<!--
	Title: Beyond Zork: An intimate look at Infocom, Inc.
	Subtitle: Based on interviews conducted by Lee Pappas and Clayton Walnum
	Author: Clayton Walnum
	Source: Analog Computing, #52
	Date: March 1987
	Transcription by Steve Derby
-->

<img class="float-left-wide" src="/public/img/articles/analog-an-intimate-look-at-infocom/infocom-amulet.png" alt="An
		amulet that reads 'In a world of magic, spells are power, and magicians rule the land.
		But not only the wise and good sorcerers of the circle can cast spells. Evil forces lurk, and you,
		a novice enchanter, must master the powers which will overcome ever more dangerous enemies,
		until at last the fate of magic itself hangs in the balance.'">

## Scene one.

"Okay, let's go."

"Yup."

"We didn't move. The two of us stared up the length of the six-story, glass-and-steel
corporate monolith rising before us. The crisp December morning air pinched
at our cheeks, bringing blood to the surface. Subtle shivers rippled through me.
Belboz only knew what could be in there.

I repositioned the coil of rope looped over my shoulder and flicked the switch
of the flashlight. The bulb struggled into yellow life, then slipped back to dark oblivion.

"You got a spell memorized?"

He nodded. His tongue crept out, then went back into hiding.

"Which one?" I asked.

"Ozmoo, of course."

"Yeah, that's the one to know." It was a grim thought, but without the Ozmoo
spell, who could say if we'd even survive?

"Okay, let's go."

"Yup."

I cleared my throat.

I shuffled my feet.

I stared up.

The fifth floor, the Infocom lair, leered down. Come to us, oh friends, came the
siren call. We have myriad surprises. Yes, indeed, we do. Wander rock-strewn passageways!
Become hopelessly lost In sadistic mazes! Battle trolls and dwarves! Pay
an additional $7.95 for a hint book! Krill awaits you. And he's very anxious to make
your acquaintance.

I shivered, glanced down at the bright yellow circle pinned to my jacket. "DON'T
PANIC," it read. Good advice, but its implications were not terrifically hopeful.

My companion took a step forward, then stopped.

"Let's do it," he urged.

"Yup."

There *was* a bright side. I tried to think of the treasures waiting to fill our fur-lined
pockets. Rare art. Gold coins. Diamonds. Review copies of software.

"There's monsters in there," I murmured to no one in particular. "And Grues!"

My companion frowned. "What is a Grue?"

"The Grue is a sinister, lurking presence in the dark places of the Earth. Its favorite
diet is adventurers, but its insatiable appetite is tempered by its fear of light. No
Grue has ever been seen in the light of day, and few have survived its fearsome jaws
to tell the tale ...Gosh, that sounds familiar, doesn't it?"

"Here we go," he said.

"Yup."

I assembled all the courage I had hoarded over what was sure to be a short life and
pulled open the door.

Immediately, we were swallowed by a swirling blackness, a vortex that sucked us
down past scenes of oceans and caverns and castles, alien landscapes and gothic
mansions. There were gunshots and the clanging of swords. Screams and whimpering.
Chuckles and bellows. The face of a horrible, alien creature swam up from the
darkness, mouthing words that brought my stomach up to the base of my throat: "Oh
freddled gruntbuggly,...thy nacturations are to me/As plurdled gabbleblotchits on
a lurgid bee." A pyramid, its ancient surface baked dry in the desert sun, burst into
view, whirled by us and was gone. Then a rumble. At first felt more than heard, it
built to a deafening crescendo, and a huge mushroom of radioactive dust glared down
on us, the face of a god. The shock waves and winds hit. A billion scratch-and-sniff
cards bubbled out from the tornado, forcing upon us olfactory tortures beyond imagining.

My fellow adventurer screamed, hid his nose behind his hands. "The hint book!
We're really going to need the stupid hint book!"

My fingers jabbed at the air.

To hell with hint books. Where was the blasted RESET key?

