This marks the 29th year for IFComp, a competition focused entirely on the wonderful world of interactive fiction. Twenty-nine years. That’s a lot of choose-your-own-adventure…s! Oh, and this year will be expanding the already vast library as IFComp 2024 recently opened its doors, now accepting entries.
So, here’s a quick rundown of what’s what: write an interactive story, submit it, and pray to whichever deity you hold dear. Done? Alright, so there’s actually more to it than that, even if the rules aren’t super strict. Not even when it comes to the choice of engine, as you’re free to use whatever, including Twine, Inform, TADS, Alan IF, ink, as well as, of course, something built from the ground up.
You should still read the rules though, as it would be terrible to have wasted time writing something… only to find it won’t be eligible. The ‘no copyright infringement’ part is obvious, but something that’ll likely surprise some is that all submissions must be free. No ads or other hoops to jump through before the judges can get to reading.
Still here? Great! Time to wrap this up with one last thing then: intent to enter has to be registered by August 1 (a month earlier than years prior), while the submission deadline is August 28 (again, a month earlier).
(Screenshot source: The Little Match Girl 4: Crown of Pearls from IFComp 2023)