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life really is about driving home with the windows down when it's still light outside spring has SPRUNG

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Our fourth edition of the Black History Month Author Spotlight series, features Becky (@losergames)!

(I’ve been in awe of Becky’s multi-talents (art, writing, coding, excuse me??) for a long time now, and am super excited to get to interview her and introduce her awesome game, Chop Shop! The portion on morality and finding a middle-ground between harmful stereotypes of “bad” POC characters and angelic, one-dimensional ones who can do no wrong was a really interesting and insightful take.)

Author: Becky

Hello hello!!! I’m Becky! I am a black bisexual woman from the UK, lover of games, TV and food. I have a Bachelor's degree in Animation & Visual Effects and currently work as a technician at a college 😁

Games: Chop Shop (crime, action, LGBTQ+, meaningful choices)

Short blurb: A crime action interactive fiction game.

Quote from the interview

There are a few main themes I keep in mind about when writing Chop Shop but the big one I think everyone understands is morality. What is right and wrong, and the various shades of grey in between, has been written about a thousand times in a thousand ways but it is continuously interesting to me in a changing world. What does it mean to be a bad person doing good things and a good person doing bad things? Is there a chance for redemption? What are the consequences? Race and class are also massive factors, made all the more complicated when we’re looking at sets of characters on either side of the PC’s life. I want to write black and other characters of colour make bad, questionable, and unredeemable decisions whilst also remaining aware of stereotypes and archetypes. I want them to be loud, messy, and rude, attributes that are always attached to minorities, but I also want them to be smart, calculating, and deceptive. I think a lot of people are scared to do so and we end up with plain, can-do-no-wrongers that lack any depth.

Read on for the full interview!

Can you tell me a bit about what you’re working on right now and your journey into interactive fiction? What inspired the game/story you’re currently writing?

I am currently working on the crime action interactive fiction Chop Shop. There are a mix of inspirations that went into Chop Shop but above all else I’d say the kicker was my circumstances at the time.

During covid I walked away from the WORST job I’ve ever had and moved back home, which I realised a while after was an extremely huge blessing. I had a major burnout and was processing what my ex-managers had put me and my colleagues through. So, in my freetime I was playing a lot of cyoa/ romance games (shoutout Love Island the game) and found a whole fandom that also enjoyed them. 

I made some friends, did art commissions, and wrote some fanfic here and there, yadda yadda. A close friend recommended I try out a very popular COG game at the time (🧛) and it all spiraled from there. I fell in love with the format, endless creativity, and community and never looked back.

I loved the Need For Speed games as a kid, the og Most Wanted, Carbon, and Underground 2 are, in my eyes, amongst the masterpieces of games from the 2000s. It got to the point I was going over to friends houses just to play on their PS2 lmao. I am also a Fast and Furious fiend (shock) and I will defend that god awful series till I die. Fast forward to being a teenager/ young adult I’ve become a massive fan of fictional crime shows. Breaking Bad will always be my first love, but I also love The Sopranos, Fargo, The Wire and more.

How has your identity, heritage/background, upbringing, or personal experiences influenced your storytelling or writing process? OR How does your work feature aspects of your identity / experience?

The real catalyst for Chop Shop was my previous job. A lot of the PC’s experiences are based off my own. A few examples I love sharing are how I had to make breakfast for my boss every morning and had to keep the office freezer stocked with a specific supermarket ice lolly because he ‘needed’ one every day at 3pm. I truly wish I was making this up because people think I’m crazy when I tell them. But I really was catering to a man-child because I was desperately trying to get my foot into a creative industry. Woof!!!

That said, the industry I wanted to work in was and still is extremely competitive. I came out of uni with a tonne of friends, but also a tonne of competition. It stung very badly to see my peers excel and surpass me when it came to careers but that’s just a part of becoming an adult. That life really was not for me and I’m glad I’m out of it now.

My mother is an extremely influential person in my life. Bits and pieces of her stick with me, not just in my writing but my every day. She’s worked in corporate all her life, from the early 80s and still to this day. She laughs about it now but she tells stories about the times she was laughed out of meetings or undermined by subordinates because she was a black woman in positions that were not occupied by minorities. It hurts to think about but I can only dream of having the type of strength she does.

Now that I think about it, Chop Shop is a massive fuck you to the past.

Are there any specific themes or messages you hope players take away from your work?

There are a few main themes I keep in mind about when writing Chop Shop but the big one I think everyone understands is morality. What is right and wrong, and the various shades of grey in between, has been written about a thousand times in a thousand ways but it is continuously interesting to me in a changing world. What does it mean to be a bad person doing good things and a good person doing bad things? Is there a chance for redemption? What are the consequences?

