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The Craving
by
Mary R. Kiang
Played 2,206 times
View game source
(spoilers!)
Download the
.z8 file
Source Code
"The Craving" by Mary Kiang [*crave] [This game was created as a fun way for 4th grade students to find their Wordly Wise #2 word list words in context. All 15 words on the list appear a least once within the game. Look for the starred (*) comments in the source code. The complete list of words appears at the end of the source text.] [SET UP OPTIONS] Use serial comma. Use American dialect. Use no scoring. [Code to display a player's location in the game and possible exits in the header.] When play begins: now left hand status line is "Exits: [exit list]"; now right hand status line is "[location]". To say exit list: let place be location; repeat with way running through directions: let place be the room way from the location; if place is a room, say " [way]". [Code covering uncreated rooms that appear in descriptions.] Instead of going nowhere, say "You can't go that way. Look in the header for the direction(s) you can go." [Rule to stop all the contents from a room from being listed as room is described.] Rule for printing room description details: stop. [Don't be greedy. Disabling 'take all' and the loophole with 2 simple rules.] Rule for deciding whether all includes something: stop. Rule for printing a parser error when the latest parser error is the nothing to do error: say "Don't be grabby. Take things one at a time! Thank you." instead. [Yadda, yadda, yadda: A rule for talking.] Understand "talk to [something]" as talking. Talking is an action applying to one thing. Instead of talking something: say "Try asking about something instead." [We keep our hands to ourselves!] Instead of attacking someone: say "What's with the violent behavior?"; end the story finally saying "Please rethink your conduct. Then UNDO or RESTART and try again." [And our feet!] Kicking is an action applying to one thing. Understand "kick [something]" as kicking. Instead of kicking: if the noun is not a person, say "'Yee..ow, that hurt!' And it accomplished nothing." instead; if the noun is a person, say "Fortunately, your kick misses its mark, or else you'd be in a whole heap of trouble. Is the dehydration making you loopy? Violence is not going to solve your problem!" Instead of kicking Vending Machine at least twice: say "You're already dehydrated. Do you really want to add a broken toe to your troubles?" [Looking behind] Looking behind is an action applying to one thing. Understand "look behind [something]" as looking behind. Instead of looking behind: say "Nope. Nothing that can help you there." [Drinking rule] Drinking from is an action applying to one thing. Understand "drink from [something]" as drinking. [Mixing, combining, and putting in action] Mixing it with is an action applying to two things. Understand "mix [something] with [something]" as mixing it with. Combining it with is an action applying to two things. Understand "combine [something] with [something]" as combining it with. Putting it in is an action applying to two things. Understand "put [thing] in [something]" as putting it in. Putting it into is an action applying to two things. Understand "put [thing] into [something]" as putting it into. [No excessive dilly-dallying!] At 9:10 AM: say "You realize that you are becoming dehydrated. Keep looking for a source of refreshment." At 9:20 AM: say "Your whole body wants fluid now!" At 9:30 AM: say "You feel weaker and a bit dizzy. Keep focused on getting refreshment." At 9:40 AM: say "Your mouth feels like a desert and your body is threatening to send you crashing to the floor." At 9:50 AM: say "Need…liquid…now…" [PROLOGUE] When play begins: say "How come you can never have a 'normal' field trip? Today, your class is visiting a Natural History Museum, but you forgot your drink on the bus and after downing a package of chips at snack break, your throat is dying for some refreshing beverage. Misty, a helpful museum volunteer, pointed you down a long hallway towards a water fountain, but, distracted by various way cool museum exhibits, you've gotten yourself all turned around and no longer know where you are. Oh yeah, and you're still wicked thirsty." [How do I look?] The description of the player is "In the absence of a mirror, you're sure of only one thing: You look lost." [Desert Room] Desert Room is a room. "The floor here is covered in sand, which is curious, but just reminds you of how very thirsty you are. Like a desert, there's not much else here, but there are archways leading to other rooms in each cardinal compass direction." Desert Room is east of West Room and west of East Room. Desert Room is north of South Room and south of North Room. Sand is scenery in Desert Room. The description of sand is "So many little sand grains together make a desert, so many little water drops together make a sea… what? Focus! You need water now!" Floor is scenery in Desert Room. The description of