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Firebird Software
Telecomsoft was a British video game publisher and a Division (business), division of British Telecom. The company was founded by Ederyn Williams, Dr. Ederyn Williams in 1984 and operated three separate labels: Firebird, Rainbird, and Silverbird. The first employee was James Leavey, seconded from elsewhere in BT, who, along with Tony Rainbird, became the driving force behind the company in the early days. History Telecomsoft was founded in 1984 when computer games were the fastest growing sector within the computer software market at the time. Despite a turnover of over £6 million in 1987/88, British Telecom sold the three labels to MicroProse in 1989 in a deal reported to be worth around £2,000,000 after a failed management buyout. MicroProse sold the Silverbird label soon after acquisition, but continued to use the Rainbird and Firebird labels for a short period. Labels Firebird British Telecom brought in Tony Rainbird, owner of budget software publisher Micro-Gold, to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Sentinel (computer Game)
''The Sentinel'', released in the United States as ''The Sentry'', is a puzzle video game created by Geoff Crammond, published by Firebird in 1986 for the BBC Micro and converted to the Commodore 64 (by Crammond himself), Amstrad CPC (with a cross-compiler written by Crammond), ZX Spectrum (by Mike Follin), Atari ST, Amiga (both by Steve Bak) and IBM PC compatibles (by Mark Roll). ''The Sentinel'' was among the first games to use solid-filled 3D graphics on home computers. It won numerous awards upon release and has since appeared on several "best video games of all time" lists. The IBM PC port supports VGA graphics, with an additional lighting effect: objects and terrain become darker the farther away they are from the point of view. The Amiga port has a sampled soundtrack by David Whittaker. Gameplay In ''The Sentinel'', the player takes the role of a ''Synthoid'' (called just "robot" in the US version), a telepathic robot who has to take control of a number of surreal, check ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elite (video Game)
''Elite'' is a space trading and combat simulator, space trading video game. It was written and developed by David Braben and Ian Bell (programmer), Ian Bell and originally published by Acornsoft for the BBC Micro and Acorn Electron computers in September 1984. ''Elite''s Open-ended (gameplay), open-ended game model, and revolutionary 3D graphics led to it being ported to virtually every contemporary home computer system and earned it a place as a classic and a genre maker in gaming history. The game's title derives from one of the player's goals of raising their combat rating to the exalted heights of "Elite". ''Elite'' was one of the first home computer games to use Wire-frame model, wire-frame 3D graphics with hidden-line removal. It added graphics and twitch gameplay aspects to the genre established by the 1974 game ''Star Trader''. Another novelty was the inclusion of ''The Dark Wheel'', a novella by Robert Holdstock which gave players insight into the moral and legal codes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Revs (video Game)
Revs is a 1985 Formula Three simulation written initially for the BBC Micro by Geoff Crammond and published by Acornsoft that is notable for its realistic simulation of the sport and as a precursor to its author's later work on '' Formula One Grand Prix'' and its sequels. Technical consultancy was provided by Formula Three driver David Hunt, whom Acornsoft's parent company Acorn Computers had sponsored during the British Formula Three Championship. Gameplay Unlike most contemporaneous racing games, ''Revs'' features selection of aerodynamic settings by the player and a full three-dimensional environment. The player is allowed to drive the wrong way around the track or even away from it completely. Unusual for the time, the track and terrain are not planar, but undulations in the ground are reproduced. The game was noted for its use of the BBC's hardware in achieving its display: such was the difficulty in squeezing the game into the BBC's limited memory, part of the game code ac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Realtime Games
Realtime Games Software Ltd. was a British computer game developer, founded in 1984 by three Leeds University students Ian Oliver, Andrew Onions, and Graeme Baird. Their first game, ''3D Tank Duel'', was a wireframe graphics game, in the style of Atari, Inc.'s '' Battlezone'' arcade game, for the ZX Spectrum. This was followed up with ''Starstrike 3D'', a game based on Atari's ''Star Wars'' arcade game. Starfox was published in 1987, and ''Carrier Command'' was published in 1988. The company was also involved in porting ''Elite'' to IBM PC compatibles and ''Starglider'' to the ZX Spectrum. Realtime's early titles were self-published. Later games were published by Rainbird. Graeme Baird subsequently went to work for Psygnosis, while Ian Oliver founded ''Cross Products'' to produce game development systems for consoles, in a joint venture with Andy Craven of nearby Vektor Grafix Vektor Grafix was a British computer game development company led by John Lewis and Andy Craven. V ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Argonaut Software
Argonaut Games PLC was a British video game developer founded in 1982, most notable for the development of the Super NES video game ''Star Fox'' and its supporting Super FX hardware, as well as for developing '' Croc: Legend of the Gobbos'' and the ''Starglider'' series. The company was liquidated in late 2004, and ceased to exist in early 2007. History Founded as Argonaut Software by teenager Jez San in 1982, the company name is a play on his name (J. San) and the mythological story of '' Jason and the Argonauts''. Its head offices were in Colindale, London,Company Summary . Argonaut Ga ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Magnetic Scrolls
Magnetic Scrolls was a British video game developer active between 1984 and 1990. A pioneer of audiovisually elaborate text adventure games, it was one of the two largest and most acclaimed interactive fiction developers of the 1980s. ''Magnetic Scrolls'' was one of the first game developers to use graphics and animation in its text adventure games, which set it apart from other companies in the genre. The company's games were known for their complex puzzles, intricate storylines, and immersive gameplay. Some of the most popular games developed by Magnetic Scrolls include The Pawn, The Guild of Thieves, and Jinxter. History Formation Formed by Anita Sinclair, Ken Gordon and Hugh Steers in 1984, London-based Magnetic Scrolls initially dabbled with development on the Sinclair QL home computer before deciding to take advantage of the emerging Atari ST and Amiga gaming platforms. Having secured a publication deal with Rainbird, a British software label owned by Telecomsoft, they b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bubble Bobble
is a 1986 platform video game, platform arcade game developed and published by Taito. It was distributed in the United States by Romstar, and in Europe by Electrocoin. Players control Bub and Bob, two dragons that set out to save their girlfriends from a world known as the Cave of Monsters. In each level, Bub and Bob must defeat each enemy present by trapping them in bubbles and popping, who turn into bonus items when they hit the ground. There are 100 levels total, each becoming progressively more difficult. ''Bubble Bobble'' was designed by Fukio "MTJ" Mitsuji. When he joined Taito in 1986, he felt that Taito's game output was of mediocre quality. In response, he decided to make a game that was fun to play and could rejuvenate the company's presence in the industry. Mitsuji hoped his game would appeal to women, specifically couples that visited arcades. As such, he decided to make ''Bubble Bobble'' focus largely on its two player co-operative mode. He made bubbles the core mech ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
