I’m pleased to share newly remastered versions of my three games that appeared in IFComp 2025: The Secrets of Sylvan Gardens, Fantasy Opera: Mischief at the Masquerade, and The Path of Totality!
The current releases of all my games will now be hosted primarily on itch.io. The original IFComp versions will be archived on my website. I’ve updated the relevant IFDB pages (each linked above) with links to both the new and archived versions.
The major update is that I’ve ported each game to Lamp Post Ink Player: an open source, browser-based interface for publishing games authored in ink, developed by @jeresig and based on my prototype. Huge thanks to John for his incredible work on this!
This interface has allowed me to make a number of big improvements that weren’t possible with the old system, including the following:
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Games no longer require a live server to run, so they may be downloaded and played offline! Downloadable versions of each game are posted to itch.io as a .zip file.
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Reorganization of the navigation menu has allowed for the addition of unique supplementary screens (such as Journal, Notes, Rules, Map, etc) on a game-by-game basis.
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Games can now include the option to toggle between dark mode and light mode.
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Saved games can be downloaded to your hard drive as an alternative to the browser’s local storage, which provides a stable option for saving with non-Chrome browsers while playing on itch.io. Achievements and user preferences are all included with saves.
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The “Achievements” screen now includes spoiler covers that may be revealed.
Improvements specific to each game include:
The Secrets of Sylvan Gardens
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A new, dynamic “Hints” screen replaces the need for a walkthrough. This screen is fully responsive to the player’s progress through the story, showing which essential steps have been completed and which have not — including blurred hints to avoid unwanted spoilers.
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The player character’s journal entries can be reviewed at any time on the new “Journal” screen.
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A dedicated “Map” screen has also been added.
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Automated dark/light mode theme changes are now opt-in, with options offered to play the game in light mode or dark mode only.
Fantasy Opera: Mischief at the Masquerade
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The player character’s notes have been moved from in-game menus to a dedicated “Notepad” screen, which may be accessed at any time during play.
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The addition of a “How to Play” screen, visual highlighting of in-game tutorial tips, and labeling of checks and options with icons, should all improve quality-of-life and further clarify the game mechanics.
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Dark mode has been added.
The Path of Totality
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Automated dark/light mode theme changes are now opt-in, with options to play the game in light mode or dark mode only.
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A handful of revisions have been made to narrative text and dialogue choices.
This update does mean that old saves will be broken… Crossing my fingers that no one was in the middle of a playthrough!
I’ve tested everything, but there’s always a possibility that new bugs will have cropped up in the process of moving everything over to the new system. If you run into any problems, or if you have any other questions or comments, please DM me here or email me at lamppostprojects@gmail.com.
And if you’re interested in following future updates or new releases from me, I post announcements and previews of upcoming releases on Tumblr and on my new Patreon profile (free to subscribe).