A Specter Over Kilerth [1 Chapter, 10k Words]

Summary:

Something is wrong with your village. Ghosts are routinely trapped within their own corpses. A powerful, chaotic specter haunts you. Bandits roam unchecked in the woods. Dark secrets lurk in the shadows, and there are those who would kill to keep them hidden. When nothing seems to be getting done about any of it, perhaps it’s up to you and your friends to save your home from itself before it’s too late.

A Specter Over Kilerth is a gripping interactive horror novel by Samuel Young, where your choices control the story. It’s entirely text-based—without graphics or sound effects—and fueled by the vast, unstoppable power of your imagination.

  • Play as male, female, or non-binary; romance whoever you like.
  • Romance the fun-loving Envy; the gentle ghost, Weden; the timid half-goblin, Oztiax; the cunning Skarro; the kind Zendi; or even Blihja, the cruel yet seductive specter that haunts you.
  • Wield fantastical spells: teleport, levitate objects, turn intangible, and more.

My other works:

The Nascent Necromancer: The Nascent Necromancer

The Mage’s Adventures: The Mage's Adventures

The Magician’s Burden: The Magician's Burden

My chess Youtube channel: https://youtu.be/6hd5oql3o9E

My Facebook page: Facebook

Demo word count:

Chapter One: 10k

Estimated number of total chapters: 18

Demo:

https://moody.ink/play/yungsam64/a-specter-over-kilerth/mygame/

What sort of feedback am I looking for?

  • Any constructive criticism or opinions about the characters, plot, pacing, narrative, gameplay, stat balancing, etc, is very helpful.
  • Pointing out typos and bugs is invaluable. Context helps a lot in identifying these errors, so be specific if you can.
510 Likes

Even though it’s a small demo, i love it so far!! I don’t usually like anything horror (watching the Ring when I was 11 destroyed me) I’m definitely gonna keep up with this one :grin:

15 Likes

Please tell me that ghost demon thing is a romance option. :drooling_face:

23 Likes

Well of course. :wink:

@Emzan
Glad to hear it! I generally don’t like horror, either, but I love the psychological horror subgenre, and that’s what I’ll be going for in this story.

15 Likes

Love the concept so far and i’m excited to see what you do with it! Can you give us anymore information on the story/characters? Or would you prefer to keep it secret?

2 Likes

It’s a bit of a mystery story, too, so I’d prefer to let the characters speak for themselves and for the story to unfold. :slight_smile: I’ll be working hard on this, though, so you’ll be be able to see many of the characters when I update the demo.

6 Likes

Looking good so far!

2 Likes

Short demo, but I really enjoyed it! Psychological horror is one of the best types of horror to me anyways… just a little more creepier than the rest.

3 Likes

Thanks! Yes, I’ll rely on dread and creepy atmospheres to spook the readers instead of overly gory scenes and cheap jump scares. (As much as you can have jump scares in a book.)

5 Likes

Will this saga focus on the MC’s mind or have journeys into the MC’s subconscious?

1 Like

Judging by the title, will there be any… major deaths in this one? You made me sob mournfully on the last one.

2 Likes

Then, almost too quiet to hear under the pattering of the rain against your roof, you hear a throaty, female voice begin to giggle madly from somewhere inside the house, hidden in the shadows.

began

Yes and yes! It will get quite psychological at certain points.

@Umbreonpanda
Well it’s hard not to kill my characters when you all make it so rewarding. :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye: yes, there will be multiple deaths.

@AmericanShakespeare
“begin” is correct.

14 Likes

No offence but it isn’t correct it should either be began or begins as there’s no (is/was/all that crap) before begin :smiling_face:

You…you want me to say “You hear a voice begins to giggle,” or “You hear a voice began to giggle.” ??

I may be a high school dropout but even I can tell that’s some atrocious grammar right there. No offence.

22 Likes

Short as this is, I would absolutely love another horror story.
Horror stories done well are one of my favorite genres for games, so I’m definitely looking forward to this one.

2 Likes

Hi you’re one of my favourites now cause this whole thing with people trying to correct your grammar is absolutely hilarious :joy:

6 Likes

For what seems like eternity, there is no reply. Then, out of nowhere, the candelabra tips off the table and clatters to the floor, plunging the room in darkness. Your insides seize up and you grip the windowsill so hard that your knuckles start to hurt, but before you can react, a pair of footsteps thunder towards you from across the room, startlingly quick and full of rage. You somehow manage to stand your ground, though, and just before the footsteps reach you, they fade away, leaving you in silence.

…You have one intensely creepy story here.

2 Likes

@Emzan
Yesss.

@Gwenstn
Thanks! I hope I can pull it off.

@cogzealot
Thanks, those typos are fixed now.

Great, that’s what I’m going for. Though this is just the tip of the iceberg. :wink:

2 Likes

Isn’t the story supposed to continue after you go outside?
I see more text in the code afterwards where you choose your magic type but the game seems to just end.