You're the Next Human Sacrifice

It was decided. So sorry!!

GREETINGS, ADVENTURER!

Today’s Quest: You need to deal with your whole “you’ve been chosen to be eaten by a monster” situation. Once that’s settled, we’ll tell scary stories in Table Talk, then play more games from this year’s IFComp.

First time here? Adventure Snack is a game series I email to subscribers. Play quests for free, twice a month, and turn your inbox into an adventure!

YOUR NEW QUEST:

You’re watching the local news, waiting to see if your name will be called upon for human sacrifice, and you’re feeling very, very confident about your chances. After all, you sit at the cool kids table at lunch, you’ve been to second base at least twice, plus you can do an ollie and a pop shuvit. You’re not the kind of kid who gets fed to the Ruckus. You’re the kind of kid who lives a long, fun life as a brewmaster whose hobbies include hiking, beach photography and–

Oh shit, they just called your name on TV.

LET’S CHAT!

When your quest is complete, it’s time to debrief. Join your fellow adventurers at the virtual D&D table we call the comments section. It’s like the Hollow World, but with even more sentient dinosaur wizards!

Discuss one (or all) of today’s topics in the comments:

🐲 Did you encounter the Ruckus? Are you… uh, okay?

👻 Know any good scary stories? Here’s your campfire… 🔥

💀 Was there a scene in a movie that scared you so much, you’ll never forget it? I didn’t watch horror movies growing up. I didn’t like the feeling of being scared. (Though lately I’ve been experimenting with horror – Talk to Me is really good.) But I did go with my dad to a screening of Brazil when I was a kid, because it was directed by Monty Python’s Terry Gilliam and I’m the kind of comedy nerd who collected Monty Python albums on cassette. There’s a scene in the movie where our leads are alone together in bed, thinking they’re safe, when all of a sudden government agents have cut holes in the ceiling and come down to capture our heroes. The idea of strangers invading from the ceiling gives me the creeps to this day!

🕹️ Have you played any of this year’s IFComp games, including Fix Your Mother’s Printer? (Not sure what I’m talking about? Read below…)

PLAY MORE AMAZING INTERACTIVE FICTION GAMES!

This is my second year entering IFComp, the nearly 30 year old worldwide competition for interactive games. Last year, I had the highest ranked short game with Use Your Psychic Powers at Applebee’s! It came in 16th overall with an average rating of 6.66, which is the second funniest possible score. (Just .03 shy of the funniest, mathematically speaking.)

I’ve got my fingers crossed I’ll do even better with my entry this year, Fix Your Mother’s Printer.

There are 75 games in this year’s comp. I played a bunch of them and wanted to share a few short games I thought Adventure Snack players would dig…

Dick McButts Gets Kicked in the Nuts – Hubert Janus – This game has a title that makes you wonder, “Are video games art?” There are two versions of DMBGKitN. When you load the page, you’ll either be randomly taken to a cleverly designed game that very much lives up to its punchy (kicky?) title, or a ridiculous Web 1.0, uh, something. It’s funny and unique, but a heads up that Hitler’s a character in the story. (The game is very much anti-Hitler.)

Help! I Can’t Find My Glasses! – Lacey Green – This is a high school mystery romcom about a girl trying to find her missing glasses. (Yes, I do have a thing for descriptive titles.) It’s cute and charming with plenty of humor and surprises.

Put Your Hand Inside the Puppet Head - Hungry Reader - This is a horror adventure where you rescue living puppet creatures from a soon-to-be-demolished studio where monsters lurk. As a Muppet fan, I absolutely love the Jim Henson inspired world and you can choose to play a quick run or invest more time in it. Lots of fun! (And another great title, this one referencing an old They Might Be Giants song.)

Lonehouse – Ayu Sekarlangit Mokoginta – My favorite game of the comp so far. Lonehouse is a contemplative, heartfelt game where the player goes to the apartment of her recently deceased sister to sort through her belongings. The player chooses how to think about their sister and process their memories of her. A lovely experience.