Zork books
Encyclopedia
The Zork books were a series of four books, written by S. Eric Meretzky
, which took place in the fictional universe
of Zork
. The books were published by Tor Books
. Like the Zork computer games, the books were a form of interactive fiction
which offered the reader a choice of actions symbolized by pages to turn to, as in the contemporary book series Choose Your Own Adventure
, or the later Give Yourself Goosebumps
series. The protagonists of each book were a boy and girl, called Bill and June on Earth, and re-dubbed Bivotar and Juranda in Zork. The settings and plots were reminiscent of locations and events from the Zork universe.
At each ending the player received a score from zero to ten based on how far they had made it through the book and if the ending was a failure, a chance to try again at the choice where they decided incorrectly. The books also usually contained a "cheater trap", reached by opting to use an item which does not exist (at least not in the current book). The story abruptly ends; the reader is chastised and not given a chance to try again in the endings resulting from these.
The books were written in English and translated into Spanish. All four books were published as "What-Do-I-Do-Now Books". Copies did contain publication errors—page numbers that the reader was directed to turn to or turn back to were at times incorrect. The first three books were published as a trilogy in August and September 1983—each has the titles of the other two listed opposite the cover page. The fourth book in the series was published in October 1984.
series, The Forces of Krill utilized familiar Zork locations and scoring systems.
Bivotar and Juranda are on a quest to find the three Palantirs of Zork and to defeat the evil sorcerer Krill. There were 20 possible endings.
series, "The Malifestro Quest" contained several inside jokes for those familiar with the Zork games.
Bivotar and Juranda must rescue the hero Syovar from the evil wizard Malifestro along with Fred and Max, two quirky elves. There were 18 possible endings.
series, "The Cavern of Doom" tried to capture the "exploring the dungeon" motif of the earlier games.
Bivotar and Juranda search the Cavern of Doom, an uncharted portion of the Great Underground Empire and the site of several mysterious disappearances, including the elves Fred and Max. There were 17 possible endings.
series, the "Conquest of Quendor", featured silly riddles reminiscent of Zork II
.
Bivotar and Juranda search for the Helm of Zork in an attempt to bring peace to the Land of Frobozz, in defiance of Jeearr, a riddle-telling demon. There are 17 possible endings.
(1990) and The Lost City of Zork by Robin W. Bailey (1991).
Steve Meretzky
Steven Eric Meretzky is an American computer game developer, with dozens of titles to his credit. He has been involved in almost every aspect of game development, from design to production to quality assurance and box design...
, which took place in the fictional universe
Fictional universe
A fictional universe is a self-consistent fictional setting with elements that differ from the real world. It may also be called an imagined, constructed or fictional realm ....
of Zork
Zork
Zork was one of the first interactive fiction computer games and an early descendant of Colossal Cave Adventure. The first version of Zork was written in 1977–1979 on a DEC PDP-10 computer by Tim Anderson, Marc Blank, Bruce Daniels, and Dave Lebling, and implemented in the MDL programming language...
. The books were published by Tor Books
Tor Books
Tor Books is one of two imprints of Tom Doherty Associates LLC, based in New York City. It is noted for its science fiction and fantasy titles. Tom Doherty Associates also publishes mainstream fiction, mystery, and occasional military history titles under its Forge imprint. The company was founded...
. Like the Zork computer games, the books were a form of interactive fiction
Interactive fiction
Interactive fiction, often abbreviated IF, describes software simulating environments in which players use text commands to control characters and influence the environment. Works in this form can be understood as literary narratives and as video games. In common usage, the term refers to text...
which offered the reader a choice of actions symbolized by pages to turn to, as in the contemporary book series Choose Your Own Adventure
Choose Your Own Adventure
Choose Your Own Adventure is a series of children's gamebooks where each story is written from a second-person point of view, with the reader assuming the role of the protagonist and making choices that determine the main character's actions and the plot's outcome. The series was based on a...
