Evilspeak is what would happen if Carrie went to Computer Camp. The movie is about a beleaguered orphan boy, Stanley Coopersmith (Clint Howard), who attends a sadistic Christian military academy where everyone picks on him, including the principal's horny secretary. So what does he do? He takes the academy’s Apple II and powers it up in the basement where he discovers a secret Library of Satan. Stanley eventually gives himself godlike demonic powers via computer! And the villain of the story is the Christian military industrial complex! And there are evil pigs who eat people!
You can watch the movie for free on YouTube. I highly recommend it for the early 80s satanic CG graphics alone.
That sounds like a delight! I just watched 'Pieces' a movie from 1982 about a serial killer chopping up people to make a nudie puzzle they were denied as a child. The dubbing is hit or miss but it was enjoyable and had some fun '80s horror goof' moments.
It was tough not to choose Bad Brains because they are one if my favorite bands.
The interior of my house has a year round slight Halloween feel to it. I live in a back upper, no y'all d to decorate.
I've only seen one scary movie this year and I'm one of 2 villains in it. I don't want to shameless plug it here, because that's rude, but you can find it if you type my name into IMDb. The film rhymes with Zombie actions ( though it's not a Zombie film ): Gnash and Moan.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. Deep Roy was at the premiere and was very complimentary of the film and the work of Erika Hoveland and I in particular.
I don't hate Snickers, but Reese's has a special place in my prediabetic little heart.
I really enjoyed this one! There's just something so silly about a zombie Yelp review! And I did enjoy the brains!
Now, you force me to choose between Snickers and Reese's Peanut butter cups. I don't want to choose. This is hard. But I think I give the slight edge to Snickers. I'm not sure why, but I'm more likely to reach for a Snickers bar.
As for scary movies, I don't watch a ton of them. They scare me too much. But I do watch Zodiac whenever that movie is on. It haunts me, especially the scene where he goes to visit the projectionist.
We're not decorating this year because we're going to be out of town. I suspect we'll return to a house that's been properly egged and covered with toilet paper.
Did you always give Snickers a slight edge? Or have your candy preferences changed as you got older?
Yeah, I also get too scared watching legitimately scary movies, which is why I like campy horror. It's trying to scare me and failing, which is funny, and I love comedy!
Maybe do the egging and toilet papering yourselves before you leave. Just get it over with.
Hey Geoffrey! I just discovered Substack and immediately looked for the fun stuff-- found you and subscribed right away! Love the interactive storytelling, and I had no idea that IF even existed! What a fun new world to discover. Thanks for sharing!
Also, I enjoyed where the story ended up for me.😆 Are you able to see metrics for each choice your participants are making? I’m fascinated by this, ha! Keep ‘em comin, please. 👏
Welcome to the party, Alexa! So awesome you're adventuring with us.
What an honor to be your gateway to into interactive fiction. If you want to learn more about the genre's history and greatest works, I'd recommend the archives of 50 Years of Text Games by Aaron Reed, if you haven't found it already. His detailed and entertaining writing chronicles the history of IF perfectly IMO: https://if50.substack.com/
Yes, I can see the stats. For this game, players chose "Pedestrian" to "Bad" by a 3:1 margin, with "Yummy" landing smack dab in the middle. What path did you go down?
Thank you for the recommendation, I’ll definitely read the if50 Substack! PEDESTRIAN was my choice too 😆 Do you have to setup html pages on your website for each choice in each IF game you make? Wait, maybe that’s in the if50 Substack 🤪 Thanks, again
That's right. Every branch requires new HTML pages, but I have a clever trick that allows me to write multiple paths into the same page. For some games, it save a LOT of time!
This is so awesome, thank you! Definitely fascinated by interactive storytelling. The more engaged an audience is, the more fun, IMO. Excited to watch!
