We’re proud to announce that Lies Under Ice, the latest in our popular “Choice of Games” line of multiple-choice interactive-fiction games, is now available for Steam, Android, and on iOS in the “Choice of Games” app.
Lead the first settlement on Jupiter’s frozen moon, Europa! What alien life lurks beneath the ice? Who is sabotaging your mission? Who can you trust?
Lies Under Ice is a 200,000-word interactive science fiction novel by Joey Jones, 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.
The year is 2079. Your mission is to build a settlement, explore Europa’s treacherous oceans, terraform the moon, and send findings back to Earth.
But political factions within your colony vie for dominance, constantly on the brink of open conflict. While they are technically collaborating on this mission, each one has their own goals for Europa. Will this colony be a site for new trade? A home for Earth’s ever-growing population? A clean slate where humans can break free of older social models? How far will each side go to get what they want?
With the most advanced science at your disposal—massive terraforming systems, gene splicing, AI therapy-bots, nerve-connected bionic prosthetics, and more—you can venture from the safety of your spaceship out into the hostile frozen world. Descend beneath the ice of Europa, pilot a submarine through frigid waters that no human has ever seen, and uncover ancient secrets of an alien world.
There’s definitely alien life here. But does it pose a danger to you and your fellow settlers, or is it the greatest opportunity that humanity has ever known?
Play as male, female, or nonbinary; gay, straight, bi, or aromantic; poly or monogamous.
Choose among six distinct professional backgrounds: diplomat, aerospace engineer, arcologist, asteroid miner, pilot, or marine biologist.
Manage the complex needs of an extraterrestrial base: prioritize the comfort of the workers, maximize scientific output, build luxury domes, dig mazes of ice tunnels, or engage in terraforming.
Navigate the treacherous politics of Earth’s squabbling factions from millions of miles away!
Interact with Europa’s alien ecosystem: will you release fish as a sustainable food source, bring along cats for companionship, or rely on synthetic creatures to avoid introducing invasive species?
Run for office in Europa’s fledgling government!
Delve beneath the ice, and reach for the stars!
We hope you enjoy playing Lies Under Ice. We encourage you to tell your friends about it and to recommend the game on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and other sites. Don’t forget: our initial download rate determines our ranking on the App Store. The more times you download in the first week, the better our games will rank.
Congratulations on your second title for Choice of Games! Obviously, the setting for Lies Under Ice is vastly different from your first game: Trials of the Thief-Taker was set in eighteenth-century London, and this one is in twenty-first-century Europa! How did the different setting and genre affect your approach to writing this game as opposed to your first one? Were there any unexpected points of similarity between the two settings?
Thank you! For both stories, I started with a period of research, but that looked quite different for each one. Trials of the Thief-Taker, I holed up in a library for a few days poring over history books, plays and stories on the early 18th century England to provide a wealth of details and situations that I wanted to include. I read up on highway-robbery, masquerade balls, smuggling, prison breaks, and, of course, the institution of thief-taking. I clearly couldn’t take the exact approach to writing about the future, but for Lies Under Ice I also began by reading around the subject. I read an excellent book on Europa itself, Richard Greenberg’s Unmasking Europa, which gave me a grounding in what the moon was really like, and what scientists were arguing about (like the academic dispute over how thick the ice really is). I was inspired by recent social and technological trends, and I imagined how they might be taken further. I read up on artificial therapists, gene-editing, next generation 3D printing, and the theories of xenobiologists on the conditions for life outside of Earth. The settings were quite distinct, but one point of similarity is having a pressure-cooker environment. Both old London and the moon base environments are places where a lot of different people from all over are thrown together; people with conflicting goals and few avenues to escape.
What about the process of writing your second ChoiceScript game? What did you find different about that?
