SIFT

It's about to become a whole lot more exciting to be an interactive fiction author!

SIFT is a new tool for authoring commercial quality interactive fiction.

Coming 20XX from Record Set Shed

Publish to iOS/Android/Windows

In just a few clicks, SIFT publishes your to work to run on the modern platform of your choice.

To accomplish this, SIFT compiles games into its own high-level scripting language and couples it with a platform-specific interpreter.

Focus-Control Paradigm

FCP is the working name for a new paradigm in interactive fiction. 

It is intended to simplify existing models while opening the doors to new realms of creative expression.

The fundamental difference in FCP has to do with what the player is controlling.

Instead of commanding a physical character from room-to-room, the player manipulates a train-of-thought to focus in on nearby sense objects.

A sense object can be anything from the smell of a flower to to the pain of a flesh wound to the sound of your own mental chatter.

Players can physically effect their environments by acting upon their current object of focus.

FCP requires only 3 controls:

• Focus In 

• Focus Out

• Act Upon

We believe this new model will break authors free from the chains of room-based IF development and allow for highly abstract storytelling.

We will be posting videos on YouTube throughout the development of FCP.

Point-and-Click Editor

The biggest hurdle in becoming an IF author is getting ideas from your head to a computer program.

We aim to make SIFT the easiest, most artist friendly IF authoring tool you've ever used.

You should be able to master even the most advanced features of the editor without ever having to consult a tutorial.

The editor's ease of use is thanks to the major improvements we're making to the traditional IF formulas with the introduction of FCP.

Fixed-Width Text

IF became popular early in the life of computer technology thanks to it's limited resource requirements.

There will always be a certain aesthetic to playing these games on their original hardware.

There have been many great improvements to the way text is output in IF but we believe one of the most important legacy features is the use of fixed-width text. 

In our opinion, fixed-width text is to IF as Minecraft is to sandbox games.

With fixed-width characters, ASCII-style art and menus can be implemented while still preserving the aesthetic of a text only game.

Full Graphics Control

Using fixed-width characters in conjunction with SIFT's advanced animation system, you have full control over what displayed on any part of the screen at any time. 

Use this feature to design HUDs, simple cutscenes or even prototype experimental new IF systems.

Variable-Rate Dialogue [Watch Demo]

Spoken word is not expressed paragraphs at a time.

Each syllable is delivered over a span of time and the timing of each syllable adds information to what is being expressed.

SIFT enhances the experience of spoken words by outputting each character of text individually. 

Customize the intervals between each character to add a whole new dimension of expression to your dialogue.

More to come...

With your help, SIFT happens!