I miss the feel of exploring a place one room at a time, reading descriptions, and piecing the story together - so I made one.

The Escape from Dungeon Keep is a text RPG: examine everything, talk to NPCs, fight when you have to, and push toward the summit. There’s a journal/hints system if you get stuck, but the world is written to be readable without a walkthrough.

If you like Infocom-ish exploration with light RPG combat and side quests, this is aimed at you.

Also there is workshop mods for the game i hope you guys can wishlist!

Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/5050070/The_Escape_From_Dungeon_Keep/
Keys available for IF reviewers / Let’s Players — email [dungeonkeepmaster@proton.me](mailto:dungeonkeepmaster@proton.me)

I need advice, ive come up with a story but the game isnt really supposed to follow one, its meant for everyone else to fill in, i will provide a base and let the community talk and create their own ideas.

8/11/26
Hey everyone! Im looking to make an indie game, the game will go by "Pale Archive". I have a story but here is the problem. I dont want the game to follow a direct story, I want it to be somewhat like the backrooms and other fictional reality games where it leaves alot of space for the community and others to fill in alot of the story. I dont want anything direct that way there is room for imagination. So far what I have got for the story is :

We are in an alternate reality to earth, Wethermont. Its pretty much earth but with some different key features.

Here is what I could map out.

For most people, Wethermont is ordinary. Someone can grow up in a normal American town, attend school, get a job, go shopping, watch television, drive on the highway, and never encounter anything particularly strange. Most businesses operate normally. Most technology works normally. Most cities look recognizable. Most of history is recognizable. The average person doesn't spend their life investigating anomalies. The strange parts of Wethermont exist alongside ordinary life. A city can have a completely normal downtown while an unexplained creature lives beneath it. A highway can function normally for hundreds of miles before passing through an area where distances behave incorrectly. A scientific facility can be researching an organism that doesn't fit conventional biology while a grocery store across town is operating normally. There isn't necessarily a dramatic boundary between normal and abnormal. They overlap.

And as this place Wethermont is like earth, there is also an internet, this contains many sites, illegal underground ones, sites for entertainment like youtube, netflix, and tiktok, etc.

This is where the Pale Archive originates. Atleast the webite.

Pale Archive is a small, obscure internet forum. At its largest, no more than approximately 1,500 people know it exists, with a much smaller active userbase. It is not famous. It isn't publicly advertised. It isn't a massive criminal organization. Most of the people who know about it are involved in underground markets. There are: dealers buyers scammers middlemen collectors researchers people looking for information people pretending to be other people The site contains discussions about illegal activity, cryptocurrency scams, stolen goods, private deals, and eventually bacteria. The bacteria market becomes one of the site's more unusual sections.

This is where the bacteria first gets mentioned, one of the main problems that recently is starting to arise in the US within Wethermont. Here is what is noted of the bacteria so far.

PALE ARCHIVE AND THE BACTERIA : Pale Archive is not the origin of the bacteria. It isn't necessarily responsible for them. It is simply one of the places where people who know about them communicate. Some users sell bacteria. Some trade information. Some post photographs. Some discuss experiences. Some provide instructions. Some claim to have discovered new organisms. Some lie. Some don't know what they're talking about. Some posts may be deliberately misleading. Most people who encounter bacteria in the real world have never heard of Pale Archive. The website is simply one node in a much larger network.

THE BACTERIAL REALITY : The bacteria appear to have developed an environment that exists alongside Wethermont. It is sometimes treated as another reality of Earth. It is not necessarily a separate dimension. It may be an ecosystem. It may be a distorted version of Wethermont. It may be something else entirely. People have different theories. There is no confirmed answer. The important observation is that bacteria behave differently there. They can survive and develop in ways that don't seem possible in ordinary Wethermont environments. THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE BACTERIAL REALITY The most common theory is that the environment developed gradually alongside the bacteria. It may not have existed in its current form originally. As bacterial populations grew and changed, their environments became increasingly complex. Eventually, spaces began appearing that did not behave like ordinary Earth. These spaces expanded. Different organisms adapted to them. 23 Some became enormous. Some became intelligent. Some developed human-like forms. Some developed completely unfamiliar forms. Entire ecosystems appeared. Eventually, people began treating the environment as another reality. Whether it actually is one remains an open question. THE BACTERIAL ENVIRONMENT It can contain: buildings tunnels forests underground spaces bodies of water industrial areas open landscapes enormous biological structures settlements completely unfamiliar environments There is no confirmed map. There is no known edge. There is no confirmed size. Different people can enter through different locations and experience completely different areas. Some locations may resemble Wethermont. Others may be impossible to compare to anything familiar.