Race and class are also massive factors, made all the more complicated when we’re looking at sets of characters on either side of the PC’s life. I want to write black and other characters of colour make bad, questionable, and unredeemable decisions whilst also remaining aware of stereotypes and archetypes. I want them to be loud, messy, and rude, attributes that are always attached to minorities, but I also want them to be smart, calculating, and deceptive. I think a lot of people are scared to do so and we end up with plain, can-do-no-wrongers that lack any depth.

What does your writing process look like? Any rituals or habits? Any tips, tricks, philosophies or approaches that have worked very well for you?

I write way better outside of my bedroom. I know writing is supposed to be fun and a hobby but sometimes it’s… not. If I get stressed out in my room, it’s all a mess. The brain needs to be away from where I sleep to get work done. Last summer, when all the teachers were on holiday time, I was the only one in my department for weeks and it was the best writing stint I ever had haha.

Oh and I keep a huge spreadsheet. All the episode breakdowns, outlines, character details etc. It looks insane to anyone else but it is my prized baby.

Do you have favourite interactive fiction games, characters, scenes or authors that you’d like to recommend?

My goto game rec is always 180 Files: The Aegis Project. So quick and punchy, more narrative/plot than romance focused. The action sequences are fun and the interactions are so delicious, ugh. I love it. I’ve played it at least 20 times to get the different endings and it’s never not satisfying, just… chefs kiss. I’m also really enjoying Thicker Than right now AAHHH I NEED TO CATCH UP!!! 

Any books, music, movies etc. you’re obsessed with at the moment, or which changed your life (or perspectives on something)?

Not anything specific but I do have some books I’d like to recommend to my fellow black readers:

The Psychosis of Whiteness: Surviving the Insanity of a Racist World by Nicola Rollock

Black Skin, White Masks by Franz Fanon

The Strangers: Five Extraordinary Black Men and the Worlds That Made Them by Ekow Eshun

Black England: A Forgotten Georgian History by Gretchen Gerzina

The Hard Road To Renewal by Stuart Hall

Honestly I’d recommend anything by Stuart Hall lmao. RIP king, you would be shocked at the media literacy today.

This-or-that segment: (bold = Becky's pick)

Coffee or tea?

Early mornings or late nights?

City or countryside?

Angsty or Cozy romances? (Or enemies-to-lovers or best-friends-to-lovers?)  

Steady progress or frenzied binge-writing followed by periods of calm?

Summer or Winter?

First drafts or editing?

Introvert or extrovert?

Plotter or pantser?

Characters or plot first?

Becky’s custom “either-or” pairing: Driver or passenger?

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Short playlist for my @losergames MC Drew Fletcher (they/them).

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Hello hellos! I just finished playing the update and wow, I can't help but fall in love with this IF every time I play it. Your writing is amazing! It really draws me in, I'm so invested in how the story plays out (especially now that Yvonne's house hangs in the balance, it hurt my heart when MC found out about it).

This update was everything! I love how so many interactions can be a subtle commentary on capitalism, class-disparity and how they affect relationships - the fact that MC can get on better with Nadia from the cafe than childhood bff KJ? The disconnect since KJ is at a place where he can be buddy buddy with the type of rich guys people bond over shit talking? A massive OOF. That whole scene really stole the show for me, one of my favourite parts of ep 4, even though the arguement MC can have with him made me tear up a bit💔🥺. I can't wait to see what shady shit KJ is up to behind the scenes (and if it may or may not be connected to his promotion and all those job openings👀)!

The scene at the gas station is up there too! Aimee and Maz bantering is always a fun time, and the MC getting to play along with them was too. They might not be on the exact same wavelength as them, but its pretty clear that they could definitely fit in with the crew. Also, loved the man MC meets outside the shop. I'm highkey hoping we get to see him again. Honestly even if we don't, it's just a testament to how great you are at making a place feel alive. Every encounter MC can have with someone is an enjoyable read.

I'm sorry for the long ask, but it's a crime that I haven't sent one in before and this update was the perfect time to do it. For my actual questions lol, which part of ep 4 was your favourite to write and why?

(And how much of Markus's little warning should the MC heed about "shiny new things in arms reach"? Because that plus Natasha's "he can hump whoever he wants" comment is making my eyebrow raise so high it could disappear into my hairline💀).

I love everything about this! AAAH I can't wait for us to really get into it with the crew!

