Sorcerer Has the Magic Touch

InfoNews Roundup

New Game!

Sorcerer, the second in the Enchanter series of adventures in the mystic arts, is now available. The game was written by Steve Meretzky, whose hilarious science fiction game, Planetfall, was named by InfoWorld as the Best Adventure Game of 1983. In Sorcerer, you are a member of the prestigious Circle of Enchanters, a position that you achieved in recognition of your success in defeating the Warlock Krill in Enchanter.

When the game starts, you realize that Belboz, the Eldest of the Circle, and the most powerful Enchanter in the land, has disappeared. Perhaps he has just taken a vacation, but it wouldn't be like him to leave without letting you know. You remember that he has been experimenting with powerful spells and dangerous demons, and you fear the worst — that Belboz has been trapped by an evil force, and that his magic might be turned against the Circle. And only a powerful Sorcerer can rescue him from a terrible fate!

With its reliance on magic spells and potions, Sorcerer has become an immediate hit both inside Infocom and with our crew of outside game testers, many of whom think it's our best yet. Besides its outstanding writing and its intricately crafted plot and problems, it boasts the largest vocabulary of any Infocom game: over 1000 words! With your Encyclopedia Frobozzica, you'll have a lot of fun researching the Enchanter universe and the History of the Great Underground Empire. The Enchanter series will be concluded in 1985. Look for details in future issues of The New Zork Times.

Technical Hot-Line

Infocom has established a direct line to our technical support staff. Call (617) 576-3190 for answers to questions of a technical nature (e.g., disk problems, game bugs, etc.). Please note that this is not a hint line.

Hint Booklets

In December, Infocom's long-awaited direct mail operation got underway. Many of the functions formerly provided by the Zork Users Group were taken over by Infocom. Maps and InvisiClues hint booklets were produced for all 10 of Infocom's products. The games themselves were also made available primarily as a service to those of you in remote geographical areas and to those who own the less common computer systems.

Orders are processed by the Creative Fulfillment division of the DM Group, one of the most respected firms in direct mail. Their facilities are in the New York metropolitan area, which explains the strange addresses and phone numbers you'll see on the order forms. There were admittedly some annoying start-up problems, but the operation is now running smoothly. We hope that those of you who experienced problems with your first order will give us another chance.

Zork Fan in Orbit

When she's in the air, Sally Ride, the nation's first woman to go into space, is occupied with the computers on the space shuttle Challenger. But when she gets her feet back on the ground, she turns to Infocom for entertainment. Sally's favorite computer pastime is none other than Zork. "Zork is going to drive me to my knees," Sally said in a recent magazine interview.

Zork in Print

Steve Meretzky, author of Planetfall and Sorcerer, has written three "What Do I Do Now?" books for the Tor Young Adult Adventure series. They are titled ZORK: The Forces of Krill, ZORK: The Malifestro Quest, and ZORK: The Cavern of Doom. Look for them at your local book store

New Systems

Infocom is committed to producing versions of its software for all popular microcomputers. We are proud to announce three new systems with which Infocom software is compatible: the Kaypro II (with CP/M), MS-DOS 2.0 (with IBM compatible disk, 80 characters x 25 line screen or 40 characters x 25 line screen), and TI-99/4A (32K memory expansion, disk drive, and one of the following modules: Extended Basic, Mini-Memory, or Editor/Assembler).

Fortunately, Infocom's IBM versions were written in such a way that they run unmodified on the new PCjr.

Infocom certainly has the widest range of compatibilities of any software producer. The 17 systems are now: Apple II, Atari, Commodore 64, CP/M, DEC Rainbow or DECmate, IBM PC or PCjr, Kaypro II, MS-DOS 2.0, NEC APC, NEC PC-8000, Osborne, PDP-11, TI-99/4A, TI Professional, TRS-80 Model I, TRS-80 Model III, and Tandy 2000.

Watch The New Zork Times for news of new system compatibilities. Be sure to tell your friends who have been waiting to experience Infocom's interactive fiction on their (previously incompatible) systems.

Info Brochure

Enclosed with this issue of The New Zork Times is a copy of Infocom's new product brochure, "Our Circuits, Ourselves!" We would love to hear any comments you may have about it. Address them to Mr. Delwood Bland, Infocom, 55 Wheeler St., Cambridge, MA 02138.

Rumor

We have heard a rumor that someone is planning a parody of Zork titled Dork: The Mediocre Empire.

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These historical, out-of-print articles and literary works have been GNUSTOed onto InvisiClues.org for academic and research purposes.