Fireboat is a Z-machine interactive fiction game written with Inform 6 and is © 2024 by Jeff Greer (aka "fos1"). It was an entry in the Le Grand Guignol (English) division of Ectocomp 2024, placement to be determined.
In this short heavily-guided game, you play as Captain Kent Decker, a senior fireboat captain with the Fire Department of New York. You've seen it all on the Hudson, so when a lady ghost starts leaving notes for you on the galley table about a terrorist, it doesn't surprise you.
This solution is by David Welbourn, and is based on Release 13 of the game.
SPOILERS AHEAD. Reading a walkthrough prematurely can sometimes diminish one's enjoyment of an interactive fiction game. Please make an honest effort to play the game before reading this walkthrough.
This is the sort of game where you're just supposed to follow the directions that the game force-feeds you — the "breadcrumbs", as the game calls them. No innovation or puzzle-solving is required.
There's also a lot of teleporting to the after deck which is meant to be helpful, but I found annoying.
You are encouraged to use shipboard directions when on your boat, but since they're coded as synonyms for the standard compass directions, you can opt to use compass directions instead.
Also, FDNY is short for the Fire Department of New York. The full name does get mentioned in the game eventually, but it's assumed that you already know what it means.
The FDNY 11 After Deck
> x apparition. x window. read writing.
> x me. i. x cannon. read writing.
> f. d.
Galley
> x note. x Kenyon.
> look. x Eee.
> x computer. x TV. x bookshelf. open it.
I'm reading the math textbook last because when you read it, the bookshelf quietly re-closes itself.
> x Clive. x China. x math.
> look. x FDNY. x terrorist.
> u. f.
Pilot House
> x maps. x locations. x mate.
> x plotter. x dial.
> set dial to FDNY. (You are now in...)
The FDNY 11 After Deck
> p.
FDNY pier
> x team. take team. (You are now in...)
The FDNY 11 After Deck
> f. f.
Pilot House
> set dial to bridge. (You are now in...)
The FDNY 11 After Deck
> a.
Bear Mountain Bridge
> x tower. x bomb. drop team. (You are now in...)
The FDNY 11 After Deck
> f. d.
Galley
> x idea.
> u. f.
Pilot House
> set dial to Liberty. (You are now in...)
The FDNY 11 After Deck
You thought this game was about foiling a generic terrorist's plot? No. It's really about you remembering your grandmother, and this visit to Liberty Island unscores that fact.
> p. w. ne. f. f.
Pilot House
> set dial to trawler. (You are now in...)
The FDNY 11 After Deck
> sb.
Terrorist's Trawler
CAUTION: Opening the trailer is fatal!
> x truck. x trailer.
> open truck. talk to him.
> x him. (You are now in...)
The FDNY 11 After Deck
> f. u.
Fire Cannon Control
> x chair. x pump.
> sit. turn on pump. blast truck.
> d. d.
Galley
> x farewell.
*** You have won ***
Say... how did the Chief Mate know the chartplotter coordinates for the terrorist's trawler? He's really good at his job, that's how.
Mentioned:
This is the response to ABOUT:
This game was written for EctoComp 2024, and has a spooky adventure theme.
Concept, game design and coding by Jeff Greer aka fos1.
And this is the response to CREDITS:
Thank you for the assistance received during the development of this game!
Technical help from Garry, Fredrik and Sijnstra via the PunyInform Discord channel and Draconis (Daniel Stelzer) and rileypb (Phil Riley) via intfiction.org.
Play testing by: Daniel Stelzer, Garry Francis and a special thanks to Allyson Gray and Deborah Sherwood - All with the IF Community Forum (intfiction.org)
Honorable mention:
This walkthrough is provided free of charge since the work it's based on has less than fifteen locations. Please consider it a thank you for your support!
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