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So basically I want to have LucasArts style object descriptions and speech (text displayed above the character on the main screen) as well as a Sierra style inventory GUI (a window that opens up to display the inventory). My problem is that I don't really know what to do for the item descriptions when the inventory GUI is open. Since the descriptions for background hotspots and the like will appear over the character, the same should be true of inventory items... but the GUI will be covering everything behind it, including the character.

What should I do? I really don't want to go the route of having a description window open up on top of the inventory GUI for these descriptions, but I can see that just having the text appear wherever on the screen the character happens to be standing being an issue as well.

So... what would you do?

Edit: I'm not looking for any sort of technical implementation, just a general concept. Kind of an adventure game theory sort of thing.

Very well. The game was released the same year that I was born. No, I have never played it. In fact, the very earliest adventure game that I remember playing was King's Quest V.

I just did. That certainly rids me of that concern! 

Geez, Judith was great. That's precisely what I'm talking about. It actually reminded me of a similar game - a mod for HL2 - called Dear Esther. Download for free here. Very similar, both of them. You wander around and the story reveals itself. The one problem that I see is that it might be hard to translate it to 2D.

Today I Die was a sweet little thing, too. Thanks again.  

GarageGothic: from what you describe, Tender Loving Care seems to be along the lines of what I'm talking about. Your hentai games are not at all it; what I'm talking about shouldn't just be a slide-show with no challenge. While what I'm talking about has no puzzles, there is still challenge. It just comes from elsewhere. I strongly urge you to play 9:05 - you can even play it in your browser here. It won't take you more than 10 minutes the first time. It won't take you more than 5 seconds the second time - and you will play it a second time.

Ghost: That's exactly the sort of thing I'm thinking of. I'm not sure of the exact game that you're talking about, but Whom the Telling Changed uses the exact same technique. No puzzles, but you shape and modify the story.

Ben304: Thank you! I'm playing them right now. By the way, I very much enjoyed Heed.

TandyLion: You know, I never played Loom. I'm too young to have caught it when it came out. I've been meaning to grab it off of Steam.

Dualnames: IF (Interactive Fiction) includes Infocom games, yes. I'm not aware of any Infocom games that eschew puzzles and the like, though.

Anyway, you say that you're trying something along these lines. Can you elaborate? How do you control the flow of the narrative?

Ghost: That is interesting, and kind of gets at the same point that I'm talking about. It isn't exactly what I'm looking for (the lack of interactivity is the stumbling block) but it is the same sort of thing in a different medium.

What I'm looking for is more along the lines of a puzzle-less AGS "game." A good recent example would be Heed, though there are still traditional game/puzzle elements there.

There has been discussion in the past on the forum about adventure games with the game part taken out. It's usually focused on puzzle/story balance and the relative prevalence of puzzle-less games in the IF community compared to the AGS community (if you don't know what I'm on about, go play 9:05 or Shrapnel by Adam Cadre, The Great Machine by Jonas Kyratzes, or Whom the Telling Changed by Aaron A. Reed). There's fuss made over whether or not such things can be made in graphical form at all.

I don't want to talk about any of that.

See, this form of interactive narrative (we can't really call them games, can we?) really appeals to me. They're the sort of thing that I plan on attempting with AGS. Whether they turn out... that remains to be seen.

What I'd like to know is if anyone else has tried this in graphical form before. I'd like to take a look at what others have tried in order to better understand how to do it myself. Right now I'm relying on IF to do that for me, and I find that it isn't perfectly applicable. So, are there any examples of this sort of immersive, non-game, interactive storytelling available?

I think I see what you're saying - that might be why I had concerns about the fellow's crotch when I first posted him. When I get a chance I'll raise it a smidge then repost.

I don't know why it would look like that - I just cut and pasted his head a few times to check, and he's 7 1/2 heads tall.

Yeah, I've got to say that's great. I'd especially be interested in knowing how you did the wood grain.

Well, thank you! I used The GIMP, though any pixel graphic editing software should work. Paint would be a little difficult, I think, since I make extensive use of layers. The GIMP is freeware, and can be downloaded here.

My usual method is to trace the outline of a human form (I use this as a pattern - it shows front, back, side, and 3/4 profile) to get the proportions right, since I'm not the most artistically inclined. I then paint everything on one pixel at a time (though the fill tool comes in handy) on a new layer. Once I've finished that, I do the shading on yet another layer.

Oh, I think I see what you mean - the light should remain static, shining from a hypothetical position at the front of the screen onto the sprite no matter which way it turns. I only say that the character is lighted from the front since he is facing forward.

Thanks for the clarification, by the way.

Thanks, gonzo. I've fixed the face shading. The head size should be right, though, I think:

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Hudders:

Since this sprite is lit from the front, apparently, are you saying that I'll need to change the shading so it is lit from above for it to be usable? Being fairly new to this, I really don't know. If I do need to change the way it is lit, how would that look? I'm already about at the limit of my artistic talent as is.

Hello, folks. I wonder if you'd be kind enough to take a look at this sprite - I'm still fairly new to drawing them. Specifically, I'm wondering if I've got the proportions and shading right on him.

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I'm a little worried about his... well... crotch; it seems wrong somehow, but I can't put my finger on why. Heck, I'm not sure there's anything wrong with it. I'm still a newb, y'see.

Hello, everyone. I'm TSC. I was a member here for a very short time a few years ago, and I guess my account was deleted - inactivity, I suppose. Anyway, I hope to be a round a little longer this time.