floor is "So many little sand grains together make a desert, so many little water drops together make a sea… what? Focus! You need water now!" Instead of taking sand: say "You're thirsty. Sand only reminds you that your throat is starting to feel like a desert. You decide to leave the sand alone." Instead of searching sand: say "You just find more sand." [West Room] West Room is a room. "This room has the aroma of tropical sweetness, a sign on the wall, and a vending machine." [*aroma] Instead of smelling West Room: say "There's an aroma of sweet pineapple in the air." A sign is scenery in West Room. The description of sign is "Want to buy something? Just [bold type]put coins in vending machine[roman type] to make a purchase!" A Tropical Drink is in Vending Machine. It is edible. The description of Tropical Drink is "You need this drink. Right now. Its orangey-yellow liquid awesomeness will wash the salty chip aftertaste out of your mouth." The Vending Machine is scenery in West Room. The Vending Machine is a transparent, openable container. The description of Vending Machine is "Your curiosity about what a vending machine is doing here is brushed aside as you only have eyes for what it holds…a cool tropical drink! There's a sign on the vending machine that says you need to 'put coins in vending machine' to make a purchase.'" [*tropical, purchase] Instead of taking Tropical Drink, say "As much as you desperately want that sweet drink, you're going to have to pay for it. Where can you find some coins?" [Buying and purchasing, Note: Inform already understands these two actions and knows they are synonyms.] Instead of buying: if the noun is drink, say "Do you have coins? Try 'put coins in machine' instead. If you don't have coins, see if you can ask someone about coins." instead; if the noun is not drink, say "That's not for sale." [The below action activates the end of game rule, ending the game in victory.] Instead of putting coins in Vending Machine: say "The coins make a pleasant 'clink, clunk' sound as they drop into the vending machine. You push the necessary buttons and your drink is delivered. You scoop it right up."; remove coins from play; move Tropical Drink to player instead. [North Room] North Room is a room. "This room is practically barren, but has interesting odors." Instead of smelling North Room: say "The aroma of this room is an interesting mix of salty and sweet." [Drink me] Liquid A is a thing in North Room. It is edible. The description of Liquid A is "You wonder about trying to quench your thirst by drinking one of these liquids or perhaps combining them into one drink. This liquid smells salty." Instead of smelling Liquid A: say "Smells like the sea." Liquid B is a thing in North Room. It is edible. The description of Liquid B is "You wonder about trying to quench your thirst by drinking one of these liquids or perhaps combining them into one drink. This liquid smells sweet." Instead of smelling Liquid B: say "Smells like cotton candy." [*combine] Instead of drinking or tasting or eating Liquid A, say "As soon as the liquid hits your tongue, you spit it back out. Way too salty! And you know how salty things just make your thirst even worse! You wonder if putting something else in this liquid would make it less salty." Instead of drinking or tasting or eating Liquid B, say "As soon as the liquid hits your tongue, you spit it back out. Way too sweet! You might feel less thirsty, but your teeth may fall out! You wonder if putting something else in this liquid would make it less sweet." Instead of taking Liquid A, say "You decide you don't want to be carrying around something that might spill all over the place. You wonder if you should try drinking some of it." Instead of taking Liquid B, say "You decide you don't want to be carrying around something that might spill all over the place. You wonder if you should try drinking some of it." [Mixing, combining, and putting in action] Mixing Liquid A with Liquid B is blending. Mixing Liquid B with Liquid A is blending. Combining Liquid A with Liquid B is blending. Combining Liquid B with Liquid A is blending. Putting Liquid A in Liquid B is blending. Putting Liquid B in Liquid A is blending. Putting Liquid A into Liquid B is blending. Putting Liquid B into Liquid A is blending. Instead of blending: say "You thought the salty and sweet liquids would cancel each other out and give you something you could drink. You were wrong. All of a sudden the room seems to start spinning around you and you collapse in slow motion onto the floor, still very thirsty, but now asleep."; end the story finally saying "Please rethink drinking strange brews. Then UNDO or RESTART and try again." [South Room] South Room is a room. "This room looks like it used to be a snack bar that sold candy. Despite the strong aroma of sweetness lingering, the only thing left is a brittle cluster of peanuts on a counter." Counter is scenery in South Room. The description of Counter is "A colorful counter that is now