I''ve been thinking about doing an interactive fiction game. A multiplayer one. I was thinkning of trying a space station horror thing. The players would have to try to stop the station from blowing up or something and they would have to work together. The players could choose a character but they might have there own goals which could get in the way of everybody elses. Or something to that effect. I was thinking of using php as that would provide the best resources for this type of game, I think.

Someone already thought of that idea I think. And called it a MUD

Would be cool to see if you make a prototype.

/Apoztel

I know all about MUD''s. But I was thinking of more along the lines of a small fixed sequence of events in which characters could react as they saw fit. I know the distintion is small but I imagine that a game such as this would only take around an hour to play.

Sorry, but I''m not sure I''m getting what it is you''re trying to make. Is this a text-based adventure game along the lines of the old (classic!) Zork series, only multiplayer? Would there be any MOB/NPC AI to speak of, or would it be reactive/situational based on what choices the players make? Turn based or real-time?

It sounds like a "murder mystery dinner theater" type of game. Or Clue, with a variable setting.

There was a series of books when I was kid called fighting fantasy books. They where a blend of choose your own adventure stories and pen and paper rpgs. There was even two books that could be played together or alone. That seems to be what your going for.

Its really should not be to much harder to implement then a single player version. Basically you have triggers for both players that impact the other game. Such as maybe a radiation leak might force player 1 to shut emergancy bulk heads. Cutting player 2 off from most of the station. Forcing them to figure out how to regain access to the station.


The challenging part would seem to be manging and communicating the multiple simultanious games.

Also are you planning on making cooperative or competitive.

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Writer, Programer, Cook, I''m a Jack of all Trades
Current Design project
Chaos Factor Design Document

This is an interesting idea. It could be like a choose your own adventure, but with a group of ten or fifteen people, you could choose all of the options. "Go left or go right?" could be answered with "Jerry, you take three volunteers and go left. I''ll take three and go right, and everyone else stay here." Sweet. It would take volumes and volumes of writing to cover every possible event, but I''m sure there are clever writing and coding techniques to facilitate that sort of thing.

I especially like that some players could die and others could live, and so there''d be winners and losers of a sort. But some "losers" would facilitate the win, so they should get an assist or something. Neat idea. I look forward to further developments.

It would be more like a murder mystery dinner theater. Also having AI NPC character''s could add to the game such as a butler who knows something but isn''t telling, or a murderous computer hell bent on killing the crew.

Actually I really like the Clue (or cluedo as we call it in ireland) idea. In fact I think that might be the final goal. I may start work on this post haste. First things first I need a parser. Then I need some way of bringing this all together. Starting with how the game would work.

EG. When and where does it start?
What do characters know?
What can players do to discover who the killer is?
What can the killer do to send the other players on the wrong path?
What sort of clues are left around?