Z-Machine
Contents
References
- Wikipedia
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Z-machine
- Infocom Fact Sheet
- http://www.ifarchive.org/if-archive/infocom/info/fact-sheet.txt
Infocom games and Z-code version
The following table duplicates information from the Infocom Fact Sheet (see references chapter). I just like to have this information in a spot that is easily accessible for me.
Notes about columns:
- .dat column
- gives the name of the story file as it exists on "The Lost Treasures Of Infocom" floppy disks (and my personal compilation "The Infocom CD-ROM"); for playing the stories in Zoom, I have appended a suffix .z[3-5] corresponding to the Z-code version of the story file
- file size column
- the size of my story file; the file size is the first step in matching my story file to an entry in the Infocom Fact Sheet table, which in turn allows me to determine my story file's version number and Z-code version; in parantheses I mark the difference in bytes from the Fact Sheet entry by using a +/- prefix; if I was unable to match my story file's size to a Fact Sheet entry, I have tried to make a match using my story file's version number (which I determined by assuming a Z-code version and running the story file in Zoom); in that case the parantheses contain an integer instead of a difference, that integer marks the file size of the Fact Sheet entry
- version number column
- quoting from the Infocom Fact Sheet: "Version number (a.k.a. "Release") and compilation date (a.k.a. "Serial number"). Typing VERSION in a game usually gives you this information."; (*) in this column says that I have confirmed the version by issuing the "version" command while playing the game in Zoom
- Z-code column
- an "s" in the Z-code column indicates that the game requires sound capabilities; the number in paranthesis is the value of the first byte of the story file - which according to the Wikipedia Z-Machine article is supposed to encode the file's Z-code version (quote: "the version number of the Z-machine on which the file is intended to be run")
| Game | .dat file | File size (in bytes) | Version number | Z-code version | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A Mind Forever Voyaging | AMFV.DAT | 262018 (+2) | 77.850814 (*) | 4 (0x04) | |
| Ballyhoo | BALLYHOO.DAT | 128557 (+1) | 97.851218 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| Beyond Zork | BEYONDZO.DAT | 262190 (261388) | 57.871221 (*) | 5 (0x05) | Assuming Z-code version 5 since all versions of the game use that Z-code version |
| Border Zone | BORDERZO.DAT | 178373 (+1) | 9.871008 (*) | 5 (0x05) | |
| Bureaucracy | BUREAUCR.DAT | 243341 (+1) | 116.870602 (*) | 4 (0x04) | |
| Cutthroats | CUTTHROA.DAT | 112640 (112558) | 23.840809 (*) | 3 (0x03) | Assuming Z-code version 3 since all versions of the game use that Z-code version |
| Deadline | DEADLINE.DAT | 108544 (108454) | 27.831005 (*) | 3 (0x03) | Assuming Z-code version 3 since all versions of the game use that Z-code version |
| Enchanter | ENCHANTE.DAT | 111127 (+1) | 29.860820 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy | HITCHHIK.DAT | 158413 (+1) | 31.871119 (*) | 5 (0x05) | This is the "Solid Gold" release. The "version" command reports the line "Release 31 / Serial number 871119 / Interpreter 3 Version Z", which seems to differ from the Fact Sheet which claims that this is a .z5 file |
| Hollywood Hijinx | HOLLYWOO.DAT | 109651 (+1) | 37.861215 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| Infidel | INFIDEL.DAT | 93696 (93556) | 22.830916 (*) | 3 (0x03) | Assuming Z-code version 3 since all versions of the game use that Z-code version |
| Lurking Horror | LURKING.DAT | 128987 (+1) | 203.870506 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| Moonmist | MOONMIST.DAT | 128867 (+1) | 9.861022 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| Nord and Bert | NORDANDB.DAT | 170285 (+1) | 19.870722 (*) | 4 (0x04) | |
| Planetfall | PLANETFA.DAT | 109399 (+1) | 37.851003 | 3 (0x03) | |
| Plundered Hearts | PLUNDERE.DAT | 128963 (+1) | 26.870730 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| Seastalker | SEASTALK.DAT | 117763 (+1) | 16.850603 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| Sherlock | SHERLOCK.DAT | 188445 (+1) | 21.871214 | 5 (0x05) | The "version" command reports the line "Release 21 Interpreter 3 Version Z Serial Number 871214", which seems to differ from the Fact Sheet which claims that this is a .z5 file |
| Sorcerer | SORCERER.DAT | 108683 (+1) | 15.851108 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| Spellbreaker | SPELLBRE.DAT | 128917 (+1) | 87.860904 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| Starcross | STARCROS.DAT | 83968 (83792) | 17.821021 (*) | 3 (0x03) | Assuming Z-code version 3 since all versions of the game use that Z-code version |
| Stationfall | STATIONF.DAT | 128935 (+1) | 107.870430 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| Suspect | SUSPECT.DAT | 118693 (+1) | 14.841005 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| Suspended | SUSPEND.DAT | 105984 (105584) | 8.840521 (*) | 3 (0x03) | Assuming Z-code version 3 since all versions of the game use that Z-code version |
| Trinity | TRINITY.DAT | 262065 (+1) | 12.860926 (*) | 4 (0x04) | The "version" command reports the line "Interpreter 3 Version Z Release 12 / Serial Number 860926", which seems to differ from the Fact Sheet which claims that this is a .z4 file |
| Wishbringer | WISHBRIN.DAT | 128905 (+1) | 69.850920 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| Witness | WITNESS.DAT | 104664 (+1) | 22.840924 (*) | 3 (0x03) | |
| Zork I | ZORK1.DAT | 84992 (84876) | 88.840726 (*) | 3 (0x03) | Assuming Z-code version 3 since most versions of the game use that Z-code version |
| Zork II | ZORK2.DAT | 90112 (89912) | 48.840904 (*) | 3 (0x03) | Assuming Z-code version 3 since most versions of the game use that Z-code version |
| Zork III | ZORK3.DAT | 82944 (82714) | 17.840727 (*) | 3 (0x03) | Assuming Z-code version 3 since all versions of the game use that Z-code version |
The following table has the same structure as the one above, but contains information about game files that are not present in "The Lost Treasures of Infocom" collection. Instead, I got those game files from the file infocom.zip, which can be obtained through BitTorrent.
| Game | Game file | File size (in bytes) | Version number | Z-code version | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arthur | ARTHUR.Z6 | 269312 (269200 ) | 74.890714 (*) | 6 (0x06) | Assuming Z-code version 6 since all versions of the game use that Z-code version |
| Journey | Journey.z6 | 282624 (282312) | 83.890706 (*) | 6 (0x06) | Assuming Z-code version 6 since most versions of the game use that Z-code version |
| Leather Goddesses of Phobos | Leather.z3 | 129023 (+1) | 59.860730 | 3 (0x03) | |
| Shogun | Shogun.z6 | 341416 (exact match) | 292.890314 (*) | 6 (0x06) | |
| Zork Zero | Zork0.z6 | 300032 (299968) | 393.890714 | 6 (0x06) | Assuming Z-code version 6 since most versions of the game use that Z-code version |
The next table again has the same structure as those tables above, but it contains information about game files from various sources.
| Game | Game file | File size (in bytes) | Version number | Z-code version | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zork - The Undiscovered Underground | ZTUU.z5 | 102912 | 16.970828 (*) | 5 (0x05) | Released as a promo on the ZGI web site (ZGI = Zork: Grand Inquisitor, see Wikipedia article) |
Interpreters
Zoom
Homepage: http://www.logicalshift.co.uk/unix/zoom/
The Z-Machine Preservation Project
Homepage: http://zmpp.sourceforge.net/
