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tales​_ts.hex
This is the main game file. Also download the TALES_TS resource file if you want to include chapter title images when playing.
Requires a Hugo interpreter. Visit IFWiki for download links.
read​_1st.txt
Additional information
TALES​_TS
Resource file
tales​_ts.ini
Configuration file for use by the Gargoyle interpreter
tts​_walk.pdf
solution
To view this file, you need an Acrobat Reader for your system.
Source Code
Hugo source code for Tales of the Traveling Swordsman 1.​3.
(Compressed with ZIP. Free Unzip tools are available for most systems at www.info-zip.org.)

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Tales of the Traveling Swordsman

by Mike Snyder profile

Fantasy
2006

Web Site

(based on 46 ratings)
4 reviews

About the Story

You are the traveling swordsman; the strong and silent stranger; the wandering vanquisher of villainy. Damsels swoon for you. Good men respect and envy you. Scoundrels learn to fear you. Even so, you are but a rumor throughout the land.

The original version of TTS was an entry in the 2006 IFComp, where it placed 4th.


Game Details


Awards

4th Place - 12th Annual Interactive Fiction Competition (2006)

Nominee, Best Game; Winner, Best Story; Nominee, Best Puzzles; Nominee, Best Individual PC - 2006 XYZZY Awards

Editorial Reviews

SPAG
You see, Tales very much wants to tell you a story -- one particular story. It is very linear, and implemented just deeply enough to get you through that story. And it is a fantasy game, not my favorite genre of IF or literature. The fact that someone like me, who is generally interested by more simulation-oriented, open-ended IF set anywhere BUT a world of magic and fantasy, finds the game so appealing is a testimony I think to just how well it operates within its chosen restrictions.
-- Jimmy Maher
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Jay Is Games
What really captured me was the game's simplicity and palpable setting. You can almost feel the grass-scented wind in your hair.
-- JohnB
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Member Reviews

5 star:
(14)
4 star:
(24)
3 star:
(5)
2 star:
(2)
1 star:
(1)
Average Rating:
Number of Reviews: 4
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Most Helpful Member Reviews


9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
Charming And Well-Written, January 28, 2008
by Rose (New Zealand)

>EXAMINE ME
You are the traveling swordsman; the strong and silent stranger; the wandering vanquisher of villainy. Damsels swoon for you. Good man respect and envy you. Scoundrels learn to fear you. Even so, you are a rumor throughout the land.

The player's description sums this game up: you, the strong and silent swordsman, must save the helpless inhabitants of a fishing village from a tyrant. The writing is excellent, if a little too poetic, and the plot is straightforward -- until the ending, of course. The puzzles are sensible, with solutions that make perfect sense (although not always as well clued as I would like). I don't recall ever having to guess the verb for anything: almost all possible synonyms were accounted for and implemented.

Despite the brilliant game mechanics, I did not enjoy the game as much as I did more badly coded games. Why, I do not know. Maybe the fact that the plot was to do with a curse got to me, or I disliked the logic of the puzzles. However, it is an excellent game and I recommend it, even though I personally did not enjoy it that much.

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
Great mid-length game, December 6, 2016

I loved the ending. I'm not sure what I should say about it, but don't give up on the game until you get to the very end, because it is worth it.

The atmosphere was rich, but not overwhelming or misleading. As a player, you aren't subjected to the mini-game of "Guess the verb," which is a refreshing change from the frustration that can drive one to ragequit. The puzzles are not too intricate, but you're not spoonfed the answers either. Many things I didn't expect were actually implemented (taste lock -- You can't eat the lock), so I suspect there is a good amount of amusing content to discover. The provided walkthrough is also well done in a more conversational hinting style than usual.

The perspective of the player character is great and the development almost so subtle that I hadn't realized how I felt about the character until the Epilogue. A rich and celebratory perspective on people living full lives with disabilities.

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4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
Mid-length fantasy; a mute swordsman rescues villagers, July 1, 2017
by MathBrush
Related reviews: about 2 hours

I love Snyder's games. TotTS is an excellent linear mid-length game with not-too-hard puzzles that has a fantasy feel not found in many places, kind of like the story The Fool of The World or the beginning of Princess Mononoke.

You play a swordsman who travels the land searching for a village under oppression, righting wrongs along the way. You use several items in rather creative ways, and puzzles have multiple solutions.

I found the ending unusual, and extremely satisfying. It made a few points in the game much more understandable, and tied everything together very well. I wanted to go through and play again with my new understanding.

Strongly recommended.

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See All 4 Member Reviews

Tales of the Traveling Swordsman on IFDB

Recommended Lists

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Polls

The following polls include votes for Tales of the Traveling Swordsman:

IF that purposely conceals crucial player character information by Puddin Tame
IF that doesn't explicitly clue players in on knowledge they would/should have if they actually were the player character (The character's motivation, interests, relevant parts of their past etc.), which, for good or bad, results in some...

IF of yours you'd most recommend by blue/green
If someone were going to play one IF you've written, which one would you recommend? This can be based on any criteria you choose: personal favorite, highest rated, most representative, most accessible, whatever. (You can always change...

Games with an abrupt and unexpected ending twist by dutchmule
I'm looking for games which, as in a lot of short stories, feature a sudden and unexpected revelation/twist at the very end of the game, that possibly changes your interpretation of what the game was really all about. (but please be...

See all polls with votes for this game




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