computer gaming world 006

8/12/2019 Computer Gaming World 006

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From the Editor.. .COMPUTER GAMING WORLD,with the publication of this issue, hascompleted it's first year of coveringthe computer gaming field. In thispast year we have seen a tremendousgrowth in the hobby. Think back towhat products were available to thecomputer gamer a year ago, thenlook at what is available today. There

is quite a difference isn't there? Whatis exciting is that next year shouldproduce even greater advancements.This does not mean, however, that1983 will see the large increase ofsoftware houses that characterized1981 and 1982. Given increased com-petition in the computer gaming in-dustry and the state of the economy,it is increasingly more difficult tostart a software house. This coupledwith natural attrition in the busi-ness world means that we will seefewer companies in the next couple ofyears. However those companies thatare around in two years will bestronger and better able to meet thedemands of the marketplace.

COMPUTER GAMING WORLDhas come a long way in the past yearas well. Each issue has added newfeatures and will continue to do so.COMPUTER GAMING WORLD has,in the year of it's existence becomesomething of a voice for the hobby.Through reviews, columns such asSilicon Cerebrum, Atari Arcade, andReal World Gaming we have tried toprovide you with enjoyable and in-formative information about thehobby. From your comments we knowwe are succeeding. Our Reader InputDevice has become one of our mostpopular features. Through R.I.D. yourvoice can be heard by the hobby andindustry.

CGW adds two new columns inthis issue, INSIDE THE INDUSTRY,by Dana Lombardy (Associate Pub-lisher of Game Merchandisingmagazine) and ROUTE-80 THEROAD TO ADVENTURE, a newTRS-80 column by Richard McGrath.Although not appearing in this issueSilicon Cerebrum will be back inNovember December.

VOL. 2 NO. 5SEPT. OCT. 1982

FeaturesLABYRINTHINE

Computer FictionS O F T W A R E P I R A C Y 10

The Slaying of A HydraM IS S I O N C O M P L E T E 11A Review of STARBLAZERSTARWA RS MEETS GALACTIC GLADIATORS 12

A Scenario for SSI's New GameHEROI C F ANTAS Y3An Interactive Role-Playing GameA T A R I: E XP L O I T IN G T H E H U MA N C O N N E C T I O N 14The Human Element in Computer GamingG U A D A L C A N A L C A M P A I G N 6

Review NotesG A L A C T IC G L A D I A T O R S 0

Individual Combat in the 28th CenturyROBOTW AR TOURNAM ENT1The Second Annual Robotwar TournamentT HE ROAD T O GE T T Y S BURG2A Review of SSI s GameG E T O N T H E B A N D W A G O N5Computer Gaming by CableCY T RON M AS T E RS0The View From A Play TesterS T A R S H I P C O M M A N D E R3Designer's Notes

N E W S C E N A R I O S FO R I N V A S IO N O R I O N 7Scenarios For Epyx's Space Combat Game

R E A D E R C O M ME N T S 3Comments on the R.I.D. Cards

DepartmentsInside the Industry2Initial Comments3Hobby & Industry News 5Route 80-The Road to Adventure8Real World Gaming5Micro Reviews0R.I.D. 47


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INSIDE THE INDUSTR Yby Dana Lombardy,

Associate Publisher Game MerchandisingFor the first feature in this newcolumn for CGW, we conducted asurvey of 150 computer softwaremanufacturers to find out what theirbest selling titles are.Those who shared their sales

figures with us appear on the charton this page. It turned out thatthere's no relationship between thenumber of new releases and howmany sales the publisher's topgame will do. For example, Ad-venture International, which hassold primarily by mail order, in-troduced 55 new games in 1981 andtheir best-seller is REAR GUARD(December, 1981) with 3,400 copiessold. On the other hand, ArcadePlus made only one game in 1981 -GHOST HUNTER (November, 1981)- and they've sold over 23,000copies, almost all through stores.