- Chichi

hi chichi! hope you don't mind i held onto this one for a while <3 sometimes i get asks and i'm like damn. you get it, you get me, you get the story.

my favourite parts to write were the KJ scenes at the end - especially if you stay instead of finding Yvonne :-)

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When Dilani takes us back on the bike, why does she frown if we say that its awesome? Also I love your writing! Its so fun! :>

bungled a job and a stranger on the back of ya bike does not equal a happy dilani ☹️

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I would find it quite funny that somehow MC becomes closer to Jonno and Natasha but their relationship with KJ is in ruins.

honestly i could see a development like that happening lmao. maybe not in terms of friendship but at least Jonno and Natasha are openly horrible people and semi-aware of it. i think in some end states PC could end up the same way just on the other end of the lawful spectrum i guess

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Just found this WIP today. I'm absolutely in awe with the aesthetics and designs of your game, and your blog. If you ever wrote/did any kind of crash course in UI design for Twine, I would pay serious money for it. I feel like it's really hard to get such a professional, clean, and unique look for a game!

thank you so much that is so incredibly kind!!!

honestly my best advice is reference! reference your butt off!!! so much of design is looking at other designs first before attempting your own. chop shop's twine build came from a lot of places. i looked at the need for speed series, forza, GTA, saints row and hitman from the top of my head.

in fact chop shop's main console was inspired by the menu from need for speed underground 2:

i highly recommend checking out Game UI Database - it categorises games by genre, style, themes and more! i'm always looking at stuff on there for ideas to improve my own ui! i 100% recommend looking at the cyberpunk 2077 ui page, it is so incredibly detailed and has so many stills of the different menus.

twine can be intimidating for sure. sugarcube 2 is basically limitless since it's html, css, and javascript. but again i say, use as much reference as you can! the best ideas are not usually your first and it's always easier to build something when you've already got a base to look at y'know?

i hope that's a little helpful! please let me know if you wanna talk more about ui and design! <3

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I feel bad, I honestly don't remember our bestie Jax at all. Who was he again? Lmao.. Also I was wondering, if you add the option that MC can begin smoking in the future, can you also maybe add one that they quit in the past or are currently trying to quit smoking? No pressure or anything. I just headcannoned that my MC was trying to quit when ze bought gum instead of cigarettes in chapter 1.

you meet jax if you choose to get breakfast in episode 01! (like how you meet taha in the kitchen or maggie outside to get air/ go smoke)

i can probably add that yeah! i'll have to see where it'll fit in naturally. i have also planned for mcs that don't drink to have the option to start as well, so it'd make sense to have the option to quit too. again idk where i'm gonna put it, kinda feels like a book 2 situation but we shall see!

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Can't stop thinking about Four.... He's genuinely such a nice guy. Hubby material 🥰 for sure. What would a guy need to do to sweep him off his feet?

idk probably help him steal a car or two maybe

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BECKY OH MY GOSH i just played the update and i had to keep taking breaks to pace around my room ajsjdjf kj and the mc are soooooo T_T i need to replay asap i just kept on going “wait hold on” at my screen your brain is so big and cool and chop shop keeps getting better each update

HI YERI 😭 oh my god you're so sweet, thank you thank you thank you for sending me the loveliest ask. i am really so flattered, you have no idea. thank you and i hope you have a wonderful day ❤️

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YEAH JAX SUPREMACY tbh can we ditch KJ and just have Jax be our bestie............

jax really would be the ultimate best friend.... can cook, cool accent, respects the saw film franchise. like what more could you ask for

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Beckyyyy! Love love loveeed the new chapter. Having too much fun playing an ex-petty thief MC who has signed up for this out of necessity only to potentially fully lose themself in the lifestyle… deepening the chasm between them and KJ + their former life in general. Yvonne breaks my heart so much like on godd I’m gonna pay off that mortgage. The potential for how MC is getting money being a cause of contention between them in the future is sooo… I’m chewing I’m chewing. Also loved getting the tiniest of crumbs about Aimee this chapter. Adore her even if my MC is still a bit miffed about getting hustled lol. Oh! And I might be a bit late to the party with this, but why is Natasha kinda……….

ough maybe i'm biased but the ex-thief background is so fun to write u_u slipping back into ur old ways and becoming the worst version of yourself again..... i love it.

also the gay for natasha parade fully alive and well, i can't wait for more of her and mc's relationship to develop <3

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BECKYYY!! PLEASE SHOW US HOW YOU DID THAT REALLY COOL NAME INPUT AND MY LIFE IS YOURS!!!

