Blocking Contents Listing
list_contents is a property which is defined by the standard library.
One of the problems I’ve had is that containers are all-too happy to describe their contents to anyone who would listen. This might be OK, but looks awkward if a character says something like, “There’s a head in the box!” and Hugo describes the room with something like this:
There is a box here. In the box is a head.
Overriding list_contents can help. We can skip contents-listing, unless the container is being specifically looked at. For instance:
object cauldron "cauldron"
{
noun "cauldron"
in CauldronRoom
is container, open
list_contents
{
! Skip contents-listing if not looking specifically inside
if verbroutine ~= &DoLookIn
{
return 1
}
else
{
return 0
}
}
}
object oysters "oysters"
{
noun "oysters"
is plural
in cauldron
}