Microsoft makes Zork open-source • Hacker News Board

Re: Microsoft makes Zork open-source

#21

Post by alt227 » Thu, Nov 20, 2025, 6:46 PM UTC

ginko wrote: post #15

Hasn't the code to Zork been available for ages? For instance: https://github.com/MITDDC/zork

The article states that Microsoft has made a pull request to the existing repos to include the MIT license.

It was public already, what they are doing here is open sourcing the code.

Re: Microsoft makes Zork open-source

#22

Post by agiacalone » Thu, Nov 20, 2025, 6:46 PM UTC

ginko wrote: post #15

Hasn't the code to Zork been available for ages? For instance: https://github.com/MITDDC/zork

Yes, but that happens to be the mainframe version. They are a bit different.

Re: Microsoft makes Zork open-source

#23

Post by fortran77 » Thu, Nov 20, 2025, 6:46 PM UTC

xyzzy

Re: Microsoft makes Zork open-source

#24

Post by ayaros » Thu, Nov 20, 2025, 6:47 PM UTC

This is great, but I'd rather they make Windows 11 open-source instead.

Re: Microsoft makes Zork open-source

#25

Post by ChicagoDave » Thu, Nov 20, 2025, 6:49 PM UTC

Scott: Do the whole library of Infocom games!

Re: Microsoft makes Zork open-source

#26

Post by classichasclass » Thu, Nov 20, 2025, 6:49 PM UTC

It's not just Zork: a number of games, including Hitchhiker's, are open source now. https://github.com/historicalsource

Re: Microsoft makes Zork open-source

#27

Post by Aman_Kalwar » Thu, Nov 20, 2025, 6:50 PM UTC

Wow, didn’t expect this from Microsoft. Amazing to see classic game code being made accessible for learning

Re: Microsoft makes Zork open-source

#28

Post by CobrastanJorji » Thu, Nov 20, 2025, 6:53 PM UTC

bluedino wrote: post #18

I've seen a few things called 'Zork source code' in various places over the years (even on a CD that came with a game programming book of some sort), and copies like this: https://github.com/MITDDC/zork What's the lineage here?

Good question, I'm also curious. A quick search shows that there are some differences. The one in this new historicalsources folder has the PLUGH easter egg, but the other one doesn't seem to have it.

But the older version has a "Tomb of the Unknown Implementor," which this new version seems to lack.

Re: Microsoft makes Zork open-source

#29

Post by arnonejoe » Thu, Nov 20, 2025, 6:53 PM UTC

katspaugh wrote: post #14

So Zork was written in Lisp? It had to be! --- >

I read a while back it’s a language called zil based on MDL.

https://the-rosebush.com/2025/07/studies-of-zil-part-2-how-d...

Re: Microsoft makes Zork open-source

#30

Post by jsheard » Thu, Nov 20, 2025, 6:53 PM UTC

ayaros wrote: post #24

This is great, but I'd rather they make Windows 11 open-source instead.

Funnily enough you can easily find the Windows XP source code on GitHub. Not endorsed by Microsoft of course, but they've ignored it sitting on their own service for years, along with ignoring all the modern Windows and Office piracy tools which are also on GitHub. Microsoft works in mysterious ways.