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Some of my fondest memories of growing up were playing video games with my dad on our Commodore 64. I remember one game, Falcon Patrol, where you fly a blue Harrier and shoot down red enemy jets (probably Soviets). I could always fly and shoot the bad guys, but I never could land the plane. I would always wait until I was almost out of fuel and ammo and then try to quickly hand the joystick off to my dad for him to land it for me.

Another game he and I used to play was Threshold, and he actually got so good playing it with me that he crashed the game because he got so many extra lives.

It was because of playing video games with my dad that he taught me how to do the basics of loading programs and games on a Commodore 64. While, that doesn't seem like a big deal, but at 4 years old, I thought it was pretty cool that I could list the files on a disk, find the game I wanted, and load it all by myself.

I collect games, so console and computer compilations tend not to interest me - I'd much rather have the original version (or, in the case of arcade games, a port from the timeframe of the original game) than a re-release.

My favourite compilations tend to be portable versions. I like being able to take several different games along with me without having to carry multiple cartridges.

By far, the best portable compilation I've ever seen is Konami Collector's Series: Arcade Advanced for GBA. It contains six arcade games that aren't emulated, but reprogrammed specifically for GBA. You'd be hard-pressed to find the difference. Also, each game is of a different genre (unlike compilations such as Pac-Man Museum). And finally, you can use the 'Konami Code' to unlock hidden features and updated graphics in each game.

Another fine compilation for GBA is Atari Anniversary Advance. It contains, like the Konami one, six arcade games. Unlike the Konami compilation, the games are emulated. There are some problems like slowdown and sound issues, but it really feels like you're playing MAME on the go. Another issue is that nearly all of the games used nonstandard controls (like a spinner for Tempest, trackball for Missile Command, dual sticks for Battlezone, etc) so that the GBA controls don't quite match the arcade ones. Still, it is an excellent compilation with several true classics.

Bridging the gap between handhelds and consoles, the recent trend of dedicated direct-to-tv devices is interesting, and has resulted in several that definitely count as compilations.

In particular, the Commodore 64 DTV stands above all others. It has 30 C64 games ranging from merely tolerable filler to true classics. But what makes it absolutely incredible is the dedication and love poured into it. It has lots of hidden secrets, and can be hacked to add real C64 hardware like disk drives so that you can play (or code) original games on it!

The Atari Flashback 2.0 is also great for similar reasons. It has a larger and better library than the C64 DTV, but also less hacking potential. You can add a cartridge port from an original Atari 2600, allowing it to play real 2600 games, but it has no major secrets and the homebrew possibilities are limited by the cartridge medium of the original system. It is as much a labour of love as the C64 stick, though, as is made obvious by the newly manufactured 2600 joysticks that have the proper connectors, allowing them to be used on the original system!

The Namco II 5-in-1 joystick is also worth a look. It has less games and no additional potential, but the games themselves are great. The joystick feels a little loose, making the controls a tad difficult on some of the games. This is (almost) made up for by an innovation that results in the best home version of Pole Position ever: the knob on the joystick twists and acts as a steering wheel, which gives the game absolutely FLAWLESS control. This is a must-buy if you love Pole Position, and well worth looking into if you like any of the other games on the stick.

Despite what I said at the beginning, there are some compilations available for PC and consoles that are worth investigating.

On PC, the Ultima Collection

TFA was nice. Old games can be hard to find. Compilations (or reissues) make it a lot easier. Even not-so-old games (2-6 years old) can be difficult to find at times.

