<!--
	Title: LOST & FOUND: THE TREASURES OF INFOCOM
	Author: Russ Ceccola
	Source: QuestBusters, v9(2)
	Date: February 1992
	Transcription by Steve Derby
-->

<div class="article-sidebar-box float-left" style="border: 4px double; border-radius: 1em;">
<strong>Type:</strong> All-text adventures<br>
<strong>System:</strong>  MSDOS, Mac<br>
<strong>Planned ports:</strong> Amiga
</div>

<p class="article-dropcap">Great games never die, as they
say in The Industry, they just
get recycled.· That old
expression certainly explains the
longevity of games like Tetris, PacMan,
Shanghai, Ishida, Breakout,
Reversi and Solitaire. You can find
these games and their derivatives in
a number of different formats.</p>

## 20 games. 20 worlds!

In the same way, all the classic Infocom games still retain their fans,
and have spawned hundreds of shareware text games in the public
domain. But now, for the first time since the fall of the text game giant,
both old and new fans can take advantage of Mediagenic's generosity
and pick up 20 of their best all-text games in one package — *The
Lost Treasures of Infocom*. This is not only the heaviest
game package ever, but also the best buy of 1992 or any year for the serious
gamer who wants to experience what the all-text game craze was
all about in the Eighties. There is more entertainment per dollar in Lost
Treasures than in any other adventure game available. Twenty games means
twenty worlds — and twenty times the fun, puzzles and opportunities to
type in curse words!

New adventurers may or may not understand the nostalgia with
which I write this article, or the high regard for the games in *Lost
Treasures* in the gaming community. Fans awaited a new game from
Infocom as anxiously in those days as they do now for Sierra or Origin.

<img class="float-right" src="/public/img/articles/questbusters-ltoi1-review/chest.png" alt="Very pixelated clip art of an open treasure chest">

Each one offered a new world and story, a different puzzle-based
environment that drove players to great lengths to get hints. The packaging
was carefully designed to suggest game elements and to make room
for a gimmick of some kind.

*Wishbringer* included a purple glow-in-the-dark rock, *Witness* had
pills and physical evidence and *Journey* offered a crystal in a pouch.
The packaging and game worked together to spirit the player away to
another world in which all the graphics appeared in the mind's eye.
Infocom's story depth certainly ensured that the games would
forever remain together chronologically on my book shelves rather than
my software shelves. *Lost Treasures* collects twenty popular Infocom
titles for the eager collector who lost or destroyed his *Zork* disks many
years ago, or the new gamer interested in finding out what all that
hubbub was about.

## Lost in the G. U. E. again

*Lost Treasures* brings together all the important games set in the Great
Underground Empire (G. U. E.), all the mystery games and a good
assortment from the remaining titles. *Zork I*, *Zork II*, *Zork II*, *Beyond
Zork* and *Zork Zero* form one group of related stories. *Enchanter*,
*Sorcerer* and *Spellbreaker* compose a trio of magic-based titles.

Both groups are tied to the history of the G. U. E. and form a
world of rules and creatures that rivals any of the popular
fantasy authors. I'm surprised that *Wishbringer* didn't make
the collection, because the events int he game take place in a remote
corner of the G. U. E. and combine magic and fantasy elements from the two
related groups.

The mystery games were landmark achievements for their time
and still offer a strong challenge. Marc Blank's *Deadline*, the first of
the mysteries, was a brand new type of game at that time. There were no
other major mystery titles, and fans of the genre flocked to *Deadline*.
This first crack at crime led to *The Witnes*s, *Suspect*, *Ballyhoo* and
*Moonmist*. *Moonmist* was Infocom's best mystery game because it offered
three variations in a setting straight out of a Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew
book.

The remaining titles in *Lost Treasures* are mostly science fiction
games. Steve Meretzky's *Planetfall* and *Stationfall* introduced a nerdy
outer space janitor long before Roger Wilco stumbled out of a
broom closet. *Starcross* (along with *Spellbreaker*) is one of the two
toughest games Infocom ever released, but also has a strong plot
and a lot things to do.

## Did you get the Babel Fish?

*The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy* translates the Douglas
Adams' book to the computer nicely and contains the stickiest puzzle ever —
how to get the Babel fish — that even inspired a T-shirt for sale to
those who solved the puzzle (or at least lied about it) and wanted to
show off. *Infidel* takes the player into the heart of the desert for an
adventure of intrigue and archaeology. Finally, *The Lurking Horror*
was Infocom's first and last horror story, combining the flavor of .
Stephen King and H.P. Lovecraft m a university setting.

Though you miss a lot of neat gimmicks with this collection, *Lost
Treasures* gives you something more useful: all of the hint books and
maps for the games. Besides the disks, you will find two books and a
number of maps. One book contains reproductions of all the hint books
except for *Zork Zero* (which had on-line hints).

The other contains all the printed documents for each game. Finally,
maps accompany the hint books to help you visualize the locations in
the game if mapmaking is a weakness. The books have the same
sequence of games, for easy reference. The best part is that the price
of the collection is very low. Plus, all twenty games take less than five
megs on a hard disk. It's worth installing them all at once so you can
switch back and forth easily.<br>
**Conclusions:** When I first heard about *Lost Treasures*, I was ecstatic.
I 'treasure' my Infocom games collection and am still in the process
of tracking down some of the earlier packages that came in odd shapes
and sizes. The collection is convenient and cheap enough to snag a new
generation of players. Each of the Infocom titles was a special event,
and I only hope that Mediagenic collects the rest of the titles into a
*Lost Treasures II* package. For those of you who already played these
games, it's still worth the money to own a piece of history. Until Legend
Entertainment (what Infocom would be if still in existence) gets a larger
roster of titles, take the time to enjoy games that are priceless and lost no
more. Long live the grue!

**Skill Level:** Novice to advanced<br>
**Company:** Infocom/Mediagenic<br>
**Retail price:** $69.95<br>
**QuestBusters price:** $55
