Zork: The Great Underground Empire

Zork I: The Great Underground Empire (or Zork: The Great Underground Empire) is the original Zork game that starts it all. Back in the era of interactive fiction, everybody is writing games that try to compare to it but most fail miserably. Since then, this game has risen to become the poster child of text adventure.

Strictly speaking, Zork I wasn't the very first adventure game, I think Colossal Cave preceded it and maybe a couple of others did too, but, to the best of my knowledge, it was the first commercial success. It certainly played a huge role in spawning all the games we enjoy today and, even after 10 years or more, it is still a very good game and will guarantee you hours and hours of fun and frustration.

I meriti di questo software furono molteplici: dimostrò l’efficacia dei computer nella narrazione di racconti interattivi, migliorò la diffusione e la reputazione delle avventure testuali e fece la fortuna della sua casa produttrice Infocom che ci avrebbe regalato, in futuro, altre perle di fantasia.

Using all your cunning and courage, delve deep below the surface of the earth in search of the incomparable Treasures of Zork.

Der Feinschliff zwischen Puzzle-Frust und Adventure-Lust war derart ausgetüftelt, daß Infocom auf eine treue Fangemeinde zählen konnte. Der Parser, sonst ein nörgeliges Zwei-Wort-System, ließ selbst komplexe Eingaben ohne große Murren zu - das und ein Wortschatz von bis zu 300 Begriffen galt damals als kleine Sensation.

Playing Zork I now is indeed worthwhile, both to see how far IF has come and to appreciate its origins, despite the annoyances. It is a credit to its design that it remains an enjoyable game, well worth its popularity.

The Plot of zork I is as follows: you are an adventurer on a mission to explore the remains of what used to be the Great Underground Empire. This pretty much bears a similliarity to any fantasy setting. On your journey you must collect treasures - and of course survive. The game is actually fun, but the story and background information is a bit weak. It is good for those who love a good fantasy text-based game. Also try this command: "kill me with hands" without quotes.