A text adventuring system is a system developed for the purpose of programming text adventures, also known as interactive fiction or text based games. Many of these systems have been created over the years, but only a few have become widely used. The two most popular systems are tads and inform.
The advantages of using a text adventuring system to write interactive fiction as aposed to a regular programming language are numerous. First off, most text adventuring systems are easier to use, as they do not have to be nearly as complex as a programming language. Secondly, most text adventuring systems will run on several operating systems, to prevent the author from having to program the same game multiple times for different platforms. Thirdly, and most importantly, most text adventuring systems come with a default library to handle common commands. While most games will end up changing the defaults extensively, any that remain unchanged will at least not return an unfriendly "I don't understand that." to the player, but instead will return something generic like "Your throat is a bit sore now."
While what system you should use depends on the requirements of the game you have in mind to create, Some of the requirements of a good text adventuring system are:
While you might
require other things, if the
system you choose has all or even some of the above, it's a good start.
Many, Many popular systems for the development of text adventures have been created, but relatively few are in current use. For a complete list, consult the programming directory of the interactive fiction archive at ftp.ifarchive.org. Some of the more popular development systems include Tads, Inform, Alan, Adrift, Ulx, and Hugo.