all dusty. There is a brittle cluster of peanuts sitting abandoned on the counter." Brittle Cluster of Peanuts is scenery in South Room. It is edible. The description of Brittle Cluster of Peanuts is "The cluster looks old, even a bit dusty, and has a strong odor." Instead of taking or tasting or eating the Brittle Cluster of Peanuts, say "You nibble on the salty treat and realize that its saltiness is only making you more thirsty. So you spit it out and decide to keep looking for a refreshing drink." [*brittle, cluster] Instead of smelling South Room, say "The air smells so sweet, you can practically taste the sugar!" Instead of smelling Brittle Cluster of Peanuts, say "Smells like your used gym socks… salty and stale." [East Room] East Room is a room. "You see two staircases: one goes up and the other goes down. There's a poster on the wall next to a cactus and a straw. You could try to extract the water from the cactus with the straw, but you also know that some cacti are poisonous." Cactus is scenery in East Room. The description of cactus is "The cactus is covered in long, sharp, needles." Needles is a part of cactus. The description of needles is "Long and very sharp, the needles cover every inch of this cactus. You're sure touching them would hurt a lot." Instead of touching needles, say "Yeee..ouch! That hurt." Instead of taking needles, say "You try reaching in to grab a needle, but get pricked by the other needles around it. Rather than become a human pin cushion, you decide to look elsewhere for a drink." Instead of touching cactus, say "Yeee..ouch! That hurt." Instead of touching cactus at least twice, say "You already learned that touching cacti is NOT a good idea. Why would you try again? And by the way, shouldn't you be looking for less painful ways to get a drink?" Straw is scenery in East Room. The description of Straw is "Ooh, it's a bendy straw, your favorite kind!" Instead of taking straw, say "You think about using the straw to extract water from the cactus, but since you don't know whether or not the cactus is poisonous, you wisely leave the straw where it is. Besides, who knows who else has sipped on this straw. Eww." Poster is scenery in East Room. The description of Poster is "Like a page from a field guide, this poster has illustrations and descriptions of different types of cacti. Too bad it doesn't show you whether the cactus here is poisonous or not." [*extract] [Up Room] Up Room is a room. Up Room is above East Room. "You see a plain wooden table." Table is scenery in Up Room. It is a supporter. Flask is on Table. The description of Table is "A plain wooden table." Flask is a thing. It is edible. The description of Flask is "There is no label, except for the word BEVERAGE which is in quotes. Hmm... The unknown liquid inside the Flask is clear and has a scent that reminds you of gasoline." Understand "liquid" and "unknown liquid" as Flask. Instead of smelling Flask, say "You take a sniff and nearly pass out from the toxic smell." Instead of taking Flask, say "You decide you don't want to be carrying around something that smells like a gas station." Instead of drinking or eating or tasting Flask: say "Despite not knowing what this liquid is and ignoring its strong toxic odor, your thirst compels you to take a sip. Yuck! It's very bland tasting. You start to feel woozy. You look more closely at the flask and notice a 'DO NOT CONSUME' warning on the bottom. As you drift off asleep you wonder why someone would put a warning on the bottom of a flask?"; end the story finally saying "When you've recovered from your reckless choice, type UNDO or RESTART and try again." [*beverage, bland, consume] [Down Room] Down Room is a room. Down Room is below East Room. "There's a couch and a large screen TV here, making you think this is a entertainment room, yet the room is also full of all kinds of plants. They're everywhere! On the couch, the floor, and all around the TV. The TV is playing some movie with a lot of music and dancing." The Couch is scenery in Down Room. The description of the couch is "You can barely see it through all the plants on it and around it." The TV is scenery in Down Room. The description of TV is "There's an old movie playing where everyone is dancing around." The Movie is scenery in Down Room. The description of Movie is "It's an old movie where everyone is dancing around to lively music." The Music is scenery in Down Room. The description of Music is "You hear the soundtrack from the movie playing on the TV… an energetic melody and lyrics about everybody cutting 'footloose', whatever that means." Instead of listening to Down Room, say "You hear the soundtrack from the movie playing on the TV… an energetic melody and lyrics about everybody cutting 'footloose', whatever that means." Instead of listening to TV, say "You hear the soundtrack from the movie playing on the TV… an energetic melody and lyrics about everybody cutting 'footloose', whatever that means." Instead of listening to Movie, say "You hear