<img class="float-right-half" src="/public/img/articles/analog-an-intimate-look-at-infocom/infocom-games.png" alt="A
		collection of Infocom games, including Spellbreaker, Moonmist, Leather
		Goddesses of Phobos, and Trinity">

## Scene two.

Visiting the offices of Infocom, Inc. is sure to stimulate the imagination of even
the most feeble of intellects -- as the above paragraphs surely serve witness.

Ahem... that didn't really come out as I meant it to, did it? I was, of course, not
implying any feebleness on the part of my mind (although there are many who would
argue that, implied or not, the encroaching ruin of my gray matter is an undeniable
fact), but that the thought of a visit to the official headquarters of Zork, *et al.* is,
for anyone, a great stimulant to the imaginative juices.

The fine people at Infocom have offered up such a huge array of stimulating tales --
always of unimpeachable quality -- one could say they may have single-handedly
backed an entire industry. Quite a claim, eh? Let me explain.

Talk to any adventure addict. Go ahead, pick one. Ready? Ask him whose games
have consistently provided the most detailed, creative, funny and absorbing hours
of play. What did he say? Just as I thought. You see, confronted with a shelf-ful of text
adventure games, adventurers in the know will, nine out of ten times, choose the Infocom
game. It's a non-risk, a sure winner, guaranteed to provide more than adequate
compensation for the thin green slips of paper traded for it.

But I still haven't substantiated the outrageous claim I made two paragraphs ago.
The substantiation is in the quality. When gamers finish the latest Infocom title, they
want more...because the game's *quality* left them feeling that way. And what does
one do when one has finished that new Infocom game, having played all the others
within a week of their release? One purchases a competitor's game, of course.

I'm not implying that Infocom's competitors supply inferior products. There are
many fine adventures under other trademarks. As a great movie bolsters the film
industry by drawing audiences back to the theaters, Infocom games create an unyielding
urge to play adventure games -- by the dozens.

### In the beginning.

It's ironic, then, that when Infocom first sprang into the imaginations of its founders,
games were the furthest thing from their minds.

The name *Infocom* is an amalgamation of the words information, communication
and computer. Doesn't sound very "gamey," does it? Infocom's original objective was
to supply some competition to companies providing large-scale business programs
(such as Lotus 1-2-3) to the growing corporate market. A special project was begun.
Shrouded in secrecy, behind locked doors in their computer rooms (I exaggerate
slightly), the programmers set to work. What emerged after several years of grueling
labor was the impressive (but underachieving) **Cornerstone** package.

But I get ahead of myself. A new company, as Infocom was then, has a burgeoning
need for additional capital. Someone has to pay the staff and the rent, and three
years tucked away in front of glowing CRTs working on a single long-term project do
not revenue make.

Well, there was this game **Zork**, which Dave Lebling, Marc Blank, Tim Anderson
and Bruce Daniels had up and running on a mainframe. They emerged from their Underground
labyrinth long enough to look around and say, "Hey, these new microcomputers
are doing pretty well; in fact, people seem to be scoffing them up like
free tickets to a Beatles concert. Why don't we port this thing over to a couple of home
computers and see how it sells? That'll get the checks signed while the serious work
is going on."

History springs from most humble beginnings.

**Zork** sold. The reviews began rolling in, praising the ahead-of-its-time parser and
imaginative prose. **Zork II** eased tentatively into the marketplace. It sold. Reviews
rolled in again. Then came **Zork III**...and the sales...and reviews. New games
emerged featuring innovative packaging; people bought them just for the box!

Humble beginnings, you know...And never looking back.