I learned a lot from the first work and had a list of things I wanted to do different the second time over. (If I made a third, I’m sure I’d come up with another list entirely.) Lies Under Ice is much bigger, perhaps twice the play-length, and there are a lot more world-shaking outcomes of player choice to account for. I had to use a different plot structure too. In Trials of the Thief-Taker I could organise the plot as a series of cases. It was always straightforward to add another case if I felt it needed it (and in the years since release I’ve had a lot more ideas for other cases I’d love to put in if I have the time). In Lies Under Ice, the base faces a series of challenges, crises, and discoveries, but the player is also pro- actively shaping the direction of their settlement, so I had to think of new ways of framing the scenes. Where the game takes place over a ten-year time span, I ended up having short interlude chapters between the main chapters to help smooth out the passage of time.
The big writing difference is where the variation comes in. In Trials of the Thief-Taker, the player often engages in challenges that test their skills, and often there would be gradations of success, with around five different outcomes based on skill level, to reward different ways of roleplaying through the game. Such variation only becomes obvious to players if they replay a lot. When I came to writing Lies Under Ice, ChoiceScript had actually improved in a number of ways, and one of which was the introduction of ‘multi-replace’, which made varying text within a passage much easier. So now, in Lies Under Ice, almost every scene has a high degree of internal variation based on the player’s earlier choices, giving the player a much more direct and constant reflection of their choices. Both games were quite branchy, but Lies Under Ice takes it to a whole new level.
This game includes a lot of science fiction, but it’s clearly informed by present-day science fact, especially the idea that there may be life under the ice on Jupiter’s moon Europa. What’s the one thing you most want readers to know about the real science that’s included in this game? Were there any facts that you had to leave out that you’re just dying to talk about?
Some people have asked me why I picked Europa over, say, Ganymede. Europa is the best candidate for life outside of Earth. Like our own planet, it has a rocky core and a salty tidal ocean. Europa is covered in a layer of ice at least a few miles thick (possible much thicker). It’s comparatively smooth (there are no real mountains or valleys) and unlike the dead surface of our own moon, Europa’s ice surface steadily remakes itself through tidal pressures. Still, it’s a dramatic and alien landscape, and not just endless flat ice sheets some people might imagine when they think of an icy-moon. The features of the moon all make an appearance in Lies Under Ice: the cracks that interlace it with a series of parallel ridges (the lineae), the spires that surround the craters, the chaos terrain. Probably most things I was interested in make an appearance somewhere in the work, but one thing didn’t. I recently discovered that some researchers think that instead of protecting us from asteroids, Jupiter has actually been flinging them towards Earth!
Your academic work also focuses on branching narrative. Can you tell us a little more about that? How did your research inform the process of creating this game, and vice versa?
That’s right, there’s a considerable overlap. Working on games like these informed my research, as did speaking to other writers. I’m interested in the strategies writers of interactive fiction use to manage the scope with long projects. In an interactive medium, there’s a tendency for the workload to keep expanding the longer and more complex the work gets. Choice of Games have a good house style for keeping a lot of this in check: breaking the work down into more-or-less self-contained chapters that always happen in the same order helps a lot. I’m interested in these kinds of structure-based approaches. Throughout Lies Under Ice, I tried a few different techniques to give the player a lot of options that really change the outcome of the game, while not increasing the workload exponentially. I don’t recommend doing a PhD while also making a huge game, everything takes much longer, but it has given me an opportunity to write about the process of actually making something real, and not just a proof of concept.
What’s next for you? Do you have any other games in the works?
In the short-term, rest and recuperation, and then finishing my thesis! In the longer run I’m definitely going to keep making games. I’ve got a few smaller projects in various states of completion, including a game where you’re trying to build a coalition of animals for a revolution in a zoo, and an urban fantasy puzzle game where the protagonist has the power of psychometry. But the next game in the pipeline is a much overdue rerelease of The Chinese Room, a philosophy thought experiment text adventure I made with Harry Josephine Giles nearly half a lifetime ago.
Sorcery is forbidden and punishable by death. These punishments are summarily handed out by the Witch Hunters, a powerful organization of inquisitors.
When a group of corrupt witch hunters comes to your village, accusing your brother of sorcery and wrongly accusing you of abetting him, your life takes a violent and abrupt change for the worse. After you’ve suffered more than you can bear and endured terrible tragedy, perhaps your only option left is to become the very thing that your enemies fear and despise so much.