Speaking of compilations, I've got a few of my own. I'm an old-school RPG fan. My personal favorites are:

The Ultima Collection: http://www.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/ultimacollection/
(Ultima I-VIII)

The Ultimate RPG Archives: http://www.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/ultimaterpgarchives /index.html?q=rpg%20archives

The Ultimate Wizardry Archives: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000 01QEP9/103-7875370-8027035?v=glance
(Wizardry I-VII)

Forgotten Realms Archives: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000 01QEP7/qid=1135045711/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8__i1_xgl63/10 3-7875370-8027035?v=glance&s=videogames&n=229534
(Pool of Radiance, Curse of the Azure Bonds, Secret of the Silver Blades, Pools of Darkness, Gateway to the Savage Frontier, Treasures of the Savage Frontier, Hillsfar, Eye of the Beholder, Eye of the Beholder II, Eye of the Beholder III, Dungeon Hack, Menzoberranzan, Blood and Magic, and the Baldur's Gate interactive demo.)

The Ultimate Might & Magic Archives: http://www.mobygames.com/game/ultimate-might-and-m agic-archives
(Might & Magic I-V)

Nothing beats old-school gameplay. These collections aren't for you if you're looking for eye-candy though. The games are at least 10 years old, maybe more.

Check out these fine graphics!

Already been made (although not a blizzard game :) http://www.mobygames.com/game/spycraft-the-great-g ame

Her industry credits include such stellar titles as "*NSYNC Fantasy Phone Hotline" *shudder*

http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/deve loperId,69075/

WTH was Jim Ward (pres of LucasArts and V.P. Marketing LucasFilm) thinking??

Yes. A decent implementation of Robotron 2084 would not be too far behind!

I'm with you on this one. Convergence is not really defined in TFA. It sounds like they're largely talking about the quality of effects - the sole factor in what too many journalists are touting as "next generation games".

These are entirely dissimilar media with one fundamental difference - movies are prerendered while games are realtime. It makes no sense to make a movie in the Quake 4 engine because, by movie standards, it will look like crapola. Short of inviting Sam Jackson to your house and smacking him with a glowing broomstick, I don't see how games and movies can converge more than they already have in terms of special effects.

There are games that have borrowed from tried and true cinematographical conventions. Sure, Alone In The Dark was a Lovecraft-esque horror game with a spooky house and monsters, but what made it truly frightening was the use of strategically-placed camera angles. Roberta Williams' Phantasmagoria succeeded as a thriller game not only because it was composed of digital video with actors and sets, but because of the slow pacing and three dimensional characters who themselves were afraid to open the door you just clicked. Wing Commander 3 and 4 introduced Hollywood actors (Mark Hamill, Malcolm McDowell, and more) to cut scenes, allowing the player to interact with the story via branching dialogue menus. Enter The Matrix was "directed" by the Wachowski Bros., but that didn't result in a good game.

Indigo Prophecy (aka Fahrenheit in Europe) is the most movie-like game I've seen to date in terms of presentation, camera work, dialogue, and acting. It's obvious Quantic Dream designed the game to resemble a movie from the ground up, and it's impressive to see a game that looks and feels as polished as its cut scenes. As revolutionary as the interface is, the game is really an evolution of point-and-click adventures of decades past. I do hope to see many more games that tell a story in this way.

There are so many ways to tell a story other than movies. Why equate movies and games at all? Because they're moving pictures on a screen? That's incidental and ancillary. They both tell stories but they abide by different laws of storytelling. I say movies have as much to adopt from games as games do from movies.

I'm with you on this one. Convergence is not really defined in TFA. It sounds like they're largely talking about the quality of effects - the sole factor in what too many journalists are touting as "next generation games".

These are entirely dissimilar media with one fundamental difference - movies are prerendered while games are realtime. It makes no sense to make a movie in the Quake 4 engine because, by movie standards, it will look like crapola. Short of inviting Sam Jackson to your house and smacking him with a glowing broomstick, I don't see how games and movies can converge more than they already have in terms of special effects.

There are games that have borrowed from tried and true cinematographical conventions. Sure, Alone In The Dark was a Lovecraft-esque horror game with a spooky house and monsters, but what made it truly frightening was the use of strategically-placed camera angles. Roberta Williams' Phantasmagoria succeeded as a thriller game not only because it was composed of digital video with actors and sets, but because of the slow pacing and three dimensional characters who themselves were afraid to open the door you just clicked. Wing Commander 3 and 4 introduced Hollywood actors (Mark Hamill, Malcolm McDowell, and more) to cut scenes, allowing the player to interact with the story via branching dialogue menus. Enter The Matrix was "directed" by the Wachowski Bros., but that didn't result in a good game.

