Can I play Racter online for free?

Yes — you can play Racter right here in your browser for free, with no installation and no plugins, on both desktop and mobile.

Can I download Racter?

Yes, Racter is available to download here — use the Download button on this page.

What platform does Racter run on?

Racter is a MS-DOS / PC game from 1984.

What genre is Racter?

Racter falls under: Simulation.

How do I save my progress in Racter?

Save inside the game itself — via its own menu, or F2/F3. And if you log in (free), your position is also stored in the cloud, so you can continue on another computer or phone.

Is it legal to play Racter online here?

You play it in your browser via an emulator. For how we handle abandonware and copyright, see our "Is it legal?" page.

How do I control Racter?

The controls are in the Controls section on this page. The keyboard is usually all you need — arrow keys to move and Ctrl, Alt or Space for actions.

Can I play Racter on mobile?

Yes — it runs right in your browser on phones and tablets too. Just tap Play, nothing to install.

oldgame.cz › Simulation ›

Racter

_□✕

Arrows move · Ctrl/Alt fire · Enter use · Enter/Space start/select · Esc menu

Usual keys for Keyboard games (rough guide):

Escmenu / pause

Tab

Caps

Enterconfirm / start

Shift

Ctrl

Alt

space

Alt

↑

←

↓

→

move

Left click — action / fire

Click the game to lock the cursor

Esc = in-game menu · save F2, load F3.

Emulator: DOSBox (js-dos)

Live chat — Racter_□✕

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1984 · Simulation · MS-DOS / PC

Game info_□✕

About the game

Racter is not a game in the usual sense but one of the most talked-about pieces of software from the early home-computer era: a conversation program, or chatterbot, published by Mindscape in 1984. Its name is short for 'raconteur,' and it was famously associated with The Policeman's Beard Is Half Constructed, a book of prose supposedly generated by the program that became a curiosity of early artificial-intelligence marketing. Running Racter, you type sentences and it replies with often surreal, non-sequitur prose that can be eerily evocative or completely nonsensical.

In reality the program leaned heavily on clever templates and randomized substitution rather than any real understanding, and much of the polished book text was curated by its creators William Chamberlain and Thomas Etter. That does not diminish its historical importance, though: at a time when most people had never conversed with a computer at all, Racter offered a genuinely strange and memorable experience. Today it plays as a fascinating look at how the public imagined machine intelligence in the mid-1980s, and it still produces the odd sentence that lands with unexpected poetry.

Video

▶ Longplay Walkthrough Soundtrack

Guides & FAQ

Can I play Racter online for free?: Yes — you can play Racter right here in your browser for free, with no installation and no plugins, on both desktop and mobile.
Can I download Racter?: Yes, Racter is available to download here — use the Download button on this page.
What platform does Racter run on?: Racter is a MS-DOS / PC game from 1984.
When was Racter released?: Racter was released in 1984.
What genre is Racter?: Racter falls under: Simulation.
How do I save my progress in Racter?: Save inside the game itself — via its own menu, or F2/F3. And if you log in (free), your position is also stored in the cloud, so you can continue on another computer or phone.
Is it legal to play Racter online here?: You play it in your browser via an emulator. For how we handle abandonware and copyright, see our "Is it legal?" page.
How do I control Racter?: The controls are in the Controls section on this page. The keyboard is usually all you need — arrow keys to move and Ctrl, Alt or Space for actions.
Can I play Racter on mobile?: Yes — it runs right in your browser on phones and tablets too. Just tap Play, nothing to install.

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Racter

Info

Platform: MS-DOS / PC
Year: 1984
Publisher: Mindscape, Inc.
Genre: Simulation
Players: 1 hráč
License: unknown

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Gaming platform: MS-DOS / PC_□✕

About the platform 1981–2000

For two decades MS-DOS was the main gaming platform on PCs. Games launched from the command line and used sound cards like Sound Blaster or AdLib. DOS is the home of legends such as Doom, Prince of Persia and Commander Keen.

Maker: IBM PC / Microsoft · Years: 1981–2000

Here on oldgame.cz you play it right in your browser via the js-dos emulator — no install, no plugins, on desktop and mobile.

Recommended controls: These games are controlled with the keyboard (see the controls table next to the game). A USB joystick/gamepad can make some titles more comfortable, but is not required.

» More about this platform on Wikipedia

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