iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

If old, French, Ubisoft CPC horror games are of interest to anyone, you can watch this stream... But ALSO... read the the article about the endlessly wacky "Thing from Grotemburg" in ChoiceBeat zine! #RetroGames #InteractiveFiction #AdventureGames choicebeat.wordpress.com/2023/03/30/c...

Cover of ChoiceBeat: The Visual Novel and Interactive Fiction Zine. It shows pixel art of Rambo and a humanoid monster.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

The largest stained glass window IN THE WORLD is in Justice, IL. Who would've ever imagined?

Mausoleum hallway lined with stained glass windows

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Tombstone of Tampa Red "The Guitar Wizard" - This one isn't haunted, but the graveyard around it definitely is!

Gravestone reading: Hudson Whittaker "Tampa Red" The Guitar Wizard

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Some locations on this interactive virtual tour include... Ashbary Coffee House - Hangout for fans of the paranormal (and lots of regular people too). Haunted by at least one ghost.

Inside of a coffee shop, decorated for Halloween.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

It's October, the most timely month for THIS! I made a VIRTUAL TOUR of America's MOST HAUNTED road outside Chicago. So much crazy folklore packed into one tiny area! You can play it in your browser: willyelektrix.itch.io/ghosts-gangs... #Interactivefiction #Chicago #IndieGame

Title screen for Ghosts, Gangsters, and Radiation: The Archer Avenue Ghostlore Tour

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

I learned from this project: Sometimes dumb stuff starts a ghost legend. This is Dietrich Mansion. People think it's haunted. Why? 1) It looks weird. 2) An artist lived there and made some occult paintings. There are spooky places on Archer Ave. This is NOT one! #ChicagoHistory #Ghostlore

Mansion with blue siding and some pointy gables.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

My name game is out! Ghosts, Gangsters, and Radiation: The Archer Avenue Ghostlore Tour willyelektrix.itch.io/ghosts-gangs... Explore America's most haunted road in Chicago suburbs with this Choose Your Own Adventure-style tour. #TwineGame #InteractiveFiction #VisualNovel #Ghosts #ChicagoHistory

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Working on my virtual tour of Archer Avenue, "America's most haunted road" outside Chicago. It's home to the WORLD'S LARGEST STAINED GLASS WINDOW. Yup, hard to believe it's in Justice, IL. I've always been interested in this mysterious section depicting a mushroom cloud.

Stained glass window showing a mushroom cloud explosion.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

Drawing I made just for fun. Took a LONG time to get a color palette I could live with. I typically do all the lines with ink on paper, and then scan and color. Digital coloring is sort of a curse because it's easy to spend way too much time tweaking it endlessly.

Colored line drawing of a cone-shaped alien floating in front of portal. A city skyline hangs in the air above. Clouds and flying creatures swirl in the background.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

Fun Zone Omega, the mutant-filled post-apocalyptic #RPGMaker game, is in this bundle supporting game devs who have been laid off this year. Now you have a morally upstanding reason to play Fun Zone Omega... instead of the regular reason (i.e. you like mutants).

Burning green skeleton in pixel art style. There is a word balloon that says "Please, pay attention to me!"

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

A new issue of High Tide (an indie #VisualNovel zine) just came out! It has coverage of games from the #ToxicYuriJam. This one with art made from little statues looks TOTALLY COOL! It's called Da Capo by @samlewis.org. slewingtons.itch.io/da-capo

Visual novel screenshot. The characters are little statues of a maid and an elegantly dressed woman.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

The box art for this is beyond legendary. One of the few times that the English-language box art is WAY BETTER than the Japanese art. It's NEVER been done better.

Box art for Revengers of Vengeance. It shows a realistic painting a knight fighting a humanoid rhino. The text reads, "Revenge is sweet... they aren't!" "Fight or die!" and "Freaks! Freaks! Freaks!"

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 04/07/2026

My new "game" is an virtual tour of Archer Avenue "America's most haunted road" outside Chicago. This area is PACKED FULL of foklore. Here are the gates of Resurrection Cemetery. Legend says the missing bars were melted by a ghost. (Resurrection also has the world's largest stained glass window!)