Obviously, selling through storesmeans more games sold - more ofyou have a chance to see a game andtry it. If it's good, the repeat salespush it up to the top of the chart. Butmany of the mail order companieshave good games as well. Thenumbers on the chart hint at theway a company sells their software:through stores or by mail. Numbersalone cannot tell you how good agame is.One more note about the chart ofbest sellers: a clue to "hot" titles istheir release date. CHOPLIFTER

by Broderbund (May, 1982) andCANYON CLIMBER by Datasoft(June, 1982) are two examples ofrecent releases that could jump intothe 20,000-plus category before theend of the year based on what theysold in just one month.Some firms that don't releasetheir sales figures still gave usinteresting data. Atari's best-sellingprogram through APX is EASTERNFRONT, a wargame - and thewinner of "Best Adventure Gamefor Home Computer, 1981" from the

Academy of Adventure GamingArts and Design. Avalon Hill sMicrocomputer division's best-selling title is EMPIRE OF THEOVERMIND, an adventure game.

Even though action/arcade gameslike K-RAZY Shoot-Out (K-Byte)and RASTER BLASTER (BudgeCo)make up the majority of gamesoftware programs available, theydon't totally dominate the market.The fact that Atari's and AvalonHill's best-sellers are non-arcadetypes, and others on the top sellerschart ZORKI(Infocom),TEMPLE OF APSHAI (AutomatedSimulations), WIZARD & THEPRINCESS (Sierra On-Line), WIZ-ARDRY (Sir-tech), CASTLE WOLF-ENSTEIN (Muse), APVENTURETO ATLANTIS (Synergistic)areadventure games, points to howsignificant role-playing and war-game subjects are.

But no matter what types ofgames you prefer, the numeroussoftware manufacturers are goingto continue producing a variety oftitles that will keep this a vital,growing, and always interestinghobby.

List of Top Sellers(as of 30 June 1982)35,000 K -HAZY Shoot-Out (K-Byte,Jan. 1982)32,000Zork I (Infocom, Feb. 1981)30,000 Temple of Apshai (Automated Simulations,Aug. 1979)30,000Flight Simulator (SublogicCommunications, Dec. 1979)25,000 Raster Blaster (BudgeCo.,April 1981)25,000 Wizard & the Princess (SierraOn-Line, Aug. 1980)25,000 Snack Attack (Datamost, Oct.1981)24,000 Wizardry (Sir-tech Software,Sept. 1981)23,000 Ghost Hunter (Arcade Plus,Nov. 1981)23,000 Gorgon (Sirius Software,June 1981)20,000 Ultima (California PacificComputer Co., June 1981)20,000Super Invader (CreativeComputing Software,Nov. 1979)20,000 Castle Wolfenstein (Muse,Sept. 1981)15,000 Apple Panic (BroderbundSoftware, July 1981)15,000 Scarfman (The CornsoftGroup, Aug. 1981)15,000 Pool 1.5 (Innovative DesignSoftware, April 1981)10,000 Galactic Chase (SpectrumComputers, Sept. 1981)9,000 Choplifter (Broderbund Software, May 1982)8,300 Canyon Climber (Datasoft,June 1982)8,000 The Warp Factor (StrategicSimulations, Feb. 1981)6,000 Photar (Softape, Feb. 1982)5,000 Pac Attack (Computerware,Sept. 1981)5,000 Horizon V (Gebelli Software,Feb. 1982)5,000 Dragonquest (The Programmer's Guild., Jan. 1981)5,000 Asylum (Med Systems,Feb. 1981)4,500 International Gran Prix(Riverbank Software,Aug. 1981)3,600 Tax-Man (H.A.L. Labs,Oct. 1981)3,500 Rocket Raiders (ArtworxSoftware, Dec. 1981)3,500 Apventure to Atlantis(Synergistic Software,March 1982)3,400 Rear Guard (AdventureInternational, Dec. 1981)3,000 Voyage of the Valkyrie(Advanced OperatingSystems, Aug. 1981)2,000 The Game Show (Computer-Advanced Ideas, Oct. 1981)2,000 Stone's Reversal (Power-soft, Nov. 1981)1,000 Swordthrust #1 (CE Soft-ware, May 1981)1,000 Hi-Res Computer Golf(Avant-Garde Creations,Nov. 1981)1,000 ZX81 Classics (Lamo-LemLaboratories, Jan. 1982)1,000 Super Stellar Trek (RainbowComputing, Aug. 1981)


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INITIALCOMMENTSBEZ4790 Irvine Blvd., Box 19633Irvine, CA 92714

BEZ-OFF: An arcade game inwhich the player moves through-out his house and the yard killingspiders, ants, and flying insects.The player controls a boot tostomp ants, uses scissors to cutspider webs or the spiders them-selves, and uses a can of in-secticide to spray flying insectsin the yard. Each segment re-quires a different type of hand-eye coordination. Apple II, $32.95.

