Curses (computer game)

Curses
Curses being played in a modern interpreter.
Developer(s)	Graham Nelson
Publisher(s)	Self published
Designer(s)	Graham Nelson
Engine	Z-machine
Platform(s)	Z-machine
Release	1993
Genre(s)	Interactive Fiction, Aventure
Mode(s)	Single player

Curses is an interactive fiction computer game created by Graham Nelson in 1993. It was originally developed on an Acorn Archimedes using Acorn C/C++, before Nelson moved to his Inform programming language, which was simultaneously released. It was the first non-test game developed in the language. It is distributed without charge as a Z-Code executable. Writing for the New York Times, Edward Rothstein described the game as "acclaimed." The Inform source code is not publicly available. Appearing in the beginning of the non-commercial era of interactive fiction, it is considered one of the milestones of the genre. The player takes the part of an English aristocrat called Victor Meldrew. In the course of searching the attic for an old tourist map of Paris, Meldrew steps into a surreal adventure to uncover a centuries-old curse that has been placed on the family. The goal of the game is to find the missing map, and thus annul the curse.

Curses contains some innovations that contribute to its appeal.