Zork: Grand Inquisitor (Windows)

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Description

Magic is banned in the Great Underground Empire, and the Grand Inquisitor Yannick (with the kind help of Frobozz Electric) has a stranglehold on the world of Zork, establishing a totalitarian regime. According to his own words, the goal of the new state is to "shun magic, shun the appearance of magic, shun everything, and then shun shunning." Any opposing forces will be "totemized", which is apparently a rather unpleasant procedure. The player character in the game is just that - the player character: Ageless, Faceless, Gender-Neutral, Culturally-Ambiguous Adventure Person (abbreviated AFGNCAAP), as the politically correct designation by the Dungeon Master Dalboz defines him/her (it?). Naturally, it is the hero's duty to save the world by collecting a Cube of Foundation, the Skull of Yoruk, and the Coconut of Quendor, so that magic can return to the land and the Grand Inquisitor falls victim to his own shunning policies.

Zork: Grand Inquisitor is the third in the row of graphical Zork games. It utilizes the same engine as its predecessor, with first-person perspective, 180 degree camera rotation, pre-rendered backgrounds, and live actors. Compared to the previous game, it is more similar in tone to the early, predominantly humorous Zork adventures, containing plenty of references to them.

The gameplay is puzzle-oriented; most of the puzzles are inventory-based, though there are also a few that require manipulating the game's environment. Casting magical spells is an important element of the gameplay. The protagonist discovers spell scrolls and learns spells from them, which must be frequently used on objects and items to solve puzzles. The spells range from simple magic that can open locked doors to exotic variations such as "making all purple things invisible". The player can also cast spells backwards, in which case they will have an opposite effect; in the aforementioned examples, casting the reversed spells will lock a door or magically make an object visible, provided it was purple before that condition was inflicted upon it.

Screenshots

Promo Images

Trailer

Alternate Titles

• "Zork: Der Großinquisitor" -- German title

Part of the Following Groups

• Live action cut-scenes
• Zork universe

User Reviews

Who is the boss of you?..	Oleg Roschin (181737)
Best graphical adventure I've ever played	kvn8907 (180)
Grand Finish to the Zork series	Scott Monster (1014)

Critic Reviews

Tap-Repeatedly/Four Fat Chicks	Apr 06, 2003		100
Electric Games	1997	96 out of 100	96
Mega Score	Mar, 1998	90 out of 100	90
Game Zero	Aug, 1998	22.5 out of 25	90
PC Jeux	Nov, 1997	88 out of 100	88
Adrenaline Vault, The (AVault)	Dec 05, 1997		80
Game Revolution	May 06, 2004	B	75
PC Games (Germany)	Dec 03, 1997	74 out of 100	74
Adventurespiele	Jun 09, 2007		70
Adventure Classic Gaming	Nov 18, 1997	3 out of 5	60

Forums

Topic	# Posts	Last Post
In Windows XP	7	vedder (36716) May 23, 2010
Can anyone help me find this game?	2	Señorita Kathryn (618) Feb 08, 2009

Trivia

Activision released a DVD version of Zork: Grand Inquistor. The DVD also had the complete version of Zork: Nemesis. You could play both games without ever swapping a CD.

Related Web Sites

• Zork: Grand Inquisitor (official website)
• Crap Shoot (A humorous review on PC Gamer)
• Hints for Grand Inquisitor (These hints are designed to let you get only the help you need without spoiling the game for you.)
• Windows XP Setup - CD Version (Inferno's file.)
• Windows XP Setup - DVD Version (by Inferno.)
• Zarf's Review (A Mac review of Grand Inquisitor written by Andrew Plotkin after the original Macintosh port was canceled and before the game was subsequently published (March, 2000). )