About the Awful Abtruse AFGNCAAP

[DiamondGenerator]

One of the most interesting things about games like Zork is that, whether one of the text or graphics games, you don't know what your main character looks like and how they appear to the NPC's.
This leads me to the source of my curiosity--like characters in a book, everyone probably pictures the famed Adventurer differently. So I wonder, how do you picture your adventurer?

In my mind's eye, I see an unassuming someone who appears more like a scholar than the conventional adventurer--maybe the reason they make it through all of those dungeons is because their adventures ended up requiring more brain power than anything!

So, how about you all?

[DataAngel]

AH, great post... let me think about it, I can't say that I actually imagine the character, I think I tend to place myself as the character in the game, namely Zork: Nemesis you could easily take on the role of the char. and it worked perfectly, great immersion in that game.

[Siriusstar]

One of the things I love most about Zork is the freedom to create your own characters and backstory. You have a basic premise to follow, and, inevitably, most of the characters will come to embody the game they're created for, but the details are up to the individual. I'm still writing about my characters I created for Zork 11 years ago in original stories.

Zork Zero: Mylon of Famathria. Small build, curly light brown hair, gray eyes & glasses. He is brilliant, a little full of himself with a wicked sense of humor. He was carefully trained and raised to defeat the curse and bring fame and fortune to his family and his home- a hidden village deep in the Famathrian swamps. Mylon enjoyed his time as DM, but he wasn't sorry to pass it on.

The Zork Trilogy: Acacia of Atlantia. Tall and strong, long dark red hair & green eyes. Acacia is not from Quendor.  To become DM was only one of the many tests she must undergo to achieve her goals. (long story.) She tackled  Mylon's tests with the same no-nonsense attitude she brings to every aspect of her life. Fierce, cool-headed and dangerous, Acacia was a DM to be revered and feared.

The Enchanter Trilogy: Chrys of Antharia: Very short and small build, blond hair, blue eyes. Chrys is Mylon's son, and if anything, more brilliant than his father. He was passionate about magic from the moment he knew what it was. The youngest student ever to enter G.U.E tech, Chrys was a favorite of the more forward thinking Enchanters... and a nuisance to everyone else. He is generally good natured, loyal and utterly fearless in the face of adversity.

Beyond Zork & Zork: Grand Inquisitor: Brynna of Accardi: 17, short, light brown hair and blue eyes.  Brynna is Chrys' daughter. She came to him 9 months after his defeat of Krill- very unexpected and definitely NOT what what he had in mind at the beginning of his already illustrious career. (There was a bit more to the dream of the maiden- long story.) Brynna was raised in the Guild Hall surrounded by magic and magical folk. Smart and gifted, she caught the eye of Acacia as her potential successor. Acacia's stern training taught her to learn the sword and survival without magic.  Acacia took Brynna and her father with her to her birth world when magic failed as she saw greater things for both of them. Brynna returned to claim her place as the 4th DM. (Talk about making a long story short.) Brynna is a fierce protector of anything or anyone hurt, sad or poorly treated and has a powerful sense of right and wrong.

Whew! Sorry for how long that was.

[DataAngel]

Yes that was long, but interesting. Thanks for sharing.

[James_Juno]

Who else?  The main character is -- me.  This successful immersion of the Self into the Zork world sets it apart.

IMHO, of course.

[DataAngel]

I enjoyed being a random character set apart to help random people, thats what makes an adventure an adventure, being pulled into a world you didn't know existed! Now, I am in the mood to replay RTZ, Nemesis, ZGI. I will get around to the texts eventually.

[Reaver]

I sort of saw everything as if it were through my eyes.  I just basically pictured myself without trying to, as I am sure a lot of others did.

I liked the fact that in Zork, you COULD be the main character, unlike in regular games like Metroid, or Mario, or to an extent Doom, where the character was set up for you.  Zork, and Infocom for the most part, too, really seemed different in being able to imagine yourself as the character, and not just guiding their actions.

[DrPaul]

What I loved so much about the games was the sense that the adventurer was me and I was actually doing all those things.

