Player Stories

Pick a Game or Interactive Fiction
English 506 | CSPT 500/600 at UVic
lək̓ʷəŋən and W̱SÁNEĆ Territories
Taught by Jentery Sayers (he / him)

Here’s a list of about 150 games and interactive fictions I suggest for your player stories this term. I published it as a GG list, too, if you’re a GG user or you prefer navigating by cover art rather than text. (Note that some works of interactive fiction do not appear in GG, thus the GG list is shorter than this one.) Links in the list usually point to either the GG app or IFDB. If you’d like content warnings or “emotional spoilers” for a certain work, then try Does the Dog Die?

The list is obviously biased: aside from relying on material with which I’m relatively familiar, it leans toward games with narrative elements. You won’t find many puzzle or sports games, for example. Also, I don’t list more than one game in a series. I instead recommend the series itself (say, The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, or Metal Gear Solid) and then follow that recommendation with a remark such as “any of them.” I don’t expect you to cover an entire series of games in a single term; however, newer games in a series almost always refer to preceding ones. There’s also the matter of lore and how it shapes the interpretation of a single game in a series.

I’m open to suggestions if none of what’s below interests you or you came to the seminar with a particular game or interactive fiction in mind. The game or fiction you select just needs to be something I have played and studied a bit (or I could play and study this term). Thanks for meeting me halfway.

Please don’t hesitate to ask if you want me to narrow the list based on your interests, a type of game or play, your technology needs, or . . . I realize the list is pretty long, if not a little extra.