| Wishbringer | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Developer(s) | Infocom |
| Publisher(s) | Infocom |
| Designer(s) | Brian Moriarty |
| Engine | ZIL |
| Platform(s) | Amiga, Apple II, Atari 8-bit family, Atari ST, Commodore 64, MS-DOS |
| Release date | Release 68: May 1, 1985 Release 69: September 20, 1985 Solid Gold: July 6, 1988 |
| Genre(s) | Interactive fiction |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Media | 3½" or 5¼" disk |
| System requirements | No special requirements |
| Input methods | Keyboard |
Zork games
Enchanter trilogy
Other games
Wishbringer • Return to Zork
Zork: Nemesis • Zork Grand Inquisitor
Zork: The Undiscovered Underground
Companies
Miscellaneous
Wishbringer: The Magick Stone of Dreams is an interactive fiction computer game written by Brian Moriarty and published by Infocom in 1985. A video game developer is a software developer (a business or an individual that creates Video games A developer may specialize in a certain video Infocom was a Software company, based in Cambridge Massachusetts, that produced numerous works of Interactive fiction. A "game designer" is a person who designs Video games or one who designs traditional games such as Board games Video Games Designer A video game designer Brian Moriarty (born 1956 is an American Video game developer who authored three of the original Infocom Interactive A game engine is a software system designed for the creation and development of computer and video games The Z-machine is a Virtual machine that was developed by Joel Berez and Marc Blank in 1979 and used by Infocom for its text adventure games In Computing, a platform describes some sort of Hardware architecture or Software framework (including Application frameworks, that allows The Amiga is a family of Personal computers originally developed by Amiga Corporation. The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit Home computers manufactured from 1979 to 1992 The Atari ST is a home / Personal computer that was commercially available from 1985 to the early 1990s MS-DOS (short for M icro' s' oft D isk O perating S ystem is an Operating system commercialized by Microsoft. Events 305 - Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman Emperor. Year 1985 ( MCMLXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays 1985 Gregorian calendar) Events 451 - The Battle of Chalons takes place in North Eastern France. Events 1044 - The Battle of Ménfő takes place 1189 - Richard the Lionheart is crowned King of England Year 1988 ( MCMLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar) See also [[Game classification]] Video games are categorized into Genres based on their Gameplay interaction In video gaming, single-player refers to the variant of a particular game where input from only one player is expected throughout the course of the gaming session Digital media (as opposed to analog media) usually refers to Electronic media that work on digital Codes. A floppy disk is an increasingly Obsolete data storage medium that is composed of a disk of thin flexible ("floppy" Magnetic storage medium encased A floppy disk is an increasingly Obsolete data storage medium that is composed of a disk of thin flexible ("floppy" Magnetic storage medium encased In Computing, a keyboard is an Input device partially modelled after the typewriter keyboard which uses an arrangement of buttons or keys Zork was one of the first Interactive fiction Computer games and an early descendant of Colossal Cave Adventure. Zork I The Great Underground Empire is an Interactive fiction Computer game written by Marc Blank, Dave Lebling, Bruce Daniels Zork II The Wizard of Frobozz is an Interactive fiction Computer game published by Infocom in 1981. Zork III The Dungeon Master is an Interactive fiction Computer game written by Marc Blank, Dave Lebling, Bruce Daniels Beyond Zork (full title Beyond Zork The Coconut of Quendor) was an Interactive fiction Computer game written by Brian Moriarty and Zork Zero The Revenge of Megaboz is an Interactive fiction Computer game, written by Steve Meretzky and published by Infocom in Spellbreaker is an Interactive fiction Computer game written by Dave Lebling and released by Infocom in 1985, the third Return to Zork is a 1993 Adventure game in the Zork series for the PC and Apple Macintosh. Zork The Undiscovered Underground (or ZUU for short is an Interactive fiction Computer game written by former Infocom Implementors Infocom was a Software company, based in Cambridge Massachusetts, that produced numerous works of Interactive fiction. Activision Inc is an American Video game developer and publisher. FrobozzCo International is a fictional monopolous conglomerate from the Infocom text adventure Zork universe The Z-machine is a Virtual machine that was developed by Joel Berez and Marc Blank in 1979 and used by Infocom for its text adventure games AFGNCAAP (pronounced Afghan-cap or Afghan-cop is a satirically politically correct Initialism for " Ageless Faceless Gender-Neutral Culturally-Ambiguous The Zork books were a series of four books written by S Eric Meretzky, which took place in the Fictional universe of Zork. A personal computer Game (also known as a computer game or simply PC game) is a Video game played on a Personal computer, rather Brian Moriarty (born 1956 is an American Video game developer who authored three of the original Infocom Interactive Infocom was a Software company, based in Cambridge Massachusetts, that produced numerous works of Interactive fiction. Year 1985 ( MCMLXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays 1985 Gregorian calendar) It was intended to be an easier game to solve than the typical Infocom release, and provide a good introduction to interactive fiction for inexperienced players. It was one of five top-selling titles to be re-released in Solid Gold versions including in-game hints. It is Infocom's sixteenth game.
