"Return to Zork" was made on a budget of $1.5 million, and became a commercial hit. In its first sixth months, the game achieved global sales of 300,000 units. By September 1994, it had earned $2.4 million and sold 600,000 copies—"more than half from bundled systems", according to "Fortune"s Stephanie Losee. The game shipped roughly 1 million units by October 1995. According to Jeff Sengstack of "NewMedia", its success helped to revitalize Activision, which had recently been purchased by Bobby Kotick.