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Train of Thought
by
William Hart Ph.D.
Played 3,114 times
View game source
(spoilers!)
Download the
.z8 file
Source Code
"Train of Thought, a chapter from 'The Beast of Dartmoor: A Modern-Day Sherlock Holmes Adventure'" by William Hart When entire game begins: say "********************************** [line break]Note: The following interactive fiction is part of a larger project. It is a proof of concept exercise. This interactive fiction shows an innovative way in which the Holmesian method can be used in video games and interactive fiction, especially web-based games. [line break][line break]The game is an accompaniment to a research paper which explains the approach used in the designing of the game. [line break][line break]If you are not familiar with how to play interactive fiction, open another browser tab and copy in this web address: http://pr-if.org/doc/play-if-card/play-if-card.html [line break][line break]**********************************[line break]© 2012 William Hart [line break]" Use no scoring. When play begins: now right hand status line is "Time: [Time of day]". tc is a number variable. tc is 0. dym is a number variable. dym is 0. Part - Characters Chapter - Watson - Player Player wears a jacket. Jacket pocket is a container. Jacket pocket is in jacket. mobile phone is a device. Mobile phone is in jacket pocket. Rucksack is a container. The description is "Your old army rucksack. 'J. Watson' on the name tag." Player is carrying a rucksack. Rucksack is closed. Rucksack is openable. A credit card is in the rucksack. A copy of the Times is in the rucksack. tablet computer is a device. Tablet computer is in rucksack. Instead of switching on tablet computer: say "After a moment, it turns on. [italic type]Open a tab in your browser on your computer and do some searching to help with your deducing[roman type]. Holmes draws upon his vast knowledge in his mental 'attic' when making sense out of clues. You think to yourself, 'What's the problem with your twist on the method?' He's got his attic, you got Google."; increase time of day by 10 minutes. Player wears jeans. Jeans pocket is a container. Jeans pocket is in jeans. Some cash is in jeans pocket. Description of some cash is "About £50." Instead of taking off jeans: say "Not in public.". The carrying capacity of the player is 4. Observe is an action applying to one thing. Understand “observe [something]†as examining. Chapter - Murray Murray is a man. "[if tc is 0]Murray looks very tired. Needs sleep.[Otherwise]Murray is sleeping." Chapter - Train-Manager The train-manager is a man. Understand "train manager" as train-manager. Chapter - Customer Host The customer host is a woman. bottle of water is a thing. The bottle of water can be full, partly full, or empty. The bottle of water is full. Understand "water" as the bottle. Instead of drinking the bottle: say "Not bad for spring water."; now bottle of water is partly full. Chapter - Young man A young man is a man. The description of the young man is "The young man has glasses. He wears a shirt that has a coat of arms on it. He also has a leather shoulder bag, a photocopied article. a book." A leather shoulder bag is a container. Young man carries a leather shoulder bag. The young man wears glasses. Instead of examining glasses: say "There is nothing special about the glasses." photocopied article is a thing. The description of the article is "You can just make out the title, 'Making multilayered samples.' 'Cavendish Labs' is stamped near the top of the article." Article is on the table. physics book is a thing. The description of the book is "'Introduction to Physics' by Cutnell and Johnson. Some special edition. The name Mayer is written in marker on the side of the book.". physics book is on the table. Young man is wearing a shirt. The description of the shirt is "The shirt has a coat of arms on it. The coat of arms is yellow, red and black. The coat of arms also has what appears to be teardrops on it." Instead of telling young man about something: try asking young man about something. Instead of asking young man about something: say "[if dym is 1]You start up a conversation with the young man. He tells you that he is a post graduate student at Cambridge University doing research on polymer transistors. He teaches a physics night class to immigrants in London. His name is Steven Howe. You ask him about the name on the book. He says something about it being a used book and the cost of Cambridge tuition and all.