The Amazing Maze by Daniel Gunnell

The Amazing Maze

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"The Amazing Maze" by Daniel Gunnell (Type ABOUT for more info)

The story headline is "An Interactive Maze"

use no scoring. The release number is 2.

Use brief room descriptions.

Instead of jumping, say "I do believe you have a trampoline at home?" Instead of examining the player, say "You've come here to explore this maze, so let's not waste any more time in examining yourself." Greeting is an action applying to nothing. Understand "hello" or "hi" as greeting. Instead of greeting, say "Hello to you too."

Casting xyzzy is an action applying to nothing. Understand "xyzzy" or "plugh" or "plover" as casting xyzzy. Instead of casting xyzzy, say "A hollow voice says 'Amazing!'"

Crediting is an action applying to nothing. Understand "credits" or "about" as crediting. Instead of crediting, say "Welcome to The Amazing Maze, a little interactive fiction game that was written using Playfic, a website which uses Inform 7 to write and share IF games. If you have never played an interactive fiction game before, you move around the story by typing in commands such as NORTH, GET LAMP, GIVE MAN KEY or something similar. The maze itself isn't that hard to navigate, and you won't get stuck in it."When play begins:
say "Ever since you were 14-years-old, you've been interested in playing interactive fiction, which, as someone on ifMUD told you, is the best type of gaming out there. (Apologies to players of Minecraft, Fortnite or one of the other video games!) One of your favourite puzzles in those IF games is the maze of twisty passages, all alike, so you're very surprised to learn that an attraction near you is being opened by a few members of the IF community known locally as The Amazing Maze (sponsored by an interactive fiction Archive near you and the few local people who like interactive fiction in your local area). The maze, or so you've been told, caters for any fan of Adventure, Zork or any other text adventure, and its run by a plover. Plover?"

South of Maze Entrance is Maze.

Maze Entrance is a room. "You are in a large room with a very high ceiling and a fake stone floor, to simulate the floor of a cave. Yep, you've stumbled into the infamous maze, first seen in Colossal Cave Adventure, arguably the first known work of interactive fiction. The room appears to stretch away to the east, with a crystal bridge spanning a fissure, but that's all part of the simulation. A registration desk, for customers of this attraction, runs along the fake limestone wall of the cave, and sitting behind it is Plover, the author of this game. Overhead speakers continuously play the Don Woods interview from Get Lamp, which various people are watching on a 45-inch flat screen TV mounted on the south wall. The entrance to the maze is south." Here is a registration desk. The registration desk is scenery and fixed in place. Instead of examining the registration desk, say "The counter serves only one purpose, that being to register customers into this attraction." Plover is a man in the Maze Entrance. Instead of examining Plover, say "Plover is smartly dressed in a smart business suit and matching tie. He looks rather out of place among the crowd, but I suppose IF authors must wear something." Instead of taking Plover, say "Plover won't budge. Perhaps he's really a parrot nailed to his perch and therefore dead, or perhaps he's serving customers and doesn't want to be disturbed. I'd leave him be if I were you, but if you want me to make him into an inventory item, just say so. Many IF games don't have characters that you can pick up, because how many people do you actually pick up in real life?"

East of Maze Entrance is West Bank of Fissure. West Bank of Fissure is a room. "You are standing at the west bank of a fissure with a crystal bridge spanning it to the east. OK. I am lying about the bridge. It's actually a cheap rope bridge, the kind that you'd find in kids playgrounds dotted across Britain. Far off to the east is a large room full of people who seem to be operating the fake swirls of mist that you can see all around you. What mist is this? Well, try examining it and you'll find out. To the west, a round tunnel (it's just a painted hole in the wall that has been cut out in the shape of one) leads back to the entrance to the maze."

East of West Bank of Fissure is East Bank of Fissure. East Bank of Fissure is a room. "You are on the east bank of a fissure with a bridge spanning it to the west. The mist is very thick in this area, although some light filters through far off to the west. To the east is a door labeled 'Staff only.'" The mist is a backdrop. It is in West Bank of Fissure and East Bank of Fissure. Instead of examining the mist, say "Vapours rise in swirls from a deep fissure in the rock. Since this is not an actual cave, it isn't mist, but just a smoke machine. You paid £5.50 to enter this attraction and all you get is a cheap rip off. It's outrageous! The mist doesn't cover the whole maze, since the smoke machine isn't large enough. (Note: if you tried examining the smoke machine, you won't be able to see it since the author didn't code it into his game. And how would you know about that anyway? You're just a visitor)."

