Newsgroups: rec.arts.int-fiction
Path: gmd.de!Germany.EU.net!mcsun!sunic!celsiustech.se!admin.kth.se!kth.se!nada.kth.se!f85-tno
From: f85-tno@nada.kth.se (Tommy Nordgren)
Subject: Re: Adventure Plotting Software?
Message-ID: <1993May24.192413.8211@kth.se>
Sender: usenet@kth.se (Usenet)
Nntp-Posting-Host: alv.nada.kth.se
Organization: Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden
References:  <schweda.738026072@vincent1.iastate.edu>
Date: Mon, 24 May 1993 19:24:13 GMT
Lines: 61

In article <schweda.738026072@vincent1.iastate.edu>, schweda@iastate.edu (Christopher Schweda) writes:
|> I'm about midway through programming a TADS game, and I was sitting here
|> at the ol' Macintosh, I got to wondering: Has anyone devised anything which
|> would assist in the plotting of text adventure games?
|> 
|> I doubt that such a thing exists, but wouldn't it be nifty if:
|> 
|> a) The software could help in the very initial stages of PLOTTING (not
|> 	programming.) By this I mean: allow the designer to, say, enter
|> 	a rough outline of the objects, the rooms, the puzzles -- to more
|> 	or less sketch the game out in advance.
|> 
|> b) The software would allow the designer to graphically lay out the locales
|> 	with objects, room descriptions, puzzle pieces all intact. I mean:
|> 	each room could be represented with a little square. Lines go out
|> 	from the square to indicate exits, doors, passages (both hidden
|> 	and visible). The designer could double-click on a room and a 
|> 	window would come up displaying, say, objects (both hidden and
|> 	visible), passages, doors, etc. etc.
|> 
|> 
|> This seems like the perfect sort of thing to compliment TADS -- or any
|> adventure design system. Anyone else have any opinions about this? Anyone
|> use any similar programs to do plotting? 
|> 
|> 
|> Seems to me TADS suits the programming and implementation aspect of adventure
|> authoring quite nicely. It's big and maybe a little bulky at times, but
|> the programming is for the most part straightforward and efficient.
|> 
|> I dunno, I guess I could use a good drawing program for what I'm suggesting,
|> but it'd be nice if there was a custom-designed sort of program out there
|> with the little shortcuts adventure designers could use. I don't know how
|> everyone else feels, but the thing that bogs me down in writing my adventure
|> isn't so much the PROGRAMMING as it is the PLOTTING and the CONTINUITY -- 
|> making sure the puzzles fit, the objects are where they're supposed to be,
|> the NPC's do the things they're supposed to do.
|> 
|> Any ideas? Opinions?
|> 
|> 
|> 
|> Chris Schweda
|> --
|> 
	There is software available that can be used for plotting. Hypercard
for macintosh, and other multimedia software is suitable for this purpose.
	Each location can be represented by a background button, and a card,
 and the
connections drawn as lines in the background picture. Background fields are
used for name of location and text annotations.
	The background buttons are linked to the corresponding card, and marked
on the card by a black rectangle at the foreground level.
	Adding new locations is then a case of a few mouse clicks.
-- 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tommy Nordgren                     "What is a woman that you forsake her
Royal Institute of Technology       and the hearth fire,
Stockholm                           and the home acre,
f85-tno@nada.kth.se                 to go with the old grey widow maker."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
