Border Zone
Platform: Commodore 64
Gametype: Undefined
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It is the 1980's, and the Cold War between the Western Bloc (led by the USA) and the Eastern Bloc (led by the Soviet Union) is at its peak. The town of Ostnitz is located on the border between the fictional Eastern Bloc nation of Frobnia and the equally fictional neutral Litzenburg. The US ambassador is about to arrive in Ostnitz in order to deliver a speech on the occasion of the local Constitution Day. However, a plot to assassinate the ambassador, hence escalating the tension between the super-powers, is soon revealed.

Border Zone is a text adventure game in which the player controls three different protagonists throughout three chapters: an American businessman and two special agents - a Western and an Eastern one. Besides the traditional text-based exploration and puzzle-solving, the game has real-time elements: time passes even if the player does not interact with the game. Some stealth-oriented sequences rely on these elements, timing being crucial to advance.

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(From the Infocom Home Page site)

Washington and Moscow are the capitals of the Superpowers, but the cold War is fought at the front: in Eastern Bloc countries like Frobnia and adjacent neutral countries like Litzenburg. In these countries, where all strangers are suspect and all actions observed, paranoia and vulnerability are inescapable. In these countries, innocent travelers get caught in the web of international espionage. This is the setting for Border Zone. Border Zone consists of three chapters. In each chapter, you play a different character (an American businessman, a Western spy, and an Eastern spy) involved in unique puzzles and goals. The chapters take place at different times and at different locations; as a player, you will get the most satisfaction if you play the chapters in order. Border Zone has a built-in clock which drives the story forward. Unlike other Infocom stories, the clock in Border Zone continues to tick even while you stop to think. So if you find yourself in a dangerous situation, you can't just sit back and relax. Whether you type in a command or not, characters will move around, events will happen, and the story will proceed.

Trivia

Feelies packaged with Border Zone included a Frobniz tourists guide (with phrasebook and train schedule), a business card from Riznik's Antique store, a Frobnizian border map, and a book of matches from the Frobniz national railway.

The names in the Gribnitz apartments in part 3 of the game are based on actual Infocom employees (thanks to Paul David Doherty's Infocom Fact Sheet for the original list):

Bextra (maybe Duane Beck) Blenka (Marc Blank) Blivik ? Brgmiz (Ernie Brogmus) Brlensk (Mike Berlyn) Brzni (Joel Berez) Carlyni (Linda Carlow) Cnezeni (Cezanne Blank) Cyrink (Liz Cyr-Jones) Dimwitz (Lord Dimwit Flathead the Excessive) Dornik (Michael Dornbrook) Endrizen (Tim Anderson, or "Hollywood" Dave Anderson) Flipni ? Galnitz (Stu Galley) Gentezek (Carl Genatossio) Kooplitz ? Lebniz (Dave Lebling) Lengnoz (Elizabeth Langosy, or Donald Langosy) Mrtzki (Steve Meretzky) Onilik (Jeff O'Neill) Profnim ("Professor" Brian Moriarty) Rivni (Christopher Reeve) Robnerim (the family name from "Deadline") Sinkriz (maybe Anita Sinclair) Urg ? Veznich (Al Vezza) Winip ?

Extras

Feelies packaged with Border Zone included a Frobniz tourists guide (with phrasebook and train schedule), a business card from Riznik's Antique store, a Frobnizian border map, and a book of matches from the Frobniz national railway.

References

Alternate Titles

"Spy" -- Working Title
"Checkpoint" -- Working Title
"Border Zone: A Game of Intrigue" -- Tag-lined title

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Description from the packaging:

Where the Iron Curtain divides East and West, the frontier is a no man's land between freedom and captivity, a place where moments lost or precautions not taken exact a toll in men's lives. In Border Zone, you cross this barrier not once, but three times, as three different characters in a fast-paced story of international intrigue.

The pulse-pounding tension of espionage is heightened by the addition of real time, which ticks on regardless of your actions. As you race against the clock to complete your missions, you'll find yourself caught up in a spine-tingling adventure that's far more suspenseful than any spy thriller you've ever read.

The story begins on the train to Litzenburg, a peaceful country just outside the Iron Curtain. In the border town of Ostnitz, Constitution Day festivities include a speech by the American ambassador. But plans are afoot to destabilize this key neutral territory by assassinating the diplomat. Speeding towards the border through the Eastern bloc country of Frobnia are an easy-going American businessman, an ambitious young American spy, and a ruthless KGB agent. All three are soon to become entangled in the assassination plot, their lives intertwining as each carries out his perilous assignment.

You'll see the story from three viewpoints, as you step into the shoes of a different major character in each of the three chapters of Border Zone. Set in separate locations on or near the border, the chapters are complete stories in themselves, each with its own riveting conclusion.

The on-line hints in Border Zone will help you out when you need it. But hints take you only so far. Even when you know exactly what to do, discretion and timing are crucial as you outwit the KGB, evade a snarling pack of search dogs, make a desperate assault on the border, and count down the moments to the assassination.

Border Zone was written by Marc Blank, a pioneer in interactive fiction and the author of such ground-breaking works as Zork and Deadline. In Border Zone, Marc takes the clever plotting and masterly prose of a top-notch thriller, brings it to life through interactive fiction, and intensifies the experience with the addition of real time.

So steel your nerves, and don't blow your cover, friend. You've a long way to go before you come in from the cold.

Enter the World of the Master Storytellers.

Interactive fiction is a lot like your favorite book, using words to tell a story that progresses through time. The difference is that you are the main character. The story comes alive as you go places, meet people, outwit opponents, and tackle a wealth of puzzles and predicaments.  Journey to a place limited only by your imagination- the world of Infocom's interactive fiction.

http://www.mobygames.com/game/border-zone
