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Twenty-five Years at the Heart of Gaming
Andrew Leonard writes "Salon has a loooong interview with Eugene Jarvis, the creator of legendary arcade video games Defender and Robotron, up today. Jarvis talks about why he is pro-emulators, anti-Grand Theft Auto, still focused on arcade games, and deeply worried about terrorism. It's a good read, even if you have to watch a ten second ad to get access."
Despite all the new games, I still have more fun playing Duke Nukem 3D and Commander Keen.. without having to quit because of motion sickness =)
Just because you disagree doesn't make it offtopic or flamebait.
That's 25 years of fixing leaky pipes. I sure as hell don't want to be around when Mario delivers the plumbing bill.
Its about time someone interviewed an important source about terrorism. Maybe now we can figure out what effect old-skool games had on the al-Qaida.
Codito, ergo sum.
...as it ever was.
When the ad plays, just background the ad window and post your first opinion on Slashdot!
Who RTFAs before posting anyway.
Speaking of "withh all the buttons...in the rigth place" are you using a Dvorak keyboard today?
From the article:
DOS was boring and you had to kind of type and shit.
I can't wait until I have kids and they ask me, "Daddy, what was DOS like?"
Nobody's ever done that before! How original! It's creativity like this that fuels the gaming industry.
REM Old programmers don't die. They just GOSUB without RETURN.
There's a few things that send both of those games over the top. First of all they have some of the best sounds of any game. You can hear the "lander picks up a colonist" sound in like 100+ hip-hop songs these days.
Then there was the, literally, non-stop action of these games. When you are playing Robotron, the longest break in the action is approximately one second, and that's between levels. It's not even long enough to take a sip of your drink! Defender is pretty much the same but you might be able to sneak a quick chug in at the end of a wave if you don't mind spilling beer down the front of your shirt.
Where I play there's that "Big Buck Hunter" game right next to Robotron. That game not only costs twice as much, it's mostly waiting around and pretty scenery. I prefer the immersive experience of Robotron over the eye candy of those games any day. And Robotron has some pretty good eye candy, it's just the eye candy of 23 years ago.
For those of you that think Robotron is too hard, it's not. Sure, when it came out, I couldn't handle the two joysticks. But I went back to it and I've gotten pretty good. Defender had the same "controls are too hard" problem for lots of people.
You know what's really hot? Chicks who play Robotron. I've met one or two. But I've never seen a woman on Defender. Hmmm maybe it's time for an OSDN peronals ad:
Exactly, the problem isn't video games. Its parents who dont belive they should have to have any form of interaction with their kids. I grew up with D&D, quake, duke nukem, and tons of war games. I am fine. My parents made a point of explaining the difference between fantasy and reality. Fantasy was me ninja kicking down the small tree outside. Reality was me doing hard labor in the yard for 6 straight weekends to pay for that tree.
That's great for you. I grew up with D&D, quake, duke nukem, and tons of war games.
My parents never had to tell me not to go around shooting rocket launchers. I knew this was wrong.
I think G.I. Joe may have informed me. Although I distinctly remember that them telling me was only half of what I needed to accomplish.
http://use.perl.org
Ok, this guy wants to exploit 911 for a game? Let's all jump on the bandwagon. Abstract strategy-oriented games seem so passe now, let's just create more reactive flinchers... Here are some ideas:
* SUV Gauntlet - Negotiate your Honda/Toyota through city streets crowded with sun-blocking SUVs to get to the gas station before all the fuel is gone. (Think Spy Hunter with the Zepplin music that Cadillac has now stolen)
* Airport Confiscation - Monitor a moving X-Ray belt scoring points for removing any useful object that could be used as a weapon. (Think Tapper)
* Neo-Conservative Invasion - Hoards of self-righteous republicans try to stop you from getting to the voting booth. (Think Robotron with patriotic music, the "brain wave" would be little Ashcrofts using Patriot missles)
* Legend of Ronco - Navigate through an old Chinese warehouse assembling the missing pieces to put together the next big infomercial product.
* Hurrydating Man - Avoid rejection as you move through a maze inhabited by bitter 30-something women. Watch out for the pet cats! (Think Bezerk with music by Kenny G)
* Grand Theft Cable - Avoid police as you wire the neighborhood with free cable TV.
* Store Wars - Score big points for invading rural towns and driving small shopowners out of business.
* Pedestrian - An update to the classic Frogger game where you try to cross an American street without getting run over.
* THC Scavenger Hunt - Frantically search an apartment for your pot after you forgot where you stashed it the previous night.