the soundtrack from the movie playing on the TV… an energetic melody and lyrics about everybody cutting 'footloose', whatever that means." The Plants are scenery in Down Room. The description of Plants is "You've never seen such a wide variety of plants." Instead of taking Plants, say "The plants are very happy right here. Best to leave them alone and find a way to get yourself a drink." [the Botanist] A Museum man is in Down Room. Instead of examining the Museum man for the first time: now the printed name of the Museum man is "the Botanist"; now the Museum man is proper-named; say "You introduce yourself to the man, who tells you he is the museum botanist. He cultivates endangered plants from seedlings and then exports the mature sprouts to other museums and botanical gardens around the world. As he moves about the room, caring for the plants, you hear jingling, as though he has coins in his pocket. He looks like a friendly sort of fellow. You can try and ask the man [bold type]about[roman type] all kinds of things: vending machine, water, plants, spray bottle, drink, coins, museum, botany, TV, cactus, movie, and music." [*introduce, cultivate, export] Instead of examining the Museum man at least twice: say "The Botanist is moving from plant to plant, checking the leaves and roots of the plants and spritzing them with what looks like water from a fancy looking spray bottle. You're throat is so parched, you consider asking him to spritz some of that water your way. As he moves about the room, caring for the plants, you hear jingling, as though he has coins in his pocket. [line break][line break]He looks like a friendly sort of fellow. You can try and ask the man [bold type]about[roman type] all kinds of things: vending machine, water, plants, spray bottle, drink, coins, museum, botany, TV, cactus, movie, and music." Understand "Botanist" as Museum man. Spray Bottle is a thing carried by the Museum man. The description of Spray Bottle is "The fanciest looking spray bottle you've ever seen. Watching the plants getting a drink, while you're so thirsty, is driving you crazy." Coins are a thing. The description of coins is "What luck! Just the exact amount you need to get that refreshing tropical drink from the vending machine." The Museum man carries the coins. [Asking Botanist about vending machines and coins and beverages] Instead of asking the Museum man about "vending machine": say "The Botanist replies, 'Sorry, it doesn't have more of a selection. They only fill the thing once a month or so. By the way, it only takes coins.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: water, plants, spray bottle, drink, coins, museum, botany, TV, cactus, movie, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "machine": say "The Botanist replies, 'You mean the vending machine? Sorry, it doesn't have more of a selection. They only fill the thing once a month or so. By the way, it only takes coins.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: water, plants, spray bottle, drink, coins, museum, botany, TV, cactus, movie, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "drink": say "The Botanist replies, 'If you're looking for a drink, try the vending machine in the West Room. By the way, it only takes coins.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: vending machine, water, plants, spray bottle, coins, museum, botany, TV, cactus, movie, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "beverage": say "The Botanist replies, 'If you're looking for a drink, try the vending machine in the West Room. By the way, it only takes coins.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: water, plants, spray bottle, drink, coins, museum, botany, TV, cactus, movie, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "water": say "The Botanist replies, 'Thirsty, huh? I'd mist you with my Super Spritzer 5000, but it has plant nutrients mixed in with the water, so it's not safe for humans to consume, but the plants sure like it! Have you tried the vending machine in the West Room? By the way, it only takes coins.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: plants, spray bottle, drink, coins, museum, botany, TV, cactus, movie, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "water fountain": say "The Botanist replies, 'If you're looking for a drink, try the vending machine in the West Room. By the way, it only takes coins.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: water, plants, spray bottle, drink, coins, museum, botany, TV, cactus, movie, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "coins": say "You politely ask the Botanist if he has any spare coins you can borrow. You remember to say 'please'. The Botanist compliments you on your manners, reaches in his pocket and pulls out some coins, which he hands to you. You thank him and excuse yourself as you now want to practically sprint to the vending machine."; move coins to player. Instead of asking the Museum man about "money": say "Try asking about coins instead." [Asking Botanist about other things] Instead of asking the Museum man about "plants": say "The Botanist replies, 'I cultivate endangered plants from seedlings and then export the mature sprouts to other museums and botanical gardens around the world.