Canonicity and IF - an IFDB Poll

by juliaofbath
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I'm interested in determining whether or not a clear canon has emerged within the world of IF/hypertext. Of course, there is a clear critical opinion regarding which works belong to this tentative canon, but I'm interested in what readers and fans of the genre feel. I mean 'canon' in the traditional literary sense. For the sake of clarity I will define it here less as a coherent, codified list of works and more as a loose assemblage held in the minds (and in this case lists) of readers, reviewers, and critics.

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Adventure, by William Crowther and Donald Woods
19 votes
"The original." [+]... "The original." [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Zork I, by Marc Blank and Dave Lebling
17 votes
"It launched a company and a swathe of imitators." [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... "It took IF..." [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Photopia, by Adam Cadre
11 votes
"The first big famous "story" or "puzzleless" IF." [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Galatea, by Emily Short
11 votes
"Coming to IF in recent years," [+]... "A very well-realized on-character conversation game." [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Anchorhead, by Michael Gentry
10 votes
"Of course." [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Counterfeit Monkey, by Emily Short
8 votes
"A whole game revolving around wordplay." [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Spider and Web, by Andrew Plotkin
7 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Blue Lacuna, by Aaron A. Reed
7 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Aisle, by Sam Barlow
7 votes
"The One-Move Game's first move" [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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De Baron, by Victor Gijsbers
7 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Slouching Towards Bedlam, by Star Foster and Daniel Ravipinto
6 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Lost Pig, by Admiral Jota
6 votes
"My first recommendation to newcomers." [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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A Mind Forever Voyaging, by Steve Meretzky
5 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Shade, by Andrew Plotkin
5 votes
"The first game that came to mind. Evey "great IF" list seems to at least include Shade." [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Trinity, by Brian Moriarty
5 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... "IF to this point..." [+]...

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Curses, by Graham Nelson
5 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Enchanter, by Marc Blank, Dave Lebling
5 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Lime Ergot, by Caleb Wilson (as Rust Blight)
4 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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howling dogs, by Porpentine
4 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Hadean Lands, by Andrew Plotkin
4 votes
"Canonically awesome." [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Rameses, by Stephen Bond
3 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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With Those We Love Alive, by Porpentine and Brenda Neotenomie
3 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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The Hobbit, by Philip Mitchell and Veronika Megler
3 votes
"A true classic" [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Birdland, by Brendan Patrick Hennessy
3 votes
"So weird yet so effective." [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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80 DAYS, by inkle, Meg Jayanth
3 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams and Steve Meretzky
3 votes
"One of the hearts of the medium." [+]... "Non-IF people have seen it" [+]... "I think this may..." [+]...

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Savoir-Faire, by Emily Short
3 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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my father's long, long legs, by michael lutz
3 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Gun Mute, by C.E.J. Pacian
3 votes
"What if Shadow of the Colossus, but text?" [+]... (No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Pick Up The Phone Booth And Die, by Rob Noyes
2 votes
"My introduction..." [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Adventureland, by Scott Adams
2 votes
"Scott Adams' first" [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Mentula Macanus: Apocolocyntosis, by One of the Bruces and Drunken Bastard
2 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Everybody Dies, by Jim Munroe
2 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Worldsmith, by Ade McT
2 votes
"A modern classic." [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Planetfall, by Steve Meretzky
2 votes
(No comment) [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Choice of the Dragon, by Dan Fabulich and Adam Strong-Morse
2 votes
"The start of all things Choice of Games" [+]... (No comment) [+]...

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Digital: A Love Story, by Christine Love
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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Main Hall & Beginners Cave, by Donald Brown
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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Choice of Magics, by Kevin Gold
1 vote
"Way more reactive than you'd think." [+]...

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Lydia's Heart, by Jim Aikin
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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Bee, by Emily Short
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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Treasures of a Slaver's Kingdom, by S. John Ross
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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The King of Shreds and Patches, by Jimmy Maher
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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Bugsy, by Priscilla Langridge
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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The Axe of Kolt [2014 ADRIFT version], by Larry Horsfield
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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Fish!, by John Molloy, Pete Kemp, Phil South, Rob Steggles
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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Fallacy of Dawn, by Robb Sherwin
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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Thaumistry: In Charm's Way, by Bob Bates
1 vote
"Not out till September 2017. I'm calling this one early." [+]...

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Horse Master, by Tom McHenry
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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Risorgimento Represso, by Michael J. Coyne
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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Scapeghost, by Pete Austin
1 vote
(No comment) [+]...

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