Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 UW 5/3/83; site uw-june Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxb!mhuxn!mhuxm!mhuxj!houxm!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!uw-june!gordon From: gordon@uw-june (Jamie Green) Newsgroups: net.micro.mac Subject: Re: Comments on games for the Macintosh Message-ID: <54@uw-june> Date: Mon, 11-Feb-85 23:14:27 EST Article-I.D.: uw-june.54 Posted: Mon Feb 11 23:14:27 1985 Date-Received: Wed, 13-Feb-85 02:13:42 EST Organization: U of Washington Computer Science Lines: 62 moriarty@fluke.UUCP (Jeff Meyer) writes: Unfortunately, what we have here is a text (very little graphics at all) adventure game with an animated front panel that beeps and blinks and does very little else. The action of the game seems to have very little to do with science fiction (as the title would suggest). It is the standard maze type adventure game, except the same text picture is used as you proceed through the adventure. The functions and commands which can be used through the control panel (and accessed with the mouse) are generally redundant methods of giving a text command to the game. Take a look at "Transylvania" by Penguin Software (and perhaps others by the same company). Each setting has a well-drawn picture associated with it, taking up about 1/3 of the screen. You can move the basic four directions by clicking on the appropriate arrow beneath the picture, as well as typing in the direction (I don't mind redundancy in commands myself), and the inven- tory is in a menu. First, a confession; during my youth, as an undergraduate at the University of Washington, I discovered a game running on a Vax 780 (VMesS) which I became addicted to, and spent many hours playing during the wee hours of the evening. Suffice it to say that I eventually grew out of this phase... until I happened to pick up a game called LODERUNNER for my Mac at the local computer shoppe. LODERUNNER and the game at the UW were obviously related; I have no idea who came first (I can guess) and could care less, but this Mac version of the game has lost none of the addictive power of the VMS version, and added quite a few features which exploit the powers of the Macs graphic capabilities. Yes, I too became addicted to this game at the ol' UW. And yes, they are related. The Vax version came first, then Doug Smith (the author) decided to translate it to the Apple II. Next thing we heard was that he had sold it to Broderbund and was making $70,000 a month. Who says games are a waste of time! Here is a technique for using the mouse to move your man (shown to me by the 8-year-old boy across the street; I'm so embarassed!): just "lead" the fellow with the pointer, keeping the pointer pretty much on top of the running figure. That way you never have a problem with running into walls. (Aside: I agree, though, that the keyboard is better...) It looks as if, in general, games built strictly for the Mac have not come about, though LODERUNNER should point the way to several interesting methods of game-building for the Mac. The main problem seems to be how to incorporate the Mouse into the play of the game; the Mouse just does not substitute well as a joystick or a track ball (unless the position of the marker on the screen is not a limitation, as it is in LODERUNNER). A game with good graphics and animation, with an imaginitive and engaging concept, could make it in the market; but the feature which would truly make it worth playing is a way to use the Mouse to control play, in a logical and smooth manner. Games strictly for the Mac do exist! Take a look at all the games by Videx (Fun Pak, Mac Vegas, MacGammon). They all use the Mac interface extensively, and it is even possible to put the keyboard away and use the mouse for every- thing! They are, in general, very well-done programs that follow the Mac guidelines logically and completely, and have excellent graphics. As for arcade-type games, I agree that a joystick is needed; the mouse simply will not do for most things. The Great Green Arkleseizure {decvax,ihnp4}!uw-beaver!uw-june!gordon Jamie Green gordon@uw-june.arpa