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: water, spray bottle, drink, coins, museum, botany, TV, cactus, movie, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "cactus": say "The Botanist replies, 'Ah, Cacti! They are members of the plant family [italic type]Cactaceae[roman type]. Their distinctive appearance is a result of adaptations to conserve water in dry, hot climates. In most species, the stem has evolved to become photosynthetic and succulent, while the leaves have evolved into spines. Cacti come in a wide range of shapes and sizes. The tallest is [italic type]Pachycereus pringlei[roman type], with a maximum recorded height of 19.2 meters and the smallest is [italic type]Blossfeldia liliputiana[roman type], only about 1 cm in diameter at maturity …' Wow. This guy sure knows his plants, but listening to him recite a whole wiki of information isn't helping you in your quest for refreshment. What else could you ask him about?" Instead of asking Museum man about "cacti": say "Try asking him about 'cactus'." Instead of asking the Museum man about "spray bottle": say "The Botanist replies, 'Pretty great, huh? This here's the Super Spritzer 5000. The top of the line in keeping your plants hydrated, it has 7 different settings so each plant gets just the right amount of spritz! I could go on and on about this amazing tool, but I've got a lot of work to do.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: water, plants, drink, coins, museum, botany, TV, cactus, movie, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "bottle": say "The Botanist replies, 'Pretty great, huh? This here's the Super Spritzer 5000. The top of the line in keeping your plants hydrated, it has 7 different settings so each plant gets just the right amount of spritz! I could go on and on about this amazing tool, but I've got a lot of work to do.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: water, plants, drink, coins, museum, botany, TV, cactus, movie, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "museum": say "The Botanist replies, 'It's the best place in the world to work! Always new things to discover and new people to share those discoveries with. Like you, for instance. By the way, shouldn't you be getting back to your school group?' He glances at your class shirt, the ones you all have to wear on field trips and asks, 'Is the name of your school really HonuPu?' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: water, plants, spray bottle, drink, coins, botany, TV, cactus, movie, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "botany": say "The Botanist replies, 'It's the best job in the world! Any day, you could discover a new plant or a new use for a plant part. So many of our modern medicines come from plants.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: water, plants, spray bottle, drink, coins, museum, TV, cactus, movie, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "TV": say "The Botanist replies, 'The plants love dance music and classical music. It makes them grow faster and stronger. Country music on the other hand, makes them shrivel and die.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: water, plants, spray bottle, drink, coins, museum, botany, cactus, movie, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "movie": say "The Botanist replies, 'It's a classic. The only thing that could make this a better movie is replacing that Bacon guy with the award winning Anne Heche. Now there's a great actress.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: water, plants, spray bottle, drink, coins, museum, botany, TV, cactus, and music." Instead of asking the Museum man about "music": say "The Botanist replies, 'Science has shown that plants react to music. These particular plants love dance music and classical music. It makes them grow faster and stronger. Country music on the other hand, makes them shrivel and die.' [line break][line break]Try asking the man [bold type]about[roman type] other things: water, plants, spray bottle, drink, coins, museum, botany, TV, movie, and cactus." [Add more ask about responses?] [END GAME] An every turn rule: if the player is carrying the Tropical Drink: end the story finally saying "Yes! Finally! Cool refreshment.' You twist off that cap faster than you've ever done anything in your life and then gulp down the tasty beverage. Ahh…that's what you needed. Now, where did the rest of your school group go?". After printing the player's obituary: say "And you visited [number of visited rooms] out of 7 place[s] in this HonuPu School adventure." [End of source text] [WW #2 list aroma beverage bland brittle cluster combine consume crave cultivate equivalent export extract introduce purchase tropical]