My Perfect Console with Simon Parkin Jon Ingold, co-founder Inkle (80 Days, Expelled!, TR-49).
Feb 3, 2026
Jon Ingold, British game designer and co-founder of Inkle known for narrative games and the Ink scripting language. He discusses TR-49’s archival deduction and live audio overlay. He talks about designing reactive archives, keeping narrative coherent amid player freedom, and the influences from parser fiction, theatre, and classic mystery storytelling.
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Museum Index Cards Spark Archive World
- Jon visited the British Museum's back library and saw boxes of index cards with ink sketches of artifacts.
- That image inspired TR-49's archive feel: tiny, exquisite fragments that suggest a vast unknown collection.
Layer Freedom Under A Guided Narrative
- Jon Ingold separates player freedom from narrative control by layering a live audio story over exploratory documents.
- That audio layer guides pacing and preserves a coherent story while players roam freely inside the simulated archive.
Use A Structural Wrapper For Branching Play
- Use an overarching structure to contain branching exploration and preserve narrative shape.
- Let player choices generate content but rely on a linear wrapper to deliver a satisfying story arc.