HI!!!! i am assuming you mean the login screen thing in episode 01? if so i have tried to explain it as best as i can below!

alright, so let's start with what's in the passage for the login screen:

and compare it to our rendered passage:

the login-screen div has some css going on, to make the text centered. as well as a transparent background to separate it from the other text in the passages and give it that screen sort of look.

there's not much going on codewise really, i've used two listboxes and two textboxes. the listboxes are for easy selection if someone doesn't care about imputing a custom forename and surname. the textboxes are for inputting custom names.

the login button is what's doing the heavy lifting! i used the example code from this thread i found a while back - i don't think it is too hard to follow!

in this case, the login button prevents the player from proceeding to the next passage unless the conditions are met. you don't necessarily have to put this in but it'd be silly not to as the mc wouldn't have a name and be labelled as "Forename Surname" lol.

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found out abt ur wip while scrolling thru reddit recs and i jumped in head first without even reading what the game was about. let me just say i am positively surprised at how much i love it already. youve got me hooked fr. congrats on the new chapter and good luck with next ones!!! im looking forward to what you have in store for us

thank you so much!!! i am excited to share more in the future ❤️

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The End of an Era, and the Road Ahead

Hi everybody, the recent news about Dashingdon shutting down feels like it's a bittersweet turning point for many in the ChoiceScript community. Before Don stepped up and took things into his own hands, volunteering his own money, manpower, and time to create and maintain the site, there was no good way for people to host ChoiceScript demos and games in one place: I think the previous solution had been different Dropbox links (which was eventually nuked by security changes in how they hosted files) and possibly separate Neocities sites? Without the Dashingdon site, none of us would have had such an incredible space to gather, share and explore and experience games together, or--for some--even feel motivated to write a ChoiceScript game in the first place, not without an easy and intuitive way of sharing it with others in a playable format. The Dashingdon site significantly lowered the barrier of entry for anyone wanting to make or play or share games; more than that, it was a place of memories, creativity, and connection, and I fully believe that it served as a vital backbone of the ChoiceScript community for many years. A lot of that community relies on the efforts of volunteers--including the creator of CSIDE and the moderators on the forums--and, as with them, I can only thank Don wholeheartedly for his generosity and his 10 years of tireless, selfless, and often thankless work. The fact that a lot of people didn't even know he was a volunteer shows his altruism!

However, all of that work could have only fallen on the shoulders of one person for so long. It's a sad loss to see, though, and I'm very sorry to everyone mourning the loss of the community space, old or inactive WIPs, and save files that will be lost when Dashingdon goes dark at the end of the month. I do wish that there could be an official, stable, company-supported place for authors to host their games in one place, but at least there are alternatives for people to migrate to! (Thank you too to @hpowellsmith and everyone in the community who's taken it upon themselves to spread the news and try to make this transition as smooth as possible for everyone surprised by this announcement. And thank you to the volunteer who's taken up the banner at cogdemos.ink!) I don't know if cogdemos.ink has a page set up to help defray costs, but Dashingdon himself has a ko-fi if you want to leave a tip or thanks for his years of service to the community!

To that end, I want to reassure you all that Shepherds of Haven is safe and isn't going anywhere, and that this change won't affect the game's future. The news has, however, sped up my announcement of something I've been working on for a long time: transitioning away from ChoiceScript and moving Shepherds of Haven to Twine.

Granted, this wasn't how I originally planned on sharing this news. Patrons have known about this move since I decided on it, but I'm a dogged perfectionist, possibly to a fault. I wanted everything to be absolutely polished before unveiling the Twine build, but this unexpected news has been the nudge I needed to take the leap sooner. It's always been my habit to polish my work to an extreme degree: I will rewrite entire novels five, seven, however many times it takes before I send it to my agent or editor... or even before I show it to my own fiance! I still haven't let him read Shepherds, or the novel that I've been talking to him about since 2019, because it "isn't ready" yet, not in my own mind. A common refrain I've always heard from career associates is that my work is "unusually impeccable" by the time it hits their desk. When I do share something, it's usually done. But if I'm learning anything as I grow as a writer, it's that progress matters over perfection. The sudden closure of Dashingdon has made me realize that no one moment will ever feel perfect--and that’s okay. I have to accept that things will never be as perfect as I want to make them before I let them out into the world. Instead of holding myself to an impossible standard, I’m embracing this opportunity to push forward and bring you something I'm truly proud of. (However nerve-wracking that may be!) So, instead of reuploading the ChoiceScript demo somewhere else, only to take it down again later, my efforts are going to shift entirely to getting the Twine version ready for release. It’s a huge task, but it ensures I’ll have complete control over Shepherds of Haven and its future. If I drop everything and focus entirely on this for the next several weeks, my best estimate is that it will take 3-5 weeks of full-time work to make that final push and finally get everything caught up and ready.

