<!--
	Title: (Preview) A Whole Grue World
	Subtitle: The Great Underground Empire Rises Again in a Brand New Zork Trilogy
	Author: Jeff Green
	Source: Computer Gaming World, v17(7)
	Date: July 1997
	Transcription by Steve Derby
-->

<div class="float-right-half larger" style="width: 100%; font-family: var(--article-sidebar), Arial, sans-serif; text-align: right;">
<p style="margin: 0.25em; background: darkred; color: var(--light); padding: 0.25em 0.5em; border-radius: 1em;"><strong>Target Release Date:</strong> October, 1997</p>
<p style="margin: 0.25em; background: darkred; color: var(--light); padding: 0.25em 0.5em; border-radius: 1em;"><strong>Developer:</strong> Activision</p>
<p style="margin: 0.25em; background: darkred; color: var(--light); padding: 0.25em 0.5em; border-radius: 1em;"><strong>Publisher:</strong> Activision</p>
</div>

On May 25, 1977 *Star Wars* was released to the world, and a universe
was born. Eight days later, so the legend goes, a group of
MIT programmers, including Dave Lebling, Marc Blank, and
Tim Anderson, created a universe of their own. The result was *Dungeon*, a
text-based fantasy adventure game that ran on
mainframe computers. This game eventually
evolved into one of the first text adventures -- and
one of the best games, period -- ever to appear on
a personal computer: *Zork*.

As with *Star Wars*, the first *Zork* game was
only the beginning. For the next 20 years, over
the course of ten games, the story expanded,
encompassing roughly 750 years in the history
of the Great Underground Empire, a land inhabited
by evil sorcerers, dimwitted kings, man-eating
grues, and you -- the quick-thinking adventurer. Along the
way, the *Zork* series set a standard for humorous, yet brain-busting,
gameplay that few other adventure games have even come close to matching.

<figure class="float-left-half">
<img src="/public/img/articles/cgw-preview-zgi/two-headed-beast.png" alt="Cartoon of a two-headed beast">
<figcaption style="background: var(--dark); color: var(--light); padding: 0.25em 0.5em;">
<strong>TWICE THE FUN</strong> An artist's rendition of the two-headed
beast guarding the Gate of Hades. You'll need to figure out a way to get
past this bad boy.</figcaption>
</figure>

## THE NEW ZORK

Now, exactly 20 years after *Dungeon* was conceived,
Activision is embarking on the most
ambitious *Zork* project to date. *Zork Grand
Inquisitor*, due this October, is the first in a trilogy
of games that will fill in another huge chunk in
the *Zork* timeline, and will take gamers back to
visit some of the series' most legendary characters
and locations.

*Zork Grand Inquisitor* begins in the year 1067.
The Great Underground Empire has fallen on hard
times ever since the end of the Age of Magic in 966 (as
recounted in *Beyond Zork* and *Spellbreaker*).
Since then, the evil Mir Yannick has seized control of
the Empire through his mastery of
technology and, to ensure his domination, has
dubbed himself the "Grand Inquisitor" and forever
banished the practice of magic.

<figure class="float-right">
<img src="/public/img/articles/cgw-preview-zgi/zgi-screen-shot-1.jpg" alt="A screen shot of the totemizer from Zork Grand Inquisitor">
<figcaption style="background: var(--dark); color: var(--light); padding: 0.25em 0.5em;">
<strong>HONEY, I SHRUNK THE GAMER</strong> The Grand Inquisitor's totemizer,
where those who practice magic are cut down to size.</figcaption>
</figure>

As the game opens, you, the anonymous adventurer, have arrived
in Port Foozle, where you discover a lantern containing the trapped
disembodied spirit of the Dungeon Master, who,
in the game's opening cut-scene, has been obliterated
by Yannick. You grab the lantern, descend into the Great Underground
Empire via a secret entrance, and embark on an epic adventure to
save your friend, restore magic to the world, and
defeat the Grand Inquisitor once and for all. To
accomplish your tasks, you'll need to travel back
in time to recover three legendary treasures: the
Coconut of Quendor (from *Beyond Zork*), a Cube
of Foundation (from *Spellbreaker*), and the skull
of Yoruk (a character in *Zork Nemesis*). Along the
way, you'll visit some of the most famous spots
in the *Zork* universe, such as G.U.E. Tech and
the legendary white house, and meet with
some of its most famous characters, including
everyone's favorite sorcerer, Belboz.

