Past raif topics: IF Theory: part 2
From IFWiki
This is part two of a collection of Past raif topics to do with IF theory.
The first part may be found at Past raif topics: IF Theory: part 1.
If you add or change any of the sections on this page, remember to update the entry on the Past raif topics page as well.
Genres / themes / types of IF
See also => Game Listings by Genre (Baf's guide to the IF Archive)
See also => IF Metadata Initiative page
See also => Genre .. Cave crawl (IFWiki articles)
- Game classifications (cruelness, puzzleness, etc) (Oct 1998)
- Cruelty rating system (Dec 2005)
- IF Classification System (Nov 1998)
- Useful game classifications (cruelness, puzzleness, etc) (Nov 1998, RGIF)
- Classifying IF games (Mar 2000)
- Categorizing IF (Mar 2000)
- Categories / typology of IF (Dec 2001)
- IF indicators (summary stats) (Feb 2006)
- Game types + commercial IF (Aug 2005)
- Simulationist vs decision oriented IF (Jun 2002)
- IF genres / unclassifiable games (Oct 1996)
- IF genres / classifying IF (Feb 1997)
- IF game categories / genre tags (Oct 1998)
- Good IF archival (Oct 1998)
- Genre study 1: Science Fiction (Apr 1995)
- Genre study 1: Science Fiction #2 (Apr 1995)
- Genre study 2: Fantasy (Apr 1995)
- The "Example" genre (Mar 2006)
- Puzzle box games (Nov 2001)
- "Observational IF" (Oct 2001)
- Audio-only IF (Apr 1998)
- Romantic IF (Feb 1993)
- Why romance doesn't work as a game (Dec 1999)
- Mystery games (clues & solving / winning) (Apr 1994)
- Mystery games (solving / winning) #2 (Apr 1994)
- Writing a murder mystery (Feb 1994)
- Time travel games (Sep 2002)
- Interactive fact (virtual tourism / simulation) (Apr 2005)
- Interactive non fiction (Dec 1999)
- Historical IF (Feb 1998)
- Educational IF (May 2001)
- Educational IF ? (Nov 1995)
- Non-game IF / training using IF (Jan 1993)
- Writing IF for children (Sep 2000)
- IF games for children / recommendations (Oct 1998)
- Musicals / dancing in IF (Dec 1999)
- Forensic IF game thoughts (Jun 2002)
- Legal IF (silicitors & barristers) (Oct 1999)
- Religious themes in IF (Aug 1998, RGIF)
- Biology-related IF (Apr 2006, RGIF)
- Tragedy IF (Nov 1998)
- Tragedy in IF / puzzleless IF (Nov 1998, RGIF)
- Tragedy in IF + problems with adapting IF + AI & NPCs (Nov 1994)
- Introspective / thoughtful / "depressing" games (Oct 1996)
- One room games (Aug 1994)
- Games with 1 or 0 objects, or no PC (Apr 1999)
- IF "chick flick" stories (Oct 1998)
- Comic-style adventure games (Apr 1998)
- Writing humorous IF (Nov 2000)
- What level of humor in a humorous adventure ? (Mar 2000)
- Adaptations of existing literature (Feb 2001)
- Problems with adapting IF / tragedy in IF (Nov 1994)
- Interactive Metafiction (fiction about fiction) (Nov 1994)
Never ending games
Replayability
See also => Replayability in the IF Gems review quotes collection (also in the IF Archive)
- Replayability (Oct 1998)
- Rereading games / menu of chapters (Dec 1998)
- Rereading IF / repeatable IF (Mar 1993)
- Replayability / re-reading IF (Jan 2006)
Interactivity
See also => Interactivity in the IF Gems review quotes collection (also in the IF Archive)
See also => Interactivity (IFWiki article)
- Linearity, interactivity & overinteractivity (Jun 2001)
- Linearity vs interactivity (Tapestry) (Dec 1996, RGIF)
- Freedom of choice in IF games (Narcolepsy) (Jan 2006, RGIF)
- Narrative / art & interactivity (Dec 1998)
- Interactivity vs puzzles (Jul 1999)
- Making cut scenes interactive (Mar 2002)
- Non-interactive games ? (Nov 1999)
Linear IF & multiple endings
See also => Linearity and Multiple Paths in the IF Gems review quotes collection (also in the IF Archive)
See also => Linear .. Rails, being on .. Multipath .. Multiple endings (IFWiki articles)
- Linear IF / being "led by the nose" (Jan 2002)
- Games "on rails" (Jan 2001)
- Railroading + adapting static fiction (Tower of the Elephant) (Nov 2006, RGIF)
- Linearity (May 2000)
- Linearity + modelling player knowledge across restarts (Nov 1997)
- Avoiding linearity / what makes a game linear (Jul 1997)
- Nonlinearity (Aug 1997)
- Multiple endings (Mar 2002)
- Multiple endings necessary / desirable ? (Mar 1999)
- Sequels to games that have multiple endings (Jan 2002)