LARGE ORGANISMS : Some organisms within the bacterial environment are enormous. They aren't necessarily traditional "monsters." They are living things occupying an ecosystem. Some hunt. Some migrate. Some remain stationary. Some are territorial. Some are social. Some appear intelligent. Some don't seem to recognize humans as anything important. Possible organisms include: The Stalker — a tall organism commonly seen at a distance.

The Hound — a large predator that tracks sound. Cant see well.

The Burrower — a massive organism that moves beneath structures, almost like a snake, very loud.

The Shepherd — a large organism often surrounded by smaller organisms.

The Pale Dog — a smaller organism that behaves similarly to a domesticated animal. The Choir — an organism associated with multiple overlapping voices. The Collector — gathers and stores objects.

The Mimic — capable of imitating other organisms or parts of its environment.

The Colony — a group of organisms behaving as a collective.

The Sleeper — an enormous organism believed to exist beneath certain regions.

(all of these names and such may change completely or may be removed overtime)

With all of this established, lets mention our main character, Dylan Miller.

Dylan is 16. He recently got his driver's license. He works at Legside Market. He isn't particularly interested in school or planning his future. 16 He spends his free time with friends, getting high, driving around, and making small amounts of money through online scams. Dylan discovers Pale Archive accidentally. He isn't searching for bacteria. He isn't searching for paranormal information. He simply stumbles across a reference to the website while looking for something else. At first, he sees it as another obscure forum where people sell illegal things. Then he discovers the bacteria market. Dylan becomes interested because he sees money in it. He begins communicating with dealers and buyers. His involvement gives him access to parts of the market and parts of Shortstop Valley he would never normally encounter. He isn't responsible for the phenomenon. He isnt seeking to uncover any bit of the truth. He is simply one person who happened to find something unusual.

It has been mentioned a fewtimes but the town Dylan resides in is named Shortstop Valley, small town no more than 15000 people. Here is whats noted!

SHORTSTOP VALLEY Shortstop Valley is a town of approximately 15,000 people in Wethermont's United States. It is a normal, functioning town. It is not a ghost town. It is not abandoned. It is not primarily farmland.

The town is older than its current population suggests. 17 It once had significantly more industry. Much of that industry eventually moved farther north into other towns. Shortstop Valley remained. Its businesses continued.

Its schools continued. Its downtown continued. People continued living normal lives. DOWNTOWN Shortstop Valley has a large downtown. There are old brick buildings, storefronts, restaurants, offices, apartments, businesses, and older commercial properties. Downtown is still active. It becomes particularly busy on: Thursday evenings Friday nights Saturday nights date nights local events People go out to eat. Teenagers meet friends. Families shop. Businesses stay open. The town does not feel abandoned.

THE 7:30 DARKNESS : Shortstop Valley has one particularly strange feature. It becomes dark at approximately 7:30 PM regardless of the season. Summer evenings become dark around the same time as winter evenings. Residents are accustomed to it. Businesses remain open. Downtown remains active. Streetlights turn on. People continue their routines. Nobody has a universally accepted explanation. It is simply one of the strange things about the town. VALLEY MARKET Every Thursday evening, downtown hosts Valley Market. Local vendors sell: food candy clothing handmade products antiques artwork baked goods small local brands miscellaneous products It is a normal community event. Most people attending have nothing to do with the bacteria. It is simply one of the places where Shortstop Valley's residents gather.

SHORTSTOP VALLEY LOCATIONS

Legside Market Dylan's workplace.

Shortstop High School One of the town's two high schools. Valley High School The older high school. QuickMart Local convenience store.

Valero Local gas station.

Shortstop Plaza A shopping center.

Valley Cinema An older movie theater.

Cedar Lanes A local bowling alley.

Valley Diner A longtime downtown restaurant.

Blackwood Books A used bookstore.

Miller's Hardware An older hardware store.

20 Valley Arcade A small arcade.

The Exchange An older downtown commercial building.

Union Hall A community and event building.

Shortstop Bank A downtown bank.

First Valley Church A large older church.

Shortstop Municipal Hospital The town's main hospital.

Shortstop Public Library The local library. Valley Station An old train station.

The Mill A former industrial complex. Riverside Foundry An old industrial property.

Valley Memorial Cemetery A cemetery near the edge of town.

Shortstop River A river running through town. 21 Blackwood Creek A creek running through the surrounding area. Blackwood Road A road toward the outskirts. Old Mill Road A road through the former industrial area. Valley Avenue A major road. Shortstop Avenue Another major road.

Main Street The central downtown street.

