ZZT Emulator with Modern Design?

[Aura4]

I wonder whether it would be a good idea to create a program that is able to run ZZT games but uses modern graphics and music instead of the ancient textmode etc.? I would be interested in working on such a project if there is demand for it.

[dave2]

There have been a few ZZT-modernization projects like this over the years (notably ZCLO back in the day) but more recently programs like MZX, GameMaker, and especially modern game-making tools have surpassed ZZT in terms of making a game look and sound exactly how you'd like it.

For a more powerful ZZT-like creating experience there's now Weave which enhances ZZT in almost every aspect (aside from the ones you're asking for; graphics and music.) You can play ZZT games with "fonts" that change the tileset but most Fonts are specific to each game.

In short, there's not a way to play "uphanced/modernized" ZZT games right now. Maybe one day we can play ZZT through a hyper-futuristic AI and it'll be able to update the graphics all the way to 1994 level quality on the fly, or interpret BurgerJoint and compile it into a 3D version with GTA3 style graphics!!

In the meantime, you'll find more recent discussion and information on the current active ZZT hub Museum of ZZT and its associated Discord server.