ZMPP2 - Second Generation Interactive Fiction Interpreter for Java and Android

ZMPP2 is a Z-Machine and Glulx/Glk implementation in Scala. The goal is to write a simple, efficient, flexible and reusable solution that works in many kinds of Java VM environments, such as Java SE, Android and Java EE.

The second revision of ZMPP reflects current knowledge and ideas about how I think an IF VM should look like on the Java Virtual Machine:

• Thin abstraction
• Provide a simple, easily integratable core
• Suspend/resume execution model for maximum flexibility
• I/O responsibilities shared between core and UI
• do as much work in the core as possible
• externalizable, serializable machine state
• working on primitive values in the VM core. Yes, Java SE is fast, but other environments e.g. have more expensive costs for object allocation
• single threaded core: The VM/Glk core implementation assumes that it runs within a single thread. Whether the user interface employs multiple threads is left to the specific UI implementation.

Build Instructions:

The project is built with sbt 0.13.1, it is configured for Scala 2.11.0 Simply type

sbt clean test

to build all the subprojects and run the unit tests. To build e.g. the Z-Code interpreter start sbt and type

project zmpp-zcode

Typing run

will run the desktop interpreter from within sbt, while

assembly

will build an executable jar file with all dependencies.

Current features:

• Glulx 3.1.1, Glk 0.7.0 almost feature complete (see known issues)
• Z-Machine Standard 1.1
• run as applet or application (Java SE)
• runs a number of games already
• saves games in Quetzal format
• supports Blorb format

Glulx/Swing:

• supports graphics
• multiple undo
• styles
• timer events
• file access
• complete sound support (Ogg Vorbis, MOD, AIFF through JavaSound SPIs)

Z-Machine:

• supports all versions except V6
• multiple undo
• colors
• accented characters
• user-defined alphabets, accent tables, user dictionaries
• timed input

Known issues:

• Glk support incomplete
• Z-Machine
  • V6 support incomplete
  • sound support

Acknowledgements:

• The IF community for actively advancing Interactive Fiction and teaching me about it through your discussions. I would not be working on this project without you.
• Eric Forgeot and Fredrik Ramsberg for providing tons of advice and teaching me how internationalization works in Inform and Z-Machine
• Ruben Ortega for showing me his Kindle version of ZMPP, which inspired me to start a Glulx core within ZMPP
• Carlos Sanchez for lots of testing and advice for Superglus support
• Eliuk Blau for the support to implement the sound feature
• Andrew Plotkin for providing lots of unit tests and clarifications about the specs