## ZORKIER THAN THE REST

Since transforming from text into graphic
adventures in 1993, the *Zork* series has been
a mixed bag. The first effort, *Return to Zork*,
was a bit cheesy, and suffered from an incomprehensible
interface. The second, last year's
*Zork Nemesis*, was a very popular game, but
was a departure for the series in many ways.
Activision *Myst*-ified the *Zork* universe with
undeniably beautiful graphics and a dark, portentous
storyline, but came up short on the
humor that had always been a hallmark of the
series. Of all the games in the series, *Nemesis*
was the least Zorky *Zork*.

<figure class="float-right">
<img src="/public/img/articles/cgw-preview-zgi/zgi-screen-shot-2.jpg" alt="The adventurer's sword and map">
<figcaption style="background: var(--dark); color: var(--light); padding: 0.25em 0.5em;">
<strong>TOOLS OF THE TRADE</strong> Behind the glass lies your map and your
sword. Take them first, and <em>then</em> break the glass.</figcaption>
</figure>

With *Zork Grand Inquisitor*, Activision is
wholeheartedly embracing the *Zork* legacy
while retaining the sophisticated look of
*Nemesis*. *ZGI* employs the same "Z-Vision"
engine created for *Nemesis*, which allows 360-degree
panoramic scrolling within each
scene, but the graphics themselves have
taken on a lighter, less austere tone to match
the game's more comic approach. Activision
is also promising more interactivity with the
environment (rather than just one or two
hotspots per pretty picture), as well as a more
populated world -- consisting of both live-action
and computer-generated characters --
to help give the game the kind of vibrancy that
made the old text adventures so great. Other
refinements include a new inventory system,
which will let you store, examine, and combine
objects, as well as a dynamic map,
which fills in as you explore the world and
allows you to quickly move between places
you've previously visited.

The biggest (and most welcome) change, however, is the incorporation
of a spellbook, given to you at the beginning of the game
by the enchantress Y'Gael (from *Beyond Zork*). As you
progress through the game, you'll learn a total of 18 spells,
which are divided into three classes: High Magic (the power to
create or destroy), Middle Magic (knowledge-based; allowing
you to see and comprehend concepts), and Deep Magic (the power
to transform and use alchemy). Some of the spells, like rezrov, will
be familiar to fans of the *Enchanter* trilogy, while others were
newly created for this game. Many of the
puzzles in *ZGI* directly involve the use of
spellcasting, which ties in to the game's
main storyline of restoring magic to the
world of *Zork*.

## THE REST OF THE STORY

<figure class="float-right">
<img src="/public/img/articles/cgw-preview-zgi/zgi-screen-shot-3.jpg" alt="A screen shot of G.U.E. Tech from Zork Nemesis">
<figcaption style="background: var(--dark); color: var(--light); padding: 0.25em 0.5em;">
<strong>KNOCKIN' ON GUE TECH'S DOOR</strong> The entrance to the most famous
	magic school in all of computer gaming.</figcaption>
</figure>

Finally, you should know that *Zork Grand
Inquisitor* is just the beginning of the story.
Activision recently revealed to us that *ZGI* is
the first act in a planned trilogy of games,
which will tell the entire tale of the 11th-century
struggle between the forces of magic and
technology. The second game, scheduled for
Christmas, 1998, will place you in the role of
the Dungeon Master, who must protect the
Great Underground Empire and stave off a
rebellion led by the Grand Inquisitor's ghost.
The third game, projected for Christmas 1999,
will conclude the story with a battle between
the forces of the Eastlands, including the
Dungeon Master (you again) and the evil
forces of the Westlands.

If Activision stays with this program, *Zork*
fans have a lot to look forward to, which is
good news indeed. Just remember to keep
your elvish sword armed and that lantern
burning bright -- it looks like we'll be on the
lookout for grues for years to come.

<img style="display: block; margin: auto; max-width: 100%;" src="/public/img/articles/cgw-preview-zgi/timeline.png" alt="A timeline of the Great Underground Empire">
