Kindle gets The King of Shreds and Patches interactive fiction app

Author Jimmy Maher claims Amazon's platform is 'the most natural platform for IF since, well, ever'.

Could Amazon's Kindle spark a resurgence in text-based adventure games and interactive fiction? The e-reader's ability to run apps as well as display e-books is being capitalised on by author Jimmy Maher, who has high hopes for the platform.

He has released a Kindle app called The King of Shreds and Patches, an interactive novel that uses a natural-language parser to turn readers into the chief protaganist.

"King represents the first modern, parser-based work of interactive fiction to be released for the Kindle — and the Kindle in turn represents perhaps the most natural platform for IF since, well, ever," writes Maher on his blog.

The app's description adds more detail. "Interact with XVII-century London by typing simple commands like "Go to London Bridge", "Examine the note" or "Ask the bartender about the play". An elaborate hint system reveals as many clues as you desire to solve the story without spoiling the fun."

The King of Shreds and Patches is currently only available in the US Kindle Store. Several games have been released as Kindle apps, including Scrabble and Yahtzee. However, Maher's work is one of the first and most interesting book-apps for Amazon's device.