I laughed all the way through this adventure. So funny! The best part is that I only had to sacrifice an arm to get what I wanted. 🤣
I have to choose Reese’s over Snickers, though I will gladly chomp through any chocolate. Speaking of which, hmm...let me see what the kids got last night. They shouldn’t eat all of it anyway...
I did not enjoy my brains supper. What, I have to hunt for my brains myself, like a damn barbarian? I thought this was America, dangnabbit! When I’m president, I’m putting all you can eat brain buffets on every corner!
Aaaanyway, Reese’s is the undisputed chocolate king, yummm 👑 🍫🥜😋
We didn’t put many decorations up this year as we just moved to an apartment, though we did do the standard orange lights and Jack-o-Lantern on the porch 🎃
Favorite scary movie I saw this year was actually this past week: the most recent adaptation of The Color Out of Space (the one with Nic Cage). I’m a huge fan of Lovecraft’s stories, and The Color Out of Space is my personal favorite.
I wasn’t expecting much, as Lovecraft adaptations are really hard to pull off and thus usually terrible. But this one was great! Not a word-for-word adaptation, but got all the main plot beats right and captured the spirit of the genre (which is so more important than slapping Cthulhu tentacles on everything). Got really intense there for a bit! Definitely recommend for a spooky night in 👻☄️🤪
You have a good point about convenience. In a zombie apocalypse future, I can imagine Doordash would start making brain deliveries.
I'm definitely on board with Reese's. Gotta love those cups! And you can't go wrong with lights and a Jack-o-Lantern. All classics, all winners.
Glad the film managed to pull off the once impossible! I imagine CG effects make it easier now to realize Lovecraft's vision. From everything I know about Lovecraftian horror, Nic Cage seems like he'd be well-cast, given the weird and intense subject matter.
Mouthfeel. This quest was my favorite yet :-D I laughed so hard.
And please don't make me choose between Snickers and Reese's! I got busted by the checkout guy at my local CVS when I stocked up on loads of both. He felt the need to remind me that Halloween was a month away, implying that I was going to eat it all myself before the big day (I totally am, but that's beside the point ;-) I used to give the peanut butter cups slight preference, but now that I've been scarfing both for a month, I find them a bit too sweet and I think the Snickers are winning out...
And does it still count as a horror movie if it's MST3K? I recently watched "The Touch of Satan" which was diabolically funny.
I love to hear that. So glad you enjoyed chomping into this quest!
Huh. Not sure we want CVS clerks weighing in on our candy purchases. That kind of “busting” doesn’t make me feel good. You’re not the first person I know who “graduated” to Snickers. I wonder if Snickers is for more sophisticated palates?
Oh, MST3K definitely counts. It’s watching a horror movie with robot friends. My dream is to have witty IRL robot friends to watch bad movies with my wife and I, so when we get tired of making jokes they keep the riffs coming.
Yeah I wasn't too impressed with CVS guy either. And trust me, there's nothing sophisticated about my palate ;-) But if witty IRL robot friends who will crack jokes at bad movies are ever a thing, count me in too!
This premise is depressing, being a zombie is a miserable prospect regardless but being aware of it? That’s the real horror.
Australians fall into a couple of camps for Halloween: ambivalence, vitriol and enthusiastic.
Without a doubt most are ambivalent, probably not even aware of when Halloween is except for some supermarkets try to capitalise off of it. The vitriolic people hate that, there’s a bit of an anti-US streak with this where people will literally say ‘we’re not in America’ and are sometimes outright hostile. The enthusiastic people are flying the flag for Halloween but there’s never a big turn out, which I’m sure doesn’t boost morale and because most people are ambivalent the majority of houses don’t even have treats that can be got.
I think it’s such a fun idea but there’s nothing fun about wearing a costume and being the only one walking down the streets knocking on the doors of undecorated houses... I guess I could be the change I want to see in the world but I’m washing my hair that night.
I will be watching Evilspeak though, what a recommendation. I’m planning to watch Blood Diner which is an 80s movie about two cannibal brothers who serve the food in their diner... too much like Sweeny Todd’s pies? I’ve got you covered, they are also trying to, let me just check my notes, ‘awaken a dormant Egyptian goddess with blood sacrifices’.
