The 2018 IFComp is live (and has been for a few days now)! Here are the entries:
Tucked away among them is mine (direct link), one of two entries without a cover art image (the other being Dilemma by Leonora).
Early feedback indicated that folks were a bit at a loss how to play it. A big part of the confusion came from the fact that it’s neither parser-based nor choice-based like the majority of interactive fiction today (out of a total of 77 competition games I’m counting at least 70 that fall in either category). If anything, I’d call it movement-based.
Fortunately, the competition site allows for uploading a walkthrough, and I took the opportunity to include the following:
“You’re Reader One (or Two or, in rare cases, Three), traveling through the (very linear) story world. You can control your avatar (Reader One, or Two, or Three) using wasd, arrow keys, mouse or tap.
You move the story forward by literally moving into it. You should go off-screen at least once (hint: think linear). You’ve reached the end when you see the title of the story and the dedication.
For more options, right-click/tap-hold your avatar, another player’s avatar or just empty space.”
If you still run into issues (browser idiosyncrasies, server crashes, blackouts…), I should tell you that my Twitter handle @MassacredI has so far proven to be a surprisingly reliable way of contacting me.