Choose Your Own Way #3: Apocalypse

Theme : Apocalypse
An Interactive Fiction Salon,
#cyow3 #cyow2020

Games from the CYOW 3: Apocalypse

• Awaken
• Connection
• Death On Two Legs
• Deeper Into The Forest
• Ending Bravery
• Escape
• Invasion!
• Out With A Squeak
• Quest for Home
• Road Warrior
• The Broken Wasteland
• YA GOT STABBED: A Ruin Nation Interactive Fiction Survival Game

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Let’s make even (more) interactive narratives! We will use the theme APOCALYPSE to create interactive stories, art, and games during the month, so mark your calendar for our 3rd narrative event where we create interactive stories/games together in the weeks leading up to our salon/show event on May 3rd.

Update [covid-19]: This event soldiers on! While we won’t be hosting an in-person salon, but we’ll still all be creating throughout the month of April, hosting streaming workshops to keep you on track, and lurking on discord to chat daily about your progress (or blocks). Final salon details are forthcoming (we’re setting up our itch.io hosting now), but keep working on your projects and mark your calendar for May 3rd! We’ll find a way to publish and share everything. Stay connected – stay home – stay safe.

This is our third interactive narrative event. For a feel for our previous events, check out our CYOW archived events.

The theme that connects our work is APOCALYPSE, but the format in which you present your interactive story is up to you. You can do a mini booklet, a zine, a Twine project, a performance piece, an RPG game, an audio project, or any other format you can think of! Work within the theme and then get it ready to share with a public audience on May 3rd at our salon. During the weeks leading up, we invite you to use the hashtag #cyoaway as you document your process!

Documenting your process is very important to these events. Take photos, share what you’re doing on our discord server, tag us in your WIP posts. In the end, we won’t turn away previously published work, but we encourage you to try something new and at least want to see you still working on it during the month of April. Whether this means remixing an old project, updating your writing on a published piece, or simply adding more to a past CYOW project; it’s all welcome. But, what we don’t want are completed past projects, conveniently connected to the theme, that have already had their time in the sun. It’s all about trying something new folks!

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How to participate:

Just start making something! Never tried Interactive Fiction? You can find hundreds of different ideas and published games online. You can even check out the work we’ve produced at our previous events. As you work, stay connected with us by sharing your process and tagging us or using the hashtag #cyow3 or/and #cyow2020. Take pictures and make notes as you work! Join us at a workshop, on Discord or join our Facebook creators group! Once you’re ready to submit your project, reach out to us at submissions@thepapercutarcade.ca

Already sent us an email? Then get your project up on Itch: https://itch.io/jam/cyow-3

Our application process for a CYOW (Choose Your Own Way) event is very informal. As long as you adhere to basic rules of respect and anti-oppression, are willing to label any content that may be unsuitable for public/all-ages consumption, and are willing to challenge yourself to produce work on theme with the event – we want you to participate. The jam days/workshops (which happen in the weeks leading up to the salon event) are optional. The final salon event (May 3rd) will showcase work that was produced! Our collective members reserve the right to review and approve all materials prior to their being presented at our public events.

Not interested in showing your work, but do want to participate in the lead-up workshops and the creative challenge? First time making interactive fiction? You are very welcome; we primarily work connected via Discord and Facebook messenger to bounce ideas and help each other. Also, we do not require a FINISHED idea to show at our salon events. Work-in-progress is welcome.

Notes:
The Papercut Arcade defines *artist as a person who practices any of the various creative arts, such as a sculptor, photographer, painter, novelist, poet, or filmmaker. The keyword is practice; therefore, if you make art or produce work with the intent of participating in a The Papercut Arcade challenge or exhibition, you ARE an artist.

CYOA = > CYOW: We had previously called these events CYOA in honour of our childhood love of Choose Your Own Adventure Gamebooks. They shaped who we are now as people. However; one of the original authors has since formed a new company and formalized a trademark with which they are going after indie game designers and publishers. Rather than deal with any of that (but still keeping in the spirit of the choose your own narrative adventure games), we’ve renamed our narrative events CYOW or Choose Your Own Way.