Letters

Eileen,

When I was eleven or twelve I used to take long walks through the barren suburban landscapes outside of Buffalo (back then it was still verging on 'barren rural landscapes' actually). I remember once finding a Star Trek fanzine. It wasn't much, four or five pages of typed and copied stories, rumors (Star Trek the Movie?) etc. I doubt much came of that little 'zine. I think of it, flapping along pathetically in the snow, when I read 'zines on the web. Most of them are merely digital versions of my childhood memory. I'll read it and in a little while it'll be gone after one or two 'issues'. Sometimes they stick around on a page for a long time, never anything new, just those few 'issues,' like virtual detritus washed up on my screen. It's when really good 'zines that fill a hole in our hearts and minds fail that it really saddens me.

Fortunately XYZZYnews has not failed. That's due to your dedication and due to the mass of fans out there that never stopped loving the damn little brain teasers ;). I remember buying a Texas Instruments digital watch from a second hand shop in the early '80s and telling my friend that I was going to start collecting 'antique technology.' I thought this was incredibly clever. Now I find that some of the best games I've ever played are considered 'antique technology.' How did this happen? One minute you're sitting there with your Apple II playing SUSPENDED and the next; whole parades of new companies are making games with flash and dash but no heart or soul. (The writer bursts into tears at this point and it takes some moments for him to regain his composure ;)). I really can't complain though. Obviously the computer industry is driven by money, not altogether bad because if it wasn't I'd never have gotten the privilege of a home computer or playing Zork. It is sad though how much is lost with leapfrogging technology. I still think we've not used up the potential of previous systems, but then I've got a soft spot in me 'art for 8-bit machines ;). I am like sooooo happy that there is a quality movement to keep IF alive. And if it weren't for Issue #1 of XYZZYnews I'd have missed out on the fun! Thanks for hanging in there with your 'zine! The Web has become this big ooey gooey mass of commercial sites with no business on the web (a Zima site for godsakes?) or sites that consist of family photographs and excruciating details of intimate family issues (why not just post family pictures on the bulletin board at the supermarket?). Your page is one of a few that have restored my faith in the internet ;).

Perhaps I should have waited to get sleep before writing this ;), oh well, deadlines, deadlines...Keep up the Great job ma'am!

Joe Nowakowski
equinox@buffnet.net

To begin:

I can honestly say that your newsletter has brought back some of the best gaming memories I've ever had. Brand me a geek if you so feel, but Infocom has undoubtedly made a difference in my approach to computer games. Yes, I consider myself old-school; I can't afford, run, or get into many of the industry's recent games.

I have yet to see the PDF format, but I fully enjoy the text-only version -- after all, I like text-based games, no? I enjoy the reviews and interviews, when I recognize the interviewee.

Mischa Krilov
mkrilov@tiger.lsu.edu

Eileen,

Have only just discovered XYZZYnews in the Web. Being an interactive fiction fan since at least 1983, I can truthfully say it's like a breath of fresh air. It's great to know my favorite computer gaming genre is still alive despite the graphics revolution...

Here are some bugs that have occurred in versions of Infocom games that I have played, but are not on your latest bug list. I'll have to check the details later in order to find out the version numbers (if possible; my Deadline, Starcross and Planetfall reports are based on Commodore 64 versions I haven't played since my C64 went to that great computer room in the sky).

Beyond Zork: The hourglass and arch, combined with the chest, can cause the game to lock up on you if used together, and if you haven't opened the chest previously. Here's what happened to me: I used the hourglass to travel to the Plaza's past, and opened the chest. I went through the scene at the Fields of Transinfinite Splendor, but when the unicorns sent me back, I was not sent back to the right place. Rather, I was sent back to some strange room, where the only room description was "There's (my character name) here." The game then locked up at that point.