Besides the fact that I admire Siriusstar's descriptions, I'm not sure that it makes sense for the the Grand Inquisitor adventurer to be female.  The reason is that when we're in Port Foozle and bang on Jack's door, he tells us to go away except when he sees the lantern.  But when we're there as a Lucy Flathead ( a female) we are allowed in right away.  

I don't think Jack would have turned away a female unless she was really ugly.
 So I think the Z:GI adventurer is either a male or an ugly female.  Most likely a male.

[DataAngel]

LOL Yeah Dr. Paul I felt the same way about ZGI. I suppose that perhaps it could seem sexist, however it didn't seem that in any of the games it was anyone but a male. I think that was just the stereotypical role played in gaming until the inventoin of Lara Croft.

[DiamondGenerator]

I see what most of you are saying.
Especially in the text games, the character has always felt a good fraction me...a kind of silly example, but I know that in Zork 2, in an unfortunate incident in which the wizard cast "float" on me in the bucket at the top of the well and just so decided to move me so that I was no longer over the bucket (oh, dear), I inadvertently typed something along the lines of "curse you, wizard!!"  into the game! Heh.
By the way, it didn't help at all.

[Siriusstar]

It makes sense for me to play female characters because I'm female. Mine don't look like Lara Croft, though.

Brynna in her adventurer's garb could and does easily pass for a young boy. (Perhaps the 'Gender Ambiguous' part of AFGANCAAP.) Jack wasn't about to open the door for a ragged-looking teenager off the street of any gender with the curfew in effect. (Brynna entered the Pool of Eternal Youth in BZ. She was still 17 in appearance.)  

I did have to make some changes in many of the games here and there for the 'novelizations' I made of them. It's like fanfic but with tons more freedom than novel-based fanfic.

The ONLY game where I played as myself was Trinity. Just because I couldn't seem to help it.

[DataAngel]

Curse you wizard!! I don't think would have worked in any fashion, hes a magic user and you are a poor adventurer in a bucket lol.

Well playing as female because you are makes perfect sense, I don't think I'd invision myself female playing it nor you male. Don't look like Lara Croft hehe in what way?

Yeah, I don't think Jack would be into underage anything's... and the curfew doesn't help.

[Siriusstar]

lol. My women aren't quite so... top heavy. Seriously, that girl looks like she's going to fall over!

Here's my favorite commissioned art of Brynna. As you see she doesn't resemble Lara much at all: http://tinyurl.com/j4zvj

I can play either sex, but I think Brynna is my favorite followed by her father. Chrys was the first to come to me with a strong backstory. Everyone else's sort of grew from there.

I notice that many modern adventures are very story and plot heavy & have female PCs. Keepsake, Syberia, Longest Journey, ect. all have female PCs with big backstories already built in.  I was apparently ahead of my time. lol.

Although those games are pretty good in their own right, I still prefer the freedom of the Zorks. (And Myst for that matter.) They give all of us the freedom to be or play whomever we want. That is so much more fun, IMO.  

[DataAngel]

Top heavy hehe.

Commissioned art? I take it you drew it, someone else water colored it? Either way its very well done.

I know what you mean with all the recent adventure games being set up as a female character to which I have no problems with, I am curios why that seems to be though?

Yes, I think we can agree that Zork did an EXCELLENT job of allowing oneself to easily become the character in the game. And yes the immersion I felt and the sucking in Nemesis had/has will forever remain with me. Even now when I play it, it STILL draws me in tight and won't let go.

[Siriusstar]

I actually commissioned both drawing & painting. I described her and Jenny drew/painted her. I wish I could draw that well! Jenny does artwork for roll playing game companies and the like. I was fortunate to get one of her very rare personal commissions.

It seems to me the success of 'Longest Journey' set up more developers to try the same tactic- Young woman PC and tons of dialogue & story. It apparently found its niche since it seems like the majority of the most popular adventures today are in that category. Both men and women play them from what I've seen on adventure game boards. Perhaps the women like playing as women and guys like looking at the young women characters. lol. Or maybe they're just so good that it wouldn't matter which gender the PC is. I need to play more of them to find out in the latter is true.

(Apologies for rambling OT.)