Waterworld
Example 216
★It's tempting to handle the player's inability to interact with something with a simple instead rule:
"Waterworld 1"
A view is a kind of backdrop. Instead of doing something other than examining to a view, say "You are too far from [the noun] to do anything but look."
The sun is a view. It is everywhere. The description is "A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born."
The Sahara is a room. North of the Sahara is More Sahara. North of More Sahara is Yet Further Sahara.
Test me with "x sun / get sun / n / x sun / n / x sun".
Test me with "x sun / get sun / n / x sun / n / x sun".
Sahara
>(Testing.)
>[1] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[2] get sun
You are too far from the sun to do anything but look.
>[3] n
More Sahara
>[4] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[5] n
Yet Further Sahara
>[6] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>(Testing.)
>[1] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[2] get sun
You are too far from the sun to do anything but look.
>[3] n
More Sahara
>[4] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[5] n
Yet Further Sahara
>[6] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
Unfortunately, the rule does not address the case where the object in question is the second noun; so for instance the following example reveals the difficulty:
"Waterworld 2"
A view is a kind of backdrop. Instead of doing something other than examining to a view, say "You are too far from [the noun] to do anything but look."
The player carries a rope.
The sun is a view. It is everywhere. The description is "A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born."
The Sahara is a room. North of the Sahara is More Sahara. North of More Sahara is Yet Further Sahara.
Test me with "x sun / get sun / n / x sun / n / x sun / tie rope to the sun".
Test me with "x sun / get sun / n / x sun / n / x sun / tie rope to the sun".
Sahara
>(Testing.)
>[1] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[2] get sun
You are too far from the sun to do anything but look.
>[3] n
More Sahara
>[4] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[5] n
Yet Further Sahara
>[6] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[7] tie rope to the sun
You would achieve nothing by this.
>(Testing.)
>[1] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[2] get sun
You are too far from the sun to do anything but look.
>[3] n
More Sahara
>[4] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[5] n
Yet Further Sahara
>[6] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[7] tie rope to the sun
You would achieve nothing by this.
…where the response here behaves as though the sun is in reach. If we had a fully implemented tying action, the player would (even more disastrously) be allowed to lasso celestial objects.
We could add a second instead rule as well:
"Waterworld 3"
A view is a kind of backdrop.
Instead of doing something other than examining when the noun is a view:
say "You are too far from [the noun] to do anything but look."
Instead of doing something other than examining when the second noun is a view:
say "You are too far from [the second noun] to do anything but look."
The player carries a rope.
The sun is a view. It is everywhere. The description is "A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born."
The Sahara is a room. North of the Sahara is More Sahara. North of More Sahara is Yet Further Sahara.
Test me with "x sun / get sun / n / x sun / n / x sun / tie rope to sun".
Test me with "x sun / get sun / n / x sun / n / x sun / tie rope to sun".
Sahara
>(Testing.)
>[1] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[2] get sun
You are too far from the sun to do anything but look.
>[3] n
More Sahara
>[4] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[5] n
Yet Further Sahara
>[6] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[7] tie rope to sun
You are too far from the sun to do anything but look.
>(Testing.)
>[1] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[2] get sun
You are too far from the sun to do anything but look.
>[3] n
More Sahara
>[4] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[5] n
Yet Further Sahara
>[6] x sun
A blazing sun makes you wish you had never been born.
>[7] tie rope to sun
You are too far from the sun to do anything but look.