Deadline: First off, in my old C64 version, I could PUT [object] IN [character], for example PUT PENCIL IN MS. DUNBAR. When I looked, I would get the message "Ms. Dunbar is holding: a pencil." Rather odd considering she will refuse the pencil if you give it to her in the normal fashion. I haven't found the bug in the LTOI version yet...

Is Mr. Robner's ghost haunting the estate? A bug (or series of bugs) in my C64 version would seem to indicate so. I would SAY TO MR. ROBNER 'WHERE IS GEORGE,' and I would get a response like "I haven't seen him yet." or "I last saw him a few minutes ago. I don't know where he went, though." (Incidentally, Mr. Robner's ghost reports seeing the other characters at the same time you last saw them. I typed WHERE IS GEORGE to the game, as opposed to a character, and got the response "You last saw him a few minutes ago"). When I typed ASK MR. ROBNER ABOUT GEORGE, however, I got the response "Mr. Robner isn't here!"

I could also type SAY TO MR. ROBNER 'FOLLOW ME' and get the response "I would rather not." Though if I said MR. ROBNER, FOLLOW ME, I would get the response that he wasn't there.

Finally, here's something that's definitely a bug.

>KILL MR. ROBNER
With a lethal blow of your hand, Mr. Robner falls dead.

Since Mr. Robner is already dead before the game begins, this is particularly weird. So far, I haven't noted the Mr. Robner bug(s) in the LTOI version... Also, I noted that even if Sergeant Duffy is away at the lab awaiting analysis results, he will still show up if you try to arrest someone or something. In Witness, you won't be able to arrest anyone until Duffy returns from the lab.

Hollywood Hijinx: I haven't tested to see if this works in the LTOI 2 version, but in my C64 version, you could JUMP from the Cannon Emplacement, and end up in the ocean inlet, thus providing an alternative to the gap in the stairs puzzle. You won't get the ten points, however.

Starcross: Again, from my old C64. You could climb into the viewport of the Starcross or the alien ship, but wouldn't be able to climb out. You'd get the response "Super-brief descriptions," as if you had typed the SUPERBRIEF command. There'd be no way out other than restarting or restoring...

Planetfall: This is probably present on more than just my C64, but here goes. I tried turning Floyd off in any room with a door. I did the following:

>POINT AT DOOR
"You go first," says Floyd.

Since Floyd is turned off, he should not respond to my actions at this point. Similarly, when I pointed at any other object in the room while he was turned off, he would give a confused look. Also, Floyd, like the adventurer in Enchanter, will hand you things if you ask for them, even if your load's too heavy to normally accommodate them. This made solving the rift puzzle a tad quicker...

Plundered Hearts: These bugs are present in both my LTOI version and my old C64 version. You can take the hat out of the Library by throwing it through the window. It isn't particularly useful elsewhere, though. Lafond is present everywhere you go, in a manner of speaking. If you refer to him as "bewigged man" and not as Lafond, you'll get all of Lafond's responses. If you say EXAMINE BEWIGGED MAN, you'll get a description of Lafond. If you say BEWIGGED MAN, TELL ME ABOUT THE RING, you'll get Lafond's response "An impressive crest, is it not? I've thought of making it my own."

Finally, attacking the "bewigged man" anywhere except the Ballroom or the Balcony will get you Lafond's "Consider this a warning, my love" reaction the first time, and get you killed the second. If you attack the "bewigged man" at the Balcony, you'll be told "You can't reach Lafond." If you attack the "bewigged man" at the Ballroom, you'll get Lafond's humorous reply...

I've tried quoting descriptions of other characters such as Captain Jamison, but as far as I know, Lafond's the only one who has a 'double' (who, in this case, answers to the name 'bewigged man' -- which, by the way, is suggested to the player in the ballroom dance scene with Jamison). A very odd bug, indeed. (To get it to work, you have to say "bewigged man," not "Lafond" or "man").

In any case, pass these along to Graeme Cree and other bug-searchers, and see if they can find any of the above-mentioned bugs.

Chris Lang
MKST21C@prodigy.com

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