Oh, so that’s why I was tagged.
(I kind of want to make an extended cut of that game, but we’ll see.)
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Looking at all that made me realize i didnt progress on anything.
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Happy New Year to everyone!
Now I know this might be too soon (or too late?) but has anyone thought about a Valentine’s jam? Or should I ask, what are your thoughts about it? Is there already something I’ve missed elsewhere?
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What do you mean by that? Is it that stressful? Explain please, if you may.
You can’t just drop a vague answer like that and leave me riddled with curiousity mate.
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I suppose that’s less stressfull than trying to string everything together.
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Geeez, I have been doing interactive fictions for like over a year now… so I can only imagine juggling 21 or 16 reoccurring characters. But I guess if its any consolation, people say “Gems are found on journeys rarely ventured by others” or something like that at the very least.
Personally though, I have been experimenting a bit with something like that 
like I am learning to be okay, with not giving the reader, the full picture of the story depending on the paths they go. For instance some branches might just end the game early, meaning they don’t actually get to meet all the characters or others might make them miss the entire main event, and maybe try to convey a feeling of loneliness because they feel like something is missing in their life (as they also only met one or two of the characters = a lack of companionship a bit).
So this allows me to have like mini-short stories, with their own endings that take the reader away from the main plot.
BUT if you feel like, making your characters only important for certain branches will ruin the story. Then its understandable… DO HANG IN THERE THOUGH 
because it sounds TUFFFFFF, but constantly try to remind yourself the end goal of what you are trying to achieve, especially on days you feel like abandoning the project.
IT TOOK J. R. R. Tolkien about 10 years to complete his book, if im not mistaken.
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A series is a tempting thing to start with because it lets you begin an epic, multi-stage plot while being able to get some revenue and some hype with a first installment early, but a series is also really hard to pull off.
It not only means that you’re going to be locked into working on the same thing for years, if not decades to come, but that the creative decisions you make in the first installment are still going to bind you in the last - and that the consequences of the decisions made early will balloon to an extent where your last entry will almost certainly be many times larger than your first (Lords of Infinity is ten times larger than Sabres of Infinity).
So my advice, more or less, is “don’t”, because I’m still not sure I can measure up to the task of finishing a series.
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Paul’s 100% right on that front. Having originally went for a series with Estheria in game development, it pigeon-holed so many of my design decisions.
It’s why I settled that for books, I’ll write a series. For games, I’ll do one offs from my internal noted The Estherian Chronicles series. The first of those is Estheria: A Realm Divided, which will not have a direct sequel.
As for the New Year, I am actually excited to be back in the swing of things with Estheria. So much code cleanup has happened in the last few weeks, and I’m nearing the Demo’s relaunch-ready state (most of what is ‘missing’ is a surprise I’m planning).
When I first began the project, I was truthfully much more focused on gameplay than anything and so the story was a small outline in my mind. After years of ups and downs on a hiatus, I’ve hammered something much more coherent together, and I’m beyond excited to show that off.
I’ve been hesitant on a release schedule. However, I’ve decided that I’ll release in periodic 20-30k word updates, adding new story bits and otherwise.
My largest concern is how players will feel in terms of immersion. Storylines should technically move forward at a solid pace, but I am not forcing that with A Realm Divided. It will be an open-world medieval-fantasy RPG, and so you can grow, grind, and quest to your heart’s content. It’s up to your decision for when you wish to move the main plot forward outside of some key forced moments.
Anyways, cheers to a wonderful 2026 to come!
Through torturous flame, one walks a rift of fracture.
A puppet on strings, every thread’s drawn tight.
For we stand a realm divided, led astray by the Princess captured.
Our cries of war echo loud, born deep from the people’s plight.
Their cries demand an answer, as four strays shall soon emerge.
Without compromise, their paths may not align.
As the lost soul twists beneath corruption’s scourge.
The final clue lay hidden in the hands of the Dark Divine.
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happy new year everyone!!! 
this month, my goal is to write at least 20,000 words for Deux. last month i hit about 17,000 i think, but i also took 5ish days not writing at all. so i think i can do it.
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I see. Well, I figured this much. Thanks for clarifying mate.
A series does sound like a herculean task, but if guys like you can do it, and do it so great. That gives me a lot of hope. You guys are what I aim to be.
I’m prepared to dedicate my writing efforts to this project, so I won’t easily be dissuaded. So far I’ve gotten some positive feedback.