Indigo Prophecy (aka Fahrenheit in Europe) is the most movie-like game I've seen to date in terms of presentation, camera work, dialogue, and acting. It's obvious Quantic Dream designed the game to resemble a movie from the ground up, and it's impressive to see a game that looks and feels as polished as its cut scenes. As revolutionary as the interface is, the game is really an evolution of point-and-click adventures of decades past. I do hope to see many more games that tell a story in this way.

There are so many ways to tell a story other than movies. Why equate movies and games at all? Because they're moving pictures on a screen? That's incidental and ancillary. They both tell stories but they abide by different laws of storytelling. I say movies have as much to adopt from games as games do from movies.

I'm with you on this one. Convergence is not really defined in TFA. It sounds like they're largely talking about the quality of effects - the sole factor in what too many journalists are touting as "next generation games".

These are entirely dissimilar media with one fundamental difference - movies are prerendered while games are realtime. It makes no sense to make a movie in the Quake 4 engine because, by movie standards, it will look like crapola. Short of inviting Sam Jackson to your house and smacking him with a glowing broomstick, I don't see how games and movies can converge more than they already have in terms of special effects.

There are games that have borrowed from tried and true cinematographical conventions. Sure, Alone In The Dark was a Lovecraft-esque horror game with a spooky house and monsters, but what made it truly frightening was the use of strategically-placed camera angles. Roberta Williams' Phantasmagoria succeeded as a thriller game not only because it was composed of digital video with actors and sets, but because of the slow pacing and three dimensional characters who themselves were afraid to open the door you just clicked. Wing Commander 3 and 4 introduced Hollywood actors (Mark Hamill, Malcolm McDowell, and more) to cut scenes, allowing the player to interact with the story via branching dialogue menus. Enter The Matrix was "directed" by the Wachowski Bros., but that didn't result in a good game.

Indigo Prophecy (aka Fahrenheit in Europe) is the most movie-like game I've seen to date in terms of presentation, camera work, dialogue, and acting. It's obvious Quantic Dream designed the game to resemble a movie from the ground up, and it's impressive to see a game that looks and feels as polished as its cut scenes. As revolutionary as the interface is, the game is really an evolution of point-and-click adventures of decades past. I do hope to see many more games that tell a story in this way.

There are so many ways to tell a story other than movies. Why equate movies and games at all? Because they're moving pictures on a screen? That's incidental and ancillary. They both tell stories but they abide by different laws of storytelling. I say movies have as much to adopt from games as games do from movies.

I'm with you on this one. Convergence is not really defined in TFA. It sounds like they're largely talking about the quality of effects - the sole factor in what too many journalists are touting as "next generation games".

These are entirely dissimilar media with one fundamental difference - movies are prerendered while games are realtime. It makes no sense to make a movie in the Quake 4 engine because, by movie standards, it will look like crapola. Short of inviting Sam Jackson to your house and smacking him with a glowing broomstick, I don't see how games and movies can converge more than they already have in terms of special effects.

There are games that have borrowed from tried and true cinematographical conventions. Sure, Alone In The Dark was a Lovecraft-esque horror game with a spooky house and monsters, but what made it truly frightening was the use of strategically-placed camera angles. Roberta Williams' Phantasmagoria succeeded as a thriller game not only because it was composed of digital video with actors and sets, but because of the slow pacing and three dimensional characters who themselves were afraid to open the door you just clicked. Wing Commander 3 and 4 introduced Hollywood actors (Mark Hamill, Malcolm McDowell, and more) to cut scenes, allowing the player to interact with the story via branching dialogue menus. Enter The Matrix was "directed" by the Wachowski Bros., but that didn't result in a good game.

