Zork I

Zork: The Great Underground Empire - Part I, later known as Zork I, is an interactive fiction video game written by Marc Blank, Dave Lebling, Bruce Daniels, and Tim Anderson and published by Infocom in 1980. It was the first game in the "Zork" trilogy and was released for a wide range of computer systems, followed by "Zork II" and "Zork III". It was Infocom's first game, and sold 378,000 copies by 1986.
Gameplay.
The ultimate goal of "Zork I" is to collect the Twenty Treasures of Zork and install them in the trophy case. Finding the treasures requires solving a variety of puzzles such as the navigation of two complex mazes and some intricate manipulations at Flood Control Dam #3.
Placing all of the treasures into the trophy case scores the player 350 points and grants the rank of "Master Adventurer." An ancient map with further instructions then magically appears in the trophy case. These instructions provide access to a stone barrow. The entrance to the barrow is the end of "Zork I" and the beginning of "Zork II".
There are 28 ways for the player to die. It is possible to score all 350 points in 223 moves (and win the game completely in 228 moves) by exploiting a bug.
Reception.
"Zork I" sales surprised Infocom by rising, not falling, over time. Computer dealers demonstrated its parser to customers as example of what their products could do. They sold the game as an essential accessory to those purchasing new computers, including the DEC Rainbow, TI Professional, and others that most people did not see as game machines. It was the best-selling game of 1982, with 32,000 copies sold by the first half of that year; almost 100,000 copies in 1983,—"Inc." reported that the game had been a best seller for four years—more than 150,000 copies in 1984, comprising more than 20% of Infocom's sales that year; and a total of 378,987 copies by 1986. "InfoWorld" reported in April 1984 that "Zork I" "has returned to the top of the sales charts two years after its release". Based on sales and market-share data, "Video" listed it fifth on the magazine's list of best selling video games in both February and March 1985, and "II Computing" listed "Zork I" fourth on the magazine's overall list of top Apple II software as of October–November 1985, and first on the games list.
"BYTE" declared in 1981 that "No single advance in the science of Adventure has been as bold and exciting" as "Zork". The magazine praised the sophisticated parser and quality of writing, stating, "That the program is entertaining, eloquent, witty, and precisely written is almost beside the point ... "Zork" can be felt and touched—"experienced", if you will—through the care and attention to detail the authors have rendered." It concluded, "Somebody, please, let me know when [the sequel is] done." Jerry Pournelle wrote in the magazine in 1983 that he played the game with his sons, stating that "If you liked Adventure and wanted more after you solved the Colossal Cave, I guarantee you'll love Zork".
Jon Mishcon reviewed "Zork" in "The Space Gamer" No. 40. Mishcon commented that "Other than the absence of graphics, this game has no weak points I can find. Although [the price] is expensive I believe this is a first rate game and well worth every penny." "80 Micro" called "Zork" "complicated and sophisticated ... a joy to play". It praised the documentation ("Take it from a rank amateur; these instructions are clear and easy to follow"), and wondered if the game could be solved because "the program lets you do pretty much what you want to do, even if the consequences are much less than desirable, it leaves open marvelous opportunities". The magazine concluded by hoping that "we can expect a second part sometime soon". Deirdre L. Maloy reviewed the game for "Computer Gaming World", stating that ""Zork" is a program that is worth the money for anyone even mildly interested in adventure games. Those that like puzzles will have their fill, I'm sure. Master adventurers will even take a while on this one". "The Addison-Wesley Book of Atari Software 1984" gave the game an overall A+ rating, calling it "THE definitive adventure game".
In 1992, "Computer Gaming World" added "Zork I" to its Hall of Fame, waiving the normal criteria "in favor of honoring this venerable classic." In 1996, the magazine listed "Zork I" at #13 among the top 150 best games of all-time. The editors wrote, "This seminal Infocom text adventure combined challenging puzzles, wonderful descriptive prose, and a touch of humor to create a rich universe that existed not in SVGA graphics, but within your head." On March 12, 2007, "The New York Times" reported that it was named to a list of the ten most important video games of all time, the so-called game canon. The Library of Congress took up a video game preservation proposal and began with the games from this list, including "Zork".
Legacy.
Infocom allowed the distribution of the early Fortran version, therefore source code is available. Various Public domain software ports are available in various repositories.