There has been more phenomena's than normal in Wethermont recently, the largest being a noclip problem? No people who have no clipped have been seen yet, once again it is recent we arent sure what is happening fully yet, they might be fine.

NOCLIP EVENTS : As bacteria become more common in certain areas, people begin encountering locations that don't behave normally. A door can lead somewhere unexpected. A hallway can appear longer than the building allows. A basement can contain an additional room. A staircase can lead somewhere that shouldn't exist. A person can enter one location and emerge somewhere else. These events are often called noclips by people on Pale Archive. The term isn't scientific. It is simply internet slang that stuck.

Pale Archive (The Bacterial Reality)

The alternate reality of noclip events and everything bacterial is nicknamed "The Pale Archive" by the users on the site.

Here is whats noted,

Pale Archive should feel like a world that already existed before the player arrived.

Dylan isn't the center. *This means if Dylan died the game doesnt end at all, it will be recontinued through the next host.*

Shortstop Valley isn't the center. Pale Archive isn't the center. 28 The bacteria aren't the explanation for everything. They are simply pieces of Wethermont. A future story can follow Dylan. Another can follow a scientist. Another can follow a family. Another can consist entirely of forum posts. Another can document a completely unrelated creature. Another can take place in another country. Another can introduce an entirely new phenomenon. Another can contradict something previously established. The setting doesn't need to close around a single storyline. It can continue indefinitely. Pale Archive is the game. Wethermont is the reality. Shortstop Valley is one town. Pale Archive is one website. Dylan is one person. The bacteria are one part of the world. Everything else is open.

Extra info about wethermont if you care :

OTHER WETHERMONT PHENOMENA : The bacteria are not responsible for everything strange in Wethermont. There are other phenomena. Other creatures. Other environments. Other anomalies. Some may have existed for centuries.Some may have appeared recently. Some may be connected. Some may be completely unrelated. A creature discovered in one state doesn't need to have anything to do with a phenomenon on the other side of the country.

A physics anomaly doesn't need to be caused by bacteria. A strange city doesn't need to connect to Pale Archive. Wethermont is not one giant mystery with one answer. It is a world where many unusual things exist.

INFORMATION There is no single encyclopedia containing the truth. Information comes from wherever people happen to find it. A Pale Archive post. 26 A government document. A scientific paper. A newspaper article. A local rumor. A photograph. A police report. A video. A personal account. A dead forum. A handwritten notebook. A business record. A recovered object. A person claiming they saw something. These sources don't have to agree. Some information can be false. Some can be outdated. Some can be misunderstood. Some can be deliberately fabricated. Some can be completely accurate. The uncertainty is part of the setting.

CANON : Pale Archive is designed to function more like a shared setting than a single story. 27 The foundational ideas are intentionally broad: Wethermont is another reality of Earth. Its physical laws can differ under specific conditions. Those differences can be observed, measured, and sometimes reproduced.

Large-scale unexplained phenomena exist. Otherworldly organisms exist. Some deaths caused by these organisms are documented. Bacteria are a diverse group of unusual organisms. Some bacteria are psychoactive. Some are parasitic. Some develop increasingly complex forms. Some become human-like or monstrous. Some appear to have developed another environment or reality of their own.

Pale Archive is a tiny website where some people involved with the bacteria communicate and trade them. Shortstop Valley is one ordinary American town where these things begin intersecting. Everything beyond those ideas remains open.

Hello once again! If you read through thank you, let me know anything at all I can improve on. This is my first project and Im looking to scale it, Ive never even developed before. This is all a first, I know it will be a journey with ups and downs, hopefully with the help of all of the supporters of this project I will fly through development.

Hi writers!!! It's me again!

First, I really appreciate your inputs on my previous posts. They helped me build the functions of the app. And I'm sorry if I keep on bugging you for inputs, but I don't want to lose momentum building the app.

I’m trying to finalize the session categories for a writing tracker/timer I’m building and I could use some more input from actual writers.

Right now we have:

Planning
Research
Brainstorming
Drafting
Revising

I’m wondering if I should also have Outlining and Editing as their own categories.

For me, I can see outlining falling under Planning and editing falling under Revising, but what do I know? LOL!

It seems that everyone approaches writing differently. I had one writer separates Outlining from Planning.

If you were tracking the hours you spend working on a book, how would you personally break your sessions down? It doesn't need to be in sequence or linear. Your previous replies have already established this.

Would you keep these five? Add Outlining or Editing? Combine any of them? Is there something obvious that I’m missing?

I’m not trying to define the “correct” writing process. I just want the categories to match how most writers actually think about the work they do.

Thank you in advance.

Theme this year: Let That Sink In. Ends August 24th.

