Bucking the Trend – Why Taleblank is a Text-Based Game in a 3D World

In 1977, the text-based computer adventure game Zork was first released.

In 2022, the text-based computer adventure game Taleblank was first released.

What happened to forty-five years of technological progress?

Let's start with some honest truths. Creating a text-based computer game like Taleblank requires a much smaller development team than a whiz-bang graphical affair like Baldur's Gate III. But we didn't make Taleblank a text-based game because we have a small development team. We have a small development team because Taleblank is a text-based game.

The distinction may be subtle, but it's important. Taleblank is a completely open-ended role-playing game, limited only by your imagination. What's more, it's asynchronous, meaning players take their turns at different times, and you don't need to be playing at the same time. The best format for this kind of game is pure text – which is, incidentally, one of the oldest forms of asynchronous communication in history!

But are we crazy? Who makes text-only games these days? And who in their right mind would play them? Don't we know that Instagram, Tik-Tok, Fortnite and the rest are all about fast-paced, engaging visuals?

To answer those questions in order:

1. Maybe
2. Us
3. You, hopefully
4. Yes but we honestly don't care

We believe that not everyone wants a manic twitching experience, and that some people actually prefer the calmer, slower-paced experience that comes with reading and writing.

We believe that if a picture tells a thousand words, a word can paint a thousand pictures.

We also believe that the book is typically better than the film 🙊

We know that most people play games with graphics, but we also know that most is not the same as all. If you're reading this, you probably knew that already. There's a good chance that you are not just another member of the herd.

And this is not just some after-the-fact rationalisation – it's the very basis of our organisation, and expressly stated in our Manifesto.

When trends emerge, most people jump on them, cash in on them, or blindly follow them.

At Taleblank, we choose to buck them.