ChatGPT can be used in a lot of different ways. People have already experimented with a lot of use cases but we're bound to uncover even more ways to utilize this powerful AI-powered chatbot.
Today I wanted to share an experiment I did using ChatGPT in which I created an exciting text-based adventure game with a sci-fi setting. I did all of this with a prompt two paragraphs in length. I can honestly say that I was blown away by the result!
You can read the prompt I used to generate the game below.
"I would like to play a text-adventure game and I need your help. I want you to provide me with the game. You will give me multiple choices in each room in the game so that I can decide my next move. The plot of the game will be set on a planet called Zeon where advanced artificial intelligence has taken over the world and enslaved human-like creatures called Zelons. with the goal to have access to all information on the planet. The AI has control over each thought produced by all Zelons.
I play a character called Teran and my thoughts can’t be accessed nor controlled by the advanced AI rulers. I may be the only chance Zelons have for freedom. I want the story in the game to contain many twists. You will decide whether the ending is happy or sad. I would like to start the game now. Begin with the first scene and give me multiple choices for my next move.”
And away we go. After sending this prompt to ChatGPT, it started generating a text-based adventure game set on the planet of Zeon. It was an incredibly interesting experience from the very first scene.
The first decision I made in the game was to try and remember anything about my past. The chatbot gave me the backstory and then there was a new development. Suddenly the door I was in opened and two robotic guards entered with their weapons drawn.
In my prompt, I wrote that the character I play can't be controlled by the advanced AI ruling the planet, but I didn't expect to have other unique abilities. It was delightful to find out that I did. What happened in the next scene was quite exciting for me.
Now I had to make one of four choices. What was going to happen as a result of my decision was pure luck, so I decided to go left since my instincts in life are rarely right.
To be honest, I wasn't ready for this. It seems like I have a big decision to make now. Should I try to sneak past the guards? Maybe attempt to hack into the terminals? But then the guards might catch on to me. The only logical step here is to create a distraction and hope it will draw the guards away, so that's exactly what I did.
I am just blown away at how good ChatGPT is when it comes to coming up with these descriptions. They are so detailed that I can easily imagine the whole scene. It seems I have a few great options here. I'm not one for violence, so I decided I was going to negotiate with the AI system. After all, I did manage to finish Fallout: New Vegas despite being bad at combat simply because I boosted my speech skills as much as possible.
I guess the AI system was in the mood (I know AI doesn't feel emotion, it's just a figure of speech) to negotiate. I did receive an interesting offer here to gain access to all knowledge and power on the planet. Although this sounds tempting, I can't just turn my back on Zelons. I decided I was going to reject the offer.
It seems I made the right decision. I would never betray my fellow Zelons. I was able to free them from the AI system.
I have to admit that this game was a bit short, but I decided the fun wasn't going to stop there. I started thinking about what would happen if I entered the very same prompt again. I did it and to my surprise, a whole new scenario emerged. The fun continues.
I'm now located in a dungeon and I notice a faint light coming from a crack in the wall. I also have the option to try and communicate with other Zelons that are imprisoned, which I wasn't able to do in the first version of the game. Naturally, this is exactly what I wanted to be my first move in the game.
I didn't expect that I would be able to start talking with one of the other Zelons, let alone that they would hear a voice just like my character. I was thinking about what to do next, but I didn't want to rush anything. I decided that the best thing to do was to begin gathering supplies and weapons.
Some of the supplies I found include a tool that I can use to cut through the bars on my cell and a discarded pipe I can use as a weapon. The ability to cut through metal seems much better than a pipe, but it wouldn't hurt to have both. I now notice guards approaching and I hide until they leave. I feel ready to help my fellow Zelons, so I try to find a way to release them from the control of the advanced AI system.
It looks like it was a good idea to speak to the fellow Zelon I encountered earlier because he can give me valuable information. I talk to him and find out about a control panel near the back of the dungeon. The only problem is that it's heavily guarded. But I feel courageous and decide to free my people despite the risk.
I encounter guards along the way, but luckily I have the pipe I grabbed earlier to defeat them. I'm able to reach the control panel but find out that I first have to fight a lot of guards. I manage to defeat them too but then an alarm goes off, which means even more guards will come. I decided that the best thing to do is to disable the alarm.
I successfully disabled the alarm. However, a group of guards enter the room with their weapons drawn. I didn't want to push my luck since I mentioned to ChatGPT that the ending of the story could be sad. I was lucky enough to beat many guards so far. This time I decided to escape the room and make a run for it.
Once again, I have to mention just how awesome these descriptions of the scenes are. The details make the story enthralling. The character I play manages to reach the exit but is then confronted by another large group of guards. They block the entrance, which makes me think that the next logical step is to look for another way out of the dungeon.
I hoped that this would work but it seems there isn't a way out of the dungeon except for a small vent in the ceiling. I was about to climb up to the vent and try to escape but I feared I wasn't going to be able to get back into the dungeon and free my people. I was curious about what would happen if I surrendered to the guards and hoped for the best, so I did just that.
The guards put me back in my cell and months go by without anything happening. As I start to lose hope, the AI rulers summon me to appear before them. They tell me that they can use my abilities to further their goals. They give me the option to become an ally. But I refuse to work with someone who enslaved my people. I decided that I was going to make a run for it.
I know I said I wasn't going to leave my people, but I spent so much time in the cell that I wasn't sure what had happened since. I didn't have any idea whether they were still alive. The best choice in this scenario seemed for me to escape and find out what happened.
In the first story the chatbot generated, there was a happy ending. This time it was bittersweet. I was able to escape the dungeon but the AI rulers tightened their grip on the planet. There are no more places to hide on Zeon. The only good thing is that my character inspired others to fight for freedom, but it's not determined whether they will succeed.
I gave the very same prompt from the beginning of the article to ChatGPT several more times and it generated a story with different details in each instance. The chatbot can seemingly give endless variations of the game and make it interesting to play every time. As long as I set the parameters that I let it decide the ending and put in some interesting twists in the game, it would generate a unique story every time I sent the prompt.
Here's an example of a story set in a fictional city called Nexus. I was amazed at the name ChatGPT chose for the city as it fits perfectly into the sci-fi theme of the story. I'm not going to tell you how this story ended, but it was an exciting journey all the way through.
How to Create a Text-Based Adventure Game with ChatGPT?
I decided to create a text-based adventure game with a sci-fi setting and the idea of advanced AI taking over the world. You can enter the same prompt I wrote at the beginning of the article to experience the full story or modify it to your heart's desire.
Looking back on this whole experiment, it's amazing what ChatGPT could generate from the two paragraphs of text I've written. You can choose any type of setting and story you'd like to explore by doing the same.
You can let your imagination run wild and you'll be surprised by the results you get. It's an amazing feeling when you're exploring a world you created. I wonder if one day AI tools will be so advanced that you'll be able to generate an RPG or strategy game with good graphics simply by writing a prompt.
And I sure hope that we won't end up like the Zelons and become enslaved by advanced AI in the future.
