h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

If you'd like to try writing some interactive fiction, you'll need to find yourself a compiler. There are several different systems around; one popular system is called 'Inform' and its author, Graham Nelson, has set up a good website, including step-by-step lists detailing just what you'll need and where to get it, at the following URL:

http://www.gnelson.demon.co.uk/inform/index.html

Worth a look if you want to learn more.

Azimuth

I wrote 2 Text Adventure games when I was a nipper using around 800 batch files.. That worked quite well in DOS. You had lots of different folders, and at the end of each description it said "If you want to do this, type "this" - and that helped the game go along. You also discovered passwords which you could use in certain places in order to further explore the game.

There were a few comercial systems availiable in the old 8 bit era. One I remember was called the Quill (I think) for the ZX Spectrum. I never did anything with it appart from try and use it to get through another game written with it's system. So yes there were comercial games based on a comercial product which could then be used to cheat the game

It was indeed called The Quill, and was available for numerous other 8-bit platforms, and quite probably for the 16-bits as well.

Then there was one called PAW, I believe, and GAC (Graphics Adventure Creator)...

Probably the most famous system was the one used by infocom, used to create such incredible classics as The Guild of Thieves and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy...

I've had the odd go at creating graphics adventures, sometimes using my own code and sometimes using commercial systems. I've never really gotten anywhere, but it's been fun trying...

Actually, there's a thought... who's going to be the first to create our very own h2g2 text adventure?

26199

Hey, I remember the Graphics Adventure creator! Picked it up a few years ago at a car boot sale. Unfortunately the Speccy was already deceased by then.

Who remembers The Hobbit? Now that was a text adventure. What a vocabulary!

*sigh* Those were the days...

~A~

put thorin in barrel

Melbourne house managed a few good text adventures, The Hobbit, Lord of The Rings and the one I always wanted to finish (yes I knew that I'd cheated but still couldn't find Pippa in Covent Garden) Hampstead.

I remember hearing about PAW and the Graphic Adventure Creator but only managed to have a quick play with the Quill.

Did manage to 'nearly' complete the Hobbit once (after several days non-stop!), but spent much of my time in a pit(?) without a rope!.

Lord of the Rings was a terrible let down. I'd expected at least an equal of the Hobbit, but it was just a trashy trade on the name. Never used GAC, but do still have it somewhere.

Do remember HHGG on my friend's Apple though. Very tough. Almost enough to put you off tea for life!

~A~

I wrote a whole series of adventures, starring Pengu Whitehead, the half a penguin. The first was called 'The purple dog', the second (and best) was called 'The Green Orange' and the last was called 'The crap adventure'

My best adventure was a semi-rpg ish game I wrote, which had spells, weapons, enemies etc. it rocked.

I dabbled in writing, but never got around to finishing. As of now, I'm trying to help out in the production of the next Zork game. Recently, Zork has gone from the best of text, to the best of graphics. Oh, such is life . . .

I had a "Lord of teh Rings" game on 2 tapes for the spectrum - is that the same one? No matter what I did, I was always got before I'd finally left the shire.

Probably yhe same. Did you ever play the Hobbit? It was way better.

~A~

Spurred on by this forum, I've just re-installed the 'Classic Text Adventure Masterpieces of Infocom' (a budget Activision release containing just about all of their adventure games except Hitchhiker) and played through 'A Mind Forever Voyaging' - what a great game!

I first started playing adventure games on a BBC Model B computer; the problem was that (for a couple of games at least) whenever you died you had to rewind the tape to reload the initial state of the game. I seem to recall being infuriated by Level 9's 'Snowball'; never got more than a few rooms away from the start. My patience didn't hold out too long. Well, I was young...

Oh, and by the way - if you want to play Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker adventure game, there's a Java version available from this page here:

http://www.douglasadams.com/creations/infocom.html

Hm - with all of these massively-multiplayer roleplaying games on the market (Ultima Online, Asheron's Call, Everquest) I wonder whether TDV have anything up their sleeves regarding the Hitchhiker universe? Could be interesting...

Azimuth

What, an on-line Hitchhiker's Guide RPG?

Oooooooooh...

A text-based one would be neat, also...

Actually, there may well already be a MUD or some such based around the hitchhiker's guide... I'll go and look

26199

*grin* Found one! See:

'Earthmud is one of the oldest MudOS muds. It was founded in november 1992 and has been developing since. Past, present, future and fantasy themes are available, interconnected through the central theme of Douglas Adams 'Hitchhikers guide to the Galaxy' theme.'

Telnet to earthmud.org:2222 to try it!

(Found using http://www.mudconnector.com if you're interested)

26199

Hmmm, wonder if I can link to it...

telnet://earthmud.org:2222

(It'll save me finding telenet meself, y'see)

26199

Nope, apparently not...

26199

Either way, I've just visted the MUD and apparently they're getting rid of the h2g2 stuff. Shame.

Visit http://www.cardea-rpg.com instead

26199 (who's going to stop talking to himself now)

First sign of... erm... of... err.....

There are H2G2 game rumours at:
http://www.tdv.com/html/news/19990920-1-n.html

Look, for the all around best game of all time, go to http://www.bigzorkpage.8m.com I've also got lot's of links to some of the better IF sites on my user page. I think. Maybe it's time I updated . . .