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

Someone is out there reselling an issue of ChoiceBeat on Ebay. Does this mean we've made it to the big time? For real though, you can buy as many issues as you want way cheaper right on the ChoiceBeat website: choicebeat.wordpress.com/2025/10/28/c...

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

In ChoiceBeat: The #VisualNovel and #InteractiveFiction Zine... We got an article about nonfiction visual novels. A standout is Running at Night by @railgunrabbit.bsky.social Set in Korea, it captures the special vibe of being out alone past midnight. Page 18: www.flipsnack.com/choicebeat/c...

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 28/06/2026

Keep Driving by @ycjygames.bsky.social is on the cover of... ChoiceBeat: The #VisualNovel and #InteractiveFiction Zine Keep Driving is SO screenshot-able. Even the user interface! I could have put just the menus on the cover of the zine. Read the zine: choicebeat.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/c...

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

In ChoiceBeat: The #VisualNovel and #InteractiveFicion Zine... Everyone's least fav ghost, Chest Butlerhome, plays everyone's most fav game about dating cats, Cat President 3 by @oharock.bsky.social Dang! These photo graphics are in FULL EFFECT. The zine: choicebeat.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/c...

Candidate select screen from Cat President: 3rd-Rate Candidate. A line up of 5 photos of cats and one person in cat mask.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

You can also get the world's most stimulating gaming zine IN PRINT... WOW! What a world we live in. www.lulu.com/shop/choiceb... #VisualNovel #InteractiveFiction #IndieGame

Image of magazine with text reading ChoiceBeat: Visual Novel and Interactive Fiction Zine. The cover has a pixel art car on it from the game Keep Driving.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

ChoiceBeat: The #VisualNovel and #InteractiveFiction Zine is out! Scientists did research. Conclusion: It's impossible that an #IndieGame zine as sweet as ChoiceBeat appears more than once in a human lifetime. This is it. Don't waste it. Issue, 17 baby! choicebeat.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/c...

Cover of ChoiceBeat: The Visual Novel and Interactive Fiction Zine. A 1990s car rendered in a pixel art style is in front of a field of sunflowers. The image is from the game Keep Driving.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

Some gameplay of Carr Software's Capture the Flag (screenshot from Moby Games).

Screenshot of an overhead strategy game. A kid icon is shown running through a green field. It uses tiled pixel art graphics.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

Someone should remake this game! It's basically a turn-based version of kids playing capture the flag. I love how enormous the maps were. It would be the equivalent of playing a whole, real-life neighborhood. www.mobygames.com/game/1064/ca... #shareware

Screenshot of Capture the Flag by Carr Software. In a painterly, pixel-art style, it shows two kids tackling each other in front of a flag.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

As a kid, I thought this game was amazing: TC Robot Bout! I registered it and got 20 more games by the same creator. They also had 3D graphics and used tiny Windows 3.1 windows. Moby Games has some of the TC Games series, but not nearly all of of them: www.mobygames.com/game/233626/... #shareware

Windows 3.1 window that says TC Robot Bout. It has 3D wireframes of 2 robots brawling.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

I just updated Fun Zone Omega, my post-apocalyptic #RPGMaker game with new much-requested features. store.steampowered.com/app/3909230/... I could REALLY, REALLY use some more Steam reviews. So if you played the game and liked it, PLEASE, GOD PLEASE. Thanks! #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

Here is an condor-man from one of the two (!!!) different Rifts books all about South America. Cyborg cowboys, Incans, aliens, vampires, it's all in Rifts: South America, baby!

A humanoid condor wearing a colorful robe and a leather hat.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

Cleaning up some files today, and I found some really old #Rifts RPG characters I drew... Rifts is the coolest/silliest setting ever. Bless it. #ttrpg #rpgart

Drawing of a humanoid squid in polo shirt. He is holding various electronic sensors. He has a futuristic visor of his eyes.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

My fav things about this game: 1. All the character portraits look like photos even though the rest of the game has pixel art 2. The slime knight character class 3. The dog character class

Screenshot from a game. There is a semi-realistic picture of a dog in a helmet. It is labeled "companion."