Indigo Prophecy (aka Fahrenheit in Europe) is the most movie-like game I've seen to date in terms of presentation, camera work, dialogue, and acting. It's obvious Quantic Dream designed the game to resemble a movie from the ground up, and it's impressive to see a game that looks and feels as polished as its cut scenes. As revolutionary as the interface is, the game is really an evolution of point-and-click adventures of decades past. I do hope to see many more games that tell a story in this way.

There are so many ways to tell a story other than movies. Why equate movies and games at all? Because they're moving pictures on a screen? That's incidental and ancillary. They both tell stories but they abide by different laws of storytelling. I say movies have as much to adopt from games as games do from movies.

I'm with you on this one. Convergence is not really defined in TFA. It sounds like they're largely talking about the quality of effects - the sole factor in what too many journalists are touting as "next generation games".

These are entirely dissimilar media with one fundamental difference - movies are prerendered while games are realtime. It makes no sense to make a movie in the Quake 4 engine because, by movie standards, it will look like crapola. Short of inviting Sam Jackson to your house and smacking him with a glowing broomstick, I don't see how games and movies can converge more than they already have in terms of special effects.

There are games that have borrowed from tried and true cinematographical conventions. Sure, Alone In The Dark was a Lovecraft-esque horror game with a spooky house and monsters, but what made it truly frightening was the use of strategically-placed camera angles. Roberta Williams' Phantasmagoria succeeded as a thriller game not only because it was composed of digital video with actors and sets, but because of the slow pacing and three dimensional characters who themselves were afraid to open the door you just clicked. Wing Commander 3 and 4 introduced Hollywood actors (Mark Hamill, Malcolm McDowell, and more) to cut scenes, allowing the player to interact with the story via branching dialogue menus. Enter The Matrix was "directed" by the Wachowski Bros., but that didn't result in a good game.

Indigo Prophecy (aka Fahrenheit in Europe) is the most movie-like game I've seen to date in terms of presentation, camera work, dialogue, and acting. It's obvious Quantic Dream designed the game to resemble a movie from the ground up, and it's impressive to see a game that looks and feels as polished as its cut scenes. As revolutionary as the interface is, the game is really an evolution of point-and-click adventures of decades past. I do hope to see many more games that tell a story in this way.

There are so many ways to tell a story other than movies. Why equate movies and games at all? Because they're moving pictures on a screen? That's incidental and ancillary. They both tell stories but they abide by different laws of storytelling. I say movies have as much to adopt from games as games do from movies.

I'm with you on this one. Convergence is not really defined in TFA. It sounds like they're largely talking about the quality of effects - the sole factor in what too many journalists are touting as "next generation games".

These are entirely dissimilar media with one fundamental difference - movies are prerendered while games are realtime. It makes no sense to make a movie in the Quake 4 engine because, by movie standards, it will look like crapola. Short of inviting Sam Jackson to your house and smacking him with a glowing broomstick, I don't see how games and movies can converge more than they already have in terms of special effects.

There are games that have borrowed from tried and true cinematographical conventions. Sure, Alone In The Dark was a Lovecraft-esque horror game with a spooky house and monsters, but what made it truly frightening was the use of strategically-placed camera angles. Roberta Williams' Phantasmagoria succeeded as a thriller game not only because it was composed of digital video with actors and sets, but because of the slow pacing and three dimensional characters who themselves were afraid to open the door you just clicked. Wing Commander 3 and 4 introduced Hollywood actors (Mark Hamill, Malcolm McDowell, and more) to cut scenes, allowing the player to interact with the story via branching dialogue menus. Enter The Matrix was "directed" by the Wachowski Bros., but that didn't result in a good game.

Indigo Prophecy (aka Fahrenheit in Europe) is the most movie-like game I've seen to date in terms of presentation, camera work, dialogue, and acting. It's obvious Quantic Dream designed the game to resemble a movie from the ground up, and it's impressive to see a game that looks and feels as polished as its cut scenes. As revolutionary as the interface is, the game is really an evolution of point-and-click adventures of decades past. I do hope to see many more games that tell a story in this way.

