The Ebb and Flow of the Tide

Fantasy Religious

The Ebb and Flow of the Tide
Author(s)	Peter Nepstad
Publisher(s)	Illuminated Lantern Publishing
Release date(s)	16-Dec-2006
Authoring system	TADS 2
Platform(s)	TADS 2
Language(s)	English
License(s)	Freeware
Multimedia
Color effects	none
Graphics	none (except for external cover art)
Sound/Music	none
Ratings
Cruelty scale	Merciful

How It Begins

You are dead. For your horrible unspeakable crime, burial is denied you. Your body is taken down a slimy stairway to the river and laid in a shallow grave among the forgotten things, only partly covered by the mud. Nearby, the river and the tide of the sea wrestle with each other while you are left to rot and await the dawn.

There will be no heaven or hell for you. As long as you are unburied, your soul cannot escape your body and you must endure the days and years to come, able to perceive but unable to act.

Notable Features

• Adaption of the story The Ebb and Flow of the Tide by Lord Dunsany, first published in 1910 in the short story collection A Dreamer's Tales . It is available online from Project Gutenberg at http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/8129.
• Unusual PC. Because the player-character is dead, his options are extremely limited. The PC can only interact with other objects via the five basic sense verbs: EXAMINE, LISTEN TO, SMELL, TOUCH, and TASTE.
• Long timeline. The story spans several centuries before it concludes. Progress can be measured via the score and the points awarded.

Trivia and Comments

• Cover art: The Death of Sappho, by Gustave Moreau, 1876.

Versions

Version 1.0

• The Ebb and Flow of the Tide (Peter Nepstad; publisher: Illuminated Lantern Publishing; 16-Dec-2006; TADS 2).
  • "Written by Lord Dunsany. Implemented by Peter Nepstad."
  • Room count: 3.
  • IFID wanted. (Please replace this line with a babel template.)
  • Download info wanted.

Links

• The Ebb and Flow of the Tide homepage at Illuminated Lantern.
• New Game -- The Ebb and Flow of the Tide - Announcement and discussion thread on rgif, December 2006.
• The Ebb and Flow of the Tide - at IFDB

Reviews

• The Ebb and Flow of the Tide - at SPAG, review by Mike Harris.

Tales of Wonder by Peter Nepstad

The Journey of the King (2006) The Ebb and Flow of the Tide (2006)