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

Virtual Moose by @michaelklamerus.bsky.social is probably my favorite gaming blog on the internet. Short, thoughtful blurbs about a little-known games new and old. The best part is the links page. Dozens of colorful button for blogs, tools and creator portfolios: virtualmoose.org/favorite-blo...

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

Also... Crazy to say a zine about interactive fiction "isn't niche enough," but it's true! Narrative games... Japanese VNs... Choice of Games... It's all different audiences! Who are ChoiceBeat readers supposed to be?! There are only ~100 of them, but they must all be cool, iconoclastic people.

Cover of ChoiceBeat: The Visual Novel and Interactive Fiction Zine. It is anime art of a woman on a phone. She has a speech bubble full of retro CGA computer graphics.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

Making 40-page ChoiceBeat issues is a mistake. In the modern world, constantly releasing tiny stuff creates more interest than releasing a phone book-sized zine every few months. But that's why ChoiceBeat (The #VisualNovel and #InteractiveFiction Zine) is cool. WE NEVER DO WHAT'S BEST FOR US.

Cover of ChoiceBeat: The Visual Novel and Interactive Fiction Zine. It is black and white pixel art of a person in suit and tie with tentacles for a head.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

Subscribing to ChoiceBeat: The #VisualNovel and #InteractiveFiction Zine used to be a big pain. Now all you have to do to get ChoiceBeat free forever is click here: subscribepage.io/kB9nNg All barriers have now been removed between you and the WORLD'S OLDEST AND BEST #indiegame zine.

Cover of ChoiceBeat: The Visual Novel and Interactive Fiction Zine. It depicts a screaming, green claymation creature.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

I'm playing this game called Turbo Sloths about racing steamrollers in the crappy future. The gameplay trailer tries to hide this fact but... All the characters are HUMANOID SLOTHS! Come on, no need to be embarrassed. The best part, when your vehicle blows up, the announcer says "OH MY SLOTHS!"

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

That misanthrope Chest Butlerhome is playing Cat President 3 for the next ChoiceBeat: The #VisualNovel and #InteractiveFiction Zine... Will Chest handle this human/cat romance maturely? Doubtful. Nice to have another game by @oharock.bsky.social in ChoiceBeat. The last one was issue 4!

Visual novel screenshot of two cats. One is saying, "I like inspirational cat posters! They remind me to hang in there, no matter what."

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

For real, this issue is PACKED... > Comments by Hanako Games creator, Georgina Bensley (@hanakogames.bsky.social) > A book called "Digital Love: Romance and Sexuality in Games" > An Alfred Hitchcock game with silly graphics ChoiceBeat #6 is a burning light in the world of #narrativegames.

Cover for ChoiceBeat: The Visual Novel and Interactive Fiction Zine. The cover has a CG woman sticking an injection needle in a man's neck. She has a speech balloon reading, "Come get your fun injection in ChoiceBeat!"

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

Issue 6 of ChoiceBeat: The #VisualNovel and #InteractiveFiction Zine was a fan favorite probably because of the gross cover. choicebeat.wordpress.com/2023/03/28/c... But my fav part was a review of Mirrors, a Japanese #PC88 horror game from 1992 about a rock band on tour. IT HAS PHOTO GRAPHICS.

Visual novel screenshot with a blue cityscape and a hand. The text reads,
"When he looked inside, he could only see a hand coming out of the ground."

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

ChoiceBeat #9 also features... FISHING VACTION... a horror-themed #GameBoy fishing game. It's crazy to say this, but now horror fishing games are a dime-a-dozen. IT WASN'T ALWAYS LIKE THIS! Was Fishing Vacation the first? I'm not sure, but it's an early one. #indiegames

Screenshot from a Game Boy-looking game. It shows a dock and lake. A text box with a frog says, "You caught a... WART! 3 inches"

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

Back in issue #9 ChoiceBeat: The #VisualNovel and #InteractiveFiction Zine, we had a review of Gnosia. In a bold editorial move, ChoiceBot (our robotic overlord) put the Gnosia review next to a review of Raging Loop, a MUCH WORSE game with the SAME premise. choicebeat.wordpress.com/2023/10/26/c...

