interactive fiction

“According to Cain” makes the 2023 Interactive Fiction Top 50

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Cover image for "According to Cain" by Jim Nelson

This morning I learned that my interactive fiction game According to Cain was selected for the 2023 Interactive Fiction Top 50. This is a poll run by Victor Gijsbers every four years since 2011, and generally attracts interactive fiction enthusiasts and authors (most of whom gather now at intfiction.org). The goal of the poll is to determine the fifty (or so) best interactive fiction games of all time. According to Cain placed 21st in the latest incarnation of the list, which is posted on The Rosebush, a new online journal dedicated to criticism of interactive fiction.

It’s been a good year for Cain—it placed 6th at the 2022 Interactive Fiction Competition (taking first for the Miss Congeniality contest, which is the best game chosen from the votes of all entrants), won Outstanding Game of the Year (Player’s Choice) and Outstanding Game Over Two Hours in the 2022 IFDB Awards, and now this.

Cain started as a short story I began drafting in 2010 (or so). It was the kind of short story that I could never quite figure out, just a collection of scenes with no beginning or straight-ahead story line. (About the only thing I knew was that, when you’re telling a story about Cain and Abel, a murder would have take place at some point.) There was even a time when I toyed with turning it into a novella. I abandoned and returned to the project several times over the course of ten years until, in the midst of the lockdowns, I wondered if I could make it an interactive fiction parser game.

And it worked out. As I said in the Fediverse, if you’re creating something and truly believe, stick with it, even if you have to walk away from it for a while. If you’re committed to the concept, you might be surprised where it takes you.

More information about Cain is available at its home page.


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What’s going on in my world?

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The Bridge Daughter Cycle

It’s been awhile. Although the web site has been mostly quiet, I’ve actually been juggling a few projects and staying busy.

First, I am working on a new novel, which I hope to have mostly finished before the end of the year. It’s a bit of curveball compared to my past work—an absurdist caper comedy shot through with gallows humor. I’ll share more details when the manuscript shapes up and the final book comes together.

Second, I’m developing another interactive fiction video game. I’ve filed my intention to submit it for the Interactive Fiction Competition this fall, although having it ready and debugged in time for the comp will be tight. This one will be a bit different than my prior title (According to Cain), in that this new game more like a detective story, where interviewing people and gathering clues is vital to finishing the game. Again, more details will be coming as development finalizes.

My presentation at NarraScope went well. I had a great time in Pittsburgh, meeting a variety of people in the interactive fiction space from academics to seasoned game developers. A casual and positive conference. If you’re interested in my presentation, a PDF of the slides are here. (I’m told a video of the presentation will be available later; I’ll post here when that happens.)

Finally, I have a few blog posts in the hopper. Keeping busy with the above means I’ve neglected the blog. I do plan on paying a little more attention to it in the coming months.

As always, if you’re looking around for your next read, please consider my latest (A Man Named Baskerville), my Bridge Daughter series if you’ve not picked it up yet, or any of my other books. If you’re not on my mailing list, sign up and you can download a preview of A Man Named Baskerville.

Stay tuned!


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NarraScope 2023: According to Cain

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I’m speaking at the upcoming NarraScope conference in Pittsburgh. My talk is titled “According to Cain: From Concept to Completion.” I’ll discuss writing my latest interactive fiction, from its meager origins as a rough idea for a short story, to its final form as a video game about an alchemist determined to solve one of the oldest literary mysteries.

According to Cain placed sixth in the 2022 Interactive Fiction Competition, and won Outstanding Game of the Year (Player’s Choice) and Outstanding Game Over Two Hours in the 2022 IFDB Awards.

NarraScope 2023 offers a wide variety of talks and seminars on all manner of interactive storytelling. It runs from June 9th to June 12th. Check out its schedule for more information (table version). You can register to attend in person or attend virtually by streaming video. All talks will be recorded and available online after the conclusion of the conference. It’s designed for both authors and devotees of interactive storytelling in all forms.

If you’re in Pittsburgh during the conference, let me know! It would be great to meet up.

According to Cain: From Concept to Completion
1:30pm – 2:30pm (Eastern)
Sunday, June 11th
Room 548, William Pitt Union
University of Pittsburgh


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According to Cain at the 2022 IFDB Awards

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The 2022 Interactive Fiction Database (IFDB) Awards polling has completed, and According to Cain did well! It won Outstanding Game of the Year (Player’s Choice) and Outstanding Game Over Two Hours (both Player’s and Author’s Choice).

It placed second for the Outstanding Game of the Year (Author’s Choice), missing a tie by a single vote, and second for Outstanding Game in an Uncommon System (both Player’s and Author’s Choice).

You can view the full results at the IFDB. The announcement thread on the Interactive Fiction Community Forum has more details. There’s a feedback thread as well.

It felt pretty good to wake up this morning and hear all this news. As I made my coffee, I thought back on those times when I was writing Cain and despairing no one would want to play it. These awards, as well as its solid placement in the Interactive Fiction Competition, are truly gratifying.

If you’ve not played According to Cain, you can read more at its home page, which includes links for downloading it or playing it in your browser.


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2022 IFDB Award polling closing soon

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A computer monitor and keyboard underwater.

Quick note: If you’re an aficionado of interactive fiction, and you played at least one interactive fiction game released in 2022, head on over to the Interactive Fiction Database and vote for the IFDB Award. There’s a lot of categories, but no fear, you can vote in as many or as few of them as you like.

(With one proviso: You can only vote in the “Author’s Choice” categories if you’ve authored an interactive fiction game and it’s listed on IFDB.)

Read over the voting rules, create an account if you’ve not already, browse the IFDB for games you’ve played, and then vote! Polls close Feburary 17th.

(In case you’re asking: Both of my recent interactive fiction games, According to Cain and Past Present, are eligible for the award.)


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According to Cain: IF Comp 2022 results

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Cover image of According to Cain by Jim Nelson

Well, the results are in: My interactive fiction game According to Cain placed 6th in the 2022 Interactive Fiction Competition (IF Comp). This is my first IF Comp, and my first full-length interactive fiction, so I’m more than pleased to have placed in the top ten. (There were 71 entries total, and over 4,000 votes cast this year.)

Notably, According to Cain took 1st place in the Miss Congeniality contest. This is the award given to the game rated highest by the other game competition authors. I’m honored that the other creators rated Cain this way.

It was quite the haul getting to this point. Writing and debugging the game took a year’s time, and the competition itself lasts 45 days, which is nerve-jangling in its own right.

Congratulations to everyone else in the competition, including the top three winners: The Grown-Up Detective Agency by Brendan Patrick Hennessy, The Absence of Miriam Lane by Abigail Corfman, and A Long Way to the Nearest Star by SV Linwood.


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