, or the later Give Yourself Goosebumps
Give Yourself Goosebumps
Give Yourself Goosebumps was a children's horror fiction gamebook series by R. L. Stine. After the success of the regular Goosebumps books, Scholastic Press decided to create this spin off series in 1995. In fact, Stine had written gamebooks in previous years.Fifty books in the series, including...
series. The protagonists of each book were a boy and girl, called Bill and June on Earth, and re-dubbed Bivotar and Juranda in Zork. The settings and plots were reminiscent of locations and events from the Zork universe.
At each ending the player received a score from zero to ten based on how far they had made it through the book and if the ending was a failure, a chance to try again at the choice where they decided incorrectly. The books also usually contained a "cheater trap", reached by opting to use an item which does not exist (at least not in the current book). The story abruptly ends; the reader is chastised and not given a chance to try again in the endings resulting from these.
The books were written in English and translated into Spanish. All four books were published as "What-Do-I-Do-Now Books". Copies did contain publication errors—page numbers that the reader was directed to turn to or turn back to were at times incorrect. The first three books were published as a trilogy in August and September 1983—each has the titles of the other two listed opposite the cover page. The fourth book in the series was published in October 1984.
The Forces of Krill
The first book in the ZorkZork
Zork was one of the first interactive fiction computer games and an early descendant of Colossal Cave Adventure. The first version of Zork was written in 1977–1979 on a DEC PDP-10 computer by Tim Anderson, Marc Blank, Bruce Daniels, and Dave Lebling, and implemented in the MDL programming language...
series, The Forces of Krill utilized familiar Zork locations and scoring systems.
Bivotar and Juranda are on a quest to find the three Palantirs of Zork and to defeat the evil sorcerer Krill. There were 20 possible endings.
The Malifestro Quest
The second book in the ZorkZork
Zork was one of the first interactive fiction computer games and an early descendant of Colossal Cave Adventure. The first version of Zork was written in 1977–1979 on a DEC PDP-10 computer by Tim Anderson, Marc Blank, Bruce Daniels, and Dave Lebling, and implemented in the MDL programming language...
series, "The Malifestro Quest" contained several inside jokes for those familiar with the Zork games.
Bivotar and Juranda must rescue the hero Syovar from the evil wizard Malifestro along with Fred and Max, two quirky elves. There were 18 possible endings.
The Cavern of Doom
The third book in the ZorkZork
Zork was one of the first interactive fiction computer games and an early descendant of Colossal Cave Adventure. The first version of Zork was written in 1977–1979 on a DEC PDP-10 computer by Tim Anderson, Marc Blank, Bruce Daniels, and Dave Lebling, and implemented in the MDL programming language...
series, "The Cavern of Doom" tried to capture the "exploring the dungeon" motif of the earlier games.
Bivotar and Juranda search the Cavern of Doom, an uncharted portion of the Great Underground Empire and the site of several mysterious disappearances, including the elves Fred and Max. There were 17 possible endings.
Conquest at Quendor
The fourth book in the ZorkZork
Zork was one of the first interactive fiction computer games and an early descendant of Colossal Cave Adventure. The first version of Zork was written in 1977–1979 on a DEC PDP-10 computer by Tim Anderson, Marc Blank, Bruce Daniels, and Dave Lebling, and implemented in the MDL programming language...
series, the "Conquest of Quendor", featured silly riddles reminiscent of Zork II
Zork II
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...
.
Bivotar and Juranda search for the Helm of Zork in an attempt to bring peace to the Land of Frobozz, in defiance of Jeearr, a riddle-telling demon. There are 17 possible endings.
Other books based on Zork
Of six novels published as "Infocom Books" by Avon Books between 1989-1991, two were directly based on Zork: The Zork Chronicles by George Alec EffingerGeorge Alec Effinger
George Alec Effinger was an American science fiction author, born in 1947 in Cleveland, Ohio.-Writing career:...
(1990) and The Lost City of Zork by Robin W. Bailey (1991).