Gameplay is based around three-word (triword) commands and every move that progresses you through the game is achieved using exactly three words
No capitalisation or punctuation is required
One or two words can potentially give you a hint, or fill in the story
Gameplay system commands:
c@ clears the command prompt
s@@ saves your progress
l@@ loads your progress from the last save point
r@@ resets the current scene
q@@@ quits the game (desktop only)
Example move/action commands:
"examine hat stand"
"walk through doorway"
"unlock the door"
"go to console"
Example commands for hints:
"hat stand"
"door"
"pickle jar"
Wavton Way Out is a sci-fi text adventure. It is narrative-driven and draws on 90s gaming vibes, along with a variety of contemporary themes, and it throws into the mix some innovative text-based gameplay mechanics and a custom story renderer.
The roadmap for development is to continuously evolve the game by progressively adding to the story and expanding gameplay modes.
I'm probably not classed as a gamer in the modern context of gaming; however, I maintain a keen interest in games, what's happening in the gaming world, and have a passion for the creative process. I have a number of project ideas in the pipeline and I am eager to get them out into the public eye as soon as possible. My relationship with computer games began when I was very fortunate to have my parents buy me a Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) when they were first released back in 1985 - it may have been a bit later here in Australia, but it was a long time ago and I can't remember those details. So, there I was with my full 'Deluxe Set', complete with robot and light gun, however, Super Mario Bros. was the game I kept coming back to and its gameplay, graphics and catchy tunes dominated my gaming experience at a young age. Back then, this kind of console gaming was considered very nerdy and niche; Mario had not yet become the pop culture icon that he is today.
I moved onto PC gaming in the early nineties and feel privileged to have experienced this golden era of games development as a player. The technological advances in graphics, sound, and hardware during this time was a rapid and exciting mix and truly awe inspiring to me as a teenager. While I dabbled in programming and dearly wanted to develop my own game, I did not quite have the connections, knowledge, or the direction to make it happen. Then, university and my career in IT happened and the gamer in me gradually retreated. Recently, I have been inspired to revisit this creative urge to develop my own game while keeping it modest, feasible and story-first.
Drawing inspiration and ideas from comtemporary thinking in quantum mechanics and astrophysics, I have embarked on a narrative-driven sci-fi text adventure project, 'Wavton Way Out'. My aim is to absorb players into this world (universe?) and take them on a journey that revives some lost art of story telling in games.
I am an integral part of some lost gaming history. At age 12, I became a grand finalist and went on to win the (first) 1990 Australian Nintendo Championship. It was arguably a more interesting competition than the North American version because there were many stages, local and state, leading up to the national grand final and a selection of different games were played to get there. In 1991, they followed the North American model more closely and went Super Mario Bros. only (from memory). The general rule was to achieve the highest score within three minutes on the game chosen for each stage, which included Super Mario Bros., Rad Racer, Punch Out and the legendary triple game cartridge - these were probably borrowed/copied from the North American competition. Finally, we played Super Mario Bros. 3 at the grand final before its official Australian release.
Unlike the North American competitions from the same time (1990 and 1991), on which the Australian competitions were modelled, there was absolutely nothing that I could find online about the Australian events. Therefore, I concluded that this is an undocumented part of competitive gaming history and may not be considered official canon by Nintendo. The competition was timed to coincide with the release of 'The Wizard' movie, or 'Sweet Road' in Japan, as an early example of this type of cross-promotion. During this period, Mattel was the distributor for Nintendo in Australia, so it is possible that the event was not officially sanctioned by Nintendo and perhaps HQ in Japan and or North America were not even aware of it. The competition was a collaboration between Mattel and Myer, who hosted the event in their department stores.
I have visual artefacts - photos, letters and promotional materials from the time, in addition to an original competition flyer and local newspaper article about my win. One particular photo shows me and the other competitors on stage at the grand final that was held on Myer Melbourne rooftop! These records are possibly the only evidence that this Australian championship event actually happened. One prize I have kept all these years is a copy of Super Mario Bros. 3, which was handed out to each of the (4?) grand finalists. I have no way to play it though.