Hello, Gamer by Daniel Gunnell

Hello, Gamer

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"Hello, Gamer" by Daniel Gunnell (type HELP for information)

The story headline is "An Interactive transition from The Dreamhold to good old interactive fiction"

Include Rideable Vehicles by Graham Nelson. Include Basic Screen Effects by Emily Short. Use brief room descriptions. Use no scoring.

Casting hello sailor is an action applying to nothing. Understand "hello sailor" as casting hello sailor. Instead of casting hello sailor, say "Hello, gamer!" Crediting is an action applying to nothing. Understand "help" as crediting. Instead of crediting, say "Please check out your game package for help."

When play begins: say "Before you play this game, let me just get a few things straight. If you just want to just play this game without reading this, too bad.[line break](Press any key to continue."; wait for any key; say "This game puts you in the shoes of someone who has just quit The Dreamhold, a tutorial interactive fiction game with an amazing Tutorial Voice which is now over ten years old. You should play that first otherwise the opening text may not make sense. This game also references the thousands of Multi-User Dungeons (MUDs) that are out there and allows the player to explore a fictional travel agency in order to join ifMUD.[line break]I will require just one more key press and one more load of text before we can actually begin. I know, waste of time playing this game. (Press any key to continue)"; wait for any key; say "You've got this far with playing the game and now you're reading this for no reason whatsoever. The MUD Connector is a real website that lists MUDs and the TMC Travel Agency is not a real place. The author of this game placed the travel agency in Essex, England, as that was the county where the first Multi-User Dungeon was built in 1978. Now, if you want to jump into this game... (Press any key to continue)"; wait for any key; clear screen. Before printing the banner text: say "With a sigh, you quit The Dreamhold. Now, with the whole wide world of interactive fiction open before you, you plan to dive into it just as soon as you can. You've even heard of a Multi-User Dungeon, also known as a MUD. So, you have now got to decide what other IF game to play. Lost Pig and Bronze seem to be a good starting point for the novice, but you could, if you wanted to, jump right into the deep end of the metaphorical swimming pool and sink your teeth into a propper interactive fiction game.[line break]A sudden *click* brings you back out of the gaming world, as your letterbox opens then shuts with the arrival of some mail. You jump. You've never received mail this early in the morning: it's usually around lunchtime when the only letter you get is a free gift voucher from some shop. Nevertheless, you stand up from your computer chair, rush to the front door, grab the mail, and head back to the computer room."

Computer Room is a room. "This space, barely wider than an iPhone X's screen, is the place where you play interactive fiction. Well, the truth is, you've only just started playing it. A large computer tower sits in the middle of the room, next to a desk." Your game package is a container in the Computer Room. Your game package is openable and closed. The description of Your game package is "It's a large plastic box with 'TMC Travel Agency' on it. You've got no idea who delivered it to you, but you had better open it and find out..." In Your game package is a letter, a coupon worth £15000 and a passport for The Mud Connector. The description of a letter is "Hello, Gamer[line break]Thanks for ordering this game package from The Mud Connector. We would also like to say thank you for completing The Dreamhold, too![line break]You must be wondering 'why on earth did I receive this?' The answer is simple: you wanted to get yourself on ifMUD, but didn't know how to do so, so The Mud Connector stepped in and tried to help you. Enclosed in this package is your letter, (that you must already be reading)a coupon for the MUD of your choice and a passport for the Mud Connector, also known as TMC. It offers thousands of Multi-User Dungeons, which are online text-based games. We are also inviting you to come to The Mud Connector's brand new travel agency to preview ifMUD.[line break]In this game, try commands like EXAMINE, LOOK, or a compass direction." The description of a passport for The Mud Connector is "The passport carries some boring information about the directions to The Mud Connector's TMC Travel Agency. Although these are boring to read, you find it interesting that the directions lead to Essex, England." The description of a coupon worth £15000 is "The holder of this coupon is permitted to buy the MUD of his choice: we have thousands, from Starmourn to LegendMUD and we'd even let you buy the all-new, open-source Federation II[Line break]TMC Travel Agency." East of Computer Room is hallway. Hallway is a room. "You are in a short, windowless hallway that looks exactly like the one out of The Dreamhold, except that there is no amnesia or anything wrong with you. To the east is your front door and to the west is the computer room." The front door is east of Hallway and west of Drive. It is scenery. It is a closed, openable door. Drive is a room. "Although most houses in this neighbourhood would care for a grand sweeping driveway with trees on either side of it, yours is just a lane that runs from the main road to the east and your house to the west. When you first moved into your home, you bought yourself a bicycle as your drive was too small for a car." A bicycle is a rideable vehicle in the Drive. A Road in Essex is east of the drive. Instead of going to A Road in Essex when the player is not on a bicycle: say "The traffic on the road continuously streams past. You had better leave your home by other forms of transport." After going to A Road in Essex: say "The bicycle speeds along the main road until it reaches its destination."; continue the action. After going to Drive: say "You return home on your bicycle."; continue the action. A Road in Essex is a room. "You are on a long stretch of road somewhere in Essex, the county where TMC Travel Agency is located. Far away to the west is your house, and a sign with 'TMC' this way leads northth." North of A Road in Essex is Outside the TMC Travel Agency. Outside the TMC Travel Agency is a room. "A large building rises up high before you, with a sign across its windows reading: 'Welcome to TMC Travel Agency!'. Another notice below that reads 'Please show us your TMC Passport to get in.' The travel agency itself is a largeish room and through its many windows you can see various posters of MUDs. To the south is a stretch of road, and to the north is the entrance hall of the travel agency itself."