The Passenger

Interactive fiction about an eldritch abomination stuck on Earth *Icon by Plushchimera* *I answer asks on Sundays* *Have fun :)*

[the-passenger-if]

Do you like monsters? Do you think they are the best part of their respective movies, books, and shows? Then The Passenger might be the game for you.

In the choicescript IF The Passenger you are an eldritch abomination that’s about to be devoured by another unthinkable creature. Good news is you are pretty crafty and know how to jump dimensions to escape your ghastly fate; bad news is, you’re now stuck on Earth, trapped inside a dumb human larva.

As years go by, you realize the amount of energy you need to leave this horrible dimension behind is a lot more than you anticipated. Not to mention the creature that almost ate you all those years ago never really stopped looking for you. But there’s no way it’ll pinpoint your actual location… right?

This game has 4 romantic options which are bisexual and available for male, female, and non-binary players:

Fiama (female) the waitress at C.C. Diner. She's 25 years old, she has dark kinky hair, big expressive brown eyes, and plump lips. Fiama is friendly and outgoing, and would rather be outside hiking and working out instead of stuck in the diner. She's reliable and no-nonsense and appreciates a bit of friendly competition. Just don't play Monopoly with her.

Jonny (male) the clerk at Hellbender's Video Store. He's 27, tall, with brown wavy hair and narrow moss green eyes. You'll never see him without his military jacket on if he can help it. Jonny is a prickly guy with a love for metal music and horror movies. He's also an acquired taste.

Roach (non-binary/male/female) an odd person with an odder aura around them. They appear to be in their early twenties, they are short with honey-colored eyes and hair. They are social, charismatic, and a shameless flirt, they also seem to be keeping lots of secrets from you. But you can trust them, probably.

Horizon (non-binary/male/female) what's your opinion on cult leaders? What about cult leaders that are also graceful, have high cheekbones, almond-shaped gray eyes, and long and curly black hair? Horizon is in their early thirties, methodical, level-headed, with a wise aura around them. But don't let their hippie-façade fool you, they know how to use a gun and they almost shot it once.

Buy The Passenger here

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[the-passenger-if]

Hey gang, how’s it going? Long time no proof of life. These last months have been a bit hectic with some medical emergencies, but things are slowly going back to normal so here I am. I took some time away from writing, but on Friday I opened ASOSAS document and I found myself laughing with and gagging at the stuff I wrote, which is the reaction I’m going for so, you know, that’s good. Some characters are so gross I’m genuinely curious about the type of discussions I’ll see here and in the COG forums.

I guess the important thing is I’m having fun and I want to write, the only obstacle right now is convincing the part of my brain that handles tasks to do its work. Honestly, I’ve been wanting to reply to these asks and pop in here for the last month, but every time I tried it was like trying to push a car that isn’t starting. But I finally did it, well done Pime.

Know that I’m ok, and very enthused about the new game, just taking it one step at a time.

Take care, I miss all of you, lots of hugs!

[the-passenger-if]

"Why do you look like a raw egg?" is living rent-free in my mind and every time I remember it I laugh. Watch out Roach, if you piss Newman off she'll scramble you :P

Oh, that one’s on Sharkie (one of my betas) I just came up with Roach’s reply. You know, Roach might actually be into some scrambling.

[the-passenger-if]

I don't even know if you still log in to this blog but I had to share a vivid dream I had about The passanger but like it was a book 2. I deadass woke up thinking it was a thing ;-;

It was about how MC and Roach years in the future, still traveling, were ambushed by some weird ass powerful people, who ended up being similar outer beings that work for the government and were sent after MC. They got captured and were basically told "work for us or we haunt your remaining family (to the MC. The sister had a kid)" . They went mission after mission, meeting other beings and working like CIA agents until they met a being as powerful as MC that wanted to eat Roach (cant remember why but probably the dumbass did something) and they were like a mob boss who also got a human family but they morality never switched because their family was shit. There was more but I cant remember 😭😭 it was soo good

Not like im giving you ideas or anything 👁️👁️ *cough*

I take a look at tumblr once every two or three weeks, but I’m still lurking!

