Somehow, no matter how much time you have, this is always how the last few days go! (At least for me.)
I’ve taken another look at the challenger’s Github today, and I had somehow missed the running list of open tabs, which are a delight. In addition to the Inform 7 advice one might expect we have research on different kinds of birds (including falcons, woodpeckers, and vultures), Frederick II’s wife, lots of information about falconry, and more! Some of these provide tantalizing hints about puzzles or plot points (“berry with a lot of caffeine”) and some of them are (despite Lucian’s transparency) absolutely mystifying (notalwaysright.com, a repository of stories about the frustrations of customer-facing jobs). Where could this be leading us? I suppose I could look at the work-in-progress itself, but (as the Horseman of Famine would agree with) I think speculation is going to be more tantalizing.
What I can draw from this, however, is that Lucian’s research is extensive and thorough. And I have to say, I LOVE research. I love doing it, I love reading it, and I love games made by other people who love research. And hey, I might be biased here, but I think that it’s an invaluable tool when creating a game in a richly detailed setting, whether historical or constructed. You want to give the readers the sense that there is a whole world out there, and that this game is but a slice of it! And from what I’m seeing in our challenger’s open tabs I am certainly getting hungry for a slice. (For anyone else who really likes this kind of thing, I would recommend Amanda Walker’s The Spectators if you haven’t played it already.)
The trick is, of course, drawing the line on when to stop researching and start writing. And to kill your darlings and leave out that one really cool fact you learned that doesn’t quite fit. And to work in everything naturally and not having it feel info-dumpy or artificial! And… well, you get the idea.
What a rousing statement by our challenger! He’s truly drilled down straight to the heart of the Iron ChIF competition – I couldn’t describe the spirit of this event better if I tried. Go, Lucian, go!