Augmented Fourth

Augmented Fourth
Game

Main links	Play onlineDownloadSource code IFDB IF Archive
Published	1 April 2000
Credits
Author	Brian Uri
Reception
Events	XYZZY Awards 2000 Finalist: Best Individual NPC, Best Puzzles
IFDB rating	4 out of 5 (69 ratings)
Gameplay
Interaction style	Parser
Literary genres	Comedy Fantasy
Location	Underground
Language	English
Cruelty scale	Polite
IFDB play time	5 hours
Accessibility	Colour: none. Graphics: none. Sound: none.
Technical details
Authoring system	Inform 6
Format	Z-code 8
IFID	ZCODE-1-000401-8238
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Augmented Fourth is a light-hearted game in the vein of early traditional puzzle-based IF. In the game, you are an amateur musician applying for a post in the Royal Court of King Goosen of Papoosen. After your audition displeases the King, you are banished and tossed into a pit, where you discover an entrance into a very peculiar community tucked into a volcano.

The game was a finalist for Best Individual NPC (King Goosen of Papoosen), and Best Puzzles in the XYZZY Awards 2000.

How it begins

"In ye go!" With a heave and a shove, two burly guards in matching green tights toss you into Orchestra Pit. As the earthen sides rush past you and sunlight dims, you have the sinking sensation that perhaps "Ode to a Duck" was not the best choice from your repertoire...

Notable features

Magic system based on music; instead of casting spells, you play special songs. Magic helps solve some of the puzzles, but not all of them.
Cutscenes are used both to reward the player for making progress, and to partition out the storyline. The backstory will eventually provide the PC with motivation beyond the initial desire to escape from exile.
Several IF in-jokes, including the response to "undress" and an elaborate set of responses to "xyzzy". The description of the Darkness room is:
It is pitch black. You are unlikely to be tripped by a polydactyl raccoon.
Several reviewers remarked on how technically sound the game is; that is, although there is little that is innovative here, it's all done so well.
Several reviewers remarked on how clever the humor was; it's not just funny descriptions of things.
Some reviewers remarked on the game's Zork-like feel, without it actually being Zork.

Trivia and Comments

This is the author's only work of IF.
The original cover art was created by Rikard Peterson for the IF Cover Art Drive. The author created a new cover in 2020.
An augmented fourth in music is also known as the tritone. The term has another meaning in this game as well, but it is not revealed until the end.
"Nolava" is Avalon spelt backwards.

Versions

Release 1

Date: 1 April 2000

Augmented Fourth (Brian Uri!; 01-Apr-2000; Z-code 8).
- Release 1 / Serial number 000401 / Inform v6.21 Library 6/10
- IFID: ZCODE-1-000401-8238
  IFID links: IFDB

Release 2

Date: 21 July 2009

Augmented Fourth (Brian Uri!; 21-Jul-2009; Z-code 8).
- Release 2 / Serial number 090721 / Inform v6.21 Library 6/10
- Corrected a few minor bugs that always irritated the author, but not enough to render him willing to fix them during the previous nine years.

Release 3

Date: 2 July 2013

Augmented Fourth (Brian Uri!; 02-Jul-2013; Z-code 8).
- Release 3 / Serial number 130702 / Inform v6.21 Library 6/10
- Fixed a couple bugs related to the Lively Jig that were identified by the most recent generation of avid players.

Release 4

Date: 1 April 2020

Augmented Fourth (Brian Uri!; 01-Apr-2020; Z-code 8).
- Release 4 / Serial number 200401 / Inform v6.21 Library 6/10
- 20th Anniversary Edition, featuring updated cover art, an author retrospective, and various gameplay enhancements and bug fixes.
- The "Source code" link on this page relates to this version.

Links

N.B. Many IF Archive games are temporarily unavailable in the UK.

Downloads

Download Aug4.z8 from the IF Archive - the story file.