### The zany Infocom of today.

<figure class="float-left-half">
	<img src="/public/img/articles/analog-an-intimate-look-at-infocom/infocom-writers.png" alt="Infocom's Writers">
	<figcaption style="text-align: right; font-weight: bold;">Infocom's infamous circle
		of writers (left to right): Dave Anderson, Brian Moriarity, Jeff O'Neill,
		Amy Briggs, Dave Lebling, Stu Galley and Steve Meretzky.</figcaption>
</figure>

Infocom has created a reputation for itself that swings far wide of the corporate
reality. The games get crazier and crazier. Infocom's newsletter *The Status Line*
(formerly *The New Zork Times*, until a certain unamused newspaper brought down
the axe) has done nothing to tarnish the carefully constructed atmosphere of insane
joviality that permeates every product leaving the warehouses.

I hate to shatter those pictures waltzing in your head, but the truth is that it's unlikely
you'll ever find these folks thirsting for a trip into a dangerous underground
maze. They're a young, intelligent, professional lot. And, as such, their primary concerns
are not focused on what they'll wear to the next Enchanter's Circle, or even on
whose turn it is to be Dungeon Master (although they sometimes argue about who
bought the Cheese Doodles). Their concern is the product: the finest they're capable
of making.

### Ah, the product . ..

It all starts with an idea. It may be a fascinating puzzle; it may be a mystery that
needs a solution; it may be nothing more than a intriguing entry on an object list
that insists upon its own tale. Whatever the trigger, it's up to Infocom's team of writers
to come up with the stories -- and come up with them they do. Since the publication
of **Zork** in 1980, Infocom has released over twenty complex adventures, with more
waiting in the wings.

Each writer has his or her own style for developing a tale. Dave Lebling (**Zork I**,
**Zork II**, **Zork III**, **Starcross**, **Enchanter**, **Spellbreaker** and **Suspect**) likes to begin
with a setting, then sprinkle interesting objects about. As the setting comes to life,
the objects start to suggest plot and puzzle possibilities. The exception to this is
when he's working on a mystery; in that case, obviously, the plot must come first.

Steve Meretzky (**Planetfall**, **Sorcerer**, **Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy**, **A Mind
Forever Voyaging** and **Leather Goddesses of Phobos**), the comedian of the group,
writes several brief ideas on a piece of paper, then asks his associates to pick their
favorite one. He will then cross the chosen ideas off the list and begin work on
the one nobody picked. (That's Steve for you.) Once he's got the basic idea nailed
down, he fleshes out the story line and creates the geography. Rather than place objects
into his story right away, he first works out the puzzles. The objects needed
to complete the puzzles (and any other fun things he wants to toss in) are then
placed in the game.

Stu Galley (**The Witness**, **Seastalker** and **Moonmist**) takes an approach sinlilar to
Steve's, circulating his ideas and getting opinions from the others. Stu treats the
voting procedure in the more traditional manner, however, choosing the story line
that most people liked.

Amy Briggs (the newest member of the team, and the only female) says she makes
"copious notes then completely rewrite\[s\] them because they're' all wrong." She must
have gotten her notes in order, though; she's hard at work on her first game.

Generally, the writers have free rein over their ideas. There is no formal approval
process that must be adhered to (as in most of today's bureaucratic business). The story
ideas prove themselves over the course of their development, as more and more people
become involved, and contribute their opinions and ideas.

<figure class="float-right-half">
	<img src="/public/img/articles/analog-an-intimate-look-at-infocom/infocom-marketing.png" alt="Infocom's Marketing Team">
	<figcaption style="font-weight: bold; text-align: center;">From Marketing, Gayle Syska and Michael Dornbrook.</figcaption>
</figure>

The system must work. Only one product has ever been scrapped beyond the initial
testing stage.

Sometimes ideas are put on a back burner, but rarely is one scrapped. When Brian
Moriarty (a former **ANALOG Computing** editor) began at Infocom, he had already
started to formulate the plot of his latest game, **Trinity**. Infocom thought the idea
was too complex. At the time, they really needed another beginner-level game. So
Brian began creating **Wishbringer**. Once **Wishbringer** was on the market, work on
**Trinity** (finished about eight months ago) resumed.

