ZZT creator profile:
Daniel "Yapok Jr." Haug



when and how did you first get into ZZT?
Way back when I had just gotten AOL, I did a file search for "sloth." I found a game, Harry the Magic Sloth, for ZZT. I had to play it, so I downloaded ZZT. I was dissappointed at first, but Harry is a great game, and ZZT is an amazing program, so I became hooked.

how many ZZT games have you created? what are they?
In my unproductive ZZT career I have made the total of one game. Yapok-Sundria. But it's a classic.

what things do you consider most important in a ZZT game?
Text and graphics. Since most of the actual ZZT gameplay, key gathering and shooting, can get tedious quickly, you need to keep the player interested. Good dialogue and text in a ZZT game can be like a book. You can really get involved. Graphics that give you a feeling of the setting make the game more fun to play, because it frees the imagination from the constraints of ZZT.

what tips, if any, would you give aspiring ZZT programmers?
Plan out most of the game in advance. Get STK. Use creative countouring. Use a spell checker.

what are your favorite ZZT games?
Sivion, Harry the Magic Sloth, Escape from Planet Red, Kudzu, Yoshi II and III, and Yapok-Sundria.

back