~2 minute readGameline
Zork II
By Dave Lebling and Marc Blank.
Once again the master adventurers at Infocom have thrust us into the titillating, terrifying, and sometimes intimidating world of Zork. Zork II takes up where Zork I left off (although you need not have played Zork I to play Zork II), starting you out deep in the land of Zork. Here you'll meet the Wizard of Frobozz, a formidable foe who'll appear randomly to thwart your efforts at solving the many riddles in the game.
This is an ambitious adventure, replete with volcanoes, dragons, princesses, unicorns, and a myriad of other creatures and objects that will extend your imagination. In this totally (and classically) text game, the descriptions of the rooms are fascinating and detailed. A well-balanced mix of humor, wit, and wry puns makes reading them almost as pleasurable as solving the game itself.
The riddles and puzzles are intricate but, for the most part, their answers are logical and succumb to rigorous application of the principles of deductive reasoning. Some of the puzzles are astounding in their ingenuity; watch for a doorless bank vault that you must figure out how to enter. Very few will be able to solve it without assistance or at least extremely careful scrutiny of the clues and of the workings of the bank. Some may even stumble into the vault, but true gratification will be achieved by those who solve the puzzle by themselves. The solution is completely logical, but no one ever said logic was easy. As in Zork I, keys to solving many of the puzzles are not in the same room as the puzzles themselves and solutions may require combinations of objects or knowledge gained from your travels. Pay careful attention to possible relationships between the objects and creatures you encounter and the puzzles you will have to solve. Very seldom will brute force prove useful; for the most part you will have to rely on your gray matter to provide the solutions.
Zork II is an adventure fit for master adventurers; those of you who are new to adventuring may find the game more of a challenge than you bargained for. Though it is not impossible, with some perseverance, for a novice to master Zork II.
A few more technical notes: Zork II, like its predecessor, has an extensive vocabulary (some five hundred to six hundred words) and has a superior command parse. You will not find yourself limited to simple one or two word commands; Zork II allows you to use complete sentences. The Zork II instruction manual is very complete and well written.
As a matter of fact, Zork is such a popular game that a Zork user group has been formed. They offer various Zork paraphernalia, including very handsome maps that enhance playing both games. You can contact the group at Zork Users Group, Box 20933, Milwaukee, WI 53220.
Zork II is recommended to any novice or master adventurer who wants a feeling of satisfaction upon completion of a well-thought-out and imaginative adventure. And, once you've finished, you'll be hard put to wait for Zork III.
Apple II, Apple III (emulation mode), Atari 400 or 800, IBMpc, NEC, 8-inch CPM; 32K, disk. $39.95 from Infocom, 6 Faneuil Hall Marketplace, Boston MA 02109; (617) 492-1031.
This article appeared in
Softline
May 1982
These historical, out-of-print articles and literary works have been GNUSTOed onto InvisiClues.org for academic and research purposes.
