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troperville

A text parser is a form of input that takes commands from the player and simplifies this to commands that the game engine can understand. It is commonly found in Adventure Games and Interactive Fiction, where it is used to control the actions of characters and influence the in-game environment. Using the parser to control an in-game story is one of the main elements that blurs the line between the story as narrative and as game.

List Examples

I don't know the word "List"

Look Examples

You see no Examples!

Get Examples

You can't get ye examples.

Get Fucking Examples

Such language!

It is probably better to ask a better parser, such as those used in the classic Infocom Interactive Fiction games and the later works created by hobbyists.

>LIST EXAMPLES

There was no verb in that sentence.

>LOOK AT EXAMPLES

You don't see any examples here.

>FIND EXAMPLES

Perhaps you should ask a Troper.

>ASK TV TROPES ABOUT EXAMPLES

"You're reading one right now. More examples aren't really necessary, because the point has been made. How well a text parser responds to your input depends on how well it's designed, and what commands the author of the game has anticipated. Clever enough authors will code in all sorts of clever responses to strange things you might try, and will make sure every reasonable synonym is included so you won't have too much trouble guessing the verb."

One example that does bear mentioning (if only for its odd aversion of 'guess the verb' syndrome) occurred in Al Lowe's Leisure Suit Larry 2: not long after the game's release, it was discovered that at a certain point (and only at that specific point), an error made during the testing phase had caused the parser to only recognized the plot-important command if it was written in full and complete English.

>ASK TV TROPES ABOUT TEXT PARSER HISTORY

"The text parser really got started with Crowther and Wood's Colossal Cave Adventure, but it was not until Zork came along that more advanced forms of the parser came along. The parser used in the classic Infocom games was called ZIL (Zork Interactive Language). The text parser gradually disappeared from commercial computer gaming in the early 1990s (replaced by Action Bar and Point and Click interfaces) as game designers wished to reach a different demographic. Fortunately for text fans, a large number of hobbyists have continued to design text parser based Interactive Fiction. If you'd like to know more, check out the Interactive Fiction article here on TV Tropes."

Video Game Interface Elements

Hello, Insert Name Here

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