Haha, I find zombie stories to be depressing, too. So I went for depressing... with gags!
That's fascinating. I would've guessed full ambivalence. There are people in the US who hate Halloween, but mostly for religious reasons. Or they think people are putting drugs in children's candy for some reason? Of course, adults mostly spend Halloween drinking at parties in last minute costumes. It's how I met my wife! So for me, Halloween will always have my undying (undead-ing?) gratitude.
Let me know what you think of Evilspeak! Wow, Blood Diner sounds ridiculous. I'm gonna look that one up for sure.
Evilspeak is what would happen if Carrie went to Computer Camp. The movie is about a beleaguered orphan boy, Stanley Coopersmith (Clint Howard), who attends a sadistic Christian military academy where everyone picks on him, including the principal's horny secretary. So what does he do? He takes the academy’s Apple II and powers it up in the basement where he discovers a secret Library of Satan. Stanley eventually gives himself godlike demonic powers via computer! And the villain of the story is the Christian military industrial complex! And there are evil pigs who eat people!
You can watch the movie for free on YouTube. I highly recommend it for the early 80s satanic CG graphics alone.
https://youtu.be/aSYxDOKAX9U
You may find the following short enjoyable on your journey of 80s horror campiness:
https://youtu.be/02dXrKji15U
Thank you! I added the short to my YouTube watch list... of terror!
Alter has some great shorts, but this one was especially good with how it was filmed intentionally to capture that 80s vibe.
That sounds like a delight! I just watched 'Pieces' a movie from 1982 about a serial killer chopping up people to make a nudie puzzle they were denied as a child. The dubbing is hit or miss but it was enjoyable and had some fun '80s horror goof' moments.
What a super gross, super dumb premise! Sounds like a good time! Where did you watch it?
I thiiiiink it was on Peacock? Its not as fun as some others I've watched but its enjoyable enough and there's one part that had me howling.
It was tough not to choose Bad Brains because they are one if my favorite bands.
The interior of my house has a year round slight Halloween feel to it. I live in a back upper, no y'all d to decorate.
I've only seen one scary movie this year and I'm one of 2 villains in it. I don't want to shameless plug it here, because that's rude, but you can find it if you type my name into IMDb. The film rhymes with Zombie actions ( though it's not a Zombie film ): Gnash and Moan.
Reese's all day long.
That's awesome your home is Halloween-ish all year round. Our home has been described as an indie comic book shop with out-of-place family heirlooms.
Jimmy! Congratulations on starring in a movie! That's awesome. I'm happy to plug Ash and Bone, now streaming on Amazon Prime for $3.99.
Yeah, I'm traditionally a Reese's guy and have been for years, but I know a lot of folks who swear by Snickers.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. Deep Roy was at the premiere and was very complimentary of the film and the work of Erika Hoveland and I in particular.
I don't hate Snickers, but Reese's has a special place in my prediabetic little heart.
Auto incorrect makes me sound like a Zombie
I really enjoyed this one! There's just something so silly about a zombie Yelp review! And I did enjoy the brains!
Now, you force me to choose between Snickers and Reese's Peanut butter cups. I don't want to choose. This is hard. But I think I give the slight edge to Snickers. I'm not sure why, but I'm more likely to reach for a Snickers bar.
As for scary movies, I don't watch a ton of them. They scare me too much. But I do watch Zodiac whenever that movie is on. It haunts me, especially the scene where he goes to visit the projectionist.
We're not decorating this year because we're going to be out of town. I suspect we'll return to a house that's been properly egged and covered with toilet paper.
Thank you! So glad you enjoyed some tasty brains!
Did you always give Snickers a slight edge? Or have your candy preferences changed as you got older?
Yeah, I also get too scared watching legitimately scary movies, which is why I like campy horror. It's trying to scare me and failing, which is funny, and I love comedy!
