I’m building a custom terminal to install at my local public library. I’d like to create an interesting way to introduce people to IF and let them browse some of the best works in the genre. I could use some feedback on my overall concept and execution.
The terminal itself will be hidden within a library bookshelf. Players walking down a main aisle will notice a large book glowing nearby. Looking closer, they will see a big red button on the spine of the book and the title Interactive Fiction Library. Pushing the button will rotate two rows of books in front of them ninety degrees to reveal a display and keyboard:
Players will then be able to immediately play the ‘game’ at the terminal, which leads to an Interactive Fiction Library. The IF Library inside the game is organized through a series of halls and portals, each leading to a particular work of IF. There are halls for major genres and looking at a portal before entering gives a short description of each work. The project is largely aimed at people new to IF, so a tutorial will be integrated throughout.
[size=150]Here’s a link to a test version of the game.
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The return home command will not work in this test, since I will only have control over the computer running the actual setup. I can’t force someone’s browser to respond to generic inputs outside a webpage I haven’t created myself.
If you choose not to knock on the door or walk around the Fargo Public Library, it may seem confusing. Anyone not familiar with it would be at a disadvantage, since the person actually playing this will be phsyically present there and have direct knowledge of how it is laid out in order to explore it.