There are so many ways to tell a story other than movies. Why equate movies and games at all? Because they're moving pictures on a screen? That's incidental and ancillary. They both tell stories but they abide by different laws of storytelling. I say movies have as much to adopt from games as games do from movies.

http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/deve loperId,67266/

I think I'm in my third year of what might be an infinite boycott of EA games; they haven't released anything I've been interested in since Clive Barker's Undying.

Undying came out in 2001, but I bought a bargain-bin copy a few years ago, that's why it's only the third year of my accidental boycott.

My best guess would be Atari's E.T., a conclusion supported by records at MobyGames. There may have been arcade games based on movies before that, though, and there may also have been pinball games based on movies already, but I'd actually have to do research to dig those up :)

From TFA:
The Wheel of Time, by Legend Entertainment Company/GT Interactive. It was one of the first shooters to introduce a compelling story (which happened to be based in one of the richest fantasy worlds around), realistic fantasy fine-art environments (when other shooters were still making unbelievable floating platforms), and strategic combat that combined offense and defense into an incredibly addictive multiplayer experience. Add on the citadel multiplayer game that allowed players to customize their home base before being invaded by their enemies, and you have a game that was light years ahead of its time. Wheel of Time was lauded in the press (Gamespy's Action Game of the Year), but unfortunately, Unreal Tournament and Quake 3 came out at exactly the same time, UT being the only game GTI had the money to promote. You couldn't even find it on shelves.
-Glen Dahlgren, Perpetual Entertainment

Now, I knew I remembered that name from somewhere.
http://www.mobygames.com/game/wheel-of-time/
So, it turns out, Glen Dahlgren was the Designer, Producer and Art director for the same project. What a coincidence! He does sound a bit bitter.

I refuse to believe Battlezone ever existed. I mean, the thing came out in the dark ages of 1998 and that thing had everything. RTSing and FPSing and ninjaing and hovertank racing and Cold War cliches. Nope, such a great concept obviously never existed.

Or maybe it did exist, it was just that it was too far ahead of its time and most people just forgot about it.

Oh, wait, it did exist, I have the game box and manual and CD and all other stuff right here. ::blows dust off the box:: Hmm, now if only I had Windows around to try this one out, maybe I could install it on QEMU... ::browses through the computer part drawers and can only find a Windows 95 OEM CD:: No wait, I cannot touch this artifact of evil, looks like the verification has to be done later!

The first RPG female lead I can think of is Maria from "Legend of the Ghost Lion" for NES

http://nes.mobygames.com/game/legend-of-the-ghost- lion

I don't care what anyone thinks..

I liked Jedi Arena for the Atari 2600!

> Armorgeddon (now Tanarus)*

Armorgeddon! God! I used to play that on the Amiga back in 1991 - it was one of the first realtime games where you could have more than one player in the same universe.

Here's some reviews from back in the day:

http://games.eldritchs.com/armged.html
http://www.angusm.demon.co.uk/AGDB/DBA1/ArmG.html

And screenshots - this was considered good graphics at the time!

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/g/pc_games/armour_ge ddon/gallery.php?page=3

And finally, a shot of the box cover:

http://www.mobygames.com/game/atari-st/armour-gedd on/cover-art/gameCoverId,19250/

Psygnosis (makers of Armor-geddon) was quite the game maker, in their heyday.

Here you go: Infestation, released in 1990. Most definitely an FPS, was in true 3D, and seems to have been entirely forgotten since it wasn't for the PC but the Atari ST and Amiga instead.

It's bastard difficult, though - I've only ever managed to survive thirty seconds or so. Apparently you can get inside and remove your helmet and wander round, so it's a proper indoors/outdoors FPS engine! ;-)

I think I'm off to have another play...