Dude, that sounds so cool. It kind of reminds me of Firestarter. I can imagine the CIA kidnapping a bunch of people who, like Ara, talked to the fractals, and Roach wondering why everyone wants to eat them but not in a fun way.

[the-passenger-if]

I just finished playing The Passenger and oh my god I loved every second of it! Such a gripping story and characters that really played with my poor heart lol. I'm curious though, do you have plans for other writing projects, not necessarily The Passenger related? (Though I wouldn't complain about a sequel xD) I just truly loved your writing style and would love to see more.

Thanks, you’re very sweet. At the moment I’m working on A Song of Sirens and Soulmates which is a deconstruction of the romantasy genre. I talk about it here alongside with another project.

[the-passenger-if]

hi i’m really loving your game and writing style so far !! i was wondering if there’d be a way for you to implement a back button or save system ? i’ve seen some demos w those and i’d love to explore more story branches. no worries, if not though !

Oof, you and me both n_n" COG has some kind of "no back button" policy that I still don't understand. Now, about a save system, I know there's a way to do it because Harris Powell-Smith added one to their games, so I might try it for my next games.

[the-passenger-if]

Have you ever read 17776? Im on a reread right now and Juice gives me big Roach vibes!

I haven’t, but I think Hello, Future Me talked about it in a vid about immortality.

A quick search tells me Juice is the satellite Juice Q. Love that.

[the-passenger-if]

Hey, I remember when I stayed up and hyper focused on this IF when it was a demo and infodumped this to my friends years ago. And its finally done and ngl I am so happy to have that same happiness reading it again. Thank you for finishing this IF and being around still! I can't wait to devour this again.

Thanks, I’m very glad you enjoyed the ride.

[the-passenger-if]

So Roach can taste things, feel things, have orgasms etc..

But can they finally get drunk now? High? I wonder what kind of drunk they would be...

They can! I suppose their first time getting drunk, they'd go from “Hey this feels funny!” to throwing up on somebody’s new shirt in record time. They spend the rest of the night whining about how awful they're feeling and blaming Newman for not stopping them before this happened.

Roach doesn’t leave their bed for a day, and whines if Newman tries to get up. Then they swear off alcohol for good… only to try it again like a month later. They do pace themselves this time around.

[the-passenger-if]

Hey was utterly blown away by the Passenger! I've got to ask though will Ara ever forgive Newman or has that ship now sailed? Also even though I romanced Jonny please tell me I can adopt Bruno please?

Hey, thanks :3 Ara would probably forgive Newman if it bothered Newman enough to bring it to Livvy’s attention. She would ask Ara to cut her sibling some slack, and Ara would do it for her, but things would still be kind of awkward. Newman would have to work to get her to be on friendly terms with them again.

You mean adopting Bruno like in, would Jonny and Fiama be alright with Newman being friends with Fiama while dating Jonny? And would Fiama let Newman and Jonny take Bruno to the theater or the playground? Yeah, neither would mind because Fiama trusts Newman, and Jonny doesn’t mind Bruno—I mean, he is sort of awkward around children, but he is sort of awkward around everyone, so...

[the-passenger-if]

dunno if you're still looking for stuff to read (feel free to discard if you aren't), but @1966-if has a game where you play as hastur who got summoned unwillingly into a body. might be up your alley, though might also be too similar to your own if. either way, thought i'd pass it over as someone who enjoyed both yours and theirs

Thanks for the rec, I actually played it back when you sent this ask ages ago and I remember having a good time with it. So, if anyone out there is in the mood for another otherwordly MC, 1966 is an interesting find.