* * *Avant-Garde CreationsP.O. Box 30160Eugene, OR 97403

HI-RES COMPUTER GOLF:A detailed golf simulation inwhich the player(s) must not onlyuse good strategy (e.g. where tohit the ball) but must also developa good swing (guiding the strokepath with the keyboard). To playthe game well you must learn to"read" the greens, "play" thewind, and make difficult shotsout of traps and rough. A verychallenging game. Apple II,$29.95.

DataMost9748 Cozycroft Ave.Chatsworth, CA 91311

COMPUTER GIN RUMMY: Awell done version of Gin Rummyin which you play against thecomputer. The program alsoincludes two other rummy games;Knock and One-Meld. Apple II,$29.95.

PIG PEN: A maze - chase gamein which from 1 to 8 pigs (you pickthe number) attempt to slaughteryou with their tusks. Instead ofeating dots, your figure leavesdots behind, which help the pigsfind you. The more pigs youchoose to oppose, the higher yourpotential score. Apple II and IBMPC, $29.95.

Gamma SoftwareP.O. Box 25625Los Angeles, CA 90025SOCCER: A high-speed, videogame for the Atari 400/800. Theaction is similar to their Hockeygame with appropriate changesfor the game of soccer. There aretwo four-man teams per side. Oneplayer is controlled by the joy-stick, the other three are "smart"players acting on their own.Offensive "smart" players runpatterns attempting to position

themselves for passes and scoringopportunities. "Smart" defensiveplayers attempt to counter theoffensive moves. $29.95.

Broderbund Software1938 Fourth St.San Rafael, CA 94901SERPENTINE: A maze - chasegame in which you try to eat "evilserpents" while keeping yourown giant serpent, which youride, from being eaten. SERPEN-TINE is an interestingly differentkind of maze - chase game. AppleII, $34.95.

Rainbow Computing Inc.9719 Reseda Blvd.Northridge, CA 91324RAINBOW GRAPHICS: Agraphics package for the Apple IIusing a joystick with two push-buttons. The package has every-thing needed to create "quality"pictures in freehand, but alsoallows design of modular styledrawings.THE POOR MAN'S GRAPH-ICS TABLET: An assembly lan-guage graphics editor based onthe Applesoft Internal hi-ressubroutines. Shape table editingfeatures are included. Black andwhite pictures prepared


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Reston Publishing CompanyReston, VirginiaMISSING NAME

THE VISICALC BOOK (AppleEdition):THE VISICALC BOOK (AtariEdition : Two good lookingintroductions to VisiCalc. Alongwith predictable chapters onsubjects such as the Capabilities

Our last issue contained a letterunder the heading "More Strategyfor Eastern Front". The letterwas written by David Myers ofAustin, Texas.Sorry for the error David.

by the editor can be colored by acolor editor featuring an almostunlimited number of hi-res colors.Most commands require only asingle keystroke. Through theuse of a keyboard hi-res cursorthe monitor can be used as a sortof graphics tablet.

Avalon Hill Game Co.4517 Harford Rd.Baltimore, MD 21214VC:A simulation of political/military warfare between guerillaforces (commanded by thecomputer), and pacification forcescontrolled by the player. Theplayer controls ten ARVN units,a U.S. Airmobile Infantry Bat-talion, and a U.S. ArtilleryBattalion. The computer controlsNVA and Viet Cong units. Bothsides try to win the loyalty ofneutral civilian populationgroups. The game runs on TRS-80and Apple II computers.

of a VisiCalc System; Commands;Labels, Numbers, and Formulas;you will find less predictable butmore unique chapters on Recog-nizing, Preventing, and Correct-ing Errors; Creating Templates;and What Our Client, Secretary,or Supervisor Needs to Know:How Others Use our TemplatesSuccessfully. Hardback andPaperback.

