continuing the comparison between IF and riddles...

So, as I mentioned in my last blog post, riddles are usually a simple, one word answer whereas an IF work has more complex answers. Perhaps, if you consider an IF work as a SERIES of riddles, then it makes a bit more sense. Each "area" of the IF world is a narrative that is connected to other "areas" by riddles. In order to move from one narrative element (either a locked door, or a battle, or a trap of some kind) to another portion of the IF world you usually have to solve a puzzle which, quite often, takes the form of a riddle. (Find a key by looking under the table; win the battle by using a magic sword; escape the spiked walls closing in around you by climbing the rope.)

I do think that calling an IF work a riddle is a gross simplification, but elements of riddling do exist in the IF experience.