- Preventing inconsistencies in a non linear plot (Dec 2000)
- Mutually exclusive storylines / changes behind the player's back (Nov 1998)
- Ensuring things happen in the right order without the player noticing (Aug 2006)
- Multi-threaded stories / butterfly effect (Sep 2005)
Real time games
Graphical games / graphics & sound in IF
See also => Sound and Graphics in the IF Gems review quotes collection (also in the IF Archive)
- Graphical IF (Nov 2003)
- Graphics in IF (Feb 2006, RGIF)
- Graphics in IF (Apr 1998)
- Graphics in IF + puzzleless IF (Jan 1994)
- Text vs graphics (Mar 2002)
- Graphical vs text oriented games (Jul 1992)
- Text vs graphic adventures (Sep 1992, RGIF)
- Text vs graphic adventures (Myst etc.) (Nov 1996, RGIF)
- Text vs graphics / why people don't like IF (Apr 1998, RGIF)
- Text vs point & click interfaces (Sep 2005)
- Graphics vs text + how much parser should understand (Jun 1996)
- Graphical adventures / Sierra vs LucasArts interfaces (Oct 1993)
- Types of graphical games (Longest Journey) / interactivity (Jan 2003, RGIF)
- Graphic adventure & graphic IF (Apr 1998)
- Why people don't like graphical IF (Dec 2003)
- Bad idea to have graphics in games ? (Aug 1998)
- Imagination the best illustrator ? (Jul 2003)
- Tile based IF / using a graphical tile engine (Nov 1997)
- Sound & graphics in IF / mixing modes (graphics & text) (May 1994)
- Graphics & sound in IF (Dec 1997)
- GUI interfaces & text adventures (Feb 1998)
- Hotspots in graphical games (May 2005, RGIF)
- Good graphical interfaces / point & click games ("Multidimensional Thief" game) (Sep 1994)
- Adding graphics without making a "graphic adventure" (Aug 1996)
- HTML TADS a bad idea ? + sound / audio in IF (Aug 1998)
- Music (audio) in IF (Nov 1997)
- Multimedia and blind IF players (Jul 2007)
- IF on terminals and the like (graphics / GUIs) (Jan 2007)
- 3D Interactive Fiction? (Jul 2007)
Quality of IF
See also => First-Timer Foibles
- Amateur IF / what not to do (May 2003)
- Signs of an amateur author + default messages (Jan 2002)
- Checklist for IF authors (Aug 2006)
- Editing games post release (Jul 2004)
- IF with poor English / writing in a foreign language (Jan 2000, RGIF)
- Good writing / IF aesthetics (Losing Your Grip) (Feb 2000, RGIF)
Copyright issues
See also => IF Freeware General Public License
- Copyright message (May 2003)
- Ten big copyright myths (Oct 1995)
- Distributing IF archive games / rights of authors (long) (Jan 2002)
- Licensing an IF game / library (Jun 2002)
- Copyright issues in IF (using quotations) (Jan 2007)
- Mentioning real life company names in IF (May 2001)
- Mentioning trademarks in an IF game (Sep 2000)
- Legality of using a well known place (Jul 2001)
- Using copyrighted characters in IF (Apr 1994)
- Fan fiction / copyright (Jan 2002, RGIF)
- Adapting existing works / copyright (Dec 1999)
- Cameos / using authors' worlds & copyright (Jan 1999)
- Are newsgroup postings copyrighted ? (Aug 1998)
- Copyright on old games / Magnetic Scrolls (Dec 1997)
- Derivative games / copyright (Oct 1997)
- Trademarks + originality in IF (Mar 1998)
- Copy protection schemes in Infocom games (Sep 1992, RGIF)
Commercial IF
See also => Promoting IF
- Westfield Chandler Publishing announcement (TextFyre) (Dec 2006)
- Cost of commissioning a work of IF (May 2007)
- Commercial IF
- Publishing / selling modern IF (commercialized freeware + flashier interface, etc) (Sep 2005)
- Why would we want commercial IF ? (Jul 2003)
- Commercial IF / killer IF app (Jul 2003)
- Commercial IF + game types (Aug 2005)
- Commercial IF + guess the verb problems (Jul 2003)
- Commercial possibilities of IF (Apr 1998)
- What killed commercial text adventures ? (Aug 2000)
- Is the market for pure IF really gone ? (Dec 1991)
- Making money with IF (Jul 1996)
- Marketing / making money with IF (Nov 1995)
- Viable IF business (Jul 2003)
- Marketing IF commercially (Jan 2002)
- IF as shareware / price of IF games ("Avalon" game) (Aug 1994)
- Selling IF (Dec 2000)
- Selling software (SUDS IF system) (Oct 1999)
- Selling IF games (Aug 1997)
- Selling IF + conversation trees (May 1998)
- IF as a career + tragedy IF (Nov 1998)
- Appropriate pay for writing IF (Oct 2006)