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Microsoft Makes Zork I, II, and III Open Source Under MIT License
Microsoft clarified the license status of Zork I, II, and III code to ensure preservation and eliminate takedown risks, with contributions from Xbox and Activision teams.
- Microsoft announced today that the source for Zork I, Zork II and Zork III will be open sourced under the MIT License, with Scott Hanselman unveiling the code at Ignite and noting upstream pull requests.
- In collaboration with Jason Scott, digital archivist of Internet Archive fame, Xbox team, Activision team, and Microsoft Open Source Programs Office submitted upstream pull requests to historical source repositories.
- Only the source code was released, with commercial packaging, marketing materials, and trademarks remaining proprietary; the announcement suggests compiling with the ZILF compiler into a Z3 file and running it via Windows Frotz or modern Z-Machine interpreters.
- The release keeps the code available for the ages, Microsoft said, framing it as preservation to place historically important code in the hands of students, teachers and developers while removing prior takedown risk.
- Previously, the code had been uploaded to GitHub in 2019 by Jason Scott but its license was unresolved, while ownership passed through Infocom, Activision, and Microsoft, with Bill Gates trying to buy the rights in the 1980s.
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Microsoft open-sources the original Zork trilogy, unlocking a huge piece of gaming history
Microsoft recently introduced its latest effort in digital game preservation by making Zork I, Zork II, and Zork III available under the MIT license. Turning the main Zork trilogy into an open source project will make sure students, teachers, and developers can study the original code, play the games, and...Read Entire Article
The Xbox and Activision team, along with the Office of Open Source Programs of...
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Leaning Left2Leaning Right0Center4Last UpdatedBias Distribution67% Center
Bias Distribution
- 67% of the sources are Center
67% Center
L 33%
C 67%
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