Existing comment:
Mattel Intellivision
Action: TRON: Maze-Atron
The movie TRON introduced audiences to the language and mythology of the burgeoning world of computer programming in the early 1980s.
This game draws from the plot of the film. The player is "pulled" inside the circuits of a computer and must navigate the moving playfield while collecting energy and "bits" that are used to clear the Random Access Memory, or RAM, of the Master Control Program.
The game, like many in its era, suffered from poor controls and overly complicated gameplay. However, the links to popular culture together with graphics that appeared to turn the computer inside-out, ensured its popularity with players steeped in the growing world of video games.
Target: Star Strike
Star Strike was directly inspired by the dramatic "trench run" sequence at the end of the first Star Wars film, which was released in 1977. In the game, players fend off enemy spaceships while bombing ports on the surface of an alien war machine to prevent it from exploding Earth.
The processing power of the Intellivision allowed the designers to achieve a 3D effect through forced perspective, while rapidly alternating bands of light and dark green conveyed a sense of speed. A recognizable depiction of earth slowly enters firing range, heightening the tension for the player.
Star Strike was one of the many space-inspired games of the early 1980s. Along with popular television shows, games like this captured the excitement of space travel combined with continuing anxieties about the Cold War.
Adventure: Advanced Dungeons and Dragons
The tabletop game of Dungeons and Dragons, along with the Lord of the Rings novels by J.R.R. Tolkein, provided the bedrock for numerous fantasy adventure role-playing video games.
In 1982, Advanced Dungeons and Dragons for the Intellivision employed many mechanics from the tabletop version that have since become standard in adventure games.
Caves shrouded by darkness reveal themselves only when approached. Sounds warn of looming enemies. And a range of tactics are required to defeat each kind you may face. Hidden in the darkness, items help you progress towards your dangerous destination.
Tactics: Utopia
Utopia was the first real simulation game, or "god game," for a home video game console, placing the player in control of the entire game world. Players developed islands with buildings, boats, and farms while avoiding pirates and natural disasters.
Designer Don Daglow developed the concept for the game during his days as a middle school teacher. To help his students understand geography, he used electrical tape to outline a massive map of the world on the school's cafeteria floor. Students played as different nations by standing on the relevant areas of the map.
Utopia's unique gameplay and realistic scenarios established a basis for simulation games that can still be seen today. |