The Zork Chronicles

Infocom #5

by George Alec Effinger

From the dawn of the age of computer games, one of the greatest challenges has always been Zork. This is the classic, the standard against which all adventure games are measured. Through five best-selling games, the world of Zork has been the source of fantastic quests by intrepid computer heroes.

Now, at last, readers can enter teh world of Zork without a computer, but with a hero at their side. Mirakles is a hero who can face the challenge of Zork with nothing more than his sword and faithful companion Glorian.

With Glorian prodding him ever onward, Mirakles descends into the Great Underground Empire where he encounters Spike the Protector, the Dragon's Lair, the Wizard's Workroom, the winged vampire were-unicorn, and, of course, the Warm Boot of Frobozz.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Gaming, Humor, Science Fiction, Novels, Science Fiction Fantasy

290 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

Reviews

[Derek · Rating 2 out of 5]

Zork I-III were sedate games filled with small, introverted moments of 'aha!' puzzle solving and grumbling as you try and figure out what set of words the parser wants to see. As the greatest hits album of that series, Effinger relies on callbacks to events and places, glued together with the banter and bickering among the small set of characters, and all under the umbrella of this being long after 'the adventurer' looted the place and some villain is attempting to restock the shop and return the Great Underground Empire to its former glory.

I wasn't sure what to expect--probably something quirky but immersive like Steve Meretzky's Choose-Your-Own-Adventure Zork series, starting with The Forces of Krill, and that would have been perfectly okay. But Effinger pulls in The Hero With a Thousand Faces (like, directly: the characters reference their own adventure in these terms) and layers the weirdness of the Great Underground Empire with anachronistic references to the real world and implications of a spiritual overworld inhabited by deities and 'quasi-real' personages with advisory roles. All laced through with various in jokes and meta references and character humor.

It feels like it's barely held together, and commits the worst sin of being boring. All conversation, a story that is strung together, and no event that really stands out as remarkable. Even the cover is dull.

[Terry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve read my share of video game novels and most of them have been fanboy wanks. Starting The Zork Chronicles, I had similarly low expectations, but this 1990 fantasy novel will probably end up being one of the best books I’ll read this year. It’s certainly one of the best fantasy books I’ve read, funny and imaginative, and reminiscent of Terry Pratchett’s work.

The Zork Chronicles references the three classic Infocom text adventures, but is set after “the adventurer” has plundered the remnants of the Great Underground Empire. Here amidst the File Restorer’s efforts to restock the Empire’s treasures and monsters, the hero Mirakles and his supernatural guide Glorian seek out a hidden item which will complete Mirakles’ hero cycle and put Glorian in a better position to win the Joseph Campbell Award for Best Semi-Actual Persona.

It doesn’t take long for Zork mainstays to make an appearance, but Effinger seamlessly combines classic Zork descriptions with self-referential humor. “To me, it seems like we’re just in a maze of twisty little passages, all alike,” complains one character. Another character pokes around in the Mirror room for half an hour, trying to figure out how it works before giving up. But those unfamiliar with the world of Zork can still appreciate a magic sword which warns its wielder of danger with the aroma of freshly baked bread, the wonder of Drawer Forwarding, and a pantheon which includes The Powers that Be, the Control Character, and the Autoexec.

Finally. beyond being a parody of fantasy while staying true to a high fantasy arc, The Zork Chronicles is refreshingly meta. Characters discuss C.S. Lewis and are aware that parts of the G.U.E. intentionally resemble Carroll’s Wonderland. The origins of Hell and construction of its pavement yield amazingly literate references. There’s even a passage late in the book which deals with the gamer’s experience in a more insightful way than academic literature on “digital games” offers.

Originally posted here here.

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a novel set in and based on the video game, one of the earliest such. Sometimes game-based stories are completely accessible to non-playing readers, but I didn't this one to be one of those. I enjoyed Effinger's unbridled humor, as always, but never felt like I understood just what was happening or why I should be concerned about it. When I gave up and just sat back to experience the zaniness I chuckled my way to the end.

