Type-casting: Interactive Fiction Awards

Edit - this isn't the IF awards, but rather a specific one for short IF. Sorry for the confusion.

Interactive fiction - or text adventures to the 80s-raised layman - quietly continues to thrive in its own brainy corner of the internet. But where to start? Well, the annual Interactive Fiction Competition conveniently rounds up the best of the best for lazy people like me. The 2011 results are now in.

Taking the main gong this year is Taco Fiction by Ryan Veeder, which is an agreeably wry and downbeat tale of a feckless gunman attempting to rob a dirty fast food joint.

It's silly, but sharply-written and smart at breaking the fourth wall without actually breaking the fourth wall. Hot on its heels is Six, which documents a a game of hide and seek at an Australian child's birthday party, which is a simply lovely concept.

You can see the list of entrants (voted for by the IF community) here and play the majority of 'em in a browser here. Go on, give your graphics card a rest and your imagination a chance to flex its meta-muscle.

Via GameSetWatch.