Infocom, founded in 1979, were one of the great studios of the early days of PC gaming, responsible for classics like the Zork series. They may be long gone (Infocom were shut down in 1989), but their history lives on in this incredible collection of old documents.
30 years ago I received my first proper Apple-compatible computer, and a single game to play on it — Infocom's text-based The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. The BBC has prettied up the game for its 30th anniversary, and it's still just as wonderful as it was way back when.
The Lost Treasures of Infocom collection is now available for iPad and iPhone, boasting 27 classic adventure games and more than 350 hours of gameplay for a mere $10.
Zork is one of the oldest adventure game franchises there is. The series is so old, in fact, that aside from a few rare instances you can only play the games using, and seeing, text. No graphics, no icons, no heads-up display, nothing.
Normally, the sequel to a popular video game remains largely the same as the preceding title (or titles). If the first one was a shooter, the second one is a shooter. In 1993, however, one series did things a little differently.
Or is it the dorkiest? However you want to label it, the ability to play Infocom text adventures like Zork and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy with a typewriter is without a doubt neat.
Jason Scott, connoisseur of all things old-timey, knows (and loves) his gaming history. His Flickr gallery shows this. It also shows, remarkably, that he's got a copy of the lifetime sales figures of a bunch of Infocom games. Infocom being the developers of games like Zork and Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy. It's…
