Whom the Telling Changed 2005
In this interactive short story, author Aaron A. Reed explores what storytelling meant to the earliest civilizations and what it will mean in the 21st century.
The player takes the role of a villager thousands of years ago whose people have gathered to hear their storyteller tell part of the epic of Gilgamesh. As the player traverses the mostly linear plot, he or she accumulates a history based on decisions both important and trivial that ultimately impact the outcome and significance of the frame story. Hypertext-like keywords allow the player to raise points in the interior story, persuading the crowd and other characters to corresponding points of view, while a more robust interactive fiction parser allows the player to interact extensively with the frame story.
In 2006, Telling was a nominee for Best Script in the GameShadow Innovation in Games Awards, a competitor at the Slamdance Guerrilla Gamemaker Competition, and a selection for the Electronic Literature Collection Volume One.
Telling can be played online on the official website.
