Theory

Theory articles listed here attempt to define terms, eg: "What is X?"; sort things into categories, and make comparisons between things, eg: "How does X compare to Y?"

For articles that are more hands-on and attempt to answer "How do I do X?", see Craft.

General Theory - Comparisons - Design - History - Taxonomy - Terminology - See also

General Theory

"Interactive Fiction as Literature" by Mary Ann Buckles is an early literary analysis of interactive fiction originally published in the May 1987 issue of BYTE magazine.
Renga in Blue is Jason Dyer's IF blog. Contains several entries on IF theory topics.
Toward a Theory of Interactive Fiction by Nick Montfort
The Meta-Puzzle of Interactive Fiction: Why We Like What We Like. Interactivity Is The Message by Marnie Parker
A Writer's Guide to Interactive Fiction by Andrew Plotkin, July 2010.
Why Write IF? by Emily Short.
Discussions about IF theory on the rec.arts.int-fiction newsgroup.
The Rosebush is an online magazine featuring articles on interactive fiction theory and criticism.

Comparisons

TADS vs. Inform - a (vaguely) in-depth comparison by Dan Shiovitz.
A very useful (but long) TADS vs Inform7 comparison by Eric Eve.
Character Gender in Interactive Fiction, Part I (archive) and Part II (archive) by Doug Atkinson for XYZZYnews issues #3 and #6. Compares how a variety of games handled PC gender.
Choosing a Language for Interactive Fiction (2004), by Liza Daly for O'Reilly ONLamp.com.
Discussions about different authoring systems on the rec.arts.int-fiction newsgroup.

Design

Multilinear Interactive Fiction by Emily Short. Afterthoughts on concept and reactions to Galatea.
On Chris Crawford and Interactive Storytelling by Emily Short.
Discussions about game design on the rec.arts.int-fiction newsgroup.

History

See also: Category:History of Interactive Fiction.

About Interactive Fiction (1996, 2001), by Liza Daly. Very short.
A Brief History of Interactive Fiction by Misty and Stephen Granade. Timeline created in 2002, with events from 1945-2000.
Interactive fiction, from birth through precocious adolescence: a conversation with Jimmy Maher by Harry Kaplan and Jimmy Maher for Adventure Classic Gaming, 16 July 2009.
Let's Tell a Story Together. A History of Interactive Fiction, © 2006 by Jimmy Maher. Long.
The Digital Antiquarian - Jimmy Maher's blog with many very detailed articles about the history of interactive fiction (and some other game genres).
Articles about the history of IF on the rec.arts.int-fiction newsgroup.
Get Lamp: The Text Adventure Documentary - 2010 documentary by Jason Scott.
Brief Bibliography about IF History - by Emily Short. April 2, 2016.
Mathbrush's page on IFWiki links to many essays, including a 2017 series of essays about the history of IFComp.
50 Years of Text Games by Aaron Reed. Series of articles (and later book) published in 2021, examining one text game per year from 1971-2020.

Taxonomy

(In other words, lists and categories.)

Standard Patterns in Choice-Based Games by Sam Kabo Ashwell.
Categories of Interactive Fiction by Jason Dyer.
NPC Conversations: Ask/Tell Theory by Jim Fisher (2004). Discusses four NPC models: Librarian, Rambling Idiot, Lecturing Professor, and Conversationalist.
An Alternative Taxonomy for Interactive Stories by Emily Short.
The Player Character's Role in Game Design by Duncan Stevens for Brass Lantern. Discusses certain key techniques in creating a meaningful PC and certain gimmicks that have been used to bring PCs to life.
List of things that may get a player stuck by Jan Thorsby - Contribute!
List of things that causes automatic playing by Jan Thorsby - Contribute!
Player Character Identity in Interactive Fiction (archive) by John Wood for XYZZYnews #9. Asssociates types of PCs with types of IFs and genres.
Articles about game genres on the rec.arts.int-fiction newsgroup.

Terminology

(See also: FAQ, Glossary.)

What is IF? by Jim Fisher (2004).
What's IF? by Emily Short.
Eric on Interactive Fiction by Eric.xyzzy.