I was going to try and do several stories at the same time, but according to your advice that wouldn’t be a wise idea in the long run.
I was thinking like I write chapter 1 for book 1, then chapter 1 for book two, then another chapter 1 for book 3. Then I go back to book 1 and write chapter 2 and so on and so. These aren’t necessarily sequels. Each book is standalone with its own cast(different MC’s), just set in the same world, where the conflicts will eventually merge in the final book. This is where everyone comes together.
I’ll just focus on one at a time as with @LiliArch ‘s advice.
Now🤔 to choose a new pfp for the new year. . .
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Hi folks! I’ve been lurking on this forum for a little while, and figured the new year is a great time to start participating. Thanks for making this thread, ChanceOfFire!
I’ve been writing interactive fiction for about a year and have published several games written in the ink scripting language, including three entries in IFComp last fall.
One of my primary creative goals for 2026 is to start writing my first ChoiceScript game! I have a rough concept for a project, which (if I can see it through) will be my largest IF to date.
Since late 2025 I’ve been focusing on background research, and doing some early concept development. I’m currently reading fiction/IF that explores themes relevant to the story I want to tell, and pulling together references for the historically-informed fantasy setting I have in mind. Although I have an outline drafted for the first chapter and a loose concept for the story as a whole, I’m resisting the urge to get straight to writing prose until I’ve done a bit more “homework” and clarified my big-picture vision!
Aside from that, I have a couple of smaller, non-ChoiceScript projects in the works.
Looking forward to creating alongside you all this month and beyond.
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good luck.
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Uh, I’m pretty sure that’s not what I said. I’m not that much of a hypocrite.
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Hi, everyone, and Happy New Year! I first found out about Choice of Games less than two months ago from Heather Albano. I’ve been writing interactive fiction since 1979 (I was 5), and I’ve been programming computers since 1982, so this is right up my alley. I’ve played several of the old Choice of Games titles and gotten a feel for how they’re supposed to work, and I’ve learned how to use ChoiceScript. From December 25-30, I started writing my first work, The Rise of Cthulhu. I haven’t seen any Lovecraft-themed games here, with the exception of Eldritch Tales: Inheritance, so I think this is a niche that might have some demand, and it’s also something with which I have a lot of experience. This game is set at the same time as some of the events of the H.P. Lovecraft story The Call of Cthulhu (which, along with all of Lovecraft’s other works, is public domain), but it is an original and parallel investigation. Coming from a Call of Cthulhu RPG background makes percentile-based stats very intuitive to me, and I think others who play it would enjoy it too. I’ve written over 6,000 words of the prologue so far, and I hope to finish that and post my Work In Progress in the coming days. I’ve been averaging over 1,000 words a day (not counting yesterday, when I didn’t have time). I’m hoping to finish the entire thing by the end of the year, and I have plenty more ideas for after it’s finished.
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Highlands, Deep Waters! Also the WIP 1966.
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It’s been a hot minute since I’ve popped into the support threads (or any thread really; I’m terrible at keeping up with multiple social medias). So, hello, and happy new year! May 2026 be wrestled into submission and do your bidding.
@HarrisPS thank you so much for the work you do each month compiling updates, reviews, and releases. I love going through them each month!
I can’t say I have any grand goals for 2026. What I would like, maybe, is to get into or through chapter 3, which would be the 50% mark of the game… in theory. But one thing I have have been learning in the last 10 or so months since I decided to actually sit down and write my IF, is that I can never accurately predict how much I can get done in a period of time, especially if it’s narrative progress and not just word count. There’s always something I hadn’t accounted for or beats that I thought would work in one order would work better if swapped etc. I don’t know if this is normal or if I’m genuinely terrible at plotting out smaller details…
I suppose for Jan. I’d just like to finish this edit where I had to go back and add a scene and variable that needs tracked. Sigh.
Welcome to you both!! I hope to read your games in the future! 
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Lol I misread your reply my bad.
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What does it even mean to be lovecraft themed anyway? I would like to know most of all.
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Lot of new writers(well new cog writers), it’s all so delicious
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Lovecraftian horror generally revolves around cosmic horror, the fear of the unknowable, ancient gods/monsters/aliens with power so vast it can’t be conceptualized by humans. It can also feature forbidden knowledge and the descent into madness it causes. 
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