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Zork II
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| Developer(s) | Infocom |
| Publisher(s) | Personal Software / Infocom |
| Designer(s) | Tim Anderson, Marc Blank, Dave Lebling and Bruce Daniels |
| Engine | ZIL |
| Platform(s) | Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Apple Macintosh, Atari 8-bit, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Commodore 128, Commodore Plus/4, CP/M, DOS, MSX, TRS-80 |
| Release date(s) | Release 7: 1981
Release 15: March 8, 1982 |
| Genre(s) | Text adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Media | 3½" or 5¼" disk |
| System requirements | No special requirements |
| Input methods | Keyboard |
Zork II: The Wizard of Frobozz is an interactive fiction computer game published by Infocom in 1981. It was written by Marc Blank, Dave Lebling, Bruce Daniels and Tim Anderson. It was the second game in the popular Zork trilogy and was released for a wide range of computer systems. It begins where Zork I left off and leads into Zork III. It is Infocom's second game.
Contents |
Plot
The AFGNCAAP begins in the Barrow from Zork I armed only with the trusty brass lantern and sword of elvish antiquity. The purpose of the game is not initially clear.
The Wizard of Frobozz is soon introduced. The wizard was once a respected enchanter, but when his powers began to fade he was exiled by Dimwit Flathead. Now bordering on senility, the wizard is still a force to be reckoned with. Your goal, as you venture into the wizard's realm, is to avoid his capricious tricks and learn to control his magic.
Like its predecessor, Zork II is essentially a treasure hunt. Unlike the previous game, the ten treasures are tied together by a crude plot. Finding the treasures does not end the game; the adventurer must also figure out a way to use them in order to reach the game's finale.
Furthermore not all the treasures are needed to finish the game.
Spells
12 of the spells are cast commonly throughout the game, the other seven are only cast by the wizard in special circumstances. The twelve common spells are:
- FALL - causes the target to stumble and fall, sometimes fatally
- FANTASIZE - causes the target to hallucinate
- FEAR - causes the target to become afraid of the caster
- FEEBLE - temporarily reduces the target's carrying capacity
- FENCE - prevents the target from going anywhere
- FERMENT - makes the target drunk, movement becomes random
- FIERCE - causes the target to become aggressive, may cause the sword to glow red
- FILCH - causes the target to be moved to the caster's inventory
- FIREPROOF - causes the target to become immune to fire
- FLOAT - causes the target to levitate
- FREEZE - paralyzes the target, preventing any action but waiting
- FUMBLE - causes the target to drop what it is holding
The seven special spells are:
- FLUORESCE - causes the target to emit light; cast on the adventurer by the wizard if the lamp runs out of power and the adventurer is in the dark (if the player has scored over 200 points).
- FRY - destroys the target (cast on the adventurer by the wizard if the player attempts to attack the princess)
- FUDGE - produces the smell of chocolate if cast by the player, transforms the player into a fudge statue if cast by the wizard. Cast by the wizard (fruitlessly) if the player requests the demon to "give me the wand"
- FREE - frees a captive target; used by the demon on himself if the player poorly phrases the request for the wizard's wand
- FROBIZZ, FROBOZZLE, FROBNOID - cast by the wizard near the game's end in an unsuccessful attempt to control the demon (if player requests the demon to kill the wizard)
Treasures
Ten treasures need to be collected in order to complete the game. Once collected, the treasures are given to a demon who will complete a single task in return. If all ten treasures cannot be recovered (for whatever reason), the demon will accept the sword itself in place of one of the treasures. The sword can also be used as payment to one of the gnomes (see below) if the player finds himself stuck in either the bank or the volcano.
Notes
Zork II contains the difficult Bank of Zork vault puzzle, in which the player must walk through (apparently) solid walls. In this puzzle, the player controls his destination depending on the direction from which he entered the room. The game also includes the "Oddly-Angled Room" puzzle, which relied upon the player being familiar with baseball. Infocom apologies for the American-centric puzzle in their official hints for the game. [1] The Bank of Zork and Oddly-Angled Room puzzles have been called "infamously difficult."[2]
If a player gets stranded on a volcano ledge (e.g., by forgetting to tie the balloon to the hook), after some time a "volcano gnome" appears:
- A volcano gnome seems to walk straight out of the wall and says, "I have a very busy appointment schedule and little time to waste on trespassers, but for a small fee, I'll show you the way out." You notice the gnome nervously glancing at his watch.
Similarly, if the player gets trapped in the bank, another gnome appears:
- An epicene gnome of Zurich wearing a three-piece suit and carrying a safety-deposit box materializes in the room. "You seem to have forgotten to deposit your valuables," he says, tapping the lid of the box impatiently. "We don't usually allow customers to use the boxes here, but we can make this ONE exception, I suppose..." He looks askance at you over his wire-rimmed bifocals.
If the adventurer puts non-valuable items in the box, the gnome tosses them out and they disappear. If the adventurer doesn't give the gnome something valuable after a while, he will leave the player stranded.
Quotes
[After solving the well puzzle.] "You are at the top of the well. Well done."
Glitches
[Bug in certain versions when giving an unintelligible command.] "I can't see the Gnome of Zurich anywhere!"
References
- ^ "It is admittedly a very difficult puzzle - apologies to non-American Zorkers" "InvisiClues(tm) Hint Booklet for Zork II" (in English). Infocom (Republished on the web by Peter Scheyen). Archived from the original on 2007-12-26. Retrieved on 2007-24-26.
- ^ "The game is also noted for two infamously difficult puzzles called the 'Bank of Zork Vault' and the 'Oddly-Angled Room.'" Barton, Matt. "The History Of Zork" (in English). Gamasutra. CMP Media. Archived from the original on 2007-12-26. Retrieved on 2007-24-26.
External links
- Zork II: The Wizard of Frobozz at MobyGames
- Zork II information and overview
- Scans of the Zork II package, documentation and feelies
- Infocom-if.org's entry for Zork II
- All three Zork games downloadable for PC and Mac
- The Infocom Bugs List entry for Zork II
- The Dot Eaters page featuring a history of the Zork games and Infocom
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