Give up the Ghost
Elijah Biscoe & Minh-Anh Hoàng
See it On Campus: Level 1
Visitor Info
Give up the Ghost is an interactive narrative set in the ancient crossroads city of Forde.
Assume the mantle of the Overseer, solve the murder at the edge of town, and immerse yourself in the fabric of the world.
Your memories—which are influenced by the decisions you choose to make—will in turn determine who you will become.
Give up the Ghost can be best thought of as a visual novel. The primary point of interaction is through the narrative text—your choices affect the progression of the story as you move through the city and beyond.
You play as the Overseer Alhart, a wanderer tasked with protecting all living souls in the world.
You were summoned to the city to assist in solving a strange and gruesome murder.
Such heinous violence weighs heavy in the air. Not all is well in Forde.
In this portion of the narrative, you find yourself in the middle of the district Armature.
The city Forde is nothing if not fraught with problems that need solving—the one you’ll face in this short demo puts the very foundation of the world in jeopardy.
This place has seen better days.
Situated in the center of the vast inland steppe, Forde was once the capital of the world.
It is no longer, and much of it has fallen into disrepair.
The city reaches towards the sky.
Concentric walls carve up its geography into a particular social morphology—each divided district corresponds to social class.
The city begins with the thatch-roofed Wheatfields, a tightly-woven agrarian community just outside the great wall.
Next is Armature, the first district within Forde proper. This is the beating heart of industry—a soot-covered district, where they stoke the fires and work the mills.
Just above Armature are the Crossroads—the oldest part of the city and the commercial center of Forde. Here, flags catch the wind, and merchants strain to sell their spices and pithy wares.
Above everything is the high House on the Hill, home to the reclusive Lord Alhart—a man for whom you have the displeasure of calling your uncle.
…hidden within shifting alleys, endless walls, and little forgotten bars.
Though this city is a shadow of its former self, you may still discover its mysteries…
And never forget that this city is home to a million people, who love it dearly, and want nothing more than to make it grow.
If you seek to uncover these mysteries, and immerse yourself within the city Forde—visit our website, Dust Bowl Interactive, by clicking below.
ELIJAH BISCOE
Elijah Biscoe is a writer, illustrator, and gamemaster. He is afflicted with an obsessive compulsion to learn everything he can about the world around him. This has resulted in a chronic Wikipedia addiction which has had lasting effects on his overall health. His interests vary wildly—from literature and poetry, to role-playing-games, to cultural anthropology, to political geography, to prehistoric marine biology. You will likely find him sleepless, drifting through the city.
MINH-ANH HOÀNG
Minh-Anh/Maggie Hoàng is an illustrator and game designer originally from Hà Nội, Việt Nam. She is drawn to symbolism, memories, and the blurred line between man and animal. Her practice comes from everything her six senses enjoy: existential games, wordless poetry in films, the plethora of rock sub-genres, foot aches from backpacking, and butter croissants. She’s mostly found surrounded by silence.
