Review Mazinkaiser 3/5 · Dec 10, 2017
Return to Zork - Lovably Bad
After the beating I gave Zork I-III, I have quite little patience for a game set to confuse me with strange logic and confusing exploration. Return to Zork retains all the surreal, nonsensical logic of the previous games but decides to take a more graphic and much more humorous method, making a game that's too fun in areas despite being …
After the beating I gave Zork I-III, I have quite little patience for a game set to confuse me with strange logic and confusing exploration. Return to Zork retains all the surreal, nonsensical logic of the previous games but decides to take a more graphic and much more humorous method, making a game that's too fun in areas despite being the same old frustrating thing.
Winning a sweepstakes to the Valley of the Sparrows, our hero finds themselves fighting the evil Morphius to save the land. How does one do that? Tell jokes at comedy clubs? Navigate a bog with a magic stick? Run boats with rats? Fight badly dressed trolls? Reverse arachnophobia?! Return to Zork is ugly but lovingly crafted, with digital actors that are B-movie quality but are also hilarious and amusing enough to get a smile on your face. The game has a good inventory system, procedurally growing as the player gets more items instead of limiting their space.
That said, sometimes knowing what to do and not dying (throwing all your items in a chasm? Taking a picture of a female character and showing it to the boatman) can be infuriating to figure out, and the final battle is a baffling board game that is best left forgotten.
This game is far from perfect, but it's incredibly entertaining. If you just happen to find it, give it a go but keep a walkthrough on hand; death and item loss is at every turn.
