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Zork: Grand Inquisitor

Zork: Grand Inquisitor is a graphical adventure game, developed by Activision and released in 1997 for the IBM compatible PC and Apple Macintosh (by MacPlay). It builds upon the Zork and Enchanter series of interactive fiction computer games originally released by Infocom. The cast includes Erick Avari, Dirk Benedict, and Rip Taylor. It is a 'point-and-click' game on 2 CD-ROMs (or one DVD that also includes Zork: Nemesis) that allows the player to look around in a full circle of 360 degrees at each pre-rendered location (called 'Z-vision'). This visual freedom applies to the horizontal axis only; looking up and down is restricted, although possible in some locations.

Zork Grand Inquisitor was one of the first computer games to include true closed captioning so that the hearing impaired could play without missing any of the sound effects and spoken dialog in the game

Much of the humor in Zork Grand Inquisitor stems from the ludicrous Inquisition policies and propaganda. Example quotes:

'Shun magic, and shun the appearance of magic. Shun everything, and then shun shunning.' - the Grand Inquisitor (Mir Yannick), played by Erick Avari.
'This is a paid announcement: "The Grand Inquisitor rules!"' - voice of the Inquisition, played by David Lander.
'And never forget who is the boss of you--Me! I am the boss of you!' - The Grand Inquisitor (Mir Yannick), played by Erick Avari.

The game also makes frequent use of self parody, and contains numerous references and asides to staples and clichés of the traditional adventure genre; for example, two items almost invariably found and heavily used in almost all Zork games, a tattered map and an elven sword, are to be found in a glass case at the start of the game, with the notice "In case of adventure, break glass!".

Game overview

The player, known by the acronym AFGNCAAP, joins forces with the Dungeon Master Dalboz (voiced by Michael McKean), who was imprisoned in a lantern by the Grand Inquisitor, Yannick. They attempt to find three legendary objects that will restore all magic to the realm and bring about the fall of the Inquisitor. The three artifacts are: one of the Cubes of Foundation, the Coconut of Quendor and the Skull of Yoruk. Zork Grand Inquisitor is set in 1067 GUE, after the events of Zork: Nemesis but before Return to Zork. Zork: The Undiscovered Underground was written and released as a promotional prequel to the game.

The music for the game was composed by John Beal and Mark Morgan.

Story

The game begins in Port Foozle, which has been occupied by the Inquisition. The evening curfew has just begun. Megaphones in the streets continuously spout ridiculous propaganda, including a reminder that all residents must have standard Inquisition loudspeakers in their homes, blaring standard Inquisition propaganda at all times. Violation of any of the numerous rules of the Inquisition will result in swift totemization "courtesy of Frobozz Electric" (formerly the Frobozz Magic Company, before magic was banished). The player discovers an old lamp in the sea, and takes it to the TV-star-adventurer Antharia Jack (an Indiana Jones parody), whereupon we discover that the lamp is possessed by the Dungeon Master in exile, Dalboz. Jack is later arrested by the Inquisition for setting a fire in the street which was actually set by the player character. In-game cut-scenes show the events of Antharia Jack's imprisonment throughout play.

The player eventually ends up in the Great Underground Empire itself accompanied by Dalboz. Magic spells are hidden all over the Underground. These spells are automatically added to the player's spell book as they are discovered, and include rezrov, throck, obidil and snavig, many of which originated in Infocom's original series of Zork and Enchanter games. Along the way, three other characters are met, all of whom have been subject to the totemizer: a fanciful dragon, a creature called Brog, and the rightful heir to the kingdom - Lucy Flathead. To recover the three artifacts that will restore magic, each of these three characters must be sent through time tunnels to the places where the artifacts were last known. Once recovered, they are stored in a giant, living castle.

The villain is Mir Yannick, played by Erick Avari. He discovered the long-lost Totemizer and rose to the position of Grand Inquisitor and head of the Frobozz Magic Company, which he renamed Frobozz Electric. Yannick plots to brainwash all of Quendor, but the adventurer (with the help of Dalboz, Griff, Brog, and Lucy) uses the Time Tunnels to gather the lost artifacts, and tries to use them to stop him. Yannick climbs to the top of a large satellite tower to stop this, but the ensuing magical blast from the artifacts' use causes him to lose his grip and fall to his death. Lucy is restored as the rightful Queen of Quendor. Yannick's ghost would later incite the Magic Wars which pitted the Eastlands against the Westlands.

Totemizer

The Totemizer machine was originally created by the Frobozz Magic Company in 672 GUE under commission of King Duncanthrax the Bellicose as an effective alternative to the death penalty. Lord Dimwit Flathead the Excessive, however, had more grandiose ideas about punishment and the machine fell into disuse. It was locked in a deserted warehouse in Fenshire until the Inquisition found it in 1033 GUE following the fall of magic. It was refurbished by Frobozz Electric to be electrical rather than magical in nature. It usually uses energy from a hydroelectric dam, but could possibly draw energy by setting up exercise machines at the local orphanage if the dam is not operational.

The Inquisition began to sentence people to Totemization for crimes, both petty and serious. The process, which confines the person's spirit in a totem for eternity, consists of four stages:

Poundization - compacts the subject into a portable form.
Squishization - 'wrests natural, unnatural and supernatural inclinations from the subject'.
Stampization - 'achieves desirable Inquisition aesthetic'.
Permasealization - Permasealing insures permanence of Totemization.

The technique was apparently protected by Frobozz Electric patent number 59980.

The Totemizer can be set to distribute the resulting totem to any of five locations:

The hall of the Inquisition
The surface of Murz
Newark, New Jersey
Infinity
Hell

When magic returns to the land as a result of the player's actions, victims of totemization are easily released by magic.

Locations and Cameos

Locations to explore include:

GUE Tech - the magic university, which is now deserted. The Dungeon Master and the Grand Inquisitor attended this university in the same year.
The Dungeon Master's lair - a small house and garden.
The Underground Underground subway - a transport system that takes the player to and from the locations of Hades, Flood Control Dam #3, Steppinthrax monastery and the crossroads.
Hades - a light-hearted rendition of the Greek underworld, featuring Charon the oarsmen, who sails the player across the river to the gates of Hell. To summon Charon, the player must use the 'Hades Shuttle Courtesy Phone' - a spoof of automated telephone support systems with directions like "to press 3, please press 7".
Archipelago - a set of islands wherein lies a dragon, and in which the Coconut of Quendor can be found.
The White House - the famous landmark from the original Zork game.
Flood Control Dam #3 - another famous Zork landmark.
Planetfall makes a cameo appearance in Zork: Grand Inquisitor, but the screen that's shown has a few mistakes: there is no text before the explanation about Deck Nine, and the last sentence says that the bulkhead is "cleared" when it's supposed to say that it's "closed".