South of Maze Entrance is Maze. Maze is a room. "This is a maze of twisty passages, all alike."

South of Maze is Pit Room.
Pit Room is a room."This is a large room full of pits that contain the skeletons of unfortunate adventurers who have stumbled in here at their own risks. Does anyone ever bother to read that big warning sign in large, friendly letters above the entrance to the maze saying 'beware of large pit'? Answer: no, because there isn't one. In one corner of the room, there is a staircase that must lead to the maintenance room, but you can't get there because you're only a visitor. The only object that stands out among the pits and bones is, unsurprisingly, a phone booth, but I'm sure you know what not to do with those. If you want to go back into the maze, go north." Here is a phone booth. Instead of examining the phone booth, say "It's a 1937 model, the kind that people leave lying around in public places on ifMUD just because they can. The door has been welded shut, and a large 'out-of-order' sign has been plastered across it. You assume the sign was written in braille, because you can't actually read it, but some helpful person has written a print version underneath, so that's how come you know what it says. Within the booth you can see no telephone, but that may be down to a couple of reasons: people don't use telephone boxes nowadays to make a call. Whatever you do, don't pick up this phone booth or you'll join your fellow adventurers down there!" Instead of taking the phone booth: say "You heave the phone booth onto your shoulders thinking that you can lift the heaviest thing in the world, but sadly, so many times on ifMUD picking up phone booths has taught you a lesson. Your legs give way and the phone booth falls on top of you, berrying you under a phone which will never be used. You clumsy oaf! You fell into a pit and broke all the bones in your body! You hear the author of this game calling an ambulance somewhere in the entrance to the maze, but by the time the paramedics get to you, lying at the bottom of a previously unseen pit, you are as dead as a door-nail. Mind, I don't mean you are an actual door-nail, but it's just an expression. Anyway, you get a nice burial in a nearby graveyard and a nice funeral but of course, you don't get to hear Plover singing 'Abide with Me'! If only the attraction offered the famous 'orange smoke' that came with Adventure. Oh dear, better luck next time."; end the game in death.

West of Maze is Junk Room. Junk Room is a room. "Here, deep in the heart of the maze, a large cavern can be seen, its ceiling so high that a brass lantern wouldn't be able to pick it up. It's even higher than the Giant Room which you get to by (spoiler alert) climbing the plant in Adventure. There are some piles of junk in the centre of the room, which you would have to collect if you were in an actual maze. But since this is not an actual maze, you don't have to. If you like, you may save your game here, return to the Maze Entrance, give that parrot (Plover) a pat on the back from me (which me do you mean, the author or the player?) and pretend that what you are about to play is the hardest maze that you've ever played. To the east is the maze propper, and to the west you can see the end of this game. I take this opportunity to say that people don't usually put a maze into an IF game these days as it confuses the player, but thanks for stopping by and entering the maze. Go west to end the game and maybe one day, you'll stumble upon the mazes in Zork or something and count this game as practice." Here is piles of junk. Understand "junk" as piles of junk. Instead of examining piles of junk, say "It's a big pile of junk that is not worth bothering about. In short, it's just junk."

West of Junk Room is End of the Game Gift Shop.End of the Game Gift Shop is a room. "This is a large store selling gifts and souvenirs to remind you of the Amazing Maze attraction. There are t-shirts saying 'I entered the maze and all I got was this lousy t-shirt', iron-on logos with pictures of Plover and there's even an old IBM PC (remember those?) running a copy of A Mind Forever Voyaging. The guy serving (or, more accurately, a robotic parrot by the name of Alex) is browsing through the Steam website and trying in vain to find the game that you're hopefully playing. (If you are not playing this game, I hope someone stumbles across it soon.) There's a door out to the east leading into the maze, or to the north you can discern the outline of yet another door leading to another part of the maze. When will you ever get out of here?" Alex is a man in end of the Game Gift Shop. Instead of examining Alex, say "Behind that bland avian expression, he's laughing at us."

