Zork Review

Hello everyone!

This week in Programming we played Zork! It was one of the original text adventure games. It is purely text, so you have to use your imagination with the graphics that they describe. I read a short "tips + tricks" sheet and then jumped right in!

We will be using our experience playing this game to create our OWN text adventure game soon on trinket.io!

Here is the link to the game (where you can save your progress by typing "save"): Zork

         -I recommend keeping the tab open whenever you're not playing it, just in case it doesn't save.

This game is very simple and also very complex. It will describe where you are, perhaps with things in the room and directions you can go. (note: it doesn't always list everything possible, so you have to try out every possibility you can think of). What then happens is dependent on what you choose to type. If you type a direction, either you'll go that way and it will describe where you have moved to, or it will say there is a wall there/you can't go that way. You can pick up objects that you find in the room and add them to your inventory. You can also interact with the environment/the objects, such as reading inscriptions on the wall, drinking water, or using your sword to kill. Some objects are very crucial, such as sources of light, things to defend yourself, and being smart about what you carry in your inventory, because you might need it later. The goal of the game is not clear at the beginning, and for the most part of the game, it is to not die. I did not get far enough in the game to know the actual goal. (I was exploring with the goal of discovering every single room possible).

Here are some commands that you can use:

INVENTORY (I) - gives you a list of items you have
LOOK - describes your surroundings​
TIME - how long you've been playing​
N - Moves you north (use ​S, E, etc. for other directions)
DIAGNOSE - tells you about your injuries
GET or TAKE - remove the item and adds it to your inventory
READ - Reads what is written on an item with words

You also have to be extremely creative in this game. You have to think of unique commands to find the secrets within the game, that are not completely spelled out for you.

Something I really like about this game is how sassy and witty it is. The programmer thought of some very funny responses if you started being sarcastic to the game. Below are a few of the responses I got:

I could write thousands of words just describing what I have already gone through in this game. It is filled with surprises, mazes, and takes a witty/creative/thoughtful mind to master. I started the game and got stuck in the forest for about 30 commands, just trying to get back to the house that the game starts at. I got killed by a troll about 10 minutes in and had to start all over. I then did get quite far in exploring, finding many sections of the maze, such as the Bank Entrance and the Round Room. I felt especially proud and defeated when I found the Round Room. Proud because it seemed I had made it quite far and I felt that I was finally getting something accomplished in the game. Defeated because that room has eight different rooms that attach to it, but your compass doesn't work in that room, so you can't choose which room you go to.

I have learned a lot from this game so far, but I think the most important thing is to draw a map the second that you start. The rooms and directions get really confusing really quickly. I quickly found out that if you go from Room A North to Room B, you can't always return to Room B by going South. Sometimes it loops so that going West from Room B will return to Room A. Also, sometimes you'll be exploring rooms in one "section", but then suddenly you're in a room that's on the complete opposite side of your map. Some rooms weirdly connect. This is important to keep note of, in case you need to quickly go from point A to point B.

Another note is that you have to be conscious of your inventory. You can't carry too much, because it will be too heavy, so you have to be smart about what you're carrying. You need to deem what is essential. (***note from my bad experience, light sources are veryyyyy important ****) (Basically I got very very far down, but then my lantern was dying, and I could not find another source of light. I had a limited number of moves from the last time I saved, and it was not enough to find another source of light. So that's where I'm at....) Also, if you need to drop something from your inventory to make room for something else, write down where you dropped it, so you can go back to get it if you need to.

Last note is about saving. Yes, you want to save when you reach a new section of the maze, or before you think you might die. But you also need to be smart about it, because if you save too often, you might suddenly need to go back to a time like 30 moves ago, but you saved literally every move. Don't save literally every move.

Below are some more screenshots from when I played it. Also note the number score and number of moves at the top right. Every time you reach a certain checkpoint, your score will increase. (I don't know much more past that). Also, every time you type something (whether or not something happens), 1 move is added. I'm not sure what this does either, but I learned that in my situation, I only had 15 moves before I ran out of light (and the light was about 25 moves away).

Below are pictures of my maps (please excuse the fact that I mistakingly put W on the right, so therefore all my directions are messed up. but if you follow my incorrect compass, my map is rather accurate). I used arrows and circled directions to show what lead to what, because for me it was important to know if directions were 2-way or 1-way. Also, there are some notes about my inventory and some inscriptions I read.

Lastly, throughout the game, there are some quirky fun things to do. SAVE, and then try to think of funny actions to do; such as jumping into a volcano, or praying. You'll be surprised....

SO... I liked the game (except for the fact I have to now start over because I ran out of light). I'm excited to make my own, and although some navigations in the game were frustrating, I'm looking forward to putting a lot of those into my own game :)

See y'all next week!

-Mimi