### The hardware and software.

All of Infocom's games are written on a DEC-20 mainframe (named Fred) using
their own development language. The language, dubbed ZIL (Zork Implementation
Language) is a cousin to LISP, the language popular with programmers involved in the
artificial intelligence field. ZIL includes a full list of the most common words used
in Infocom games, ready-to-go, When one of the writers gets to work on a new project,
he or she has to worry only about the new words needed in the game.

Parsers are personal things, however. Each of the writers has a slightly different
idea of the way certain words should be implemented. As a result, they each have
their own copy of the parser, one that has been "tweaked" up a bit to reflect the current
project's needs. Sometimes, for example, the word *put* may require a particular
meaning in a given set of circumstances. Out comes the parser for a modification
and *put* takes on a new responsibility.

<figure class="float-right-half">
	<img src="/public/img/articles/analog-an-intimate-look-at-infocom/infocom-creative-services.jpg" alt="Infocom's Creative Services Team">
	<figcaption class="center" style="font-weight: bold;">Elizabeth Langosy and Carl Genatossio of Creative Services</figcaption>
</figure>

ZIL is a very "high-level" language (akin to some of the fourth-generation languages
gaining popularity in the business world) that takes only limited training to get acquainted
with. As a result, writers at Infocom need not be programmers; their
imagination and sense of adventure adequately carry them through the process of
game development.

### The "feelies."

Stories are what Infocom really sells, but they're still only a portion of the labor that
must be completed to place the product into the consumer's hands. Someone has
to sit down and design packages and write copy-not to mention negotiate with the
writers about whether that "feelie" (that's the Infocom name for the fun stuff in the
box) they want included is feasible or not. Special items, such as the glowing rock
packaged with Wishbringer, must be researched, priced and checked for safety
(the ingredient that causes the rock to glow was replaced with a different substance,
due to the toxicity of the original choice). These responsibilities fallon the shoulders
of Carl Genatossio and Elizabeth Langosy, the two members of the Infocom Creative
Services department.

Carl handles the graphics end, designing the packages, hiring photographers and
pulling together all the items to make the package special. He can tell you where to
find pizza-smelling ink, or a wishbringer stone, or palm-tree swizzle sticks. Keep
him in mind for yom next party.

Elizabeth is Infocom's resident writer. She supplies much of the text for manuals
and product announcements.

Carl's and Elizabeth's jobs begin when they sit down to play a new game, spending
about a week to become familiar with the story. A meeting is then scheduled
with the writer. Here they discuss the game in more depth, concentrating on
what the package should be like. Creative Services is always looking for something
special, something different from anything they've done before, but still appropriate
to the game's concept.

Probably one of the most unusual items to crop up in an Infocom package is the
scratch-and-sniff card that rounds out the **Leather Goddesses** package. There are still
horror stories circulating in the Infocom offices about the day they had to sample
the different odors. I bet there was no lunch that day.

### The testers.

Sooner or later, a game in development reaches the point of playability. It then falls
into the hands of Infocom's five-person testing team. After each has tried out the
game, they get together to compare notes. The game's overall logic is discussed; bugs
are noted and sent on to the writers; spelling is checked; even geographical layout
is verified (especially when based on real locations). Sentence syntax is analyzed to
help rid the game of clumsy constructions and to offer the player as many ways of saying
something as possible. A lot of concentration is focused on Infocom's infamous
puzzles -- adjusting each puzzle'S difficulty to match the game's experience level, or
removing those that are inappropriate or boring.

<figure class="float-right-half">
	<img src="/public/img/articles/analog-an-intimate-look-at-infocom/infocom-testers.jpg" alt="Infocom's Testers">
	<figcaption style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;">Infocom testers (left to right):
		Gary Brennan, Tomas Bok, Suzanne Frank, Max Buxton and Liz Cyr-Jones.</figcaption>
	<img src="/public/img/articles/analog-an-intimate-look-at-infocom/infocom-customer-support.jpg" alt="Infocom's Customer Support Team">
	<figcaption style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;">In Customer Support (left to right):
		Kathy Bagdonas, Lisa Fratto, Curtis Montague, Heidi Korn and Stacey Johnson.</figcaption>
</figure>

Suggestions are forwarded to the writer, the changes made, and the cycle repeats.
The testing process may take as much as four months before everyone's satisfied.

