While Galatea is framed as an interactive fiction piece, the system shares many qualities with the long line of "chatterbots," going back to Joseph Weizenbaum's mid-1960s Eliza. Conversation with Galatea is not as free as with Eliza but can unfold in more interesting ways as the topic, Galatea's mood, and the history of conversation progress. The results of different discussions can sometimes even lead the user to uncover different stories that, while consistent within themselves, suggest different possible worlds.