[creative-clawmarks]

A horrific shambling abomination is magically transformed into a human and the story treats this as body horror. It immediately falls over into the dirt because it isn't used to balancing on legs or having bones, It claws at its too-few eyes with too-blunt nails and screams in a voice that is utterly alien to it, the ever-present singing of the cosmos is silenced as its myriad senses dull to nothing.

And all of this is made worse by these things, these hideous things that have warped its form to match their own, telling it in condescending tones that they have saved it. That they are the perfect beings, the default beings, and that surely all creatures must long for their shape. That this is better than being what it was before.

[starrypawz]

More reasons why people need to go/read @the-passenger-if

The Passenger on Steam

Your eldritch existence is threatened when another abomination tries to feast on you. You flee, trapping yourself in human flesh, but will t

[the-passenger-if]

I got you, guys :3

[the-passenger-if]

You Don't Suck at Making Things

John has been my favourite youtuber for ages. The way he talks about stuff really resonates with me, and this vid about why it's hard creating things and feeling like they are good enough hit the nail in the head. If you are a writer/game developer or you do creative work of any kind, you might appreciate what he has to say.

[starrypawz]

yk what. ive been thinking abt jonny recently (ominously)🔥

Send me 🔥 and a character and I’ll share a nsfw/nsfw adjacent headcanon 👀

I think Jonny boy is actually pretty down for a lot of stuff however actually getting him to go 'So I kinda wanna try xyz' is a whole other story (let alone admit any like deep dark fantasies he has)

And you get a bonus since you're my @the-passenger-if Mutual adjacent to that (and i know i did elude to it in a fic once) he is more than a little down for some 'oh no the horror movie villain/monster has caught me whatever is going to happen to poor little old me 👉👈😳 (basically ravishment and maybe a lil primal play ya know, for fun)

[fintan-pyren]

Character who's a third wheel, but in the same way that a tricycle has three wheels. You technically might be able to remove him, but it's going to be a lot less stable and a lot more likely to result in someone's death if you do.

[fintan-pyren]

I want whatever this person has

[starrypawz]

@the-passenger-if

[starrypawz]

AO3 So I'm guessing I started writing this last year, have no idea why this never got posted or where I was actually going with it

but it's now Spooky Season because I say so so have some short and sweet Jonny ( @the-passenger-if ) and Lucas smut I didn't realise I had kicking around

Jonny absent mindedly runs his fingers through Lucas’ hair, there’s a rustle of plastic as he reaches for the bag of candy and offers him another gummy worm which Lucas eagerly takes from him. 

With his mouth.

(And he maybe takes Jonny’s fingers into his mouth a little too long for it to be passed off as an accident and just long enough Jonny feels his cheeks warm) 

An evening in, a movie, Lucas’ head on his lap. 

It’s downright domestic. (Almost sickeningly so) 

Even if the movie is a horror movie.

 And even though Lucas over the course of the evening had managed to put away, depending on your point of view, an impressive or concerning amount of gummy worms. 

(He had claimed it was an extra bag just in case they’d had an influx of Trick or Treaters but he’s pretty sure Jonny hadn’t really brought that idea) 

He sighs softly as he nuzzles Jonny’s thigh as he continues to run his fingers through his hair. 

And then,

“Newman,” “Yes darlin’?” Lucas voice a picture of feigned innocence (A well honed skill) 

“Your hand is on my dick,” 

“Is it?” 

“Yes,” Jonny snorts, “It is”

“Oh-” Lucas bites down on a smirk (although that might not be totally necessary as he’s between Jonny’s thighs and he can’t see him anyway) as he lightly palms him and feels him twitch and hears him softly groan. 

Lucas’ fingers slip under the hem of his shirt to trail his fingers over the dark hair that runs down his stomach, feels him tense under his touch and then there’s that slight pull on his hair that’s become a silent signal for

“Don’t Stop”

And so Lucas doesn’t.

Continues to lazily tease him,brushes the button on his jeans and there’s another pull on his hair and Lucas makes short work of his fly. Palms him and mouths him ovr the fabric before  he works his cock through the fly of his boxers.