Hayden Book Co.50 Essex St.Rochelle Park, NJ 07662ALIBI: A detective game inwhich the player trays to determinewho the murderer is, and wherethe murder was committed (thebody was moved you see). Youcan question suspects, compile anotebook, and cross reference"stories" to reach your conclusion.MATHEMATICAL RECREA-TIONS FOR THE PROGRAM-MABLE CALCULATOR: A322 page book containing acollection of recreational pro-blems for programmable hand-held calculators. The problemsare grouped in three chapters.Chapter One is devoted to tech-nique, developing methods usefulin solving problems and buildingprogramming skills. ChapterTwo explains numerical recre-ations and Chapter Three dealswith mathematical games. $14.95.

Piccadilly Software Inc.89 Summit Ave.Summit, NJ 07901FALCONS:An arcade gamesimilar to the coin-op gamePhoenix. Players must eliminatefive types of enemy forces. Directhits will destroy an enemy unit. A"wing" hit will only cause themto regenerate. The object is tobreak through to the Mother Shipand destroy the alien commander.Apple II.

Zeta Systems Inc.1725 Adelaide Blvd.Akron, OH 44305TRAILBLAZER: The authorizedcomputer version of Metagaming'sTrailblazer board game. A multi-player game of economic specu-lation in space.

United Microwave Industries, Inc.P.O. Box 7336Van Nuys, CA 91409RENAISSANCE: UMI's versionof the popular board game Othello(Gabriel Industries). Though thegame can be played with oneplayer against another, it isdesigned as a one player gameagainst the computer. There areeight skill levels and a number ofuseful utilities. For example, aplayer can change sides in themiddle of a game. He can takeback a move, or set up specialsituations. The current positionof the game, which runs on theVIC-20, can be saved on tape.AMOK: Similar to the popularcoin-op game Bezerk. Runs on theVIC-20 (cartridge).


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H OBBY &INDUSTRY NEWSInfocom will be releasing a newsci-fi adventure game by DaveLebling sometime in October or

November. The game will be calledSTARCROSS. ZORK III is sche-duled for a late September release.Game Designer's Workshop (P.O.Box 1646, Bloomington, IL 61701)

has announced the formation ofGameSoft, their new computergame division. The initial releaseswill include a computer version oftheir popular sci-fi role-playing sys-tem, TRAVELLER; computer ver-sions of existing GDW games; andnew games designed specifically forcomputers. First releases will run onthe Apple II with later versions forthe Atari and other computers.SSI's COSMIC BALANCE is

now out for the Apple II and theAtari version should be out by theend of September. Look for Atariversions of CYTRON MASTERSand GALACTIC GLADIATORSin October and November respec-tively. An Atari version of theirpopular COMPUTER BASEBALLmay be out by Christmas.BATTLE OF NORMANDY, anew division/regiment level game

by SSI will be out in September.BON, by the authors of TIGERSIN THE SNOW and BATTLE OFSHILOH, will have scrolling gra-phics in the Atari and Apple ver-sions. There will also be a TRS-80version out about the same time.

SSI is presently play-testing GaryGrigsby's new game MALTA whichis based on his outstanding GUA-DALCANAL CAMPAIGN sys-tem. The game may be released inNovember. Gary's third game willbe NORTH ATLANTIC MOD-ERN SEA COMBAT, a combinedland, sea, and air game based on afictional Russian overrun of theEuropean Continent and c a n d i n a v i a

Roger Keating (SOUTHERNCOMMAND) is working on a newseries of games for SSI entitledWhen Super Powers Collide. Thefirst title will be GERMANY 1985.Other games in the series will

appear at three month intervals.They are: RDF (Rapid DeploymentForce); NORWAY 1985; and BAL-TIC 1985. Joel Billings of SSI des-cribes the games as "similar toSouthern Command but better".

AVANT-GARDE CREATIONShas appointed Robert M. Tappan astheir Sales and Marketing Directorand Steven D. Hanson as theirNational Sales Manager.

