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--- sd:write_your_own_adventure_games_in_basic [2026/03/29 15:19] – created appledog
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 = Write your own Adventure Games in BASIC
 * SD-8516 edition
+== From the Author
+When I was growing up, somehow, my friend lent me his VIC-20 in exchange for my intellivision to play AD&D. I remember playing games like GOLF and PIRATE ADVENTURE. Later, I got hooked on games like Zork, the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and Trinity -- which I still hold as the greatest text adventure game of all time. During these formative years, I spent hours typing in programs in hexidecimal from Compute! or BYTE magazine. I read all the books in the school library about computers. Books like Usborne's "Write Your Own Adventure Programs for your Microcomputer". I was hooked.
+This is not //that// book, but it is inspired by it and all the great BASIC programming books of yesteryear. It is my sincerest wish that this book finds a place in your heart alongside the old greats like those.
+== CHAPTER 1: What is an adventure game?
+=== Types of Adventure Games
+In 1974 Peter Langston wrote Wander, a kind of text adventure game creator. Then in 1975, William Crowther and Don Woods wrote "Colossal Caves", also known as "adventure". It's a good game.
+The genre took off, and by 1978 Scott Adams had released Pirate Adventure. I played it on the VIC-20 when I was 5. It was a masterpiece. Later, games improved. I recall with fond memories "Ulysses and the Golden Fleece" and many similar adventures. Then the genre expanded; Alice in Wonderland, Phantasie Star, The Bard's Tale, Ultima 4. There were so many games to play!
+The thing that I remember most of all, is that these works of art allowed me to become a part of a fantasy or science fiction world. The narrative is what mattered most. I was just at home in a Peter Jackson and Ian Livingstone Sword and Sorcery novel as I was in a D&D campaign. And, these kinds of games on the computer brought that experience into the real world in a way that fascinated me.
+To me, that's what an adventure game really is; a story, a story that draws you in and lets you become a part of it. From Maniac Mansion to Trinity, from Ultima 4 to World of Warcraft, this is lesson #1. Your adventure program needs a strong story. It needs context -- a world -- it needs art. These are the fundamental building blocks of our imagination, and these factors alone will make or break your adventure game, no matter what form you choose for it to take.
+=== Where to start
+Let's start small, with a typical "CYOA" (choose your own adventure) style game. These are the easiest of all games to make, and if you start here with me, I will take you on a journey unlike any other. Let's begin in the grassy field -- a clearing, in a forest. It's a sunny day.
+<codify BASIC>
+CLS
+PRINT "Welcome to the Adventure!"
+PRINT "Would you like instructions (Y/N)? "
+LET A = GETKEY()
+IF A = ASC("Y") THEN GOTO 200
+IF A = ASC("y") THEN GOTO 200
+IF A = ASC("N") THEN GOTO 500
+IF A = ASC("n") THEN GOTO 500
+GOTO 130
+REM INSTRUCTOINS
+PRINT "I will be your eyes and ears."
+PRINT "Direct me with simple commands,"
+PRINT "such as GO WEST (or WEST) to move,"
+PRINT "TAKE LAMP, or EAT FOOD."
+PRINT "You can type SCORE, INV, or QUIT."
+PRINT "If you need help, type HELP."
+PRINT ""
+PRINT "Story:"
+PRINT "Somewhere along this quiet rural route"
+PRINT "lies an old farmhouse with a reputation"
+PRINT "for forgotten secrets."
+PRINT "Most weekend hikers pass it by without"
+PRINT "a second glance. But on certain days,"
+PRINT "when the light shifts just right, the"
+PRINT "place seems to... wait."
+PRINT "One sunny day, you are on a relaxing"
+PRINT "stroll down an old country road to lose"
+PRINT "the pressure of city life. Suddenly you"
+PRINT "find yourself looking for shelter in"
+PRINT "a coming rainstorm. You never expected"
+PRINT "to find this house. It, however, *was*"
+PRINT "expecting you..."
+PRINT ""
+INPUT "Press ENTER to continue:", A$
+CLS
+PRINT "Rural Route Bend"
+PRINT "You are on a peaceful hike along an old"
+PRINT "country road, enjoying a stress-free"
+PRINT "weekend escape from the city. The day"
+PRINT "started bright and sunny, but a large"
+PRINT "cloud has drifted overhead, offering"
+PRINT "welcome shade."
+PRINT ""
+PRINT "As you round the bend, a long gravel"
+PRINT "driveway with a white picket fence"
+PRINT "and a field on the left winds westward"
+PRINT "towards a barn and an old one-story"
+PRINT "farmhouse. Its paint is faded, but it"
+PRINT "has the comfortable look of a long-"
+PRINT "loved family home."
+PRINT "It appears to be abandoned."
+</codify>
+This is the start of our game. Although it may seem like nothing special is going on here, this is the most important part of the story. A good start will increase the player's experience of the game.
+under construction!