Maybe do the egging and toilet papering yourselves before you leave. Just get it over with.
I think I used to give Snickers a bigger edge. So Reese’s is catching up.
Gotta go egg and TP the house 🥚🧻
Hey Geoffrey! I just discovered Substack and immediately looked for the fun stuff-- found you and subscribed right away! Love the interactive storytelling, and I had no idea that IF even existed! What a fun new world to discover. Thanks for sharing!
Also, I enjoyed where the story ended up for me.😆 Are you able to see metrics for each choice your participants are making? I’m fascinated by this, ha! Keep ‘em comin, please. 👏
Welcome to the party, Alexa! So awesome you're adventuring with us.
What an honor to be your gateway to into interactive fiction. If you want to learn more about the genre's history and greatest works, I'd recommend the archives of 50 Years of Text Games by Aaron Reed, if you haven't found it already. His detailed and entertaining writing chronicles the history of IF perfectly IMO: https://if50.substack.com/
Yes, I can see the stats. For this game, players chose "Pedestrian" to "Bad" by a 3:1 margin, with "Yummy" landing smack dab in the middle. What path did you go down?
Thank you for the recommendation, I’ll definitely read the if50 Substack! PEDESTRIAN was my choice too 😆 Do you have to setup html pages on your website for each choice in each IF game you make? Wait, maybe that’s in the if50 Substack 🤪 Thanks, again
That's right. Every branch requires new HTML pages, but I have a clever trick that allows me to write multiple paths into the same page. For some games, it save a LOT of time!
If you're interested in the nuts and bolts of Adventure Snack, I gave a "behind the curtain" talk about it this year at a show called Narrascope: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BjyL9slcok&t=41s&ab_channel=InteractiveFictionTechnologyFoundation
This is so awesome, thank you! Definitely fascinated by interactive storytelling. The more engaged an audience is, the more fun, IMO. Excited to watch!
I laughed all the way through this adventure. So funny! The best part is that I only had to sacrifice an arm to get what I wanted. 🤣
I have to choose Reese’s over Snickers, though I will gladly chomp through any chocolate. Speaking of which, hmm...let me see what the kids got last night. They shouldn’t eat all of it anyway...
Not a bad deal. An arm for a brain!
Haha, you're doing them a favor by eating their candy. The more of it you eat, the better it is for their health. I'm sure they'll understand!
I did not enjoy my brains supper. What, I have to hunt for my brains myself, like a damn barbarian? I thought this was America, dangnabbit! When I’m president, I’m putting all you can eat brain buffets on every corner!
Aaaanyway, Reese’s is the undisputed chocolate king, yummm 👑 🍫🥜😋
We didn’t put many decorations up this year as we just moved to an apartment, though we did do the standard orange lights and Jack-o-Lantern on the porch 🎃
Favorite scary movie I saw this year was actually this past week: the most recent adaptation of The Color Out of Space (the one with Nic Cage). I’m a huge fan of Lovecraft’s stories, and The Color Out of Space is my personal favorite.
I wasn’t expecting much, as Lovecraft adaptations are really hard to pull off and thus usually terrible. But this one was great! Not a word-for-word adaptation, but got all the main plot beats right and captured the spirit of the genre (which is so more important than slapping Cthulhu tentacles on everything). Got really intense there for a bit! Definitely recommend for a spooky night in 👻☄️🤪
You have a good point about convenience. In a zombie apocalypse future, I can imagine Doordash would start making brain deliveries.
I'm definitely on board with Reese's. Gotta love those cups! And you can't go wrong with lights and a Jack-o-Lantern. All classics, all winners.
Glad the film managed to pull off the once impossible! I imagine CG effects make it easier now to realize Lovecraft's vision. From everything I know about Lovecraftian horror, Nic Cage seems like he'd be well-cast, given the weird and intense subject matter.
