Steve Meretzky
• Name: Steve Meretzky
• Joined Infocom: 1981
• Games written: 8
• Left Infocom: 1989
Steve Meretzky was born (May 1, 1957) and raised in Yonkers, NY.

In the summer of 1975 he started studying at the MIT and left with a degree in Construction Management. For two years he worked in the construction industry, but soon felt an uncontrollable urge to become more creative and do something different.

Steve's roommate during these days was Mike Dornbrook. Mike at that time was the one and only tester at Infocom and he tested the games on their dining room table, as Infocom didn't have any space for that yet. Steve occasionally had a look at what Mike was doing and, whenever Mike wasn't around, started bug-hunting himself just for the fun of it.

When Mike had to leave for business school Marc Blank needed someone to test the upcoming "Deadline" and, based on his previous experience with the task and his already sparked up interest, it was only natural to ask Steve.

So Steve finally became a paid tester in November 1981, but, probably sensing his great talent, it was only a year later that Marc asked him if he would like to write a game of his own. Steve said yes and that proved to be a wise choice, as some of the most popular Infocom games were written by him. Along with Dave Lebling, Steve was one of the only two writers of interactice fiction ever admitted to the Science Fiction Writers of America. In September 1999 the US magazine PC Gamer named a list of 25 "Game Gods" in the history of computer gaming. Steve was among them.

After Infocom's downfall Steve continued to write games, including "Leather Goddesses of Phobos 2" for Activision and the "Spellcasting" series for Bob Bates' company Legend. Together with Mike Dornbrook and another friend from MIT, Leo DaCosta, in 1994 he started his own company, Boffo Games, where he wrote "Hodj 'n' Podj" and "The Space Bar". The latter was a great adventure, but unfortunately failed, due to a general low in the adventure gaming market.

Steve gave Boffo Games up and in 2000, after an interlude at GameFX (now part of THQ) as designer, became creative director at the online-gaming portal WorldWinner, while also acting as a consultant for companies like Disney, Hasbro, Blizzard and, last but not least, Harmonix, the company Mike Dornbrook moved to in 1997.

In 2005 he reduced his involvement with WorldWinner to that of an advisor and focused his main interest on working with Floodgate Entertainment, a software developer largely composed of the people once behind the famous Looking Glass Studios, but left there to become senior designer at Blue Fang Games, the developer of Zoo Tycoon, in January 2007.

Steve was and is also active in the politics and development of the gaming industry. He is a charter member of the International Game Developers Association and for two years was on its Board of Directors. Post Mortem, the monthly gathering of Boston area game developers, can name him as one of its founders and since 2002 he helps in organizing and moderating the Casual Games Summit at the Game Developers Conference. He is also a co-organizer of the annual Game Designers Workshop, which as one of its founders lists Bob Bates, and a speaker at various industry events.

Many thanks to Steve Meretzky for contributing to this biography.

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Titles written by Steve Meretzky:

Planetfall (1983)

Sorcerer (1984)

Hitchhiker's Guide (1984) (with Douglas Adams)

A Mind Forever Voyaging (1985)

Leather Goddesses of Phobos (1986)

Stationfall (1987)

Lane Mastodon vs. the Blubbermen (1988) (with Tom Snyder Productions)

Zork Zero (1988)

Past Infocom:

Spellcasting 101 (1990, Legend) (with Bob Bates)

Spellcasting 201 (1991, Legend) (with Bob Bates)

Leather Goddesses of Phobos 2 (1992, Activision (under Infocom label))

Spellcasting 301 (1992, Legend) (with Bob Bates)

Superhero League of Hoboken (1994, Legend)

Hodj 'n' Podj (1996, Boffo Games)

The Space Bar (1997, Boffo Games)

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