Whom the Telling Changed

This 2005 interactive fiction game is a narrative adaptation of the ancient Epic of Gilgamesh. Rather than playing as Gilgamesh himself, you play as a villager sitting around a fire, listening to a storyteller recount the myth.

The game was developed by Aaron Reed using the Inform programming language. It was an entry in the 2005 Interactive Fiction Competition, where it placed highly and won critical acclaim.

The core mechanic revolves around manipulating the story of Gilgamesh as it is being told by actively choosing what aspects of the characters to focus on. By shifting the listener's attention, the player actually alters the memories and the mythological history of the village.

The game interweaves the ancient Sumerian myth with the personal lives of the villagers listening to the tale. As the storyteller describes the bond between Gilgamesh and Enkidu, the player's choices cause the listeners to reflect on their own relationships and societal roles.