GET LAMP: The Text Adventure Documentary

[itchcity]

these games were integral in improving my reading comprehension and writing when i was 10-14 years old in the late 1990s, and i still play them today. awesome to see this

[apboulton]

A-plus. I'm really happy that this vid exists. I started playing text adventures a few years after their prime but they sure captivated me for a couple of years. Getting the Adventure Game Toolkit from a shareware 5 1/2-inch diskette at the library, printing out its manual and learning how to make my own text adventures... it really takes me back.

[allyssayanniello]

I just want to say how much I admire this video. I've just recently been introduced into IF games for a class I'm in, and this video, with its intensive background information and perspective from the players, really makes me excited about them! Thanks for creating this movie, and giving people a chance to view it on here!

[hulksjedi]

0:35:03. Found him. Great collection!

[hulksjedi]

What second is that guy who has all the maps in folders? I can't find him here.

[DaveyGB]

@OBSysteme I agree with you. I myself am learning basic so that I can write my own games. I feel like they over looked the new text game fans.

[yoanar2]

i've made some of theese my self, it's not much, but a start

im currently working on one that is completely random with random events

would help if any of you played my game (Dungeoner) and gave me a review

it is all at shittysoftware

(.tk)

There is not a single ad on the site, i am not making any money of this

im hust trying to see what appeals to people in a text adventure game

you'll find my email in the info section

it is all written in Python

[dalune]

My friends back in the 90's would sit with MUD for 24-48h straight, sometimes 3days wasn't unheard of

[herooftime1000]

Get ye flask!

[YamahaYFS200]

I love lamp

[GisleAune]

What a change in target group. From literate smart people to a group to the underestimated console gamer.

[xyroclast]

I haven't watched it yet, but I will tonight. I'm a maker of games myself, and I was very inspired/enthralled by text adventures when growing up. Thank you for creating this!

[Lubieland]

Those three documentary ideas sound awesome, C64 data cassette FTW! I couldnt afford a HDD lol, I was 12.

[dreq934]

Simple - Let amazon and online book retailers support IF - both through purchases, and through their E-Readers :)

[Snychric]

DO A DOC ON ROGUELIKE GAMES!

[prophismusic]

AWESOME Film, great lesson on the depth behind text adventures

[cigaretteburnpictrs]

This was a wonderful documentary. Both sad and hopeful. Thank you for posting this.

[thethirdq]

What a great channel! I can tell you spent some time on your video and really respect that. Hope you enjoy mine

[LeonidaEllison800]

Download the audio from this tune at thetunify doht cohm.

[textfilesdotcom]

Side note: Marc Blank and Don Woods are in the audience!

[CrushProject]

good stuff, altho im shocked that theres no references to pen and paper role playing games which is basically the same thing just through another medium. These were certainly the games that led us (me and my buddies) to try those rpgs as a kid to begin with.

[GeeFunk84]

I watched several game-related documentaries, but this is the best by far. This is the 4th time I'm going to watch it.

[thunderscratch66]

choose your own adventure books kinda cut into this market a little bit.

[GreatNorthWeb]

@OBSysteme ha! I totally agree, as i'm sure you know :)

[3dwardXP]

i never played any IF games, but great watch! loved learning about the infocom days and about IF games.

glad to see the genre making somewhat of a resurgence with new devices and more exposure from the internet.

[donov25]

Anyone Else think the title should have been GET YE FLASK?

[doctorfrog]

the video kinda flickers.

[3dwardXP]

@doctorfrog

the video didn't flicker once for me!

[alchimista321]

awesome thanx for the video

[Nmisling]

ZORK!

[mystica55121234]

I have just one question... How does a 720p video have INTERLACING!?

[3dwardXP]

@mystica55121234

i don't see any interlacing at 720p

[mystica55121234]

@3dwardXP

I've just taken a couple of shots to illustrate. The first is of Jason Scott walking across the front of the room.

This is actually 60i fields per second. When properly deinterlaced, it looks quite fluid at 60p.

The second is not precisely 'interlacing' but 'telecine' as the movie itself is 23.976fps 'film' framerate being upscaled to 1080i for the HD recording of the tech talk. I'm surprised the interlace was preserved when converted to 720p.

ompldr org /vOTk2bQ

ompldr org /vOTk2bg

[3dwardXP]

@mystica55121234

yea definitely see what your saying with those shots, maybe its the youtube compression and not the source material? video stuffs aren't really my forte.

