Frotz

Name: Frotz
Rating: 4.8 (263 reviews)
Author: Craig Smith

Interactive Fiction Adventures

Free · Designed for iPad. Not verified for macOS.

263 Ratings
Age Rating

9+
Years
Category

Adventure
Developer

Craig Smith
Language

EN
English
Size

46.4
MB

[*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

Ratings & Reviews

4.8

out of 5

263 Ratings

The best
12/08/2017
shaynemb
I am under the age of 20 meaning I wasn’t even alive during the age of interactive fiction when Infocom was actually a company. Yet most video games today don’t offer the player the random and sporadic thinking required to win, making those games boring and repetitive. I love reading as well and can’t get enough of a good story. When I discovered interactive fiction it satisfied both of those desires. So many of these games are extremely challenging and hold a unique story that always has something unique. These games take a lot of time and effort however this is the best app in the App Store I’ve ever had.
The best
12/08/2017
shaynemb

I am under the age of 20 meaning I wasn’t even alive during the age of interactive fiction when Infocom was actually a company. Yet most video games today don’t offer the player the random and sporadic thinking required to win, making those games boring and repetitive. I love reading as well and can’t get enough of a good story. When I discovered interactive fiction it satisfied both of those desires. So many of these games are extremely challenging and hold a unique story that always has something unique. These games take a lot of time and effort however this is the best app in the App Store I’ve ever had.
Wonderful app that could use a couple small updates
03/02/2022
fritzfratzfrotz
First off, let me say that Frotz has given me hours of enjoyment delving into so many different worlds created by the IF authors, and I’m so grateful to be able to experience all the creativity through it. There’s only two minor things keeping me from giving it a full five stars, one of which is lately there’s been a bug when I download a game it shows in my library, but with a stock image icon instead of the game’s own icon. This seems to happen when the game is in a zip file. The other thing is that I’d like to have a way to sort through games in the library other than the search bar, preferably a folder system that you can drop games into (make them your own based on type, progress, etc.)Aside from that, this app is wonderful, and keep up the good work!
Wonderful app that could use a couple small updates
03/02/2022
fritzfratzfrotz

First off, let me say that Frotz has given me hours of enjoyment delving into so many different worlds created by the IF authors, and I’m so grateful to be able to experience all the creativity through it. There’s only two minor things keeping me from giving it a full five stars, one of which is lately there’s been a bug when I download a game it shows in my library, but with a stock image icon instead of the game’s own icon. This seems to happen when the game is in a zip file. The other thing is that I’d like to have a way to sort through games in the library other than the search bar, preferably a folder system that you can drop games into (make them your own based on type, progress, etc.)Aside from that, this app is wonderful, and keep up the good work!
Fun to play, functional, some improvements can be made.
12/30/2016
NotAsBigBen
I have enjoyed Frotz for the most part. My only complaint is that many games are intended to be played with specific features that are not included here. For instance: The Dreamhold is intended to have a built in map that develops as you explore, which is not included. This made the game more difficult, however, I was able to finish (with some help from the interweb). Another example: Photopia is intended to be played with multicolor text which is not included here. I have not played much Photopia yet, so I'm not sure how this will affect gameplay. My experience has been that these problems make the games convenient, but never impossible. As for praise: I have had nothing but fun playing the games here, and the app moves smoothly. The catalog of games is very impressive and I can't wait to play them all!
Fun to play, functional, some improvements can be made.
12/30/2016
NotAsBigBen

I have enjoyed Frotz for the most part. My only complaint is that many games are intended to be played with specific features that are not included here. For instance: The Dreamhold is intended to have a built in map that develops as you explore, which is not included. This made the game more difficult, however, I was able to finish (with some help from the interweb). Another example: Photopia is intended to be played with multicolor text which is not included here. I have not played much Photopia yet, so I'm not sure how this will affect gameplay. My experience has been that these problems make the games convenient, but never impossible. As for praise: I have had nothing but fun playing the games here, and the app moves smoothly. The catalog of games is very impressive and I can't wait to play them all!
this is awesome
10/02/2023
Greek girl 86
I have been playing text adventures for over 18 years. When I first heard about this app from a really good friend of mine, I found it a little bit difficult to use. Nowadays, it's good that I have a text adventure app on my phone. I've been playing text adventures as I said for 18 or so years. I'm an avid player of interactive fiction, and I love it. I even play interactive fiction that my friends and I make up on our own. Interactive fiction has so many twists and turns, and the puzzles are great to keep the brain going. Keep the updates coming.
this is awesome
10/02/2023
Greek girl 86

I have been playing text adventures for over 18 years. When I first heard about this app from a really good friend of mine, I found it a little bit difficult to use. Nowadays, it's good that I have a text adventure app on my phone. I've been playing text adventures as I said for 18 or so years. I'm an avid player of interactive fiction, and I love it. I even play interactive fiction that my friends and I make up on our own. Interactive fiction has so many twists and turns, and the puzzles are great to keep the brain going. Keep the updates coming.

- Support for iPhone Duo: Controls move to the vertical bar, and the story, status line, notes and color picker adapt to folded and open displays. - Updated look for iOS 26 and later, including the Story List search bar and Edit buttons, and a translucent IFDB Story Browser with a proper toolbar that adapts for the Duo. - Long-pressing the keyboard button now shows a menu with the Lock Keyboard option, making keyboard locking easier to discover. Show/Hide Keyboard and Lock Keyboard also appear in the overflow menu - The system AutoFill menu no longer unhelpfully pops up on the command line. - Other minor bug fixes and UI tweaks/polish.

Version 1.8.9 2d ago

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Accessibility

Information

Seller: Craig Smith
Size: 46.4 MB
Category: Adventure
Compatibility: Requires iOS 15.0 or later.

iPhone
Requires iOS 15.0 or later.

iPad
Requires iPadOS 15.0 or later.

iPod touch
Requires iOS 15.0 or later.

Mac
Requires macOS 12.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later.

Apple Vision
Requires visionOS 1.0 or later.
Languages: English
Age Rating: 9+

9+

Learn More

Infrequent
Cartoon or Fantasy Violence
Profanity or Crude Humor
Mature or Suggestive Themes
Horror/Fear Themes
Guns or Other Weapons

Developer Website

Privacy Policy

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Frotz

Ratings & Reviews

The best

Wonderful app that could use a couple small updates

Fun to play, functional, some improvements can be made.

this is awesome

What’s New

App Privacy

Data Not Linked to You

Accessibility

Information

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