The Nascent Necromancer is an epic, 238,000 word interactive fantasy novel by Samuel Young, where your choices control the story. It’s entirely text-based, and fueled by the vast, unstoppable power of your imagination.
Play as male, female, or nonbinary. Romance men, women, both, or no one at all.
Embark on a perilous journey, facing witch hunters, trolls, and goblins as you seek to gain the terrible power that will bring you revenge on your persecutors.
Romance the cold, aloof Tozi; the sarcastic, charismatic Tanno; the shy, sweet Kenda; the kind, easygoing Meylor; or even the idealistic witch hunter, Lonnie.
Read approximately 100,000 words per playthrough!
Choose among three kinds of spells; mental, physical, or conjuration. Cast torture spells; summon flying, undead hands; control the minds of your enemies, and much more.
We’re proud to announce that a new special set of All World Pro Wrestling “Bonus Stories” are now available for iOS and Android in our “Heart’s Choice” app, as well as on Steam! “Bonus Stories 3” is a special non-interactive set of short pieces in the world of the game, and it’s on sale for $1.99!
Strap in for three all-new stories of gay wrestling erotica! It’s everything you love about the All World Pro Wrestling franchise: steamy grappling, intimately detailed descriptions, and the hottest gay male wrestlers around!
Sex Fed 3 – Return to Las Vegas’s most exclusive – and sexiest – wrestling club! Scope out your opponents and choose what happens in each practice bout as muscles ripple and sparks fly. When the dominance play starts, who will come out on top?
Who You Callin’ a Jobber, Bro? – It’s another Jobbers’ Showcase! Get up close and watch every move with these up-and-coming wrestlers. Who will turn heel? Who will fight his way into the spotlight? And who will discover a whole new kind of excitement when he’s locked in a tight clinch with his opponent?
Battle of the Big Boys – Bring on the muscle bears! Huge thighs and massive arms are on display in every bout. And after their training session is over, these big men get together for some private celebrations, where they get to see every single huge part of each other’s bodies.
Since 2009, the team behind Choice of Games has created high-quality interactive novels in all genres. Now, our new Heart’s Choice label puts romance at the center of the story, and you at the center of the romance. Heart’s Choice games contain no graphics or sound effects, so we can focus on the story. Every game is filled with vivid, fully-developed characters and complex narratives that respond to your choices.
We’re proud to announce that Atlantis Academy, the latest in our popular “Choice of Games” line of multiple-choice interactive-fiction games, is now available for Steam, Android, and on iOS in the “Choice of Games” app.
It’s 25% off until November 16th!
Can you and your friends master the ocean’s magic and save your school?
Atlantis Academy is a 250,000-word interactive underwater fantasy novel by Dorothea Sparrow, 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.
You have spent your life on the border between land and sea, with a water dragon as your closest companion. Your sea nymph mother died, leaving you with a mysterious legacy; your human father disappeared before you were born. Now you are finally eligible to learn magic at the Academy of Atlantis, alongside sea nymphs, selkies, sirens, and other denizens of the deep.
Navigate the cliques and clubs of this undersea school: will you join the Followers of Amphitrite in their pursuit of tide magic, become the Headmaster’s protegé, or just work on making the school dance the best it can possibly be?
As idyllic as your magical underwater haven might seem, Atlantis is not safe from the dangers of the world above. Oil wells and human garbage pollute the seas, and earthquakes shake the ocean floor. Nor is it protected from inner conflict: there are deep secrets buried in the Academy’s past that threaten to overturn its order and leaders.
Most perilous of all is the ancient evil that is rising from the deep: the monster Proteus, who sank Atlantis beneath the waves long ago. What will happen when it returns? Can you save the school—and the city—from a second destruction?
Play as male, female, nonbinary, or genderfluid; gay, straight, or bi.
Befriend a talking walrus, hatch a hydra, swim with humpback whales, and immerse yourself in the wonder of phosphorescent coral.
Romance a cheerful selkie, a mysterious tide mage, or a bold siren.
