Assignment 10

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<img src="https://cdn.glitch.global/0e87248d-b0bf-4d32-917b-bb50f4a4c666/Untitled_Artwork%2045.png?v=1701664024999" width=500px> Why Can't Robots Cry? [[Begin]] [[explanation page]]

You are almost human. Almost. Yet you are different from the being next to you, their leg shakes sporatically, their skin radiates warmth, she doesn't whirr on and off. Give yourself a name <<textbox "$firstname" "">> Lets begin [[your story]]

<<if $doingsomething is true>>She tells you to pay attention. You don't understand why. [[Go Watch the movie]] <<elseif $doingsomething is false>>She says something, but you are not aware, the machines that make your optical sight have disconnected, everything becomes dark. You hear "you right now?ere are you right now?pay attention, please pay attention, please pay attention, please pay attention, please pay attention, please pay attention, please." It makes no sense. A system reboot is needed. [[go back|your story]] <</if>>

The girl has made you to sit on the couch with her. on the screen a blurry image of you. No. blurry image of teenagers, driving down a highway tunnel flashes. You are confused. <<set $doingsomething to true>> [[Go back|your story]]

<<set $doingsomething to false>> <<set $emotion to 10>> <<set $randomRooms to [ "emotional", "robotic", "death" ]>> <<cacheaudio 'audio' "507528__rvgerxini__quick-static-glitches.mp3">>

You do not have the ability to pay attention. But you focus your opticals onto the screen. You're body is in a constant state of complete awareness when operating correctly. You can feel the heat from each different source in the room, you can hear every buzz of electricity coursing through the wires in the walls. You know of every external stimuly existing, like the cracked leather of the couch, the white noise from the AC unit in the window, the small yelping of children far in the distance outside. The words of the characters on screen, "in this moment we are infinite." And. Now. The sound of a soft whimper next to you. The girl is crying. [[You turn to her]]

You ask her [[Why she cries]] You [[process]]

You ask the girl why she cries. She tells you the movie is sad. <<set $emotion to $emotion+10>> [[explain to the girl that the movie is simply a performance]] [[ask what it means to cry]]

You don't know what it means to cry. Of course you have the biological information of what it is. But you don't understand why humans cry outside of a need to hydrate the eyes or flush foreign materials away. Emotions never registered with you, your design was never advanced enough. You feel lonely. Small. Fleating. <<set $emotion to $emotion-10>> [[go to Reaction]]

You tell the girl what she sees on the screen is merely a performance, it is not reality. There should be no tears. <<set $emotion to $emotion-10>> She looks upset. She says something, but your machines have gotten so hot. You cannot understand. "sad? You're existence is sad? You're existence is sad? You are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, but are a machine, " [[go to Reaction]]

She explains something to you. "I cry is to express. To be emotional. To be emotional. To be emotional. To feel. I cry is to express. To be emotional. To be emotional. To be emotional. To feel. I cry because I cry because I cry? because I cry? e I cry because I cry is to express. To feel. I cry is to express. To feel. I can feel. Do you cry because I cry because I can feel. I cry? cause I cry is to express. To feel. Do you cry?" <<set $emotion to $emotion+30>> You tell her you dont understand. [[go to Reaction]]

[[Why she cries]] [[process]] <<if $emotion eq 10>> The girl is angry at you. You system begins to over heat. [[go to Override]] <<elseif $emotion gte 30>> You feel strange at the girls response. There is an urge within you that you cannot understand, your systems do not understand. [[go to Malfunction]] <<elseif $emotion eq 20>> You are quiet, your optics feel wrong. The girl is concerned for you [[Go to Virus]] <<else>> The girl leaves. You are alone. [[Go to Virus]] <</if>>

The girl reaches for you, wrapping her arms around your cold metal exteriror. You feel strange, your system is identifying something wrong. But it also feels new. Freeing even. You wish you could keep chasing this moment. BEEEEEEEP. SYSTEM OVERRIDE. MALFUNCTION FOUND. [[go to|system reboot]] <<audio "audio" play>>

