Aunt Nancy's House is a Z-machine work of interactive fiction written with Inform 6 and is © 1997 by Nate Schwartzman. It was an entry at IF Comp 1997 where it took 33rd place.
In this rather unrewarding exploratory work, you are playing as the author visiting his aunt's house which contains a large assortment of ordinary items, minimally described. Highlights of the tour include waiting for Windows to boot, watching a baseball game on TV, and disambiguating bathroom faucets and taps.
This solution is by David Welbourn, and is based on Release 1 of the work.
SPOILERS AHEAD. Reading a walkthrough prematurely can sometimes diminish one's enjoyment of a work of interactive fiction. Please make an honest effort to play the work before reading this walkthrough.
NOTE: This is neither a game nor a story. This house is just a virtual place to explore and then quit when you're bored with it. Unfortunately, you'll likely get bored with it rather quickly. There's very little in this simulation to interest anyone.
Attic
CAUTION: The light switch here controls the lights for the Attic and Alcove. If you turn it off, you won't be able to turn it back on again until you have the flashlight.
> about. verbose.
> x desk. x computer. x cds.
> x boxes. x pens. x mug.
> x bookshelf. x programming. read programming.
> x Dilbert books. read Dilbert books.
> x doll. x Dilbert doll. x Dogbert.
> x drawer. open it. x box. open it. look in it. x tacks.
> x cabinet. open it. x stuff.
> x books. x paperbacks. read paperbacks.
> x bed. look under it.
> x shelf. x telephone. use telephone. (No one to call.)
> x window. x switch. x lights. x chair.
> sit on chair. turn on computer. z. stand.
It will take many turns for Windows 95 to load. No reason to wait here for it.
A "take all" revealed that there's an air conditioner here too:
> x air conditioner.
> nw.
Alcove
> x dolls. x Barbie dolls. x Ken. x accessories.
> e.
Stairs
> d.
Hallway (north end)
The light switch here controls the lights for both ends of the hallway. Same caution as with the attic light switch.
> x carpet. x switch.
> n.
Bedroom
Unmentioned are a window and another air conditioner? More likely, it's the same window and a/c.
> x bed. x nightstand.
> x table. ("Which do you mean, the nightstand or the table?")
> x TV. x VCR. x lamp. x Star Wars.
> take Wars. put Wars in VCR.
> turn on TV. (A Yankees game is on.)
> z. z. z. z. z. z. z. z. z. z.
> z. z. z. z. z. z. (The game's over.)
> turn on VCR. z. ("Star Wars" plays.)
> turn off TV. turn off VCR.
> s. e.
Sam's Room
> x bed. x bookshelf.
> x comic. read it. x children's books. read it.
> x desk. x lamp. x toys.
> w. s. e.
Bathroom
The note, from the author, asks you to disambiguate tub and sink fixtures with a '1' or '2' respectively.
> x note.
> x sink. x mirror. open cabinet.
> x metal box. open it. x Band-Aids.
> x bottle. open it. x tablets.
> x toilet. x bowl. x water. x lid. sit on toilet bowl.
> x tub. x showerhead. x curtain.
> x faucet 1. x hot 1. x cold 1.
> x faucet 2. x hot 2. x cold 2.
> turn on cold 2. x tap water. drink it. turn off cold 2.
> x rack. x towels. take towel. (You don't get a towel, but still, try it.)
> take towels. (Ah.)
> w. s.
Rebecca's Room (west end)
Oddly, the dolls and toys aren't implemented in either half of her room.
> x bed. e.
Rebecca's Room (east end)
> x desk. x dresser. open dresser. (Nope.)
> w. n. d.
Dining room
> x dining table. x placemats. x Lego.
> x Lego table. x train. x castle.
> turn on train. turn off train.
> look under dining table.
> s.
Kitchen
Oddly, you can't take the soda from the fridge. The oven, sink, dishwasher, and cereal boxes aren't implemented.
> x fridge. open it. x apple. x soda.
> take apple. eat it. close fridge.
> x table. x newspaper. read it.
> x cabinets. open cabinets. x cups. take cup.
> close cabinets. x cup.
> nw.
Basement stairs (top end)
> x switch. d. n.
Play Room
> x dart. take it.
> x TV. turn it on. turn it off.
> x Sega. turn it on. use Sega. turn it off.
> x computer. x monitor.
> turn on laptop. z. z. (DOS prompt.)
> turn off laptop.
> x sofa. x toys. x LazerTag. x dartboard.
> throw dart at dartboard.
> s. e.
Basement (north end)
> x boxes. s.
Basement (south end)
> x table. x tools.
> x flashlight. take it.
> n. w. u. u. n. n.
Living Room
> x sofa. x TV.
> x table. x small table. x large table.
> n.
Entrance (west end)
> x toys. x window. e.
Entrance (east end)
> x computer. x toys.
Unless you want to turn light switches and lamps on and off, or fill the cup with tap water from the bathroom; we're done here.
> quit.
You're completely alone in the house, but the following people are mentioned:
This is the response to ABOUT:
AUNT NANCY'S HOUSE is copyright 1997 by Nate Schwartzman, and may be freely copied, distributed, played, etc.
Aunt Nancy's House is actually based on my aunt's (soon-to-be-former) house, and was created as a way of teaching myself Inform. There are no puzzles, the idea is mainly to wander about in an interactive environment and have fun. Comments and bug reports are welcome, and should be sent to <
email redacted>.Have fun!
This walkthrough is provided free of charge even though the work it's based on has fifteen or more locations. Please consider it a thank you for your support!
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