*The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy* interactive fiction game was created in 1984 by Infocom, a Cambridge, Massachusetts company formed by MIT alumni. Infocom specialized in rich, text-based adventures written in natural language and powered by their own programming system, the Zork Implementation Language (ZIL). Douglas Adams collaborated directly with Infocom designer **Steve Meretzky** to adapt his famous radio and book series into a game full of absurd puzzles and deadpan humor. It became one of Infocom’s best-selling and most beloved titles.
# Team - **Douglas Adams** – Co-designer and author of the original *Hitchhiker’s Guide* - **Steve Meretzky** – Lead game designer and programmer - **Stu Galley** – Implementation support - **Mike Dornbrook** – Marketing and packaging (“feelies”) - **Joel Berez** – Executive producer - **Dave Lebling** – Technical advisor
# Legacy The game’s release in 1984 marked a high point for Infocom, followed by decline after their business software venture *Cornerstone* failed. Activision acquired Infocom in 1986 and closed its offices in 1989. Despite this, the *Hitchhiker’s Guide* game remains a landmark in interactive fiction, known for its difficulty, wit, and faithful absurdity. The BBC reissued it online in 2004 and again in HTML5 for its 30th anniversary.
# Contact and Community
Many original Infocom staff remain active in the game community:
- **Steve Meretzky** – on LinkedIn; frequent GDC speaker
- **Mike Dornbrook** – on LinkedIn; former Harmonix executive
- **Marc Blank**, **Dave Lebling** – appear in interviews and retrospectives
Fans and historians often gather here:
- intfiction.org 
- ifwiki.org
- filfre.net
The *Hitchhiker’s Guide* game lives on in modern interpreters like Frotz and in community archives preserving Infocom’s pioneering work.