[Otherwise]He doesn't seem to hear you. Looks like he has some ear phones in. The new technology can be frustrating sometimes. However, it can also be very useful sometimes. Technology can help." Part - Scenes Chapter - Paddington Station Paddington Station is a region. Time of day is 9:02 AM. Station entrance is a room in Paddington Station. "'The game is on,' to quote a friend. [paragraph break]You walk quickly down the street into the entrance of London-Paddington station. The station is a large enclosed area about a football field wide and two fields or more long. Birds are flying high in the rafters, but you don't stop to look. You rush through a crowd of business people, tourists and students on holiday. A woman drops her mobile phone. Sorry, you say. You move on. You need to get to the train before it leaves. You need to get to Dartmoor to help a friend find his missing daughter. Your friend is now several meters ahead of you going for the trains. You'll need to get the tickets. [paragraph break]Holmes decided to help with a murder case in Norfolk and so you head to Dartmoor without him. 'A friend in need, is a friend indeed,' you think with disappointment showing on your face. But what would you expect from Holmes. He'll be on one side of country while you are on the other. [paragraph break]You see a ticket counter ahead of you, north of you. " travel tickets is a thing. Description of travel tickets is "PAD to TOT ........ arrival: 11:03 PM." Ticket counter is a room in Paddington Station. An older woman is a person. The older woman is in the ticket counter. travel tickets is in ticket counter. Ticket counter is north of Station entrance. "The woman at the ticket counter says 'Hello, may I help you.'[paragraph break]You tell her that you need two tickets for the next train going to Dartmoor. She says the closest station would be in Totnes. 'You can hire a car from there,' she adds.[paragraph break]After checking her computer, she says there are only first class tickets available.[paragraph break]You decide to get your friend and yourself first class tickets. Your friend needs to sleep. Besides, you owe him much, much more. He saved your life in Afghanistan. You are the doctor, but it was Murray that nursed you back to health after the firefight in Kandahar.[paragraph break]The woman behind the counter says 'That'll be £324.'[line break]You rushed to get to the station in time. You do a quick mental inventory. 'What did I bring?'[paragraph break]She holds out her hand, waiting for you to give her something." Instead of buying travel tickets: say "She is waiting for you to give her something.". Instead of giving credit card to older woman: say "The woman takes your card, swipes it, waits a moment and then returns your card and then gives you the two tickets. She points to Platform 4 ahead of you to the north."; now player carries travel tickets. Platform 4 is a room in Paddington Station. "To your west, or left, is your train, First Great Western 45052. The door to the standard class carriage, is open. " Platform 4 is north of Ticket counter. Chapter - On Train Train is a region. Murray, the train-manager, a customer host, and a young man are in the First class carriage. dym is 0. Every turn when tc is 0 and the player can see train-manager: say "The train manager asks that you show him your tickets." Instead of showing travel tickets to train-manager: say "The train manager thanks you and moves on to the people in the seats behind you and eventually moves to other carriages.[paragraph break]You look out the window for a while and then you hear a noise. It is Murray. He is asleep. Finally. He needs to be rested so the two of you can find his daughter when you get out on the moor. He hasn't slept in days. He is trusting you to watch is back."; now tc is 1; now time of day is 9:21 AM; now train-manager is off-stage. Instead of telling train-manager about something: say "[if player carries tickets]'Please show me your tickets,' the train manager repeats.[otherwise]You apologize for not getting tickets first. You pay for the tickets (£324), plus the £40 penalty fare. The train manager moves on to the people in the seats behind you and eventually moves to other carriages."; now tc is 1; now player carries travel tickets.; Instead of asking train-manager about something: say "[if player carries tickets]'Please show me your tickets,' the train manager repeats.