Zork Nemesis: The Forbidden Lands is a graphic adventure game, developed by Zombie LLC, published by Activision, and released in 1996 for Windows 95, MS-DOS, and Macintosh.
The game's live-action cast included Lauren Koslow, W. Morgan Sheppard, Allan Kolman, Stephen Macht, Paul Anthony Stewart, Merle Kennedy, and Bruce Nozick.
The game received favorable reviews, despite some criticism of the puzzles and lack of relevance to the Zork setting, and won the 1996 Spotlight Award for "Best Prerendered Art".
The game takes place in the fantasy world of Zork, in a region called the Forbidden Lands found within the boundaries of the Great Underground Empire.
The player initially is restricted to exploring an ancient temple complex called the Temple of Agrippa, but later gains access to further areas to explore: the Frigid River Branch Conservatory, a musical school and performance hall situated close to Flood Control Dam #7; Steppinthrax Monastery, an abandoned monastery that has fallen into disrepair; Grey Mountains Asylum, a mental institution in the frigid, frozen peaks of the Grey Mountains; and Castle Irondune, a military fort and private museum situated in the Irondune desert.
The investigation sought to uncover what happened to four prominent members of the Empire - Doctor Erasmus Sartorius, General Thaddeus Kaine, Bishop Francois Malveaux, and Madame Sophia Hamilton - and investigatage rumours of a curse across a region known as the Forbidden Lands.
To achieve their aim, they found they needed the pure soul of a person born during a solar eclipse that coincided with an alignment of the planets linked to the elements.
The fifth element kills the alchemists, destroys the temple, and revives Lucien and Alexandria back to normal, who choose to move on and live in peace, inviting the Player to join them.
Furthermore, details were far more difficult to make out in the panoramic scenes than in the still screens; the sequel, Zork: Grand Inquisitor, made significant improvements to the Z-Vision system.
The game features a significant amount of screen-time for the actors, thanks to its use of flashbacks at key locations (or objects) and the use of monologues in which characters address the player explaining and justifying their actions.