| The Lost Treasures of Infocom | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer | Infocom |
| Publisher | Activision |
| Platforms | Amiga,Apple IIGS,Macintosh,MS-DOS,iOS |
| Release | 1991 |
| Genre | Interactive fiction |
| Mode | Single player |
The Lost Treasures of Infocom is a 1991compilation of 20 previously releasedinteractive fiction games developed byInfocom. It was published byActivision forMS-DOS,Macintosh,Amiga, andApple IIGS versions. It was later re-released onCD-ROM, and in 2012 oniOS.
The Lost Treasures of Infocom compiles 20interactive fiction titles, with which the player interacts viatext parser.
The compilation includesZork I,II andIII, along with theZork-connected gamesBeyond Zork,Zork Zero,Enchanter,Sorcerer andSpellbreaker. The other titles included areDeadline,The Witness,Suspect,The Lurking Horror,Ballyhoo,Infidel,Moonmist,Starcross,Suspended,Planetfall,Stationfall andThe Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
The package contains all the instructions (bound in one volume) and maps for each game as well as all theInvisiClues, printed normally instead of using "invisible" ink. The package also features a launch menu which lets the user select which one of the 20 games they wish to play.
Some significant omissions from the package were the "feelies" for which Infocom had become known. The package merely contained photocopies or pictures of these items, such as the sunglasses fromHitchhiker's Guide and the Stellar Patrol ID card fromPlanetfall.
Discussing the announcement ofThe Lost Treasures of Infocom,Scorpia ofComputer Gaming World noted thatActivision was "rising like a phoenix ... from the bankrupt ashes ofMediagenic" with the release.[1] After the company's restructuring during bankruptcy, it began to lean on its back catalog of licenses, includingZork. Activision CEOBobby Kotick later said that "Zork on a brick would sell 100,000 copies".[2] Infocom had been closed by Activision in 1989; the publisher held thecopyright to nearly all the past Infocom titles.
An additional bonus was the updated version ofHitchhiker's Guide. The game was repackaged using a later version of theZ-machine than the original, and now featured a built-in hint system.
The Lost Treasures of Infocom was a commercial hit.[3][4] Peter Doctorow of Activision reported in 1992 thatThe Lost Treasures of Infocom was "selling extremely well".[3] Jeremy Reimer ofArs Technica wrote, "Retailing for $99, it sold over 100,000 copies and was almost pure profit. The ashes of Infocom saved Activision from bankruptcy."[4]
Brian Walker ofComputer Games Strategy Plus declaredThe Lost Treasures of Infocom Activision's best game of 1992.[5] Reviewing theiOS version of the game in 2017,TouchArcade gave it a strongly positive review.[6]
| The Lost Treasures of Infocom II | |
|---|---|
| Developer | Infocom |
| Publisher | Activision |
| Platforms | Apple Macintosh,MS-DOS |
| Release | 1992 |
| Genre | Interactive fiction |
| Mode | Single player |
The success of the originalLost Treasures of Infocom prompted a follow-up collection published in 1992 titledThe Lost Treasures of Infocom II. This package contained 11 more classic Infocom titles. The games included inLost Treasures II were:
Leather Goddesses of Phobos was not included, but could be ordered for $9.95 via an enclosed coupon.
The games'InvisiClues were not included as before; instead, a card advertising apay-per-minute hint line was included in the package.
In addition to being dual-format (MS-DOS andApple Macintosh), the CD-ROM version included three extra games:
TheSoul of the Samurai and Known World maps from Shogun and the map from Journey were included separately; an added instruction manual included theBook of Hours from Arthur as well as instructions for all three added games.