to know more.
Jump out of the capsule. How do you know this 'thing' is telling the truth?
> stay
What do you decide?
> stay in the capsule
What do you decide?
> help
What do you decide?
> stay
What do you decide?
> stay in
What do you decide?
I could only continue because I looked at the source code.
In some other cases I could guess the answer I wanted ("desert", "climb") but not always. For example:
What do you do?
Bite the creature's hand so it lets go, then run away.
Bite the creature's hand so it lets go, then scratch its eyeballs.
Do nothing and surrender to the creature.
> bite then scratch
The creature is angry and time is running out... what do you do?
> bite
The creature is angry and time is running out... what do you do?
> bite the creature's hand
The creature is angry and time is running out... what do you do?
> bite the creature's hand so it lets go
The creature is angry and time is running out... what do you do?
> bite the creature's hand so it lets go, then run away
The creature is angry and time is running out... what do you do?
Another case is where the text says I can "Stand motionless" but the actual command that works is "don't move".
* * *
In my opinion, the best way to fix these kind of issues is just to watch someone else play your game. If you are careful to not give them any hints or tips, then watching them will quickly reveal where you need to make tweaks to the game easier to play.
(I also made a text adventure for this Ludum Dare, and I was lucky enough to be able to watch some friends play my game, so I could change a lot of commands to ones that they found easier to understand.)