Avant-Garde Creations (P.O. Box30160 Eugene, OR 97403) has an-nounced a number of new utilityprograms. HI-RES SECRETSGRAPHICS APPLICATIONSSYSTEM ($75.00) by Don Fudgecan be used alone or in connectionwith two other releases, HI-RESELECTRONIC DESIGN ($29.95)and HI-RES ARCHITECTURALDESIGN ($29.95). They have alsoreleased a program entitled SUPERQUALITY EPSON HI-RESDUMP ($25.00). All run on theApple.

Broderbund Software has a newgame designing utility program onthe market entitle THE ARCADEMACHINE. TAM guides the userstep by step though the process ofdesigning his own computer arcadegame (Apple, $59.95).

Hayden Software has added twonew games to their list of Apple IIgames: STAR TRADERS ($19.95)and KING CRIBBAGE ($24.95).Star Traders is a game of inter-galactic trade and King Cribbage isa computerized version of the oldEnglish card game.Alpine Software (2120 AcademyCircle, Suite E; Colorado Springs,CO 80909) has introduced LOV-

ERS OR STRANGERS, a gamethat is also a compatibility evalua-tor. The game/evaluator tells twopeople how "right" they are for eachother, and how likely they are tohave a successful relationship(Apple, $29.95). [Ed. Note - what doyou do if you play the game withyour spouse and the program tellsyou that you are not "right" for eachother?'

Edu-Ware has announced therelease of PRISONER 2, a new"state-of-the-art" version of theirearlier PRISONER game. Thegame features hi-res graphics, ani-mation, and sound effects (Apple,$32.95).

Sentient Software (1280 Ute Ave.,Aspen, CO 81611) has announced aSeptember release for the IBM PCversion of their CYBORG sci-fi textadventure.EPYX/AUTOMATED SIMU-LATIONS has moved to a newlocation, 1043 Kiel Court, Sunny-

vale, CA 94086.Computerware (Box 668, Man-chester Ave., Suite 102, Encinitas,CA 92024) has released EL DIA-BLERO for the Radio Shack ColorComputer and the TDP System 100.The adventure game is available oncassette ($19.95) or Disk ($29.95).

SILICON CEREBRUMON VACATIONSilicon Cerebrum, BruceWebster's popular column onartificial intelligence, is taking abrief vacation during this issue.

SC will be back on it's regularschedule with our November December issue.


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L BYRINTHINEteve Rasnic TernMark sat at his computer in a daze, half-asleep and

illshaven, having been in the offices most of the night.His stomach growled loudly as he reached into the bagby his chair for another donut. The thought that he wasbeginning to go to fat; that he hadn't been out of hischair for several hours, tickled his brain then slippedsilently away, leaving not a ripple of echo.He enjoyed his work: programming was the first jobhe'd actually been able to stick with. He supposed he

was most attracted by the raw power of the smallmachine; the complexity, the incredible number ofdifferent operations it could perform. As if the machinewere the most interesting human being to which hecould possibly talk. All at his fingertips Pressing thekeys allowed him to communicate with all that power.Actually, it sometimes seemed his computer was theonly thing with which he could really communicate.

He stared at the screen. Something strange seemed tobe happening...lines forming where they had no right tobe. He rubbed his eyes. This sort of thing oftenhappened, he knew, after a long stretch before themonitor. The eyesight started to go. He really should trythose eye exercises Ellen had recommended. He justhadn't yet been able to get around to it.

He'd been working on this particular section of theproject fourteen hours straight. He really should getacross town and visit his parents...really should. But hehadn't the time. Anyway, it wasn't safe out on thestreets. It seemed that everytime Mark went out, he was

struck by something different: the streets full of brokenpavements and potholes, the kids on the corners withtheir blaring radios and faces full of hatred, the barredstore-front windows, the bottles and rocks flying pastpeople's cars, and, a few weeks ago, being lostdowntown because he'd been thinking about his projectat work and, as if sleep-walking, had gotten off at thewrong stop...those two kids chasing him for blocks untilhe'd jumped onto another bus. They'd beaten on the busdoors and screamed with narrow, twisted mouths. He'dnever seen anything like it.