This looks more like it:

http://www.mobygames.com/game/windows/mafia

Maybe this game?

http://www.mobygames.com/game/gangsters-organized- crime

Of course, that doesn't matter any more. The open-source ScummVM project can play The Dig on most computer systems these days. The only problem that remains is finding the game.

...and no, you can't have mine!

And like any software gaming company, EA has had it's share of stinkers, too. (I have almost - after intense exorcism - forgotten about the one with the baby angel you fly around possessing people, which I purchased during one of those 24-hour brain tumors you get every year during flu season.)

Actually, the game you refer to was undoubtably Messiah, published by Interplay -- who has/had no connection to EA.

Oxryly

I remember Digital Image Design (an old game developer) made a big fuzz about how realistic their new flight simulator TFX was; one of the points they touched was that rounds shot by planes had realistic physics - it was either that game or EF2000, kind of a sequel to TFX. Both were great games and those details added a lot to the experience. If they could do it the DOS days, they can surely do it now.

    But, in a fast paced FPS (a-la-UT2k4, f.ex.), i really don't think it matters much - after all, if we're going to complain about realism, a guy firing a flak gun while doing a flip in mid air comes first :). Tactical FPSs, yes, they could benefit from such touches, and Red Orchestra is a great example. The only other one i can think of is Counterstrike, where bullets don't fly in arcs but you get groupings according to distance instead of bullets that always hit the same pixel.

I remember Digital Image Design (an old game developer) made a big fuzz about how realistic their new flight simulator TFX was; one of the points they touched was that rounds shot by planes had realistic physics - it was either that game or EF2000, kind of a sequel to TFX. Both were great games and those details added a lot to the experience. If they could do it the DOS days, they can surely do it now.

    But, in a fast paced FPS (a-la-UT2k4, f.ex.), i really don't think it matters much - after all, if we're going to complain about realism, a guy firing a flak gun while doing a flip in mid air comes first :). Tactical FPSs, yes, they could benefit from such touches, and Red Orchestra is a great example. The only other one i can think of is Counterstrike, where bullets don't fly in arcs but you get groupings according to distance instead of bullets that always hit the same pixel.

Cool, this looks like an almost exact clone of the old DOS game Slipstream 5000! (Well, they don't have weapons on board I hope)

I can't think of any developers I want to support. Care to mention the ones you like and for what achievements they should be supported for?

Double Fine would be one. Tim Schafer's latest game company. From the man that brough you Grim Fandango and Day of the Tentacle, among others.

The Behemoth would be another one. An indy-game developer trying to make it in an increasingly competitive market. Alien Hominid rocks.

Note that both websites have shops where you can buy directly from the developer so that distributors and publishers don't get their cut. These are just two companies out of many I'd support (and have).

Note that you can order stuff directly from both com

hahahahaa

2005 - 1983 = 22

Yes, this means that nintendo is off by two years. It explains why they came out with the N64 while Sony was kicking their ass.

Sonic3d for DGEN uhhh ... Sega Genesis. http://www.mobygames.com/game/genesis/sonic-3d-bla st/screenshots
Simply Awesome. At the time it was mesmerizing, and I don't just throw that word around, I mean, sit any pre-teen kid in front of it today and come back in 4 hrs, if you don't make them take a break they won't.

Some pics of the original Apple ][ version they worked on (I'm sure they didn't do the Commodore translations). Apple Screenshots

Diablo built on the game structure outlined by much, much earlier games such as Rogue, Hack, Nethack, Larn, Angband, Sword of Fargoal etc. Now these were all turn based, but there were a couple of early efforts to bring this type of game to a more action oriented real time style of play. The most famous is of course the arcade game Gauntlet, which stripped out almost all of the little details of the previous game, focusing instead on a heavily action oriented arcade game play.
Another early attempt that comes to mind, is the game Gateway to Apshai. This was a real time dungeon crawler that built on Epyx's Temple of Apshai series. Released for the Colecovision and Commodore 64, it was closer to the traditional Rogue style of gameplay than Gauntlet, but was played with a joystick in real time.