Contents |
Plot
The player's character is a postal clerk in the small fishing village of Festeron. The cranky postmaster, Mr. Crisp, orders the player to deliver an important envelope to the proprietor of Ye Olde Magick Shoppe. The proprietor in question, a kindly old lady, then asks the player to rescue her cat from "The Evil One". Stepping out of the store, the player finds that quaint Festeron has mysteriously been transformed into a more sinister town called Witchville. Every aspect of Festeron has been changed to something ominous: for instance, what was once a poodle is now a frightening hellhound. Fortunately, the player soon finds the Wishbringer, a magical stone that can grant seven wishes if a suitable object is used in conjunction. (To see the future, for example, the player must be wearing glasses and holding the stone. )
Wishes
The seven wishes that can be granted by the stone are for advice, darkness, flight, foresight, freedom, luck, and rain. Each wish can only be used once per game, and requires that the player possess some related object. (These objects and their relations to the wishes are described in the feelies as a form of copy protection. Copy protection, also known as content protection, copy prevention, or copy restriction, is a technology for preventing the unauthorised reproduction )
A few Infocom games featured puzzles with multiple solutions (for example, the "Echo Room" from Zork I). Zork was one of the first Interactive fiction Computer games and an early descendant of Colossal Cave Adventure. However, Wishbringer featured several such puzzles, many of which could be solved either in a straightforward (that is, non-magical) manner or by using one of the stone's wishes. The game can be completely solved without using any wishes.
Feelies
Included in the Wishbringer package are several items, which Infocom called feelies:
- A book, The Legend of Wishbringer, that explains how the magic stone came to be (in the Solid Gold release, an in-game object included in the player's starting inventory instead of the packaging)
- The envelope and letter to be delivered to Ye Olde Magick Shoppe
- A "postal zone map" of Festeron
- A plastic glow-in-the-dark replica of the stone
Notes
In aiming the game at a younger audience, Infocom diffused the game's sense of danger with many humorous elements, such as Mr. Infocom used the term feelie to refer to the extra content included with the boxed versions of their Interactive fiction Computer games Feelies differed Crisp's impatience at the beginning ("Take the stupid envelope and scram, chowderbrain!") and the "Boot Patrol" that enforces the curfew in the town, consisting of disembodied gigantic army boots. Other whimsical touches include a small mailbox that lovingly follows the player around and a fridge found in a grue's lair, where the internal light goes out when the door is opened. A grue is a fictional predator from the Zork series of Interactive fiction games by Infocom.
The fictional town of Festeron is, according to the game's documentation, in Antharia, a region connected to the Zork series of games. Zork was one of the first Interactive fiction Computer games and an early descendant of Colossal Cave Adventure. Wishbringer can be seen as loosely connected to the Zork series.
Infocom gave Wishbringer a difficulty rating of "Introductory".
Craig Shaw Gardner novelized Wishbringer in the Infocom Book line. Craig Shaw Gardner (born July 2, 1949) is an American Author, best known for producing fantasy parodies similar to those of Terry Pratchett
Taglines
Through strange, savage zones, your way will be shown by the magical stone called Wishbringer!
The legendary stone that makes dreams come true.
External links
- Wishbringer at MobyGames
- Wishbringer info in Adventure Classic Gaming
- Wishbringer information and overview
- Wishbringer information from the Infocom Gallery with photos of the entire contents of the game (manual, feelies, etc. MobyGames is a Website devoted to cataloging computer and video games, both past and present )
- Wishbringer information from Infocom-if.org
- Wishbringer online!
- The Infocom Bugs List entry for Wishbringer
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