[Noel Thingvall]

Did not finish. Made it to page 127/290. I tried, I just found it ponderous and impenetrable, burying the few interesting bits in endless streams of rambling dialogue that are trying desperately hard to be funny, but are just numbing and unengaging. It perfectly captures the laid back nonsensical style of the game, but as I couldn't stand the games all that much, I didn't get into this.

Not saying it's bad, just not for me.

[寿理 宮本 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I will have to triple-check, but I'm *pretty* sure this is the correct book. If so, I'm surprised it's a book *5*, but also not surprised, since that could explain some things.

The short of it is I'm not sure what I expected, for a novelisation of a text-based adventure game with no defined player character. The humour is *almost* what I expect, but it's weird when it goes off on this rambling bit about name anagrams, which is itself weird when they consider the "almost anagrams" including the "almost anagram" of the warrior Mirakles's name spelled like the common noun (miracles), which... isn't really clever at all?

Also, I don't know... the action is pretty slow. I kind of expect that with an adventure that's primarily exploratory, but... it's SLOW.

As mentioned above, though, the fact of it being a book 5 might explain that better than if it were a book 1, so... explanation gained, if not reasonable excuse gained.

Not really recommended even for Zork fans. I think in this day and age, it'd be better and easier just to replay the original games. I'm sure SOMEBODY might like the book, though, just not sure who.

[Lewis Clark · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of those books that I might appreciate more with context. I’ve yet to play a Zork game but I know about the white house and the mailbox, so it was nice to see them referenced in the last chapter. This is a fun read and a perfectly serviceable piece of fantasy. It feels very much like a D&D game where you’re making it up as you go along and someone isn’t taking it as seriously as the rest of the group. It’s got some humour and a self-awareness that makes me think it’s referencing Pratchett, but not having read any Pratchett I can’t say for certain. I think the humour is what cools my overall opinion of the book. It’s very witty and twee - nothing makes you laugh out loud. I think I’d prefer it to either take itself more seriously or really go to town with the humour, but I don’t know whether it suits the franchise better with the tone they’ve chosen. A fun read and definitely a better book than The Lost City of Zork.

[Nathan Beeler · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not high art, and it's not trying to be. It's aiming to entertain fans of the Zork games, and I would argue it does that. Points are deducted for mixing modern references with Fantasy--I don't care for that generally. But it earns them right back with some clever genre play. In the end I got the escapist winter read I wanted.

[Durval Menezes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember the general outline of the story -- which followed the computer game. Not that great.

[Dakin Burdick · Rating 2 out of 5]

Funny in parts, but mostly worth reading if you loved Zork.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very entertaining book. If you ever tried to "kill grue with sword" in any of the Zork text games from the 1980s, you'll find this to be very funny. If you ever read "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" or analyzed the adventure genre, you'll find this to be smart. If you've ever sat through an awards ceremony as a nominee, you'll find this to be painfully honest.

If you bring none of those experiences to your reading of this book, you'll probably think it's a nice read, and not much more.

However, for those with any combination of the three criteria I listed, you'll recognize this as an underappreciated piece of smart fantasy writing. Very funny and very meta, in sense of story and genre.

[East Bay J · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ve played a little Zork in my time. I wasn’t aware anyone had novelized the game so I felt compelled to give this book a read. The Zork Chronicles was pretty fun but Effinger’s attempt to create a story following the laws of epic hero sagas as laid out by Raglan and Campbell ends up a bit by the numbers. While it is sometimes funny, most of the time the humor seems forced and the “zany” characters sometimes trite. What it is not is “Wry and black and savage,” as George R. R. Martin says on the back cover. Not bad.

[Sbate · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is about Zork which I never played much. I always wanted to but I kept getting eaten by grues or lost going w I could never figure out what to do next. Anyway the book is not as funny as the game. But it is worth reading I am lovin it.