Retroist on Enchanter

Enchanter by Infocom

Retroist has published a short look at Enchanter, including ads. From the site:

Originally intended to be Zork IV, Enchanter, debuted on computer store shelves and in my case some shelves at B. Dalton’s bookstore in 1983. I did not own my beloved Commodore 64 at that point…nor any other computer for that matter but I would always visit the shops and read and then reread the backs of the Infocom games. A couple of years later when I did get the C-64, I decided on a beginner level title, Wishbringer. Thanks to a school chum I was able to get my hands on Zork quickly after that and my devotion to ‘Interactive Fiction’ still burns brightly to this day! Of course how could you not love the little extra details that Infocom included in their titles? True, they were a means of copy protection, but thanks to the Zork Library you can see what I’m crowing about!

Infocom Book in the Works

This news item from GameSetWatch excites me. Not that someone is making sexy hi-res photographs inspired by Infocom games… by that Rick Thornquist is writing a book about Infocom, and plans to interview a number of Infocom people for the book. I don’t know who Rick is, but he’s my new game history hero.

It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of Infocom games. They were some of the first ever video games I played on a PC and their ingenious packaging matched their more than ingenious games. I am still trying to remember what to do when you first get on the Vogon ship in the classic Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (designed, in part, by Steve Meretsky). I can’t wait to get my hands on this book. Sadly, Amazon doesn’t yet have a product page for it, but when they do, you can be sure that I will pre-order it!

Here’s some good Infocom-related links for you to peruse and enjoy:

• Wikipedia
• A brilliant white paper on the history of Infocom
• The classic Infocom unofficial home page
• Play Infocom games online
• GSW article on Steve
• Infocom collection torrent

An Experiment in Social RPGs

The main theme of this year’s Austin Game Developer’s Conference, which happened to be the first that I’ve ever attended, was social networking games. I attended several panels regarding SRPGs, including one conducted by Playdom‘s Steve Meretsky (a childhood game design hero of mine, specifically his amazing work with Infocom, the best game company ever) and the final keynote, conducted by PlayFish‘s Sebastien de Halleux. It’s not that I was actively attempting to attend SRPG stuff; SRPGs are not part of my work in the Industry. It simply could not be avoided.

At the same time, I’ve had an interest in casual gaming. I’ve been playing them since Bejeweled first hit the Web. And, according to the IGDA, I’m totally within the targeted range of this type of game product: female, at home, late 30’s… except I’m a hardcore gamer. Casual games, and SRPGs, tend to target those who may not be gamers or consider themselves to be. SRPGs have the added twist of being, well, social. If a friend of yours on a social networking site is playing the game and they invite you to play, it will be likely that you will start playing the game as well.

So, I’ve decided to try an experiment in social RPGs. I’m not interested specifically in the microtransaction portion of their design (which will be the future of gaming as we know it, IMO), but more about how SRPGs spread virally, their common or uncommon traits, etc. I’ve created a second Facebook account for this purpose, and signed up for one SRPG, the very popular Mafia Wars. I won’t be adding games unless invited by friends… in fact, I won’t be adding my existing friends at all. I want to see if a complete stranger with absolutely no ties to anyone can proliferate in this genre, as well as the viral spread of these games. Let’s see how it goes.