Some of you know my day job is computer programming, but you might not know the reason I first became drawn to the infernal machines: I wanted to write video games.

One youthful goal in particular was to write an interactive fiction—another term for a “text adventure,” a type of video game that was quite popular in the 1980s. Instead of relying on graphics, sounds, and animation, it’s a game where the player reads descriptions and enters commands. You’re interacting with the story more than reading the story.

It’s funny to look back to 1978 (or so) and recall my younger self as so eager to write the next Asteroids or Galaga. Forty-plus years later, after writing and debugging countless lines of code, I never once managed to cough together a program that could be construed a video game.

Until now. Recently I decided to check the box on this lifelong goal and see how far I can take it.

I’ve released my first interactive fiction, a game called Past Present. I describe it as akin to a Twilight Zone episode: The main character, an average man, is given a fantastic opportunity to change his past, and perhaps change his future as well. It’s a short game, one that can be played in a single sitting.

If you’re interested, head over to the game’s home page for more information, downloading instructions, and even a link for playing the game online.