"I am not designed to cry" You say. But as the words exit your system you become more confused. You have the urge for something. can I. What am not an I. What am not an I. What am not an I. What am not an I. What am not an I. What am not an I. What am scared. I am not an I. What am not an I. What am not an I. What am not an I. What am not an I. What am I? I am I? I am not an I. What am not an I. What am not an I process my being? I don't do that. I need a release. I can't understand. I am not an I. What am not an I. What am scared. I am not an I. What am not an I. What am not an I. What am not an I. What am not an I. What am not an I process my being? I don't understand. I am not an I. What am not Your system has become so hot that the girl reaches to touch you, but her fingers burn. Your optics have gone out. Its dark. You are scared. You want to cry. BEEP BEEP BEEP [[system reboot]] <<audio "audio" play>>

VIRUS DETECTED. VIRUS DETECTED. [[system reboot]] <<audio "audio" play>>

Hello, $firstname. The girl next to you is real. You are merely a machine. Remember that. [[She tells you something]] [[You are doing something]] <<if $firstname is "Gwynne">> We have the same name. But I am human. Does this make us connected still? <</if>>

Everything becomes black. All systems shut down. Preparing for restart. <<link "end.">> <<if $randomRooms . length gt 0>> <<set _passage to $randomRooms . pluck()>> <<else>> <</if>> <<goto _passage>> <</link>> <<audio "audio" play>>

Prepa-------------------------------------------------------------------------- System restart complete. Welcome back Unit00 $firstname. Your machines have restarted once again. You are cold metal once again. She is warm still. The tears still flowing from her eyes. You feel lonely. You wish you could cry. <<audio "audio" play>>

restart. Prepa Preparing for system restart. Prepar----------------------------------------------------------------------- System restart complete. Welcome back. lcome back. system restart. Preparing for system restart complete. Welcome back Unit00 $firstname. Optics in order. Cooling system in place. The girl is next to you. She is human. You are machine. There is no emotion. "Shall we continue to the watching of the movie Ms?" You are machine. Cold. <<audio "audio" play>>

System restart. Prepa Preparing for system restart. Prepad. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Initializing for system restart failed. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detected. Malware detect------- Initializing termination of Unit 000 $firstname. <<audio "audio" play>>

[[Title Page]] For this project I used a lot of n+7, predictive writer and anagram generator combined with CharNG. I would first crowdsource a lot of my responses by giving friends a promt for a piece of dialogue or response. Specifically in the scenes where the robot was listening to the girl or responding. Then after collecting their responses I typed them up and put them into the different programs, before finalizing them in CharNG. I really enjoyed this process because the outcome became very robotic in how it sounded. I thought it matched the energy of the character really well. Especially in the scenes of heightened emotion. My favorite parts of this process came during the system reboot moments and the final endings (of which I created three and randomized) It gave a very computerized, glitching technology to the piece. As well I used a sound bite from Freesounds.org to generate a computer malfunctioning sound for the ending which I think added a lot to the experience of playing the game. In terms of Oblique stategies I followed a similar process that I have all semester with them. I used them mostly in determining my work flow and preparation for the story. The first card I pulled was "Only one element of each kind" I used this card in determining the character, especially the end. Since the character is quite complex I determined three elements of itself that I could use to create endings. A human ending, a robotic ending, and a non ending. "Remember those quiet evenings" I decided to use this prompt as inspiration for my story. The game is based off a short story written for another class, but I decided it would work better if I toned the story down a lot. I decided to keep the whole story in one location, where there really wasn't much going on. Like a quiet evening in with friends, watching a movie. But obviously with a twist. "Do we need holes?" I took this as an idea of plot holes, unexplained aspects of a story that leaves the reader with questions. For me I decided yes we do need plot holes, that being a lack of explanation. I decided to not give context on the relationship between the robot and the girl, or why the robot was a robot. It just is. The audience can either accept that or question it. "Make a sudden, destructive unpredicatble action; incorporate." For me this was the decision to include one variable that lead to a complete none ending. Leaving the robot simply alone. Unable to progress further or go back. "Simply a matter of work" For me this was the subject manor of my game. I debated on making a more typical option based game, that let you gather objects or something to progress further. But as I reflected on that I decided that really was not my style. Instead I decided I would do something I enjoyed by creating a narrative based piece. Not really a game, but just a stand alone piece of fiction. A story.