Aisle

Aisle is a well-known game with a strange mechanic; you are inside a grocery aisle shopping for food, and you only get one action before the game ends.

One-action games such as Rematch or Pick up the Phone Booth and Aisle started appearing soon after Aisle's publication. It became a mildly popular genre, and still is.

What makes Aisle successful? Part of its success is its specific details; you're not just in any aisle, you're by the gnocchi, and gnocchi remind you of your trip to Italy; the woman by you isn't just a stranger,or is she?

Another reason the game is fun is that the endings contradict each other; the story of who you are and what your past is actually changes based on your decision, so that your one action generates an entire past.

The third reason I think many people enjoy it is the wide variety of moods in the endings, from pathetic to hopeful to violent.

This is a game that everyone should play at least one time.

Aisle is such a simple and well executed idea that absolutely everyone in the IF community must have been kicking themselves when it came out that they'd not have thought of it sooner.

Basically, Aisle was the first "one move" text adventure. The game gives you a very simple set-up - you are standing in the aisle of a supermarket, then asks you to perform one action at which point the game will end. This may seem like it has the potential to run into gimmickry but the way it "plays the player" works so well that I can only refer to it as a one of the most inventive games I've ever played.

The endings range from the absurd, funny, mundane to the moving, some of which are exceptionally well written and others which aren't so, but it's the way the game forces the thought process in finding the endings which is what makes the game so great.

At first while thinking of different actions and endings to take, the game seemed rather cute and I began by thinking of pretty standard things, but as I went on I began to think of darker and darker things (not necessarily in an "immoral" way, just in a "wow, did I really think that?" kind of way), some of which I was hesitant to even type in to the interface not only in anticipation of how the game would react but also because I didn't want to admit I'd thought of anything so disturbing. It also becomes hard to drag yourself away from the game. In one session in this game I spend about an hour and a half thinking of endings and came out feeling emotionally drained and guilty about the way my mind works.

Aisle isn't the cute, gimmicky game I originally pinned it down as at all. It's a way of letting you explore how your mind works in a completely innocuous situation within the anonymity and detachment of the artificial world and that is disturbing as hell. I spent my time afterwards wondering whether or not that's how I would really react with no social inhibitions and whether or not the human condition does have these repressed natural thoughts about both ourselves and others which games allow us to enact out in a safe space. And the beauty and/or blunt callousness of which some of the endings are written only made this worse.

Either way, Aisle is such a fantastic experimental piece and a remarkable artistic achievement. Despite it's seemingly simple concept, it's a far deeper and more nuanced piece of game design than I originally thought on hearing about it. In fact, it's one of the most ingenious and creative pieces of game design in any game I have ever played.

I am in the middle of a 'home exam' and fancied half an hour of IF.

I found this title on a 'One Room' poll on the site and thought "why not?"

The game is not winnable, unless you really decide to 'call it a day' on the ending that you feel your character deserves. I probably tried out ten or so endings before I felt I had seen enough, but I am sure that curiosity alone will bring me back to it later today.

It really makes you feel the significance of how one action can change the moment, the day, or even your life.

Less a game. more a social experiment in IF.

It is shame in some respects that there is no end goal, but I suppose that take away its charm.

When I saw this game many of the reviews made it out to be amazing though you only give one command.So I played it and I absolutely hated it.

The game consist of doing one thing in an aisle (Spoiler - click to show) mainly to impress the woman next to you but The game last about 3 min. beacause there are only a handful of actions and there is no way of winning. (Spoiler - click to show) unless you consider getting a hug winning.

This is a fun game that'll definitely be worth your time. You make one action. The story ends. And then you start again. Although I was a bit apprehensive when I heard about the premise, this was actually quite an entertaining game. Through different actions you slowly get a view of your past and your present. The author seems to have accommodated for almost anything you'd want to do. Like Plotkin's The Space Under the Window, you begin with very little information but learn more and build off of that knowledge.

Although a relatively simple game, it's employed beautifully.

The only one-turn game i've seen so far and the approach is very novel! I love how every single action unravels part of the story and lets you learn just a bit more about the main character and the woman.

Gnocchi. A brunette (Clare?). Violence, remorse, longing. Or maybe plain old penne. The beauty of this game isn't in the story it tells. The beauty is in the story that exists between the lines. What happened in Rome, and why does it stir up such emotions? You have only an aisle, some pasta, a woman and a trolley, and one turn in which to do something. But, as the impressive breadth of unique responses indicates, there's an awful lot you can do in a single moment. Play with it for at least ten minutes before writing it off as a novelty.

So now I understand what the big deal was with phone booth and aisle.

This is a one-turn game. You are inserted in one moment in a man in the supermarket. You decide his next move.

The writing has a more serious tone, and it explores how small choices can have a big consequence. Each action leads to a new ending. What's cute here also is that each choice then takes you back to the beginning to try another choice, instead of that RESTORE, RESTART, UNDO option.

Most actions are accepted. I wouldn't call it a joke game, it seriously lets you choose your ONE action and gives you legitimate responses. This really inspires me to try to create a similar game, as I'm sure it has for others.

The beginning really draws you in- you are playing only part of this man's story, and with each action, you are invited to try ANOTHER story (the same story, with a new option). Definately worth a try. It's very short, but if only all IF could be this interactive, but on a bigger scale, what a wonderful genre it could be.

An island of quality in a desert of its genre's mediocrity, this intriguing little game arouses one's curiosity in a unique manner - by giving the player but a single turn in which to act. While such a thing might seem shallow at first glance, the author has managed to weave enough detail into the myriad endings that you will soon find yourself trying all manner of actions just to see what the outcome might be.

Extensive replayability value aside, the very limited game length makes it quite simply impossible to provide much of an 'adventure' in and of itself. Regardless, Aisle is a very pleasant diversion and a successful experiment.

Gotta give it a try, absolutely. It will take you just a few seconds. And then maybe some more seconds. And then more...
The simple idea of this game is quite intriguing and fascinating. And very creative. The outcome instead...
...well, initially i thought: "Wow, this is great. I didn't think it might be this interesting. Some ending - if ending is the right word - has great writing."
...after some time: "Mhmmm, the writing is not that good after all. It's somehow too rhetoric and over-sentimental and simplistic. And i don't like the protagonist."
...then i "did" something and: i was touched. Touched like in "moved". Moved like in "i got shivers". And suddenly I loved the writing again.

You have only one turn in Aisle. And you have no goal. For once, YOU are the goal. And whatever this game might be, it fully reaches it's ambitious goal.