[mystica55121234]

@3dwardXP I think it was the initial recording and conversion before being uploaded to Youtube. I've uploaded a few videos myself and seen enough as well, to have a pretty good hunch that with Youtube, at least with 720p, its 'pixels in = pixels out' Lower res transcodes get blended together. That's why the 480p one has more of a blur. With 1080i or 1080p, i think youtube detects framerate; if 60p it keeps progressive. 30p it thinks is 60i, and deinterlaces, even when it shouldn't. (guessing)

[singletona082]

> LINKE VIDEO

You liked the video.

> BUY DVD

You lack the necessary funds.

:( I will own this when I can afford it. This is a promise.

[stopeatingthepizza]

>GET LAMP

You get the lamp.

>GET MAD

Make life take those lemons back!

[jakeharvey]

Loved all the old stuff - seeing Scott Adams, the Infocom guys... everything about all the old games I loved to play. But the modern "IF" community kind of loses me. It seems weird, lonely, and self indulgent. Perhaps even masturbatory.

[PJoseph73]

I own the DVD set - it was a great gift. Glad to see that the film is being enjoyed by so many people.

[67576856666478964567]

What the fuck is wrong with all of their voices? It's as if the entire text game community wished they were women.

[tedtso]

There are a bunch of extras in the DVD set which aren't shown in this YouTube video. So if you enjoyed this, please consider buying the DVD set to support the film maker Jason Scott! (I have no commercial interest in this, I just wanted to encourage people to support independent film-makers, especially if they enjoy their work.)

[textfilesdotcom]

Deinterlacing is extant in the original DVD.

[textfilesdotcom]

Hi, everyone, Jason Scott here, the guy with the beard in the video and director of GET LAMP. Just wanted to mention the documentary is available as a 2-DVD set at getlamp.com. Glad everyone's enjoying it!

[hulksjedi]

@textfilesdotcom do you ship to argentina (buenos aires) sir? I would like to order!

[slaxor]

Could do with some better music direction. This, if anything, was a major downer.

[cybie04]

Oh my god! This documentary is so impressive and awesome. There is a lot of emotion in it. I really enjoyed watching it. At some points of the movie I was about to cry. Unfortunately I am not sure if this video is a original post but I really hope so. IF is responsible for my career choice. MUD's and text adventures tought me so much. I've spent more than a year of playtime and also developed my own MUD. Thanks for the review of this great, unique, noteworthy era of computer gaming history.

[afzpuppet]

I remember playing Dungeon/ Adventure off the cal poly mainframe in 1980..

Those puzzles were so clever... I was so addicted.. IF games such as the Zork series,

Infidel, Ballyhoo, Trinity, planetfall, stationfall, hitchhikers,Cutthroats, etc.. were so awesome...

[Buckiller]

very cool

[CSIXTY4]

@junkfood66 Frotz for the iPad is awesome, even better with a bluetooth keyboard. Most modern IF games are available for free, and if you can find the original Infocom games (not hard) online. I'm sure there's an Android version out there as well. Frotz is an open source IF engine.

[singletona082]

@CSIXTY4 Chrome/ChromeOS has an IF program that stores things locally. So even if you're stuck offline/on a plane/whatever... you can get back to the roots of how things were.

Interactive Fiction Will Never Die.

[junkfood66]

Instead of only 200 people playing these games for free, one could think about making them as some kind of iphone or android app so people can play them on their phone in the train or bus, or while waiting for something. Sell them for 1,99 and maybe a few thousand would actually buy that, it might be a good start no?

[junkfood66]

@junkfood66 Lol - I should learn to watch the whole thing before commenting :-p

[FlashFlexAIR]

Got to an hour (Puzzles)... <- personal reminder

Will have to come back to watch the rest but loved what I've seen so far.

Will definitely be directing my students to this.

Great work and thank you.

[mbarkhau]

needs deinterlacing

[Sunjammer]

Fantastic, really really enjoyed it

[xAeternax]

29:40 Smooth.. using VLC there are we?

[bityard]

> GET LAMP

You now have the lamp.

> CLICK LIKE BUTTON

You like this video. Thanks for the feedback!

> ADMIRE JASON SCOTT'S BEARD

That's a fine beard, isn't it?