Zork I facts for kids

Zork I: The Great Underground Empire is a classic computer game from 1980. It's a special type of game called interactive fiction. This means you play by typing commands, like "go north" or "take sword," and the game tells you what happens next.

Four people named Marc Blank, Dave Lebling, Bruce Daniels, and Tim Anderson created Zork I. It was published by a company called Infocom. This game was the very first in the popular Zork series. It was so popular that it sold over 400,000 copies! After Zork I, two more games came out: Zork II and Zork III.

What is the Story?

In Zork I, you play as an "adventurer." Your journey begins near a mysterious white house. Even though you don't get many instructions, the house is the first place you'll want to explore.

When you enter the house through a window, you find many interesting things. There's an old brass lantern, an empty trophy case, and a fancy sword. Under a rug, you discover a secret trap door. This door leads down into a dark cellar. But this cellar is actually just one of many ways into a huge underground world. This world is known as the Great Underground Empire!

As you explore, you'll meet dangerous creatures. These include scary grues, a troll with an axe, a giant cyclops, and a quick-fingered thief.

Your Main Goal

The main goal in Zork I is to find the Twenty Treasures of Zork. Once you find them, you need to place them inside the empty trophy case you found in the house. To find these treasures, you'll have to solve many different puzzles. This includes finding your way through two tricky mazes and carefully controlling things at a place called Flood Control Dam #3.

When you put all twenty treasures into the trophy case, you earn 350 points. This also gives you the special title of "Master Adventurer." After that, an old map with more instructions appears in the trophy case. These instructions show you how to get to a stone barrow. Finding the entrance to this barrow is the end of Zork I. It's also the beginning of your next adventure in Zork II!

Images for kids

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  Screenshot of Zork I running on Gargoyle, a modern interpreter

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  Zork being played on a Kaypro computer.

See also

In Spanish: Zork para niños