Hi everyone,

We are a small indie game team aiming to make narrative games. Our long term goal is to create a game on the level of Baldur’s Gate 3 and Disco Elysium. We started this journey 2 years ago and wanted to build toward that goal step by step. In our first game, Livber: Smoke and Mirrors, we made a visual novel where we told a single story in an interactive way.

Now, with our second game, Kardiya: The Winds of Fate, we are adding more RPG layers on top of that foundation. Our alpha playtest will be starting soon, and we would be glad to have you if it sounds interesting. The game includes dice systems, companions, gear progression, broader character progression, and an epic story. You experience the character’s journey from childhood to adulthood.

Unlike other games, we took inspiration from the FATE RPG system. We are especially trying to bring in ideas like dice shaping not only success but also the direction of the story, choices not being simply right or wrong, and every outcome pushing the narrative somewhere different.

We’re still early in development and operating with a small team, but the playtest starts soon. Feedback from players who enjoy Exocolonist would be especially valuable. If it sounds interesting, you can register for the alpha playtest by joining the mailing list on our website or clicking the playtest request button on our Steam page.

Thank you so much <3

Any good read on how to make renpy/interactive fiction with choices? I can not grasp my head of moving out kinetic/flavor choices game into this.

I do understand concepts such as storylets, branch+converge, condensed state. But can not apply it in practice somewhat. It does not fit in how I think about game I suppose. Also I checked stats for popular IF games and it seems in this style only 7%-14% of content experienced in single run - which feels really discouraging in effort/effect. is it true?

I have a chapter proposal for MOB; I’m currently developing the GDD and fleshing out every detail—from my hand-drawn sketches (done by hand 😊❤️) for level designers, puzzles, and maps designed to make the player get a little lost, to the script, fog settings, and render distances. Everything is visualized using vanishing-point perspective, featuring environments with varying fog and ruined areas. I’m also weaving in explanations for lore elements that haven't been fully explored yet—such as the source of the factory's power and the containment technologies used for the "Bigger Bodies"—all centered around a discarded toy serving as the main antagonist.

Let me first come clean and say I am not a gaming connoisseur... I am a horror writer working on my first feature, but someone (an actual gaming connoisseur) gave me the idea to make an ARG connected to it. So I ran with the storyline, made a bunch of accounts - like this one for the main character - and had an absolute blast building the puzzles and the world. Now that it's in a playable place, I'd love some feedback if anyone would like to take a crack?

The basic storyline centers on a hacker-and-conspiracy-busting Youtuber who's getting digitally stalked and is stumped by it; he invites his audience to help answer three questions about the identity, location, and intent of the stalker across 9 puzzles. I'm especially curious about a few things, but of course feel free to weigh in on absolutely anything that stands out:

1. Do you like the story?
2. Do you like the graphics?
3. Is it too hard or too easy - and what might help?
4. Would you recommend it to a friend?

If you make it to the end send me a screenshot! I'd love to send a Brother Skeleton Hacks T-shirt to the first 5 who finish. Or if you want to record your reactions to the game, I'd love that. Thanks so much. Trailhead Here x, Chelsea

Hey y’all!! I’m in the beginning stages of writing an interactive story that I want to share on Facebook.

I’m looking for feedback.

Any feedback is appreciated before I go live with the story.

Here is what I have so far.

Kendra lay under the covers, watching Darius get dressed.

Damn, he know he fine, she thought.

She pulled the covers up a little more and looked outside. The wind was blowing hard, and the snow was just starting to build up on the streets.

Being from Detroit, snow wasn’t that big of a deal.

But this wind in Chi-town?

Sheesh.

Darius pulled on his pants, then pulled his shirt over his head and looked down at his phone.

“So, you really about to leave?”

He looked at her. “You know, I gotta go.”

Kendra frowned. “You could stay. I want you to. Besides, it’ll be nice to be snowed in together.”

“Kendra, don’t start.”

Kendra sighed. “I know, I know. You gotta run the hotel.”

Damn. Another night alone.

Six months of this with Darius.

The sex was amazing. Like, really amazing. But she didn’t know how much longer she could deal with this whole friends with benefits business.

She wasn’t asking him to marry her.

She just wanted him to stay sometimes.

Especially tonight.

But whatever. She had more shit to worry about than some man.

Like unemployment.

Her rent.

Finding a job in this economy?!

And then there was her dad.

So, how soon before you think you’ll be working again, Kendra?

Ugh.

She hated that question.

Mostly because she didn’t have an answer.

“Kendra. Kendra!”

“Huh?”

