gemini://bbs.geminispace.org/s/Interactive-Fiction/4743

There is a publisher of "choose your own adventure" type games called "Choice of Games"; they're available on lots of platforms including web and mobile.

I've tried a handful and they were mostly not too inspiring, not much in the way of surprises or replay value.

But there are three I've found that are excellent, that I've replayed happily many times.

The first is "Choice of Robot", in which you start off as a grad student building a robot and end up deciding ... well, the scale gets pretty epic, let's say: the fate of AI and humanity. The main gameplay element is building your robot's capabilities and attributes via direct and indirect choice ... there are also relationship elements and very many complex ways that choices matter. Really, the whole thing has to be experienced five or ten times to appreciate just how much is going on. Apparently it runs to 300,000 words.

Then there's its spiritual successor by the same author: "Choice of Magic". The gameplay elements are similarly structured, but this time it's developing your own magic skills and finding your place on the world stage. The story likewise ends up epic and has many great endings. Although similarly structured the setting, story and action are very different so I have absolutely no hesitation in recommending both.

Finally, "Metahuman Inc", by a different author. Here you run a company that upgrades humans, so the gameplay is a mix of day to day company business, getting yourself upgraded and the Plot, which I will not spoil but yet again the fate of humanity is in your hands. This universe has tech and magic, and you'll have to choose--or try to strike a balance. It works really well: running a shady (or not: it's a choice) corporation while slowly turning yourself into a superhuman is lots of fun.

Is anyone else familar with these games--if so, any you recommend?

I'm very familiar with these games, and I'd like to mention Choice of Games' romance line of games called "Heart's Choice". They get a lot more spicy with the storylines, if that happens to be your kind of thing!

The description for the title "All World Pro Wrestling" reads as follows, I don't think I can do better:

You’re a trainee in the male Erotic Professional Wrestling Federation... and you’re ready to take on all comers. Training includes sparring, matches in the ring against the other trainees, tag team competitions, a battle royal, antics in the showers and locker room, and even ringside seats at the Championship Match."

I remember now that I also liked "A Study in Steampunk: Choice by Gaslight" in which you play the "watson" of a crime fighting duo. Fun times.

Choice of Games

2 Comments ↓