Oh, Nic Cage was made for that role, he was totally in his element. I'd cast him in a whole anthology of Lovecraft adaptations!
Mouthfeel. This quest was my favorite yet :-D I laughed so hard.
And please don't make me choose between Snickers and Reese's! I got busted by the checkout guy at my local CVS when I stocked up on loads of both. He felt the need to remind me that Halloween was a month away, implying that I was going to eat it all myself before the big day (I totally am, but that's beside the point ;-) I used to give the peanut butter cups slight preference, but now that I've been scarfing both for a month, I find them a bit too sweet and I think the Snickers are winning out...
And does it still count as a horror movie if it's MST3K? I recently watched "The Touch of Satan" which was diabolically funny.
I love to hear that. So glad you enjoyed chomping into this quest!
Huh. Not sure we want CVS clerks weighing in on our candy purchases. That kind of “busting” doesn’t make me feel good. You’re not the first person I know who “graduated” to Snickers. I wonder if Snickers is for more sophisticated palates?
Oh, MST3K definitely counts. It’s watching a horror movie with robot friends. My dream is to have witty IRL robot friends to watch bad movies with my wife and I, so when we get tired of making jokes they keep the riffs coming.
Yeah I wasn't too impressed with CVS guy either. And trust me, there's nothing sophisticated about my palate ;-) But if witty IRL robot friends who will crack jokes at bad movies are ever a thing, count me in too!
This premise is depressing, being a zombie is a miserable prospect regardless but being aware of it? That’s the real horror.
Australians fall into a couple of camps for Halloween: ambivalence, vitriol and enthusiastic.
Without a doubt most are ambivalent, probably not even aware of when Halloween is except for some supermarkets try to capitalise off of it. The vitriolic people hate that, there’s a bit of an anti-US streak with this where people will literally say ‘we’re not in America’ and are sometimes outright hostile. The enthusiastic people are flying the flag for Halloween but there’s never a big turn out, which I’m sure doesn’t boost morale and because most people are ambivalent the majority of houses don’t even have treats that can be got.
I think it’s such a fun idea but there’s nothing fun about wearing a costume and being the only one walking down the streets knocking on the doors of undecorated houses... I guess I could be the change I want to see in the world but I’m washing my hair that night.
I will be watching Evilspeak though, what a recommendation. I’m planning to watch Blood Diner which is an 80s movie about two cannibal brothers who serve the food in their diner... too much like Sweeny Todd’s pies? I’ve got you covered, they are also trying to, let me just check my notes, ‘awaken a dormant Egyptian goddess with blood sacrifices’.
Haha, I find zombie stories to be depressing, too. So I went for depressing... with gags!
That's fascinating. I would've guessed full ambivalence. There are people in the US who hate Halloween, but mostly for religious reasons. Or they think people are putting drugs in children's candy for some reason? Of course, adults mostly spend Halloween drinking at parties in last minute costumes. It's how I met my wife! So for me, Halloween will always have my undying (undead-ing?) gratitude.
Let me know what you think of Evilspeak! Wow, Blood Diner sounds ridiculous. I'm gonna look that one up for sure.
Just to clarify, I didn’t come away from this Adventure Snack depressed. I just meant on a philosophical level.. this is a philosophy journal, right?
I fall into the category of Halloween observance which is ‘I’m always looking for more excuses to watch horror movies’.
Could this BE a philosophy journal? What is the very NATURE of a philosophy journal? 🤔
Does it make a difference which alternative you choose as a zombie?
You always eat the man's brains, but what happens to you as you try – and your opinion on the meal – varies quite a bit depending on your choices.
Two of our neighbors have the 12-foot skeleton from Home Depot. I need to bone up on my decorating skills.
"Bone up." I love it! ☠️
The Table Talk for Your DVD-VCR Combo Device Was Stolen is happening here:
https://adventuresnack.substack.com/p/your-dvd-vcr-combo-player-was-stolen/comments
The button in the email linked to the wrong page. Sorry about that!