Once a game has been cleaned up, it goes into "final freeze." At this stage, no
changes are allowed; the game is considered in its final version, and the testers
must ensure the product is ready for release. The newest game on Infocom's release
schedule, **Hollywood Hijinx** by newcomer Dave Anderson, was in this stage
of testing at the time of **ANALOG's** visit and should be released soon.

What is the testing group's favorite Infocom game? When asked this question,
they seemed to agree that it's **Hitchhiker's Guide**, not so much because of the story,
but because of the interesting bugs which popped up. For instance, when trying to
solve the Babel fish puzzle, if you've put your head or foot on Ford's satchel when
it's hit by the robot, both your head and foot will fly up in the air. Sounds uncomfortable.

But, bugs or not, when the conversation became more relaxed, everyone had something
to say about a much newer and controversial game -- **Leather Goddesses of
Phobos**.

It seems that the sexual theme of **Leather Goddesses** brought out a portion of each
tester's personality that the others had not been aware of. The game's report sheets became
a source of shock and amazement. Frequently, shrieks of "I can't believe you
tried that!" echoed in the halls. Hmmm. Stirs speculation, doesn't it?

### Infocom and Activision.

When Infocom's purchase by Activision was made public, many loyal adventurers
were seized with panic. What was going to happen now? Would Infocom go down
the corporate tubes? Well, you can relax. The buyout actually had little effect on Infocom.
Operations are a little more bureaucratic and systemized, time schedules are
not as loose and comfortable as they were in the past, and sometimes Activision executives
wander about the offices -- but, for the most part, life at Infocom goes on in
much the same way as it did before.

The fact is: people at Activision know a winner when they see one. Activision
doesn't even want their trademark appearing on the game packages, lest that company's
image change the one that Infocom has worked so hard to form.

<figure class="float-left-half">
	<img src="/public/img/articles/analog-an-intimate-look-at-infocom/infocom-public-relations.jpg" alt="Spencer Steere, Infocom's public relations officer">
	<figcaption style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;">At left: Spencer Steere of Public Relations.</figcaption>
</figure>

### Time to disembark.

That about finishes our tour of Infocom, Inc. There are other important people we
haven't mentioned, not the least of whom are in Infocom's Customer Support department.
These five people handle such tasks as replacing defective disks, answering
product questions (no adventure clues, so put down that phone), and handling upgrades
(that 5¼-inch disk of yours can be upgraded to a 3½ for $10.00, should you
ever get an ST). Calls and letters come in from all over the world. This department
even got a call from NASA once. Seems they wanted a bunch of DON'T PANIC buttons.
Honest.

## Scene three.

"Well, we made it."

"Yup."

We stood beside the car, taking a last look at the building where it had all taken
place. The adventure was over. I flicked the switch of the flashlight. Nothing. The batteries
were dead.

"Okay, let's go."

"Yup."

We got in the car. The engine rumbled to life, and we pulled out...

And I had the strangest feeling.

"You know, I think there's something in the back seat."

"Like what?"

I shrugged. "I don't know... something that doesn't belong there. Do you hear
breathing?"

"Yup."

We looked at each other and said nothing more. There was definitely something
in the back -- maybe even a Grue -- but that was to be expected. Those Infocom games
really stick with you.

<p style="border-top: 1px solid; border-bottom: 1px solid; font-style: italic;">
<strong>ANALOG Computing</strong> would like to thank Spencer Steere for the fine job
she did in arranging our visit and scheduling the interviews. We wish her
happiness in her recent marriage and the best of luck in her new life.</p>