"You have to be on your toes, Mark," Ellen wasalways warning him. She had this way of looking outfor him. "The city will get to you if you aren't."He tried to follow her advice, tried to concentrate onhis surroundings when he was out there in the streets,but he was always lapsing into inattention. He had toomuch on his mind...he had the project on hismind...always.The lines on his monitor thickened. Mark rubbed hiseyes once again. They crossed, forming boxes, lanes.Impossible. Impossible..."Ellen, could you come over here a second?" Marklooked plaintively up from his computer monitor.Ellen walked over and glanced across his shoulder.She frowned. "How'd you get that?""I don't know. I was loading the text of the financial

report's introduction for editing and I got this garbage."


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A regular arrangement of horizontal and verticalgray bars of varying lengths broke up a yellowbackground. Ellen hummed softly in thought. "Well, it'snot exactly garbage, but it shouldn't be there. Looks likepart of a game." She chuckled and patted his arm."Mark, are you sure that you loaded the piece, and didn'ttype something else?"

"Positive...and there's no game on this disk.""Maybe you got the wrong disk out of the files. Let's

see if we can't get a catalog." Ellen reached over thekeyboard and tried punching keys, but the labyrinthstayed up on the screen. "I can't get it back to the menu,"she said.Mark gazed intently at the monitor. His eyes burned.He couldn't remember ever feeling quite so exhausted.But then, the small business financial package had kepthim working overtime for weeks, and he hadn't gottenmuch sleep because he'd wake up every few hours andfeel compelled to write down something. He had beenoutside the office or his home for all that time. He hadhardly been aware of the changing seasons until theday before when the first snow fell. Ellen was always

warning him he would ruin his health that way. Hewasn't even sure why he didn't listen to her. He tappedseveral keys with luck similar to Ellen's, then said,"What if we turn the machine off and reboot?"

Ellen flipped the switch at the back of the machine.The screen went dead. Then she flipped it back on. Thegray labyrinth blossomed into life, but more complicatedthis time, and a small dot seemed to be moving down oneof the corridors.Mark tapped the side of the monitor with his palm.The labyrinth jiggled; the small dot ran straight into a

wall and disappeared. The screen suddenly went abright red.ONE MOMENT PLEASE flashed across the

screen.Ellen stared at the screen, her lips pursed. "What thehell..."The menu appeared on the screen, with its normal listof choices. Ellen reached over excitedly and typed outthe command for a catalog."Only the normal utility programs..."Mark said,leaning closer into the screen. He thought about takinga walk; he hadn't just strolled for relaxation in sometime. He knew that he was out of touch with the city, and

the realization made him suddenly nervous. Whatwould happen if he went out now, so out of practice?Perhaps the city would eat him alive.

The labyrinth reappeared several times during thefollowing days, within many different programs, evenon different disks. The only constant seemed to beMark and his computer. It would not appear onanother computer, even with Mark as operator, and itwouldn't appear on Mark's computer unless he was atthe keyboard.

The firm brought in several specialists; the computerwas taken apart and rebuilt piece by piece, but no onewas able to find anything wrong with the machine. Thefinal consensus was "Freakish Interference."

Mark got his computer back, and continued workingon the financial analysis package he'd been hired to do.But he noticed that each time his concentration lagged,or he lapsed into the slightest daydream, the labyrinthwas back, more convoluted with each new appearance."You know, it looks like a city to me, Ellen," Markcommented one day."How so. . ." she replied distractedly."The labyrinth. It looks a lot like the aerial view ofsome city. And that's a person moving around downthere."Ellen turned to him with a tired expression. "It's justa bug in the system, Mark. A weird one, I admit. Butdon't make too much of it. I. . .well, you've beenputting a lot of time into that financial package. Don'ttake this the wrong way, but maybe you need to breakfor awhile." She reached over and stroked his hair. "Iget worried about you. You know I enjoy this work, andsometimes I can get pretty obsessed with my jobenough that it's a little scary sometimes. But you'retaking all this to a really unhealthy level."Mark nodded his head slowly, hearing Ellen'swords, though actually hardly aware of her presence.He'd wanted a vacation for some time now, but had

never bothered to ask. Now he wasn't even sure hecould let himself ask. He was too wrapped up in hiswork.Mark stared back at the screen. He pressed closer,trying to make out any detail on the dot movingthrough the maze. He blinked his eyes, which made itlook as if the dot had moving appendages.


