It is very dark in this thread. You are likely to be eaten by a Grue.

Thadius · 06-12-2011, 11:47 PM

In a fit of boredom/madness, I figured I'd try a game I haven't before. But not just that. Oh no. I decided to go back to where the adventure game genre started. Where the text adventure game genre started. Welcome...

...To Zork.

Code:

West of House
You are standing in an open field west of a white house, with a boarded front door.
There is a small mailbox here.

Zork was originally released in 1977 by Activision and four outstanding coders. Tim Anderson, Marc Blank, Bruce Daniels, and Dave Lebling. Little bit of trivia, Zork was originally slang for an unfinished program, and with how games have progressed today, it can still feel like one. Simple commands will work, like these.

Code:

>Open mailbox
Opening the mailbox reveals a leaflet

>Take leaflet
Taken

>Read leaflet
"WELCOME TO ZORK!
ZORK is a game of adventure, dange, and low cunning.  In it you will explore some of the most amazing territory ever seen by mortals.  No computer should ever be without one!"

>Put leaflet in mailbox
Done

>Close mailbox
Closed

Well that saves me the trouble of explaining what might be happening later on in the game. Now, if I'm not mistaken, there was a boarded up house nearby.

Code:

>East
The door is boarded and you can't remove the boards.

Bah. Maybe looking at the house?

Code:

>Look house
That sentence isn't one I recognize.

Okay, bad grammar aside, maybe now?...

Code:

>Look at house
The house is a beautiful colonial house which is painted white.  It is clear the the owners must have been extremely wealthy.

Hmm. Perhaps attacking it from another angle...

Code:

>North
You are facing the north side of a white house.  There is no door here, and all the windows are boarded up.  To the north a narrow path winds through the trees.

>East
You are behind the white house.  A path leads into the forest to the east.  In one corner of the house there is a small window which is slightly ajar.

Aha! Entry is mine!

Code:

>Force open window
That sentence isn't one I recognize

And thus we come face-to-face with our greatest nemesis, a very old parser. Keeping things short and sweet will enable us to get things done faster.

Code:

>Open window
With great effort, you open the window far enough to allow entry.

>Enter window
Kitchen
You are in the kitchen of the white house.  A table seems to have been used recently for the preparation of food.  A passage leads to the west and a dark staircase can be seen leading upward.  A dark chimney leads down and to the east is a small window which is open.
On the table is an elongated brown sack, smelling of hot peppers.
A bottle is sitting on the table.
The glass bottle contains:
  A quantity of water

Well, a passage = exploration, let's do that.

Code:

>West
Living Room
You are in the living room.  There is a doorway to the east, a wooden door with strange gothic lettering to the west, which appears to be nailed shut, a trophy case, and a large oriental rug in the center of the room.
Above the trophy case hangs and elvish sword of great antiquity.
A battery-powered brass lantern is on the trophy case.

Well already this is shaping up to be a nice journey for me. But what was up those stairs in the kitchen?...

Code:

>East
Kitchen

>Up
Attic
You have moved into a dark place.
It is pitch black.  You are likely to be eaten by a grue.

A wha? Tell me more, game.

Code:

>What is Grue
The Grue is a sinister, lurking presence in the dark places of the earth.  It's favorite diet is adventurers, but its insatiable appetite is tempered by its fear of light.  No Grue has ever been seen by the light of day, and few have survived its fearsome jaws to tell the tale.

Poppycock. It's like the boogeyman. It doesn't exist. Now let's start feeling around for some fine lootable items.

Code:

>North
Oh, no!  You have walked into the slavering fangs of a lurking grue!

   ****  You have died  ****

Okay, maybe NOT so much of a myth. Fortunately, when this happens, I can just go...

Code:

>Restore
Ok.

And pretend it never happened. Now you see what Zork is all about. Finding treasure for the trophy case, dying while finding treasure for the trophy case, and one man's struggle against a very old parser.

Now you may be wondering what that 'we' and 'us' talk was earlier on. Simple. This is a Let's Play of Zork. Give me any command, be it in parser-talk or simple English, and I will make it happen. This means we will likely be dying a lot. However, this also means I will be saving a lot. Especially when stupid things are requested. Currently, we are in the...

Code:

>Living Room

So get to suggesting. I really don't want to play this game alone. It's dark in here.