Deepen your bond with your water dragon and try to reunite him with his family.
Choose your magical specialty: storm magic, animal communication, or tide magic! Or focus on defending yourself with your spear, or searching for buried treasure.
Uncover the secrets of your own past to find the father that you never knew.
The magic of the ocean is yours to command!
We hope you enjoy playing Atlantis Academy. We encourage you to tell your friends about it and to recommend the game on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and other sites. Don’t forget: our initial download rate determines our ranking on the App Store. The more times you download in the first week, the better our games will rank.
We’re thrilled to announce that Jed Herne, author of our popular game The Siege of Treboulain, has a new novel coming out, and you can back it now on Kickstarter. To celebrate, we’re puttingThe Siege of Treboulain on sale until November 16th!
A dragon rider seeking vengeance. A spy on a crusade of destruction. And two nations on the brink of war.
Zora has dreamed of revenge ever since a Sunwarden killed her father. When she saves a town from bandits alongside her fellow rangers, and discovers a dragon egg, she might finally get her chance.
After dragons killed Rovan’s best friend, he vowed to destroy them all. Apprenticing himself to a Sunwarden, he steals an egg and infiltrates Alegium – the floating city of the dragon riders – to destroy it from within.
But as Zora and Rovan train their dragons, master new magic, and grow closer together, they will question everything they once knew.
When the chance comes to take their vengeance, how will they deal with the weight of their past?
You have spent your life on the border between land and sea, with a water dragon as your closest companion. Your sea nymph mother died, leaving you with a mysterious legacy; your human father disappeared before you were born. Now you are finally eligible to learn magic at the Academy of Atlantis, alongside sea nymphs, selkies, sirens, and other denizens of the deep. Can you and your friends master the ocean’s magic and save your school?
Atlantis Academy is a 250,000-word interactive underwater fantasy novel by Dorothea Sparrow. We sat down with Dorothea to talk about her work. Atlantis Academy releases this Thursday, November 9th. You can play the first three chapters for free today.
This game combines two very distinctive genres: undersea mythology and magical school. How did you approach blending them together? Which elements of each genre enhanced the other, and where did you find the intersection challenging?
You know, when I started writing, I didn’t realize how complementary the two would be. But the deeper I got into the story, the more I realized how well they were fitting together. There’s already magic inherent in sea creatures like selkies, sirens, and mermaids; there’s much less world-building you need to do to explain them. Instead, you can play with the mythology and the tropes, and find where the delight emerges from between them.
There is a strong theme of environmentalism running through the story. Can you talk some more about how you incorporated this real-world issue into the game?
If you take Proteus as a metaphor for the climate catastrophe—an implacable destruction of our own making—the whole thing is about climate change. And while there are ways to violently defeat Proteus, the two ways that don’t involve trying to kill him are definitely my favorite. Violence isn’t going to solve our current predicament.
Which character was your favorite to write, and why?
I have to say Mehrab. The idea of “die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain” is a powerful trope, and one that Mehrab epitomizes. He wants so much to protect his people, but every step forward is another step on the way to hell.
I don’t even know if he really believes that he’s doing the right thing anymore, or if he’s just following his own story through to the end—as though a catastrophic failure will retrospectively justify everything that he did to get there.
Without giving away too many spoilers, what Easter egg do you most hope the readers will find?
There’s a moment that’s inspired by Don’t Look Up. I think almost every playthrough hits that particular moment, but I don’t know if many people would make the connection.
I admit, I had to resist the urge to include the line “We’re for the jobs that Proteus’s rampage will provide,” but I’d like to think the sentiment is there.
Can you tell me something about these illustrations? They’re weird and spooky.
You know, deep underwater is a little weird and spooky. As I was writing the game, I kept thinking about some mermaid art that an old friend of mine was posting to her Instagram. It had the right kind of surreal, carnivalesque, almost Giger-esque quality that I was trying to evoke in my writing. Eventually, I asked Choice of Games about having her do some internal art, and they said yes.