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When he reached home that evening Mark pinnedthe print-out to the wall facing his bed. Once again heneglected to do his dishes, or clean house; the garbagewas stacking up in the kitchen, his clothes andmagazines and scattered papers were everywhere.There was a message from Ellen on his answeringmachine, asking him over for a home-cooked meal, buthe discovered he could hardly follow her voice, orunderstand the words, so intensely were his thoughtsfixed on the labyrinth. He stared at the print-out forhours, occasionally getting up to examine a smallsection more closely. He was almost able to make out alittle detail on some of the buildings.

But what puzzled him most was that within theimmensity of that great city, there was still the lone dotmoving aimlessly and lost. And now he was sure thedot had arms and legs.

During the next week the labyrinth althoughMark was thinking of it as "The City" now appearedseveral times in his financial reports, and once evenprinted itself out with the Cash Flow report. He tookone look at the artful arrangement of interlockingmazes on the roll of perforated paper and realized thatthe print-out had allowed the city to grow outside the limitedboundaries of his monitor. He folded up the printeddiagram carefully, surveying his surroundings withsome guilt. Then, when no one appeared to be looking,he slipped it into his briefcase to take home.

Mark was increasingly aware that the others in hisoffice were watching him now; observing him closely.Waiting to see what was going to come up on his screennext. And Ellen didn't seem to be speaking to him at allright now. He couldn't imagine what she was so angryabout.

He was now so painfully aware of the immensity andcomplexity of the labyrinth that he was afraid to printit out again horrified by the image of that strangecity spewing out of the printer in reams, filling up theoffice, wrapping around the towering office building,and eventually trawling the streets of that greater city,clogging the traffic lanes and enveloping pedestriansin its garland-like embrace.Apparently stymied by Mark's refusal to allow itoutside the computer, the labyrinthine city beganshowing its monstrousness in other ways. Soon it wasdisplaying a montage of close-up perspectives of itself,still shots taking tortured and distorted views of someof the thoroughfares and back alleys of the labyrinth.

Peering at the twists and turns on his monitor gaveMark blinding headaches, but he felt compelled towatch them; compulsively glued to his computer sothat he might not miss a single view.

He could see the moving dot, caught in stop-motion,and the detail a little more focused each time."Mark, I don't want to give you a hard time about it,but it really seems to me that your work is slipping."Ellen looked appropriately concerned, but Mark didn'thave the time to deal with her troubles anymore; he

was too busy examining the labyrinthine city. Theviews came rapidly now approximately one perminute and the moving figure seemed just a bitclearer each time.

"Everybody's noticed it, Mark," she said, with alittle more emphasis. Mark found he could only nod hishead slowly; he didn't have it in him to do more.Ellen stalked away in frustration. The figure seemedto be dancing now, dancing down the narrow laneswith thick walls to either side. "Dancing in the

streets. . ." Mark whispered dreamily.


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That evening, Mark was so absorbed in his study ofthe labyrinthine city that he didn't go home. He stayedat the office all night. The views flashed by with aspeed threatening to burn out the computer, as if thecity were driving the machine to its own purposes. Thediagrams, the mazes flashed by Mark's eyes until theyblurred together, forming one vast and infinitelycomplex city in his imagination, a city that he mightexplore forever, much as the small figure seemed to bedoing.

It occurred to Mark finally that the complexity of thecity must in some way mirror the complex, labyrinthinenature of his own mind. Certainly Mark had developeda unique, intimate relationship with his computer. Itwas, in a way, his best friend.As the figure moved frantically back and forth,down this street and up still another, seemingly

desperate to explore every inch of the maze, Markbecame convinced his theory was correct. He feltsuddenly desperate to see the entire city, and the smallfigure's present position in it.

He went to the printer and turned it on. With a loudbuzzing like some great bestial sigh of relief, thecomputer unloaded its contents into the printer.

The office appeared quiet and empty when Ellenarrived at work that next morning. Despite herself, shemade an audible noise in her throat when she enteredthe computer section. Reams of print-out covered theaisles and looped up on the desks across consoles. Shegathered some of it in her arms and examined it. Itlooked like Mark's labyrinth.

