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Wizard's Crown
''Wizard's Crown'' is a 1986 top-down role-playing video game published by Strategic Simulations. It was released for the Atari 8-bit, Atari ST, IBM PC compatibles, Apple II, and Commodore 64. A sequel, ''The Eternal Dagger'', was released in 1987. Gameplay Academic Matt Barton describes ''Wizard's Crown'' as "probably the most hardcore RPG of its time" and "one of the most sophisticated tactical CRPGs ever designed". The object of the game is to rescue a magical crown from Tarmon, a wizard who sealed himself and the crown in his laboratory 500 years previous. The video game design and programming was done by Paul Murray and Keith Brors, game development by Chuck Kroegel and Jeff Johnson, and the rulebook created by Leona Billings. ''Wizard's Crown'' was the first RPG designed in-house by SSI, previously known as a wargame company. Its detailed tactical combat system came from Murray and Brors's background in wargaming, and they brought the complexity of those games to ''Wizar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Strategic Simulations
Strategic Simulations, Inc. (SSI) was a video game developer and video game publisher, publisher with over 100 titles to its credit from its founding in 1979 to its dissolution in 1994. The company was especially noted for its numerous wargames, its official computer game adaptations of ''Dungeons & Dragons'', and for the groundbreaking ''Panzer General'' series. History The company was founded by Joel Billings, a wargame enthusiast, who in the summer of 1979 saw the possibility of using the new home computers such as the TRS-80 for wargames. While unsuccessfully approaching Avalon Hill and Automated Simulations to publish wargames, he hired video game programmer, programmers John Lyons (game programmer), John Lyons, who wrote ''Computer Bismarck''—later claimed to have been the first "serious wargame" published for a microcomputer"Titans of the Computer Gaming World"''Computer Gaming World'', March 1988 p.36.—and Ed Williger, who wrote ''Computer Ambush''. Both games were w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Game Development
Video game development (or gamedev) is the software development, process of developing a video game. The effort is undertaken by a video game developer, developer, ranging from a single person to an international team dispersed across the globe. Development of traditional commercial PC games, PC and console games is normally funded by a video game publisher, publisher, and can take several years to reach completion. Indie games usually take less time and money and can be produced by individuals and smaller developers. The independent game industry has been on the rise, facilitated by the growth of accessible Game development tool, game development software such as Unity (game engine), Unity platform and Unreal Engine and new online distribution systems such as Steam (service), Steam and Uplay, as well as the mobile game market for Android (operating system), Android and iOS devices. The first video games, developed in the 1960s, were not usually Commercialization, commercialised. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Role-playing Video Games
A role-playing video game (commonly referred to as simply a role-playing game or RPG, as well as a computer role-playing game or CRPG) is a video game genre where the player controls the actions of a character (or several party members) immersed in some well-defined world, usually involving some form of character development by way of recording statistics. Many role-playing video games have origins in tabletop role-playing games Adams, Rollings 2003, p. 347 and use much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. Other major similarities with pen-and-paper games include developed story-telling and narrative elements, player character development, complexity, as well as replay value and immersion. The electronic medium removes the necessity for a gamemaster and increases combat resolution speed. RPGs have evolved from simple text-based console-window games into visually rich 3D experiences. Characteristics Role-playing video games use much of the same terminology, s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Antic (magazine)
''Antic'' () was a print magazine devoted to the Atari 8-bit family of home computers and later the Atari ST. It was named after the ANTIC chip in the 8-bit line which, in concert with CTIA or GTIA, generates the display. The magazine was published from April 1982 until June/July 1990. ''Antic'' printed type-in programs (usually in BASIC), reviews, and tutorials, among other articles. Each issue contained one type-in game as "Game of the Month." In 1986, ''STart'' magazine was spun off to exclusively cover the Atari ST line. Its main rival in the United States was ''ANALOG Computing'', another long-lived magazine devoted to the Atari 8-bit line. Multi-system magazines ''COMPUTE!'' and ''Family Computing'' also served Atari 8-bit owners with type-in programs. Starting in 1984, the catalog for Antic Software was bound into issues of ''Antic''. History NASA programmer Jim Capparell was an early Atari 8-bit owner. He quit his job on 15 January 1982 to found a magazine for the comp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dragon (magazine)
''Dragon'' is one of the two official magazines for source material for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' role-playing game and associated products, along with ''Dungeon (magazine), Dungeon''. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, ''The Strategic Review''. The final printed issue was #359 in September 2007. Shortly after the last print issue shipped in mid-August 2007, Wizards of the Coast (part of Hasbro, Inc.), the publication's current copyright holder, relaunched ''Dragon'' as an online magazine, continuing on the numbering of the print edition. The last published issue was No. 430 in December 2013. A digital publication called ''Dragon+'', which replaces the ''Dragon'' magazine, launched in 2015. It is created by Dialect in collaboration with Wizards of the Coast, and its numbering system for issues started at No. 1. History TSR In 1975, TSR, Inc. began publishing ''The Strategic Review''. At the time ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
ANALOG Computing
''ANALOG Computing'' (an acronym for Atari Newsletter And Lots Of Games) was an American computer magazine devoted to the Atari 8-bit family of home computers. It was published from 1981 until 1989. In addition to reviews and tutorials, ''ANALOG'' printed multiple programs in each issue for users to type in. The magazine had a reputation for listings of machine language games–much smoother than those written in Atari BASIC—and which were uncommon in competing magazines. Such games were accompanied by the assembly language source code. ''ANALOG'' also sold commercial games, two books of type-in software, and access to a custom bulletin-board system. Originally the title as printed on the cover was ''A.N.A.L.O.G. 400/800 Magazine'', but by the eighth issue it changed to ''A.N.A.L.O.G. Computing''. Though the dots remained in the logo, it was simply referred to as ''ANALOG'' or ''ANALOG Computing'' inside the magazine. While the program listings were covered under the m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hack And Slash