North of End of the Game Gift Shop is More Maze. More Maze is a room. "You are in a maze of twisty passages, all alike. No, can I rephrase that? You are in a curving south/northeast corridor that has posters of old interactive fiction games on the walls."

East of More Maze is Captain's Cabin.
Captain's Cabin is a room. "Ahoy, matey! You are standing in the Captain's Cabin, one of the most famous restaurants throughout this maze. Just like a real cabin, the walls are made of timber held together with nails and there's a card table for sailors (or customers) to gamble just like the old shipping days, whenever those were. A long bar stretches along the east wall, and behind it sits a pirate who looks very similar to the one in Adventure. At the moment, the pirate doesn't look in the mood to steal your treasure, thank goodness. Near the bar, a door leads into the kitchen which you can't even enter because you are only visiting this maze. To make sure that no customers enter the kitchen who shouldn't, the staff of the maze have placed some sort of Touch ID on the door so that it will only recognise certain fingerprints. Very clever! The Captain's Cabin is designed to serve the customers of this attraction the finest drinks in the land, from real ale to shandy to Coke to whatever you like. They'd even serve you a roast ox if you said that you were peckish. The west exit leads out to the maze."

Northeast of More Maze is Maze Exit.

Maze Exit is a room. "This is a very large room that serves as the exit for the Amazing Maze. Crowds of people jostle you from side to side as they, like you, are making their way out to the west. Over by the north wall, an IF enthusiast is playing Leather Goddesses of Phobos on his iPad. Something, perhaps this very sentence, tells you that he will probably be playing the game in tame mode, because the Amazing Maze is a family attraction. To the south is the maze, but if you go back in there you are silly, because you've been there already. To the west is the main office, and the telltale glint of sunlight. You must be near the end of the game, and this time, the author isn't lying. In fact, if you think that I'm lying, you wait until you play a game that contains an actual maze." An IF enthusiast is a man in Maze Exit. "Trent, a not too bright Infocom games collector from Alaska, is sitting here, playing Leather Goddesses of Phobos." Every turn while in Maze Exit: say "Trent is currently telling passers-by about the time he was listening to the LP version of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and playing Deadline. You try not to listen to this, as you weren't even alive during the 80s." Instead of examining the IF enthusiast, say "Like many members of the IF community, this guy started out just by playing text-based games, but he'll probably write his own soon. At the moment, he is playing Leather Goddesses of Phobos (tame mode) on his iPad Pro and proudly telling anyone who will listen about the pros and cons of Infocom games." Instead of asking the IF enthusiast about [something], say "He glares at you. 'Hey, I am trying to play. Leave me alone.' You get the impression that any work of interactive fiction that he writes will be about people who keep themselves to themselves and are very antisocial."

West of Maze Exit is Main Office. Main Office is a room. "You are in the main office of this attraction with advertisements on the walls announcing other events that the interactive fiction community are planning, such as the Interactive Fiction Competition, Spring Thing and, for those of you on ifMUD, ClubFloyd playthroughs in the Toyshop and Floyditorium. A band of friendly elves suddenly pick you up and carry you off into the sunset. To reward you for trying out this maze, the elves drop you by the door and point to a chocolate cake that's lying on the floor." Here is a chocolate cake. Instead of examining the chocolate cake, say "By the smell and texture, you'd probably guess that this cake has been baked somewhere in the English county of Kent, maybe Margate or somewhere exotic. On the top of the cake, scratched into the icing, some braille reads: 'this cake will, when eaten, cause the game to end and you (the player) to exit the Amazing Maze. We hope that you had fun'. The author baked this cake earlier especially for the game and it expires tomorrow whenever that is. So, if you are peckish, have a bite!" The chocolate cake is edible. After eating the chocolate cake: say "Mmm. That cake sure tastes good. In fact, it's your favourite, chocolate with a hint of cork nut (almond). Perhaps someone on ifMUD baked it especially for you and donated it to the IF Archive."; end the game in victory.