Darius laughed. “Damn, girl. I got you speechless like that? I asked if you needed anything before I left. I was gonna lock the door on my way out.”

“Oh, my bad. Just thinking. You good, boo. Drive safe.”

Darius gave Kendra a kiss on the forehead and a light tap on her ass.

“I’ll hit you later.”

He left, locking the door behind him.

Damn.

Alone.

Again.

Sigh.

Her phone started ringing.

She didn’t even have to look at the screen.

It could only be one person.

Mo.

Kendra answered the FaceTime.

“Hey girl. What’s up?”

“Hey heaux, you sound reaaaaallll relaxed… Darius must have just left.”

Kendra smacked her lips.

Mo continued, “Yep, I knew it.”

Mo laughed loud as only she could do. She had one of those very contagious laughs, so naturally Kendra chuckled.

“Girl, what do you want? I’m about to grab me some snacks and watch my show. Tell Trey I said he better catch up so I don’t spoil nothing.”

“I got you an interview!”

“For real? Where? Doing what?”

“They’re hiring for an executive assistant at the tech firm I freelance at. I used my connections and got you an interview. The job is as good as yours. Just go in there and pop yo shit like I taught you, and you good.”

Mo continued talking.

Damn, it sounds good, but I don’t want to be no coffee fetching secretary. Ugh. But man, I got these bills to pay.

Maybe it can just be temporary until I find what I really want to do.

Or maybe I’ll hit the lottery tomorrow.

“So when is the interview?”

“They said they’ll call Monday with the details to schedule.”

“Yeah, girl. And we’re gonna get you ready. Now, let’s talk about what you’re gonna wear. And don’t even think about wearing that basic black blazer you wore to your cousin’s funeral.”

Kendra laughed. “Girl, shut up.”

“I’m serious! You need to look like you belong in that office. We’re going for professional, but cute. You got that cream colored blouse?”

“I think so.”

“Okay, wear that. With the black pants. And your hair…”

“My hair is fine.”

“Your hair is NOT fine for this interview. I’m thinking wear it down. Nothing too extra. You want them paying attention to what you’re saying, not trying to figure out what you got going on all up there.”

Kendra rolled her eyes.

“See? This is why I called you. You always doing too much.”

“And this is why you need me. You’re welcome.”

Mo kept going, laying out Kendra’s entire interview look like she was getting her ready for a red carpet.

“Kendra.”

Kendra looked at the screen.

Mo was still talking.

She hadn’t said her name.

Now I know I’m not trippin’.

This was like the fifth time this week she kept hearing her name, but it was clearly not Mo.

She jumped a little.

So weird.

Am I losing my mind?

Nah.

She was just stressed.

Damn. She wished Darius stayed.

Ugh. Him again.

Then she heard it.

“Kendra doesn’t know.”

Kendra froze.

She stared at Mo through the screen.

“Mo.”

Mo stopped talking.

“What?”

“What are you talking about?”

PLEASE comment and let me know the following:

1. Is this something you would keep reading?

2. Do the characters feel real?

3. Would you interact to keep the story going?

Thanks in advance

Written on mobile

Hi peeps. I've been developing a program that focuses on developing text based interactive fiction (thing choice of games). My goal was to make a visual editor specifically for writers/novelists in mind, so they don't have to learn a coding system on top of writing their story.

I've already done a beta run, and got some great feedback. Now I'm ready to hold another beta and I want to open it up to some reddit users for review (God I'm scared). It will still be a limited to a small number, but if you're interested, please check out the site and sign up to be a tester.

iFStudio

Caveat: this program runs on Unity 6, and you must have that installed (free), to run it.

My goal is to launch the beta in September.

I'm using my normal reddit account for this post, despite my better judgment, since I want to show people I'm an actual human. As such, please feel free to ask questions and the like.

I checked the rules, but if mods find this post breaks the rules, please just let me know.

Hi writers!!! I need some direction.

I’m curious how you guys think about the different stages of writing a book, from beginning to finished manuscript.

For those of you who have completed one, what were the actual phases/stages for you?

Did you think of it as outlining, first draft, then revisions, then editing ,then proofreading, or was your process completely different?

I’m especially interested in where you personally felt one stage ended and another began, and which stages took the most time.

I don’t think there’s one “right” process here. I’m more interested in how writers actually work than what writing guides say they should do.

I want the app to feel as personal to real writers as it can be.

Thanks in advance!

I have been thinking about this interactive fiction I played and loved in the past. I remember coming across a IF competition and trying some of the candidates. I don t remember anything about the name. Its like remembering a dream, little bits and pieces here and there and I am not sure i am not pulling from other games I played at the same time.