Hack and slash, also known as hack and slay (H&S or HnS) or slash 'em up, refers to a type of gameplay that emphasizes combat with melee-based weapons (such as swords or blades). They may also feature projectile-based weapons as well (such as guns) as secondary weapons. It is a sub-genre of beat 'em up games, which focuses on melee combat usually with swords. Hack-and-slash action games are sometimes known as character action games. The term "hack and slash" was originally used to describe a play style in tabletop role-playing games, carrying over from there to MUDs, MMORPGs, and role-playing video games. In arcade and console style action video games, the term has an entirely different usage, specifically referring to action games with a focus on real-time combat with hand-to-hand weapons as opposed to guns or fists. The two types of hack-and-slash games are largely unrelated, though action role-playing games may combine elements of both. Types of hack-and-slash games Ac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scorpia (journalist)
Scorpia is the pseudonym of a video game journalist who was active from the early 1980s through the late 1990s. She wrote for ''Computer Gaming World'', performing reviews on role-playing video games and adventure games. Scorpia was known for harsh criticism of video games she disliked. She was fired after ''CGW'' was sold to Ziff-Davis in 1999 and subsequently retired from games journalism. Her pseudonym is based on a character she created in a role-playing game. Career Scorpia became interested in computers after attending a computer expo. Her initial intention was to become a programmer, and she said she bought her first computer games to learn how to program. In November 1982, while working as a data processing consultant, Scorpia co-founded an early gaming-related Special Interest Group on CompuServe. It became the eighth most popular forum on CompuServe, and Scorpia received free access to the subscription service in return for maintaining it. As a system operator, she ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Computer Gaming World
''Computer Gaming World'' (CGW) was an American computer game magazine published between 1981 and 2006. One of the few magazines of the era to survive the video game crash of 1983, it was sold to Ziff Davis in 1993. It expanded greatly through the 1990s and became one of the largest dedicated video game magazines, reaching around 500 pages by 1997. In the early 2000s its circulation was about 300,000, only slightly behind the market leader ''PC Gamer''. But, like most magazines of the era, the rapid move of its advertising revenue to internet properties led to a decline in revenue. In 2006, Ziff announced it would be refocused as ''Games for Windows'', before moving it to solely online format, and then shutting down completely later the same year. History In 1979, Russell Sipe left the Southern Baptist Convention ministry. A fan of computer games, he realized in spring 1981 that no magazine was dedicated to computer games. Although Sipe had no publishing experience, he formed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Compute!
''Compute!'' (), often stylized as ''COMPUTE!'', was an American home computer magazine that was published from 1979 to 1994. Its origins can be traced to 1978 in Len Lindsay's ''PET Gazette'', one of the first magazines for the Commodore PET computer. In its 1980s heyday ''Compute!'' covered all major platforms, and several single-platform spinoffs of the magazine were launched. The most successful of these was ''Compute!'s Gazette'', which catered to VIC-20 and Commodore 64 computer users. History ''Compute!''s original goal was to write about and publish programs for all of the computers that used some version of the MOS Technology 6502 CPU. It started out in 1979 with the Commodore PET, VIC-20, Atari 400/800, Apple II+, and some 6502-based computers one could build from kits, such as the Rockwell AIM 65, the KIM-1 by MOS Technology, and others from companies such as Ohio Scientific. Coverage of the kit computers and the Commodore PET were eventually dropped. The platforms t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Traveller (role-playing Game)
''Traveller'' is a science fiction role-playing game first published in 1977 by Game Designers' Workshop. Marc Miller designed ''Traveller'' with help from Frank Chadwick, John Harshman, and Loren Wiseman. Editions were published for GURPS, d20, and other role-playing game systems. From its origin and in the currently published systems, the game relied upon six-sided dice for random elements. ''Traveller'' has been featured in a few novels and at least two video games. Design Traveller is a tabletop role-playing game. Characters journey between star systems, engaging in exploration, ground and space battles, and interstellar trading. One player, the game master or referee, oversees task attempts and guides events as the players explore the setting. Characters are defined not by the need to increase native skill and ability but by achievements, discoveries, wealth, titles, and political power. Influences and inspiration Marc Miller lists a number of books that influenced ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RuneQuest
''RuneQuest'' (commonly abbreviated as RQ) is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game originally designed by Steve Perrin, Ray Turney, Steve Henderson (game designer), Steve Henderson, and Warren James, and set in Greg Stafford's mythical world of Glorantha. It was first published in 1978 by Chaosium, The Chaosium. Beginning in 1984, publication passed between a number of companies, including Avalon Hill, Mongoose Publishing, and The Design Mechanism, before finally returning to Chaosium in 2016. ''RuneQuest'' is notable for its system, designed around percentile dice and an early implementation of skill (role-playing games), skill rules, which became the basis for numerous other games. There have been several editions of the game. History In 1975, game designer Greg Stafford released the fantasy board game ''White Bear and Red Moon'' (later renamed ''Dragon Pass''), produced and marketed by Chaosium, The Chaosium, a publishing company set up by Stafford specifically for the release ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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