“Lucas-”  Jonny pulls on his hair again as Lucas lightly teases the head of his cock with a pierced tongue. “Just keep watching the movie,” Lucas grins up at him. 

Jonny cups his chin, “Even though I’ve got my cock out?”

“Yeah,” Lucas chuckles as he lightly nuzzles his half-hard cock. 

Jonny snorts, and lightly tugs on his hair again as Lucas continues to nuzzle as Jonny as instructed does his best to turn his attention back to the movie. 

Lucas gently takes his cock into his mouth.

Doesn’t do any of his usual tricks, just settles back down with Jonny’s cock in his mouth as the movie plays and Jonny gently runs his fingers through his hair. 

An evening in, a movie, Lucas’ mouth on his cock.

It’s downright domestic. 

(Almost sickeningly so)

[the-passenger-if]

Hey gang, how are you doing? I've been looking around for new IFs to read and Zinnia's ( @night-market-if ) discussion about how the IF community seems to have shrunken gave me the idea to drop here a bunch I've really liked (picture me making thumbs up at these authors):

Soulmates Inc. by @soulmatesinc-if You're a soul-link, some kind of modern cupid who is also an office worker with the task of making soulmates run into one another. You're also one of the best at what you do. Everything is fine and dandy until someone sabotages your powers making your last assignment impossible to complete. Now you have to work along a delightful cast of characters to find out how to finish your task… or if you even should.

Season of Shadows by Kwartel. Such a fun game about being a young noble in the Regency era who must get married in order to save their family from financial ruin/rub it in their ex-bethrothed's nose after being jilted by them. There isn't an option to be nonbinary from the start, but for what I've seen, you'll have the chance to present more masculine/feminine at a later date. Lots of ROs that respond differently depending on the MCs sex and presentation. Also, the author knows so much about the Regency era which I appreciate since I know nothing about it.

Burning Academia by @burning-academia-if Oh man, talking about a traumatized MC with a terrible family life. You're part of the prole (which is always a plus in my book) you have no money and not a chance to get into university, until you're attacked by something not from this world while visiting an acquaintance at his private college. Now you must attend this university in order to keep whatever that was away from you (and for them to keep an eye on you just in case you're secretly an evil wizard). Also, magic is real and nobody will let you acclimatize to this new earth-shattering revelation. Oh, and you're carrying an extra passenger in your head now. Have fun!

I also recommend checking out the notes in this post.

[burning-academia-if]

Thank you for the shout out!!! If you don't mind, I'm gonna shout out a few others I personally enjoy as well :D

Stillwater by @cosmic-writes-if: I love games that feel like a feverish nightmare and this is just that. You essentially wake up in an inn with no memory of how you got there but quickly learn Something is Wrong and you are expected to fall in line and act your part in whatever play they're putting on here. Vaguely had Truman Show vibes if The Truman Show was a horrific, nonsensical nightmare. I was so invested I binged this during the few breaks I got during a ten and a half hour shift. Definitely recommend for fans of weird horror.

Passerine Hills (just a bite edition) by @passerine-hills-if: You're essentially reading the journal of Tiffany Ragnell, a student at an elite and reclusive private academy for the rich and/or famous. This has a set protag, Tiffany, who I love?? So much?? She's messy and mean, and so are the other girls attending this school LOL. I also just love how clear and strong the voice of Tiffany is. It was also just really what I wanted in the moment: a slice of life sapphic drama.

Deerborne by @deerbourne-if: I've realized recently that I really love horror stories where an adult protagonist has to take care of a Weird Child that is not their own (although the kid is certainly theirs now). This falls into that category. Your sister reentered your life mentally unwell and pregnant. She dies not long after, leaving you with her child and the mystery of what happened to her when she disappeared years ago. Big fan of the atmosphere in this, big fan of the Weird Child.