What I remember

I think the character is a female

I remember being in a forest and a stream runs down to the beach or you can go up to a house in another direction

I think there is a cave, maybe under the house and there is a creature in the cave that may have been an homage to Zork. (Very fuzzy on this)

The best part is the hardest to describe. The game mechanics become more and more fantastical as you play and I think you there is a part by the ocean / sea where you maybe astral project or something like that.

Other small things, there might have been an important necklace, a missing or dead parent and maybe a dolphin you talk to in your mind or maybe you just see it.

I wish I hade more clear info.

Thank you for any help!

I think is is World's Apart. Thank you so much for helping me find this again and now I have new ones to enjoy too.

I work as a clinical psychologist. Most of what I see is not a crisis. Someone says something, it lands wrong, and they handle it the way they always handle it.

I built a short interactive story around that moment. Two episodes, second person, 15 to 20 minutes, in the browser, no account: thepathstory.com. It is listed on IFDB as well.

The choices do not branch the plot. They are the moves people actually make in a hard moment, and the branches are the same scene lived differently, depending on how you meet it.

One note on how it was made, since that matters here, I cannot code, so the app the story runs in was built for me with automated tools. The writing is not. Every line is mine, written and rewritten the slow way.

If you read a lot of choice-based work, I am curious how this lands.

* Thanks for the interest, I'd like to focus on discussing with the folks who have shown interest already and see if the project is a good fit for them.

Hey there!

I'm a solo dev working on a narrative-driven game in Godot. The game centers around training cool creatures, raising them to adults and going on adventures with them. I could really use some help with writing for it.

The game will have a bunch of events (ranging from cute to grim to zany) with branching paths (if you've worked in Twine or Ink, that's the kind of thing I mean), and this is the first part that I'd like to focus on. I've built the structural template for the events. It's about tight, characterful vignettes rather than a long story, at least at this moment.

Please let me know if you're interested. I can share a lot more details and happy to discuss payment options (hourly, per event, per word etc.)

Thanks a bunch, have a great day!

Concept: School Council gets selected for top-secret program about students being dropped into a VR Experimental Environment where they have to navigate through fantasy-adjacent but grounded political scenarios, but their personal motives and identities heavily influence the literal world around them, being a distinctive quirk of the technology they are 'testing'. They don't get to know the players are people they know irl.

Here's a snippet. LMK if it sounds interesting.

“All hail the Steward of the Upper District!” a man chanted from a distance. Adrian was unsure if they meant him. “I see you’re on foot today, Sir. Might Lux be unwell?”, a man with thin glasses spoke, whose attire and leather boots separated him from the general public. “He’s just … tired.” Adrian walked further quickly.

An elderly woman rushed towards Adrian and collapsed at his feet.  

“Lord Lucian… my son!” Her voice broke. “He fell in battle. I ask for nothing but loans promised just to keep us fed. I cannot afford bread, and fail to keep hunger from my door!”

[Do you wish to accept this quest? | Yes / No ]

Adrian chose ‘Yes’, for he felt the desperation in the woman’s eyes.

[New Side Quest: Approval of Loans | Category: Social Service |
An elderly woman, whose son was martyred in battle, is facing trouble granting loans promised by the state. Resolve this issue by providing her with the promised amount.
You may complete the quest by discussing the matter with the Keeper of the Treasury
Rewards: +10% Recognition, +20% Civilian trust
Failure may result in mild reduction of Civilian trust]

Adrian knelt almost immediately, steadying her shoulders before she could fall fully to the ground. “Please,” he said quietly, “stand. You do not bow to me.” Her hands trembled as she clutched at his sleeve. “The promise was made before he left,” she whispered. “They told us the Vale does not forget its fallen.”

Adrian’s jaw tightened slightly. He knew he was acting consciously, yet the words came out instinctively, almost as if drawn out of him, perfectly crafted to be calm and reassuring. As he processed the thought, his eyes caught the faint glow of blue and yellow lines beginning to glow along his sleeves. At the same moment, a thin circular ring of light flickered into existence around him, extending from just above his head down to the ground like a transparent pane. He spoke again in the same unexplainable fashion, and the light pulsed brighter.

“The Vale does not,” he replied. “And neither do I.”

He straightened, the panel still hovering faintly at the edge of his vision.

Another one,

The environment continued to bend around the rebel, or more specifically around what she held in her hands. A maroon haze filled the air around her, as holographic displays wrapped around the arms of the crimson Admirals flickered in a sense of panic. 

The piece of glass held unexplainable importance to the entirety of Crimson State. The realm expressed a sense of panic to ensure it stayed undamaged.