Why Twine? There were a lot of reasons behind my decision to move. The biggest of all was that, as the game's wordcount grew, so too did my creative vision for it, and I found myself longing for a version of ShoH that could be just as visually rich and mechanically engaging as I was imagining. Codex entries, interactive maps, infinite saves that can be downloaded directly to your device! Moving to Twine removes the limitations of ChoiceScript's simpler engine, and allows me to honor the game's creative potential and deliver on it in a way that feels true to the journey we've shared so far. It's also a platform that offers greater flexibility and independence for both me and the game: I've put so much work into this project that I'd prefer for its success to rest more in my hands, even if that means taking on the monumental task of publishing it myself, rather than anyone else's.

So. Both the public demo and the alpha build will be released in Twine as soon as I can make that happen. The majority of the work's already done--I just need to get the alpha build caught up with some lingering day off interludes and Chapters 8.5 and 9, and I need to address a queue of lingering quality-of-life questions and tweaks. I want to also note that, while there are very exciting additions to unveil, everything foundational to ShoH remains exactly the same. The story, text, and original functions have been ported in their entirety to Twine, outside of basic edits and refinements that would have happened in the normal course of revision, anyway. I have even taken pains to implement a visual "classic" setting that will replicate the font, colors, and general simplified look of the original version, if players want to use that instead. :) But otherwise, this thing is stuffed to the gills with awesome new features. Custom music soundtrack! Clickable maps! Actual trading card collectibles! Stunning new art! Revamped codex and store and inventory systems! Helpful tutorials and autosave points! Important quality of life improvements, like being able to select pronouns separately from gender and change them any time! This doesn't even touch the surface of it, but needless to say, I think we're going to have a lot of fun. Thank you all for your patience, encouragement, and support so far, and please give me some time to get my ducks in a row. A new version of Shepherds of Haven will be ready for you to play soon!

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A Brief Guide on Uploading ChoiceScript Demos to Itch.io

Since Dashingdon is shutting down, and there will be a lot of folks wanting to host their ChoiceScript demos elsewhere, I thought it'd be a good idea to provide a brief guide on how to do so for itch.io.

This is for Windows in the folder actions, but it shouldn't be too difficult for folks to translate for Mac. This also assumes you haven't changed any of the files within your game folder other than those found under 'scenes'.

Within your game folder, locate the 'web' subfolder, right click it and select 'Send to' then 'Compressed (zipped) folder. Name your newly compressed file something sensible, and I recommend moving it to a new folder outside of your game files, just to keep everything neat and tidy.

2. Assuming you already have an itch.io account, navigate to your dashboard, and click the 'Create New Project' button.

3. Name your project as you like, and under 'Kind of project', select the 'HTML' option.

4. Set the 'Pricing' to 'No Payments', you cannot use ChoiceScript for profit unless it is with the Choice of Games or Hosted Games publishing labels. No one wants to get in trouble unnecessarily here.

5. In the Uploads section, upload your newly zipped file we made in step one. After it's finished uploading, you'll be given one drop down and two tick boxes. You need to tick the 'This file will be played in the browser' option.

6. I've found so far that 'Viewport dimensions' work quite well for desktop at 1080 x 640. Either use these numbers or experiment and find what works best for you.

7. You must tick the 'Enable scrollbars' option for your game to display properly, otherwise options, text and buttons can be clipped off the bottom of the viewport.

8. Continue filling out the rest of the form, or skip it for now and scroll all the way to the bottom to the 'Visibility & access' section. Here make sure you have 'Draft' selected. This prevents others from finding your game until you're ready, and I always recommend play testing things before you make your work public.

9. Finally, hit the 'Save' button, then go and have a look at your creation by hitting the 'View page' link. And there you go! When you're ready for public release, just change the option in section 8 to 'Public'.

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A few things to bear in mind about hosting on itch.io.

There isn't currently any way for your readers to save their game. I'm sure someone could write in a plugin similar to Dashingdon's at some point, but as for right now, this isn't available.

Make sure you properly tag your game with the 'choicescript' and 'interactive-fiction' tags. There are an awful lot of games on itch.io and it's easy to get lost in the crowd. Make sure folks can find you by having the right tags.

I hope this brief guide was useful to folks.

Best of luck to you with your writing!

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just read the new chapter it was amazinggg!!

also bruh,,, my mc hasn’t started smoking yet but after all things that happened this chapter she’s definitely thinking about it 😭 mc is way stronger then me i would’ve curled up in a fetal position in bed for 12 hrs straight

LMAO i was actually thinking of making that an option later. i can for sure see a few mcs getting so stressed out they need to take up smoking