What do the words “documentary” and “text adventure” have in common? Before you say “They’re both boring,” check out my impressions of Get Lamp over at Adventure Gamers. It’s actually a very entertaining film if you’re a fan of the adventure game genre. (And let’s face it, if you’re reading this blog, there’s a 50% chance that you are. Sorry, dollhouse people.)
I ended up with a copy of Jason Scott’s documentary Get Lamp thanks to the generosity of Howard Feldman, owner of the Museum of Computer Adventure Game History, whose site I have used for research more than once while writing articles about the good old days. He happened to have an extra and sent it to me as a gift. I’d been waffling on buying it myself due to the $40 price tag and the fact that text adventures aren’t my preferred slice of adventure game history. (If it had been a Sierra documentary, that would have been a different story!) But after watching it, I’m a Get Lamp believer. Plus you get a really nice package for your money… nicer than most games you’ve bought lately, I’m willing to bet.
In the small world department, included on one of the DVDs is a music video for MC Frontalot’s “It Is Pitch Dark.” The song is infectiously catchy and I’ve spent the last week or so warning Rosy that she is likely to be eaten by a grue. (She remains unfazed.) The existence of this video is especially amusing to me because I used to know the enigmatic MC Frontalot (under a less enigmatic name) when I first lived in San Francisco, back before he was famous. Tragically, I didn’t realize at the time that he was an old-school adventure game fan. Oh, the conversations we could have had…
Emily is a freelance writer, miniaturist, and adventure game enthusiast.