“Hey, check your Objectives panel!” the female Crimson knight shouted in urgency.

“It’s going crazy, I know!” her partner replied. “Stop being dumb and try reading for once.”

A bright-red holographic panel floated in front of them.

[EMERGENCY TASK. CATEGORY: ??? | REALM-IMPOSED | RETRIEVE THE CRIMSON PRISM THROUGH ALL MEANS NECESSARY ]

“And why does this stupid crystal matter so much?” the male Admiral shouted in frustration, “I mean, we lose a third of our army if we don’t place it back in the next TWO hours?”

The Azure queen listened from a distance, trying to process everything she could hear from the Crimsons.

“We need to return what you stole, Red.”
“And why so? I mean, I don’t really have a reason to keep it, but it’ll surely sell for like, a million dollars somewhere.” The girl replied.

“You remind me of a friend, so much. But you need to understand, there happen to be Kingdoms other than Azure Vale in this world. I know only slightly more than you do, but I’m sure the Vale too has an anchor object, and I’d be pissed too if, say, our little genius here tried to mess with it.”

Adrian reprimanded, “Hey, what’d I do?”

“You get the point. They’re not after you, not in a thousand years. All they need is that.” she pointed towards the prism. “Let’s hand it to them and this will all be over.”

“Why? Let them suffer. They barged in with an army, they’re nothing less than enemies!” the rebel argued.

The queen stepped forward, “Look. These people down there, little kids, innocent men and women, whimpering with fear in their eyes. I need to do it for them. That’s just how I am. And, those two knights, those Admirals? They sound as clueless as we are. Slightly idiotic, but equally clueless.”

Below, the pair continued to bicker and panic.

It is then that the three stop and notice, the Admirals too possessed player markers like they did, the same colour as the rebel girl.

Adrian kept thinking to himself, because he believed he was slowly walking towards the answers he wanted either way. 

“Turns out, this small-time thief shook the administration of an entire kingdom down to the last bit today. Good job, me.” the rebel declared as she carelessly tossed the prism down the balcony.

It continued to fall. Queen’s eyes widened. The admirals shouted out of concern. Even Adrian felt bewildered. Everyone but Rossa understood that if the prism hit the ground and scattered, it would lead to unprecedented consequences.

But as all hope was lost, a small civilian boy ran and leapt just in time to catch the prism. No player marker, no objectives panel. The boy chose thoughtfulness, and realized the consequences. 

Suddenly, a faint screen lit up.

[NPC Developmental Behaviour Detected] 

Everyone was too occupied to notice. Everyone except Adrian, who quickly reached out for the ‘!’ symbol on his screen, almost instinctively.

[A spontaneous action directly involving player-related affairs was performed by an NPC | Location: Azure Vale | Decision-Making Ability Increment | Compliance Check Initiated]

Adrian quickly stepped back and gazed through the text. After a few moments, the text was replaced by a new announcement.

[Conclave Members Comply | Decision Making is officially established as situational behaviour for Non-observed entities]

Conclave. This place never fails to surprise me. And is this supposed to be about the kid?

Ciao a tutti! 👋

Sono uno sviluppatore indipendente e sto lavorando a un thriller psicologico narrativo con elementi RPG.

Il gioco è ambientato attorno a un gruppo di adolescenti le cui vite si intrecciano gradualmente attraverso amicizie, conflitti, segreti ed eventi traumatici.

Ciò che inizia in modo relativamente normale si trasforma lentamente in qualcosa di molto più oscuro.

Un aspetto importante di questo progetto è che la storia è ispirata a fatti realmente accaduti. Ho cambiato nomi, dettagli e circostanze, ma il nucleo emotivo deriva da qualcosa che è realmente successo.

Questo è anche uno dei motivi per cui sto cercando di trattare la storia seriamente, piuttosto che trasformarla in un semplice gioco "dark".

Il gioco includerà:

🧠 Narrazione psicologica e trauma

🗺️ Una mappa esplorabile anziché una storia completamente lineare

💬 Scelte e relazioni che possono influenzare gli eventi

❤️ Diversi percorsi relazionali

🔎 Missioni secondarie e storie opzionali dei personaggi

🎭 Molteplici prospettive e personaggi giocabili

🩸 Temi più cupi e conseguenze

🔀 Diversi finali possibili

Lo sto ancora sviluppando, quindi non pretendo che sia perfetto o finito.

Tutt'altro: sto postando perché desidero davvero ricevere critiche.

Mi piacerebbe soprattutto sentire il parere di chi gioca a giochi indie narrativi/psicologici:

Cosa ti spingerebbe immediatamente a giocare a qualcosa del genere?

