Text Adventures/Interactive Fiction on a Tesla
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2026 12:00 pm
I'm working on a more detailed article for Caltrops (I'll cross post it here when it's all done) but I wanted to share a couple of pictures from this experiment so far.
It took a couple of attempts to find that worked, but it turns out there are lots of z-machine/browser implementations, almost all of which offer Zork as a playable game.
The Tesla is notoriously locked down. I could not get a keyboard (Bluetooth or USB) to work. My Bluetooth gamepad, which works with the car's built-in games, doesn't do anything with the virtual keyboard. I also could not get the car's microphone to send commands to the browser. Instead it routes them to the car and tells me it cannot OPEN MAILBOX.
Similarly, I was able to get ICJ's working through the hugo link on Caltrops. Again, input is limited to poking in letters one at a time on a virtual keyboard and there are other limitations (the browser only works while the car is in park so don't expect Chicks Dig Jerks Who Play Games While Driving anytime soon, but year -- it's possible.
Life's less about what we should do and more about what we can do.
It took a couple of attempts to find that worked, but it turns out there are lots of z-machine/browser implementations, almost all of which offer Zork as a playable game.
The Tesla is notoriously locked down. I could not get a keyboard (Bluetooth or USB) to work. My Bluetooth gamepad, which works with the car's built-in games, doesn't do anything with the virtual keyboard. I also could not get the car's microphone to send commands to the browser. Instead it routes them to the car and tells me it cannot OPEN MAILBOX.
Similarly, I was able to get ICJ's working through the hugo link on Caltrops. Again, input is limited to poking in letters one at a time on a virtual keyboard and there are other limitations (the browser only works while the car is in park so don't expect Chicks Dig Jerks Who Play Games While Driving anytime soon, but year -- it's possible.
Life's less about what we should do and more about what we can do.