06-12-2011, 11:47 PM	#1
Thadius BEARD IMPACT Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: MANLY ANGER Posts: 1,977	It is very dark in this thread. You are likely to be eaten by a Grue. In a fit of boredom/madness, I figured I'd try a game I haven't before. But not just that. Oh no. I decided to go back to where the adventure game genre started. Where the text adventure game genre started. Welcome... ...To Zork. Code: West of House You are standing in an open field west of a white house, with a boarded front door. There is a small mailbox here. Zork was originally released in 1977 by Activision and four outstanding coders. Tim Anderson, Marc Blank, Bruce Daniels, and Dave Lebling. Little bit of trivia, Zork was originally slang for an unfinished program, and with how games have progressed today, it can still feel like one. Simple commands will work, like these. Code: >Open mailbox Opening the mailbox reveals a leaflet >Take leaflet Taken >Read leaflet "WELCOME TO ZORK! ZORK is a game of adventure, dange, and low cunning. In it you will explore some of the most amazing territory ever seen by mortals. No computer should ever be without one!" >Put leaflet in mailbox Done >Close mailbox Closed Well that saves me the trouble of explaining what might be happening later on in the game. Now, if I'm not mistaken, there was a boarded up house nearby. Code: >East The door is boarded and you can't remove the boards. Bah. Maybe looking at the house? Code: >Look house That sentence isn't one I recognize. Okay, bad grammar aside, maybe now?... Code: >Look at house The house is a beautiful colonial house which is painted white. It is clear the the owners must have been extremely wealthy. Hmm. Perhaps attacking it from another angle... Code: >North You are facing the north side of a white house. There is no door here, and all the windows are boarded up. To the north a narrow path winds through the trees. >East You are behind the white house. A path leads into the forest to the east. In one corner of the house there is a small window which is slightly ajar. Aha! Entry is mine! Code: >Force open window That sentence isn't one I recognize And thus we come face-to-face with our greatest nemesis, a very old parser. Keeping things short and sweet will enable us to get things done faster. Code: >Open window With great effort, you open the window far enough to allow entry. >Enter window Kitchen You are in the kitchen of the white house. A table seems to have been used recently for the preparation of food. A passage leads to the west and a dark staircase can be seen leading upward. A dark chimney leads down and to the east is a small window which is open. On the table is an elongated brown sack, smelling of hot peppers. A bottle is sitting on the table. The glass bottle contains: A quantity of water Well, a passage = exploration, let's do that. Code: >West Living Room You are in the living room. There is a doorway to the east, a wooden door with strange gothic lettering to the west, which appears to be nailed shut, a trophy case, and a large oriental rug in the center of the room. Above the trophy case hangs and elvish sword of great antiquity. A battery-powered brass lantern is on the trophy case. Well already this is shaping up to be a nice journey for me. But what was up those stairs in the kitchen?... Code: >East Kitchen >Up Attic You have moved into a dark place. It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue. A wha? Tell me more, game. Code: >What is Grue The Grue is a sinister, lurking presence in the dark places of the earth. It's favorite diet is adventurers, but its insatiable appetite is tempered by its fear of light. No Grue has ever been seen by the light of day, and few have survived its fearsome jaws to tell the tale. Poppycock. It's like the boogeyman. It doesn't exist. Now let's start feeling around for some fine lootable items. Code: >North Oh, no! You have walked into the slavering fangs of a lurking grue! ** You have died ** Okay, maybe NOT so much of a myth. Fortunately, when this happens, I can just go... Code: >Restore Ok. And pretend it never happened. Now you see what Zork is all about. Finding treasure for the trophy case, dying while finding treasure for the trophy case, and one man's struggle against a very old parser. Now you may be wondering what that 'we' and 'us' talk was earlier on. Simple. This is a Let's Play of Zork. Give me any command, be it in parser-talk or simple English, and I will make it happen. This means we will likely be dying a lot. However, this also means I will be saving a lot. Especially when stupid things are requested. Currently, we are in the... Code: >Living Room So get to suggesting. I really don't want to play this game alone. It's dark in here. __________________ ANGER HAS NEVER BEEN MORE MANLY THAN THIS. Last edited by Thadius; 06-13-2011 at 03:53 AM.