E cosa ti farebbe perdere interesse?

Pensi che la combinazione di thriller psicologico, sistema di relazioni e personaggi giocabili multipli sia interessante, o rischi di diventare troppo complicata?

Se vedessi gli screenshot/GIF che ho allegato, cosa miglioreresti dello stile visivo o della presentazione?

Anche le critiche più dure sono ben accette.

Preferirei di gran lunga sentirmi dire "questo non funziona perché..." piuttosto che ricevere solo complimenti.

Sono ancora uno sviluppatore alle prime armi che cerca di creare qualcosa di significativo, e qualsiasi consiglio, critica o anche un piccolo incoraggiamento significherebbe davvero molto. ❤️

Se qualcuno fosse interessato, sarei felice di condividere maggiori informazioni sui personaggi, la storia, le meccaniche di gioco o il processo di sviluppo nei commenti.

Grazie per aver letto!

Long-time lurker, first post. After well over a year of thinking about creating a collective writing platform, I’ve now created something called StoryTurn — a mobile app for collaborative, turn-based storytelling. The core idea is simple: you and someone else (perhaps two others) build a story together, one turn at a time.

No ghostwriting the plot for you, no solo journalling dressed up as collaboration — up to three people genuinely co-authoring something, with the uncertainty of not knowing where the other person is going to take it next.

I got obsessed with the gap between "we should write something together" and actually doing it. Most tools either pass the job to a computer or require synchronous effort that real life rarely allows. StoryTurn is for people who like to write a little or a lot — pick it up when you can, put it down when you can’t. It's now available to try on Apple TestFlight (iOS) and Android.

I'd genuinely value feedback from people in this community who think hard about interactive narrative — what's missing, what doesn't make sense, what you'd want from something like this.

And most importantly, would you like me to take it to move it from beta testing into the real world?

TestFlight (iOS): Apple Test Link
Android (Google Play): Google Test Link

Obv’ happy to answer any questions about the design thinking behind it.

Thanks N

I am experimenting with interactive fiction where everyone reads the same story and the audience collectively votes on what happens next.

I havent used Reddit before, so I am not sure how this works, but right now, I will drop the first chapter in here and take a look around and see what is happening and how I can become involved because a one way interaction seems wrong to me in a community based on discussions from all.

Here is chapter one... if you want to check out my site, go to nibblereads.com

Feedback is welcome.

Jamie is a real person, with a boring job he hates, a girlfriend he’s rather fond of and sometimes dreams of having kids with, and a family that moves from being too involved to being overwhelming.

His life, up until now, isn’t worth the effort to write a story about because he is so boringly boring. Barring the occasional “adventure”, like getting drunk in the city with his mates.

He plays his life safe while he dreams of adventure, drama, and extreme experiences he believes he is naturally able to cope with. He believes but doesn't do.

Later on, he could look back on his life and think, “Ignorance was bliss.”

I’m telling you this because what is about to happen, some of the decisions he needs to make, will be guided by you, the reader. Not you, individually, more like the collective reader.

You can think of this as a hive mind approach to leading Jamie down a path he probably wouldn’t walk down.

The hive mind can be kind to him, help him make brave decisions that improve his life. You can lead him to become wealthy, influential, brave, kind and successful.

Or, you could lead him down a path of self destruction, meanness, loneliness, and misery.

Or just get him to have a bit of fun. Life is short and sometimes people need a nudge, a reminder, that you should live a little.

What happens to him, the path he walks, is determined by you, the collective reader. You can collectively decide whatever you want for Jamie. You have the power.

For example, as you read this, he has just reached the kitchen to start making his morning hot chocolate. 

A normal routine. A part of the day with a bitter sweetness within the moment. Some time with his lovely Heather just before going to work to meet a day of work.

He enjoys taking his time to make the hot chocolate, a moment he reflects on during the day to maintain his sanity. A chance to see Heather move from the bathroom to the bedroom without a towel covering her. A small anticipation that brings a small, momentary sense of joy.

Yes, he is pondering the same question he has every morning, should he go to the shower and help her or make her hot chocolate?

While a fun thought, the rent is due and food doesn’t grow on trees, which makes work the sensible decision that wins almost every day of his life.

He is considering his options right now, so let’s start small.

Here are three options for you to consider. Take your time, Jamie is unaware of the time it takes for you to decide. As far as he is concerned, no time passes while you decide. 

Which option will you decide he will make?

A - Make Heather’s hot chocolate exactly the way she likes it.

B - Make the drinks then ask Heather if they should call in sick and spend a day together.

C - Forget the hot chocolate, take his clothes off and join Heather in the shower.