To anyone who hasn't played text adventures before, I highly recommend giving them a try because there's nothing else like them.

Everybody has their own recommended starting points, but here are a few of mine for anyone who might be interested.

9:05

https://ifdb.org/viewgame?id=qzftg3j8nh5f34i2

Can complete in a few minutes. Illustrative of how text adventures can do things that other types of games often don’t.

Violet

https://ifdb.org/viewgame?id=4glrrfh7wrp9zz7b

Fun and logical puzzles. Lovable narrator. Can complete in an hour or two.

Shade

https://ifdb.org/viewgame?id=hsfc7fnl40k4a30q

Made by Zarf / Andrew Plotkin, the guy linked to above. Can complete in 30-60 minutes.

Counterfeit Monkey

https://ifdb.org/viewgame?id=aearuuxv83plclpl

As good as any Infocom game — maybe even better. Great puzzle mechanic. Engaging story. Easy to get around. Absolutely everything you can think of to do has an implemented response. Can complete in maybe two or three evenings. This is my favorite text adventure.

Photopia

https://ifdb.org/viewgame?id=ju778uv5xaswnlpl

I wouldn’t call this one of my favorites, but many people consider it one of the most important works of modern IF. It does have one moment that’s really, really cool. The story is a downer.