interactive fiction
Typed narrative games
Interactive fiction is a form of storytelling where the reader makes choices that shape the narrative.
The term covers text-based computer games that respond to typed commands >go north, >open door, as well as branching-path books and digital narratives with clickable options.
The genre ranges from puzzle-focused adventures to literary experiments where player agency drives the story.
Seminal interactive fiction series
- MUDText-based online game
- text adventureStory navigated by commands
- gamebookChoice-driven narrative fiction
Syntax-interpreting program
- commandAuthoritative instruction given
- inventoryCatalog of held assets
- puzzleChallenge testing ingenuity
- explorationTraveling through unknown regions
examine · save state · undo · hint system · compass directions · hyperlink
Something unexplained or unknown
- horrorExtreme fear or disgust
- romanceLove and its excitement
- fantasyImaginative mental wandering
- slice of lifeRealistic everyday depiction
comedy · thriller · historical · noir · espionage · survival · psychological · literary
Storyline or land parcel
- protagonistStory's central figure
- characterNature, symbol, or role
- dialogueSpoken exchange between parties
- settingContext of events
conflict · narrator · perspective · climax · resolution · theme · backstory · arc
Splitting into separate directions
- decisionSettled course of action
- consequencesResults of actions taken
- pathwaysRoutes for walking
- optionsAvailable courses of action
outcomes · agency · alternatives · dilemmas · crossroads · endings · free will · volition
Zork
Seminal interactive fiction series
- MUDText-based online game
- text adventureStory navigated by commands
- gamebookChoice-driven narrative fiction
parser
Syntax-interpreting program
- commandAuthoritative instruction given
- inventoryCatalog of held assets
- puzzleChallenge testing ingenuity
exploration · examine · save state · undo · hint system · compass directions · hyperlink
mystery
Something unexplained or unknown
slice of life · comedy · thriller · historical · noir · espionage · survival · psychological · literary · experimental
plot
Storyline or land parcel
- protagonistStory's central figure
- characterNature, symbol, or role
- dialogueSpoken exchange between parties
setting · conflict · narrator · perspective · climax · resolution · theme · backstory · arc · twist
branching
Splitting into separate directions
- decisionSettled course of action
- consequencesResults of actions taken
- pathwaysRoutes for walking
options · outcomes · agency · alternatives · dilemmas · crossroads · endings · free will · volition · autonomy
Twine
Choose-your-own-adventure creator
- QuestMedical laboratory corporation
- storytellingstorytelling, story, tale, narrative, narrator
- contemporary storytellingpodcasts, streaming series, graphic novels, video games, docuseries
- digital contentfiles, blog posts, data, digital music, videos
- interactive mediavideo games, video game, apps, mobile apps, mobile games
- reading appse-books, audiobooks, text-to-speech, read-aloud, reading challenges
- roleplayroleplay, acting, character, cosplay, D&D
interactive fictionlinear narrative
Story following chronological order
literary fiction · traditional storytelling · traditional literature · classic novel
interactive fictionlinear narrative
Story following chronological order
film · television · audiobook · radio drama · theater
fiction, fictional, interaction, interactive, non-fiction, interacts, nonfiction, fictionalized, fictionalize