Unfortunately, the artist got sick midway through the project, so the pieces are coming in late. Some will be in the initial release, but the rest will be patched in over the next few weeks.
We’re proud to announce that Vampire’s Kiss, the latest in our “Heart’s Choice” line of multiple-choice interactive romance novels, is now available for iOS and Android in the “Heart’s Choice” app. You can also download it on Steam or enjoy it on our website.
It’s 33% off until October 26th!
Unleash your lust and your thirst in a battle for the soul of London! Will passion lead you back to humanity, or will you embrace the night as a vampire?
Vampire’s Kiss is a 170,000-word interactive erotic vampire novel by Dash Casey. It’s entirely text-based, without graphics or sound effects, and fuelled by the vast, unstoppable power of your imagination.
In life, you were the guardian of a priceless artifact, the Cross of Aguirre. Now you have been murdered and made a vampire; the artifact has been stolen, and you are at the center of a web of bloody conspiracies.
Navigate a perilous web of secrets as you discover the hidden world of London after dark, staging daring heists and bloody battles across the city’s iconic landscape. As a plot centuries in the making unfolds, choose sides in the battle for control of London’s vampires, and embrace the night that has been thrust upon you…or, chase rumors of a way to restore true life to the undead, and hold out hope that you might see the sun once more.
Your heart no longer beats, but your passion still burns. Will you share a slow dance with Marky, the rogueish vampire with dozens of piercings and a poorly hidden heart of gold? Hold each other tenderly, or fall into bed and discover all of the tricks that Marky has learned in more than a century of unlife.
Will you stalk the night alongside Kurt, a stoic vampire hunter, all muscles and chiseled face, who holds the secrets to ancient lore? He’s as dominant in the bedroom as he is on the battlefield: choose your own safeword and submit to his powerful strength; or explore his gentler side.
Does the lure of London’s mortal aristocracy draw you towards Alex? This fabulously-dressed and surprisingly courageous socialite is thirsty to learn what sex with a vampire is like – bring all of your powers of telepathy and shapeshifting to heighten your pleasure.
Or will you be dominated by the vampire queen Saffron, with her glorious red hair and brilliantly devious schemes? She’s ready for anything, from the kinkiest night of whips and fangs to the vulnerability of using no vampiric powers at all in bed.
• Play as male, female, or nonbinary; gay, straight, or bi; or asexual. • Seduce a passionate socialite; the scheming vampire queen; a cheeky vampire rogue; or a stoic hunter. • Opt in or out of scenes involving graphic violence and blood. • Embrace your vampiric destiny, or dream of the sunrise in a quest to transform yourself back to humanity—and bring your lover along with you. • Solve your own murder, and take vengeance on your killer. • Delve into your vampiric powers; transform yourself into a vicious monster, cast shapeshifting illusions as a creature of shadow, or unlock the hypnotic mysteries of the mind. • Keep your secrets and preserve the illusion that you have died, or shock the world by revealing the existence of vampires.
In this endless night, how will you quench your thirst?
We hope you enjoy playing Vampire’s Kiss. We encourage you to tell your friends about it and recommend the game on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and other sites. Don’t forget: our initial download rate determines our ranking on the App Store. The more times you download in the first week, the better our games will rank.
Unleash your lust and your thirst in a battle for the soul of London! Will passion lead you back to humanity, or will you embrace the night as a vampire?
Vampire’s Kiss is a 170,000-word interactive erotic vampire novel by Dash Casey. It’s entirely text-based, without graphics or sound effects, and fuelled by the vast, unstoppable power of your imagination.
In life, you were the guardian of a priceless artifact, the Cross of Aguirre. Now you have been murdered and made a vampire; the artifact has been stolen, and you are at the center of a web of bloody conspiracies.
Navigate a perilous web of secrets as you discover the hidden world of London after dark, staging daring heists and bloody battles across the city’s iconic landscape. As a plot centuries in the making unfolds, choose sides in the battle for control of London’s vampires, and embrace the night that has been thrust upon you…or, chase rumors of a way to restore true life to the undead, and hold out hope that you might see the sun once more.
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