In the late 1970s and early 1980s, adventure seekers explored digital caverns armed only with their keyboards and imaginations, hunting for treasures described entirely in text. Zork expanded on earlier text-based games like Colossal Cave Adventure by introducing a more advanced parser and a witty, distinctive narrator’s voice. Do you have what it takes to conquer Zork I: The Great Underground Empire? Put your skills to the test on our 1983 Commodore 64 version of the game at Chicago Gamespace.
Zork is part of the newly opened Plot Thickens: Storytelling in Gaming multisite exhibition across Illinois and Michigan that includes the following games, artists, dates, and venues:
- Chicago Gamespace, Chicago, IL: Zork I: The Great Underground Empire (1983) by INFOCOM (Saturday, December 6, 11am – 5pm), Phantasmagoria (Roberta Williams and Sierra On-Line, 1995) (Saturday, January 3, 11am-5pm), The Last Express (Jordan Mechner and Smoking Car Productions, 1997) (Saturday, February 7, 11am – 5pm), Return of the Obra Dinn (Lucas Pope, 2018) (Saturday March 7, 11am – 5pm) and Uncover the Smoking Gun (ReLU Games, Inc., 2024) (Saturday April 4, 11am-5pm). Tickets
- Chicago Public Library Wicker Park Bucktown Branch, Chicago, IL: Mind Faux (Keisha Howard, Sugar Gamer Labs, and Pixels2Pixels, 2025). Hours and location. FREE
- WSCC Gallery, Scottville, MI: Bitter Pills (Adrienne Ciskey, 2015), Depression Quest (Zoë Quinn, 2013), Lieve Oma (Florian Veltmann, 2016) and Mediterranea Inferno (Santa Ragione, 2023). Hours and location. FREE
- WSCC Library, Scottville, MI: When Rivers Were Trails (Elizabeth LaPensée, 2019). Hours and location. FREE
- Mason County District Library, Ludington, MI: Walden, a game (Tracy Fullerton and USC Game Innovation Lab, 2017). Hours and location. FREE
- Mason County Historical Society, Ludington, MI: Pentiment (Josh Sawyer and Obsidian Entertainment, 2022) and Legend of the Lost Emerald (Field Day Lab and PBS Wisconsin, 2022). Hours and location. FREE
- WSCC Manistee Center, Manistee, MI: Her Story (Sam Barlow, 2015) and Florence (Ken Wong and Mountains, 2018). Hours and location. FREE
- Old Kirke Museum, Manistee, MI: Here and There Along The Echo (Cardboard Computer, 2014). Located outdoors on the building facade. Location. FREE
- Japanese Culture Center, Chicago, IL: Ōkami (Hideki Kamiya and Clover Studio, 2006) (January – April). Location. FREE
Curated by Jonathan Kinkley and Eden Ünlüata-Foley
*This is a multisite exhibition and each venue has their own schedule. Gamespace dates and hours are marked on this page, but please contact other venues to confirm hours before scheduling your visit. Most exhibits are free; Gamespace requires tickets. Contact chicagogamespace@gmail.com with any questions.
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