[*Warning* Playing Frotz involves reading, thinking, and typing. If you just want to blow stuff up, this is not the app for you!]
Burned out on all the new-fangled graphics and dazzling eye candy on your shiny new iPhone or iPad? Nostalgic for a simpler time? Then take advantage of those crisp high-resolution fonts to relive the glory days of the Great Underground Empire, or play any of hundreds of great works from the Interactive Fiction archive.
Frotz lets you play hundreds of free works of Interactive Fiction (a.k.a. text adventure games) on your iPhone or iPad.
Frotz plays titles written in the Z-Machine format (which was invented by Infocom and was used to produce classic text adventures from the 80s such as the Zork Trilogy, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and Trinity), as well as glulx and TADS formats.
In the past couple of decades, text adventures have experienced a renaissance of sorts due to the efforts of a diverse Internet community of talented interactive fiction writers and fans. Many of these games are written using the same engine that powered Infocom's titles, thanks to the Inform compiler and authoring system created by Graham Nelson.
NOTE! If you have suggestions for improving Frotz or encounter bugs, please go to the support link and report them.
Frotz for iOS - Interactive Fiction at Your Fingertips
This app brings all those, we used to call them text adventures, within reach to a new and old audience. There are thousands of great adventures and puzzles to be solved, new ones being written all the time. The app performs well with one bug that’s been reported on github, saves don’t work on some old tads games, the very games I want to replay! Still it’s an excellent app and well worth the download. Check it out and head over to ifdb for lots of games.
Brilliant for the blind
Sean_R
So many memories of years long gone. This works brilliantly with VoiceOver, Apple's screen reader. I've had many an hour in joy and frustration through tens of games. Wonderful stuff!!!
Needs Updates for Modern iOS Features
Sgucukoglu
It took me a while to finally accept the inevitability of having this app on my phone, even though I find the way game data and saves are managed really annoying. Please implement modern iOS features, like iCloud Drive and Maybe Siri support, so as to make using this app possible in the post-PC era, without the need of an external third-party FTP client on my Mac. It is OK to charge for this. Thanks.
It works with iOS 11
Cyberneticist
Interactive fiction is rewarding and this program is perfect. Don't know which verb to use? Click the booklet! Got a whole load of infocom stories? Load them on Dropbox and "open in..." The dat file directly into frotz! Perfect in every way!
- Fixed arrow key support for Bluetooth keyboards
New in 1.8.7:
- Better support for Unicode/non-Latin alphabet stories.
- Updated to git glulx interpreter version 1.3.7 (conforming to Glulx VM standard 3.1.3.)
- New IFDB search options, updated search URLs and built-in bookmarks.
- Dropbox API update, sync improvements.
- Option to swap text/background colors in color picker.
- Improved handling of ZIP file downloads from IFDB: you can now select which stories to install.
- Enable 'iTunes File sharing: supported story files and saved games dragged into Frotz will be automatically installed.
- Restored keyboard long-press hide/lock functionality.
- Other bug fixes/minor UI tweaks.
Version 1.8.8
The developer, Craig Smith, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Not Linked to You
The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:
Usage Data
Privacy practices may vary based, for example, on the features you use or your age. Learn More
Accessibility
The developer has not yet indicated which accessibility features this app supports. Learn More
Information
Provider
Craig Smith
Size
47.7 MB
Category
Adventure
Compatibility
Requires iOS 11.0 or later.
iPhone Requires iOS 11.0 or later.
iPad Requires iPadOS 11.0 or later.
iPod touch Requires iOS 11.0 or later.
Mac Requires macOS 11.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later.