Thaumistry: In Charm’s Way - A Text Adventure Now Available

Set in present-day Manhattan, the game is a joke-a-minute fantasy romp filled with offbeat characters, improbable spells, and well-crafted puzzles. The player takes the role of Eric Knight, a struggling inventor who must prevent New Yorkers from learning of a group of magic users who live hidden amongst them.

“With the resurgence of interest in text games sparked by the success of Twine and the Choose Your Own Adventure format, now is a great time to bring out a parser-driven game,” said Bates. “In a text adventure, players never feel they are ‘on rails.’ They can try pretty much anything they can think of, and the game is likely to respond.”

Thaumistry modernizes the genre with a spoiler-free, context-sensitive hint system, fully customizable fonts and colors, an in-game map, and an advanced parser. But it also gives a nod to tradition by including a set of digital CyberFeelies™ that are reminiscent of the fun add-ons that used to ship with interactive fiction games.

The game also includes a screen reader-friendly option for visually-impaired players.

Thaumistry is available now for PC, Mac, and Linux via direct download from the game’s website, and it is also available on Steam