Real prior art here:

American McGee's Alice.

Is there a video game for Cthulhu? The patent specifically states it is for a video game.

Quite a few, actually.

Here's a recent one and here's an old one. There are several others. I don't know if any of them use Chaosium's sanity system, though.

The Right Not To Be Insulted

Never encountered this, myself.


Early Star Wars RTS from 1995 or so ... go go gadget google search ... Star Wars: Rebellion. Part of the game was attempting to win over planets using, for example, the Emperor to suck up to the planetary leaders. If that failed (he succeeded if he rolled a 20, 19 if he hitched his robe up), he would say "Fuck you, loser" or something like that.

Maybe I'm oversensitive, but it really turned me off ...

I would like to see a MMORPG version for this. Something like Natural Selection mod meets Alien Online (failed miserably). There would be classes, etc. who must keep win the battles from the other species.

The other side of the coin is that computers weren't able to replicate a great platformer like Sonic for a long time after Doom.

Oh, really?

Rob

I know, it's a stupid little detail, but it still pisses me off. P.S. MechWarrior 2 was the best.

http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/deve loperId,127/
Shows he worked on
Backyard Wrestling: Don't Try This at Home
Which as you can see says it was a licensed title.
:P

http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/deve loperId,127/
Shows he worked on
Backyard Wrestling: Don't Try This at Home
Which as you can see says it was a licensed title.
:P

I'll bite.

You link to your public blog, so it's practically a dare.

http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/deve loperId,65598/

Do I win??? If so, let me know so I can be snotty like you.

Thanks!

Even before that, we had Motor City Online. It was not an athletic sport, but it was still a sport. Car tuning and racing in a persistent online world. Buying and selling everything from parts to completely customized cars was a huge part of it, as well as point standings for racing against the clock and against other players. You made money based on your standings, not just per race.

Don't see how a baseball or golf game could be any more MMOG than that, so I don't see how it wasn't the first.

http://www.mobygames.com/game/windows/motor-city-o nline

P.S. Shot Online is from 2003. MCO is from 2001. :)

You should check out the rest of the Controller Family Tree (sorry, Mr. Sock Master) it's pretty neat.

So that would make it a film version of Martian Gothic: Unification.

Anybody remember this? Ads in games (or even games as ads) aren't new, nor even uncommon! Just look at the rest of them.

Pikmin was just SimAnt.

http://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/simant-the-elect ronic-ant-colony

Best box ever = Wasteland for the Apple II:

http://www.mobygames.com/game/wasteland/cover-art

The old album-style packaging had it all: excellent cover establishing the tone of the game, ornate illustration of a decimated Las Vegas on the inside panels, and a photo of the game designers in post-apocalyptic gear carrying weapons.

Best ever. No contest. Nothing comes close.

I think Warcraft 3 and WoW did a pretty good job of portraying things in shades of grey, not the narrow black and white vision that you see. There are good orcs and bad orcs. Good tauren and bad tauren. Some goblins want money, others are amazing engineers. Undead, the type of characters who tend to be nasty again are good and bad.

Would you not agree though that the tauren race in WoW have a pretty good history. Honourable warriors living in harmony with the land. Also, tauren druids find themselves working with night elf druids - putting the conflict aside to further their want to protect the land.

You fail to mention one very important point. Let's look at the Horde faction. The Horde is comprised of a number of races all working together. Based on this scientific study you mention, would playing a game where different races work together as a team help people in real-life to be more open-minded?

People like you who make such shallow comparisons between harmless things and the holocaust cheapen the memory of those who died. I think you're seeing racism where there is none. Have a look at the developer credits, don't these names seem a bit too diverse for the developers to be a bunch of red-necks?

WoW credits

One last thing, can you link to this scientific evidence you mentioned? I'm going to be off-line for a few days but I'd love to read it when I'm back.