Screenshot from a visual novel. An anime girl is holding a dog collar and saying, "So I'll like, totally keep you as a pet! Here, put this on! And like, keep it on! Ahahaha!"

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Also in ChoiceBeat #1... A weird one! A haunted house #FMV arcade cabinet called The Spectre Files: Deathstalker. Designed in the 1980s by the guy who made Rampage but unreleased until 2017! Full-motion video (FMV) games always have dodgy gameplay, and so does this one! But it still rules!

Image of a ghoul with a big hair hanging from a trapdoor in a ceiling.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Back in ChoiceBeat #1, we had a review/interview about Raptor Boyfriend. The plot: Teen girl in the '80s dates cryptids. choicebeat.wordpress.com/2023/03/28/c... Wacky romance games and '80s nostalgia are passe now, but Raptor Boyfriend is thoughtful and sincere. Real emotions here. #visualnovel

Screenshot from a visual novel showing a girl driving a car. The passengers are another girl, a raptor, and a sasquatch.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Reading an article about game fanzines (www.forgottenworlds.net/video-game-f...), and I realized... At 5 years and 16 issues, ChoiceBeat: The #VisualNovel and #InteractiveFiction Zine has outlived 95% of gaming publications. WE GOTTA CELEBRATE. This week, I'm posting some of my ChoiceBeat favs.

Cover of ChoiceBeat: The Visual Novel and Interactive Fiction Zine, issue #1. It's a pixel art image of two people on a pink landscape.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

And one more from this series. Why not?

Pink organic object is climbing on a pipe. A string of organic-looking material hangs in the foreground.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

Years ago, I made several pieces in a similar style. Here is another.

Two undersea-like creatures drift in front of columns of pink smoke.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

I haven't been drawing very much in the past few years, so I decided to do a big piece to shake the dust off. I'm not sure what's going on here. Just trying make something mysterious and alien.

Red, blob-like aliens with beaks cross a night-time landscape. They are in a big line. In the foreground is a glowing green orb on a stick.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

This is my character from a Shadowrun TTRPG I'm in. His call sign is Rascal, and he's a shaman of the opossum spirit.

Drawing of a man with long hair. He is wearing a cloak and all his clothes are covered in pockets. He is holding a stuffed opossum toy.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 22/03/2026

I recently watched this psychedelic sci-fi animated movie from from Romania call Delta Space Mission. I would recommend it for its groovy, colorful, fluid animation. Here's a thorough review with some good screenshots: www.cineoutsider.com/reviews/blur...

Colorful still from an animated movie showing an alien woman with a gun imposed over a painted backdrop of abstract plants.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

I updated this AWESOME CHART to add one last boss... His name is EMPEROR, and he's a sapient mushroom cloud. A real bad guy (not just misunderstood). What's up with these crazy mutants? You gotta play the game... store.steampowered.com/app/3909230/... #pixelart #indiegame #rpgmaker #indiedev

Top of chart reads "Fun Zone Omega." There are images of ~40 pixel art monsters in a cartoony pixel art style.

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

A skeleton, dripping liquid plasma, walks up to you and says... "My bestie Andi really needs some more reviews of his game Fun Zone Omega. "If you played it, please write a review on Steam or rate it on itch. Both those things really help with the algorithm or whatever, you know? THANK YOU!"

Pixel art of green skeleton surrounded by yellow flames. A speech balloon says, "Please, pay attention to me!"

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 15/03/2026

I released some free community copies of Fun Zone Omega on itch: willyelektrix.itch.io/fun-zone-omega If you're broke but really need some high-intensity MUTANT RPG action in your life, this is for you. Quantities are limited, so please save them for the real broke people. Thanks for playing!

Screenshot for a JRPG game with pixel art. The Prophet is saying, "The Ancients called this a vending machine. You can recycle unwanted things and earn tokens. Spend those tokens to buy new things. This was once known as capitalism."

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Willy Elektrix @willyelektrix.bsky.social · 14/03/2026

Wow! The art in this game is wild! It's called Cape Hideous. It guess it's an adventure game set on a pirate ship...? store.steampowered.com/app/3187550/... Cool! #indiegames

Drawing of a scarred man with an eyepatch.

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