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General discussion (archive)New release: The Zork Anthology(216 posts)(216 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted January 18, 2011
Today's second release is, beyond doubt, the most oldschool one in GOG.com's history. Read below to find out why.

The Anthology includes Zork I, Zork II, Zork III, Beyond Zork, Zork Zero, and Planetfall. This means six titles in total, all hailing from the 1980s, weighing in at a whopping nine megabytes. Yep, that means just around one floppy disk per game.
That means plain text and gameplay based on text input, but beneath the rough exterior lies a beauty that's hard to find in more modern games. Countless unforgettable situations and descriptions from the Zork series have become iconic in more contemporary fiction, both printed and interactive.
With such timeless and absolutely enthralling games, set in a crazy, surreal world, packed with a witty narrative and sarcastic, dark humor, what's there not to love?
So light your bronze lantern, pick up that Elvish sword of great antiquity and embark on a journey to (re)discover the world of Zork. You will not be disappointed.
Posted January 18, 2011
I love text adventures so much and it's fantastic to see some Infocom games on here. :D There are a ton more that I'd love to see (especially A Mind Forever Voyaging...) but the Zork series is a great place to start. I do hope the graphical adventures show up here too. I never got to play those so it would be nice to actually experience them.
Posted January 18, 2011
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cyberkiller: I'm disappointed those arent included in this release too,
Why? GOG is not charity. If they can get more money by selling two packs, so they'll do. I'm happy that their prices are realistic, comparing to other DD sites.
Posted January 18, 2011
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USERNAME:cyberkiller#Q&_^Q&Q#GROUP:4#Q&_^Q&Q#LINK:49#Q&_^Q&Q#I'm disappointed those arent included in this release too,#Q&_^Q&Q#LINK:49#Q&_^Q&Q#
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For games of this scale, it is a little steep.
Posted January 18, 2011
My prayers have been heard! wishlisted;)
Posted January 18, 2011
I realize that it's due to DOSBox, but seeing 1GHz and 256MB RAM for these classics makes me smile. ^_^
Posted January 18, 2011
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Posted January 18, 2011
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the_voivod: Age = value, if you're talking in the monetary sense. Or perhaps complexity of the game/engine. Whatever, there has to be some criteria other than artistic merit which is flimsy at best.
Value is always based on what people are willing to pay, nothing more and nothing less. GOG obviously feels that there is a market for just the text-based adventures on their own and $6 is their lowest price point, so that is what they released. Knowing the crowd on here I don't think we can say they are wrong out of hand.

It would have been nice to get these as a freebie with the three 90's adventures, but I'm not going to cry about it.
Posted January 18, 2011
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USERNAME:BoxOfSnoo#Q&_^Q&Q#GROUP:4#Q&_^Q&Q#LINK:53#Q&_^Q&Q#For games of this scale, it is a little steep.#Q&_^Q&Q#LINK:53#Q&_^Q&Q#
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I said, SCALE, not size. They're not that huge of games. And very very little replay value. Compare this pack to something The Incredible Machine and see how vastly unequal the value is. And that one has fewer games.

If they had maybe 4 more games it might be worth it at this price. Especially Stationfall!

Otherwise these could have been split up and thrown in for free with some of the later, graphical ones. Say Return to Zork and Zork Nemesis including 1-3 and Grand Inquisitor including Zero and Beyond Zork (and probably The Undiscovered Underground). Not necessarily for $5.99 each, though $9.99 might have seemed expensive (on sale it would have been just about perfect).
Post edited January 18, 2011 by BoxOfSnoo
Posted January 18, 2011
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USERNAME:cyberkiller#Q&_^Q&Q#GROUP:4#Q&_^Q&Q#LINK:49#Q&_^Q&Q#I'm disappointed those arent included in this release too,#Q&_^Q&Q#LINK:49#Q&_^Q&Q#
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To be fair, Zorks I-III are really a single larger game split into three parts, the industry's first episodic game.
Posted January 18, 2011
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Greylord: I like text adventures, but I'm afraid you need a certain (high) english level to enjoy the Zork Anthology, so I will have to pass on this classic :(.
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tacossmellgood: i don't think it's exactly about a high english level; there is a formula for text adventures that you have to learn.
it's more like doing a crossword puzzle, where most problems are solved in similar ways, and the more puzzles you solve, the easier it becomes to solve more.
what you have to type, what you can type, is pretty basic stuff, like "use cog with machine" or "pull red switch."
the most difficult thing about text adventures, and especially zork, is the mapping that you have to do. it's almost impossible to beat a zork game for the first time without drawing your own map of game.
Well, I wasn't referring to gameplay, but to the text the game uses to describe where you are, what's happening and all that.

I mean, it's difficult to feel immersed in the game when you have to look up words and expressions in a dictionary every now and then.

But as you say, on top of that you have the difficulty of the game per se, which seems pretty high, too.
Posted January 18, 2011
How come there is no HD wallpaper of this one? :P
Posted January 18, 2011
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Posted January 18, 2011
I'd also like to buy something like Infocom Sci-Fi collection (Planetfall, Stationfall, Starcross, Suspended, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (I think the latter game has another publisher for the current moment, but a long time ago they were distributed together)).
Posted January 18, 2011
What a day for people who love adventure games 6 games for $6 and the police quest 4 for £10 thats 10 games for $16 a huge steal for any avid adventure game owners.

Sadly i am not so nothing to buy this week but with a huge backlog of rpgs i can wait for another week.
Posted January 18, 2011
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WiNG: How come there is no HD wallpaper of this one? :P
Good point, damn now I'm annoyed! RAGE!!! I want my HD Zork poster with it's descriptive text!!!!
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This is my favourite topic
Community
General discussion (archive)New release: The Zork Anthology(216 posts)(216 posts)
(216 posts)