The Lacquer Screen

The Lacquer Screen (1981-1987), a cult-classic panel TV-show steeped in Orientalism that danced on the hot coals of the inhibited sexuality of its time period, prominently featured an antique piece of the eponymous partition. When the show came to an abrupt end that legendary prop vanished, only to be rediscovered in the home of one of your neighbours. As a collector of obscure TV memorabilia, will you take this once-in-a-lifetime chance to discover the secrets of a fabled piece of television history?

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RIP to an interesting idea for a menacing short story: slaughtered by using the wrong medium and expertly butchered by overscope and getting the submission date wrong! The cutting room floor is covered by more than half of the actual story, any form of visual cues, all planned sfx and music. You're going to have to fill the rest in using your imagination ♥

That said, I enjoyed my time working on this text adventure and learned a lot about the unexpected flexibilities of the Harlowe story format for Twine. As it reads now, The Lacquer Screen is more like a surreal, sad vigil for an obsessive and his final days than it is a horror game. If it feels unfinished, that's because it is. Aren't we all? It has potential, and I might come back to tinker with it as it looks right now, or in some other fashion.

If you want something to listen to while playing this, I recommend Snow Maps by the inimitable Brian Grainger of Milieu and Coppice Halifax.