Mr. Joel Berez						July 15, 1988
President
Infocom, Inc.
125 CambridgePark Drive
Cambridge, MA  02140

Dear Joel:

This is a revised proposal for a game based on the Wizard of Oz.

When I first suggested a Oz parody, the idea was enthusiastically
received by many Infopeople.  Although my first proposal failed
to fulfill the promise of that initial excitement, it still seems
that there is a great idea lurking in here somewhere, and that it
is worth it to find that idea and convert it into a game.

I believe Infocom's initial enthusiastic reaction is one that
will be repeated in stores across the country.  People will see
the game and say, "Oh!  A Wizard of Oz Parody.  What a neat
idea!"  Our problem is not how to get people interested in the
idea, The problem is delivering a product that lives up to those
initial expectations.

With that in mind, I have put together the proposal that follows,
and I look forward to receiving your reaction to it.

Sincerely yours,



Robert A. Bates
President

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                            OZ PARODY

1)	This is not an Immortal Legend game.  It is not an attempt
       to create a story that would fit into the existing body of
       literature on the subject.

2)	The game is a spoof, and it needs a title that presents it
       as such.  Although the following titles could not be used
       for the game, they convey the flavor that I'm looking for:

		Godzilla meets the Wizard of Oz
		Attack of the Killer Oz-moids
		Fast Times at Oz High
		Invasion of the Oz-snatchers
		Dorothy Does Oz
		Ozzie Dearest.

3)	The game's action takes place in the Oz that we remember
       from the movie; but there are incongruous features in the
       landscape.  Somewhat as the Wiz used New York City as its
       Oz, this game will draw on elements of the Southern
       California landscape and 80's life-style for humor.

4)	The cover art needs to support this comedic and possibly
       racy theme.  One possibility is to show Dorothy and the
       Lion in a hot tub, with the Tin Man and the Scarecrow
       standing by, and the Yellow Brick Road winding off into
       the distance.  Depending on how racy or suggestive we want
       to get, we can clothe Dorothy in anything from a gingham
       bathing suit to virtually nothing.

5)	With the right title and cover art, I don't believe the
       "sacredness" of Oz is going to be too much of a problem. 
       The people who buy the game will certainly not be
       expecting a tame re-telling of the Oz story.  (And those
       who want such a treatment should surely be able to figure
       out that this isn't the place to look for it.) 
       Nevertheless, I realize that the boundaries are somewhat
       tighter than they might be with other parodies and I
       intend to respect them.  For example, I wouldn't require
       Dorothy to perform scatological activities as the solution
       to a puzzle.  (What the player wants to try on his own,
       however, is a different story).  

6)	The player should not believe that he is in Southern
       California.  He should truly believe that he is in Oz, but
       that Oz and its inhabitants are slightly skewed from the
       way they were in the movie.  Consequently, I envision the
       taking the geography primarily from the movie, rather than
       from California.  For example, the letters EMERALD CITY
       might appear high on a hillside overlooking the town; and
       although there will not be a beach or an ocean (because
       there were none in Oz), there might be a lifeguard sitting
       on a chair overlooking a field of sunbathers.

7)	Dorothy will still have the basic goals that she had in
       the movie.  She will land in Oz and need to go see the
       Wizard.  However, some of the humor and puzzles will come
       from Oz being a more practical place than it is in the
       film.  For example:

            a)	The Yellow Brick Road is a toll-road.  She has
                   to pay to travel on it.
            
            b)	She has to eat, and the only place that food
                   is available is from fast-food joints that
                   sell things like Baumburgers and L.
                   Frankfurters.
            
            c)	When she has to buy things, she uses a credit
                   card that Glinda gave her.  She starts off
                   with 50 Ozmids credit (for dropping a house on
                   the Wicked Witch of the East), and she has to
                   accumulate more in the course of the game to
                   get everything done.  (100 Ozmids, of course,
                   equals one Wizbuck.)
            
            d)	The bubble that Glinda travels on is actually
                   a sort of inter-city bus that is a lot more
                   glamorous on the outside than on the inside. 
                   Dorothy and her companions can travel on it,
                   but they do have to pay the tired, bored
                   driver.
            
            e)	When the Tin Man gets banged up, Dorothy has
                   to take him to a body shop.  The mechanic
                   says, "Well lemme see.  I'm kinda backed up
                   right now.  I got a bronzed goddess who's
                   gotta be back at the tanning booth by noon,
                   and a man of steel who needs some structural
                   work.  But I think I can fit you in.  Lemme
                   put him up on the lift and give you an
                   estimate."
            
8)	The plot follows the movie in its broadest details, but
       varies from it in the particulars.

	Dorothy gets caught up in the tornado, and her house lands
       on the Wicked Witch of the East.  Glinda comes in on the
       2:15 bubble and tells Dorothy that the only person who can
       help her return home is the Wizard.

	When Dorothy starts off down the yellow brick road, she
       does not simply happen upon her companions.  She must do
       something to "acquire" them.  She may have to buy some
       straw, for example, and build her own scarecrow.  Or she
       may have to find a way to free the Lion from a zoo or
       circus.

	In the course of the game, it will be necessary for her to
       have "activated" each of the companions, as there will be
       tasks to perform that only they can do.  For example, they
       may come upon a cute and lovable - but dangerous - furry
       little creature (like a Tribble from Star Trek).  The
       animal may have to be killed for them to advance (or
       survive), but Dorothy can't kill it because it is too
       cute, the scarecrow can't figure out how to kill it, and
       the Lion is afraid of it.  Only the Tin Man - because he
       has no heart - can perform the nasty but necessary deed.

	In the same way, there will be a task that only a person
       with no brain can do, and one that cannot be performed by
       anyone with courage.

	Once they arrive in Emerald City, they discover that
       getting in to see Oz is a series of puzzles in itself. 
       When they finally get through, they find that the Wizard
       lives in a mansion, is constantly surrounded by beautiful
       women, smokes a pipe, and usually wears pajamas.

	Oz tells them that he will grant their wishes if they will
       bring him the mascara stick of the Wicked Witch of the
       West.  She turns out to be a make-up laden televangelist
       who is constantly denouncing the Wizard's life-style. 
       When they solve the puzzle and get her mascara stick, she
       cries such volumes of tears that she melts herself.

	Upon their return to the Wizard, he tells the scarecrow
       that he doesn't need a brain, what he needs is a job he
       can do without one.  He offers to make him a Network TV
       executive in charge of prime-time scheduling.  Because the
       Tin Man has no heart, Oz offers him a job as an agent. 
       Because the Lion has no courage, Oz tells him he could get
       work as a yes-man for a producer.  Each of the characters
       has the dignity to turn down these jobs.

	Oz gives Dorothy the option of returning home to Kansas,
       or moving into the mansion with him and becoming next
       month's centerspread.  Perhaps we will leave it up to the
       player to choose.