[otherwise]You apologize for not getting tickets first. You pay for the tickets (£324), plus the £40 pentalty fare. The train manager moves on to the people in the seats behind you and eventually moves to other carriages."; now tc is 1; now player carries travel tickets. Instead of telling Murray about something: say "Shh. He's sleeping.". Instead of asking Murray about something: say "Shh. He's sleeping.". Instead of asking host about "food": say "After she describes what food is available, you change your mind. You'll find some lunch later. It costs too much, but you do get a bottle of water."; now player carries bottle of water; now bottle of water is full; now customer host is off-stage. Instead of taking book: say "It is not yours.". Standard carriage is west of Platform 4. "You move through the car. There are a lot of people packed into the standard car. [if unvisited]The first class carriage is east." First class carriage, Pullman dining car and standard carriage are in train. The table is in first class carriage. Pullman dining car is west of standard carriage. "You see an elderly woman with white hair, wearing a long skirt, a tweed coat and a hat. Her handbag is in her lap. She is talking with a small man with an upward-curled moustache. They seem to be in deep conversation, so you won't interrupt them. Nothing else here is of interest. Besides, the host will serve food to you in first class." First class carriage is east of standard carriage. "[if unvisited]You take a seat next to Murray and you both take a moment to breathe after the rush to the station.[paragraph break]You hear a whistle and the high-speed train moves out of the station, heading west toward Darmoor, a journey to the West Country.[paragraph break]A few minutes into the journey, you hear over the loud speakers: 'Good morning, I'd like to welcome you onboard for our departure from London-Paddington to Portsmouth with seven stops in-between. If you'd like to upgrade to first class...' Maybe it is the sound quality of the speakers or just your lack of interest, but the voice seems to fade away. [end if]Nice to be in first class. Leather seats. Quieter. Temperature could be a little cooler." Instead of switching on mobile phone: say "'Damn mobile. A battery problem again,' you say to yourself. It won't turn on right now." Every turn: If time of day is 9:28 AM, say "You are worried about not being able to help Murray find his daughter. But, you hear the voice of Holmes in your head. 'You know my methods. Use them. Observe and deduce. Observe and deduce.' [paragraph break]When you first learned of the 'Holmesian method,' you said it would not work. You told him: 'It is not practical. I would like to see you sitting in a carriage on the Underground, and be able to 'deduce' the jobs of all your fellow-travellers. I would lay a thousand to one against it.' [paragraph break]Since that wager, you've seen Holmes do this many times, successfully. But, none as impressive as when he first met you and figured you were an Army doctor just back from Afghanistan. [paragraph break]At first, you thought somebody had told him, but he said no. He explained: 'I knew you came from Afghanistan. From long habit the train of thoughts ran so swiftly through my mind, that I arrived at the conclusion without being conscious of intermediate steps. There were such steps, however. The train of reasoning ran, `Here is a medical type, but with the air of the military. Clearly an army doctor, then. Just come from the tropics, for your face is dark, and that is not the natural tint of your skin, for your wrists are fair. You have undergone hardship and sickness, as your haggard face says clearly. Your left arm has been injured. You hold it in a stiff and unnatural manner. Where in the tropics could an English army doctor have seen much hardship and got his arm wounded? Clearly in Afghanistan.' The whole train of thought did not occupy a second. I then remarked that you came from Afghanistan, and you were astonished.' [paragraph break]Now, would be a good time for you to practice deducing skills on the people in the first class carriage. Observe (or examine) them, their manner, behavior, clothing etc. and then ask them about themselves in order to check your deductions.". Every turn: If time of day is 10:03 AM, say "If you've deduced some info about the young man with the help of your tablet computer, then, now would be the time to check with him. He's taken the earphones out of his ears. Don't talk with him before you have finished your searching and deducing. That'd be cheating and not much fun.". Every turn: If time of day is 10:03 AM, now dym is 1. Every turn: If time of day is 11:03 AM, say "The train arrives in Totnes and this chapter of the journey ends. Did you practice your deducing. How'd you do?[paragraph break]The game is over.[paragraph break]Next chapter: Searching the dreadful moor for Murray's daughter."
