Welcome to the Excalibur Wiki. This fan-run encyclopaedia preserves the details of an obscure science fantasy television series from the 1970s. Though much of its footage was lost, a group of dedicated fans still have strong memories of the show — as well as unique theories, occasional arguments, and lingering questions."
Originally submitted to the 2021 Spring Thing Festival, Excalibur is my seventh published work of interactive fiction, co-authored by G. C. Baccaris (Heretic's Hope) and Duncan Bowsman (The Ascot).
Taking the form of a fan-wiki for a non-existent 1970s science fantasy TV show, Excalibur is a rumination on memory, loss and the role of nostalgia in 21st century culture. Since the launch of the post-comp release on itch.io, Excalibur has been featured in The Verge, BoingBoing.net, Part Time Storier and Metafilter. At the time of writing it has been played almost 2,500 times, making it one of the most successful interactive fiction projects I've been involved in.
"Excalibur engages intelligently with the role nostalgia plays in our culture and interrogates the impulses that give rise to these kinds of massive fan-projects." — Mike Russo, IFDB
"Excalibur perfectly encapsulates the atmosphere of these communities I find so compelling, and it does so at the same time as interweaving several beautifully crafted narratives about the show, its creators, and its fans, full of fun little details and nods to Arthurian legend and other literature. I could have browsed the Excalibur wiki forever, even without the eventual updates that bring some progression to the story." — Jane Titor, Part-Time Storier
"I lost myself in this for hours and I'd urge anyone else to do the same. Even for players not quite as steeped in the milieu from which this thing emerges as I am, there is an enormous amount to enjoy in this lovingly crafted and immersive account of the making of a television series that one cannot help but regret never actually existed." — ChrisM, IFDB
"Excalibur contrasts the ephemerality of older media with the obsessiveness of online fan culture, exploring that deceptive feeling that the internet puts all knowledge within our reach." — Adi Robertson, The Verge