She pushed large piles of the paper out of her way asshe crossed to Mark's computer. The machine was stillon, but she couldn't find Mark anywhere.When she went back to his computer she saw that hislabyrinth was displayed once again on the screen.She slumped down into his chair, trying not to laugh,

but unable to help herself. It wasn't really funnythough, she thought; they'd surely fire him for this.She looked up at the monitor.There was a small dot moving through the maze. Sheleaned forward and examined it more closely.Now a second dot joined it, or rather, appeared to be

following it; chasing it through the labyrinth. Thesecond dot stopped, suddenly, right before her nose. Itseemed to be moving up and down, jumping on thescreen. She could barely make out just a hint of anappendage. It seemed to be beckoning...


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SO FT W A R E PIR A C YTHE SL YING OF HYDR


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M ISSION 5-COM PLETES T A R B L A Z E R R E V I E W

by Barry Gittleman

B AS I C I N FO R MATI O NNAME:tar BlazerTYPE:rcadeSYSTEM:8K Apple II IntegerFORMAT:isk PLAYERS:A U T H O R :ony SuzukiP R I C E :31.95P U BL I S H E R:roderbund Software1938 Fourth StreetSan Rafael. CA 94901(415) 456-6424

"There is evil on the loose, andmen and women of good will are onthe run. The galaxy is in the grip ofthe repressive Bungeling Empire,and the people have little hope.What hope they do have is based onthe old legends. These legends tell ofa time when there were nuclearfamilies, not nuclear wars; a timewhen you didn't need to registermicrocomputers with the govern-ment; a time when a brave warriorwent into hiding from the growingdark clouds of the Bungeling ex-pansion. The legends tell of one theycalled STAR BLAZER.

You remember now don't you, allthose years ago? You've hidden youridentity from your friends andfamily, just like you are hiding theunregistered micro which you areabout to put this disk into. This isour last chance, Star Blazer. If youfail us we will probably all end up inthe gumbelum mines.Your mission is not an easy one.

You've hidden away that vintageWW III jet of yours which you'llneed to clear away radar stations,avoid supersonic tanks, find anddestroy ICBM installations, andescape heat-seeking missiles andexplosive sky-mines as you makeyour final bomb run on the Bungel-ing Empire Headquarters." (quotedfrom material published with thegame)

STAR BLAZER is another excel-lent, two-dimensional, space gameby Tony Suzuki. You, as the StarBlazer, are the galaxy's last hope to

destroy the Bungeling Empire. Youhave been given five missions: 1)Bomb the Radar; 2) Attack theTank; 3) Bomb the ICBM; 4) Attackthe Tank; and 5) Bomb the Head-quarters. You are given three ships,each with a fuel capacity of 3,000gallons, and a bomb load of 30bombs. Supplies may be replenishedby catching your supply package,which is dropped off periodically bya supply ship. Additionally, youhave a pulse cannon to supplementyour bomb load.

The game can be played witheither the keyboard or a joystick,although it is much more difficultwith the keyboard. Pause and soundon/off options are available. Thereis only one fire button, therefore,whether you fire bombs or pulsecannons is determined by youraltitude. If you are flying low (belowthe height of the towers), you dropbombs by pressing the fire button. Ifyou are flying above this height, youfire pulse cannons, which drasticallydiminish your fuel supply.

There are several obstacles ineach mission which become increas-ingly difficult as you go. In your firstmission, there is little to avoid. Thismission can be used to practiceflying if you are new to the game.The only difficulty is dodging thetowers which protrude into the sky.These towers often surround radarinstallations, and you must find away to get bombs in between thetowers around the installationwithout crashing into them. Thetowers may not be shot with pulsecannons. You also must avoiddropping bombs on the trees in thismission. For some reason (perhapsTony Suzuki loves trees), trees donot explode when hit by bombs, andyou loose 20 points.

The second mission is very difficultfor beginners, but when the secret islearned, it can be completed in a fewseconds. You are to drop a bomb on asupersonic tank that is faster thanyou are, while avoiding kamikazeplanes. The planes are quite easy toavoid, for there is a limit as to howlow they may fly, and you can fly

below that. The tank, however, isquite difficult to sneak up on. Youmust fly past it above your lowestaltitude, and drop your bomb on theway down.

The third mission, in which youbomb the ICBM, is one of theeasiest, but you must watch yourfuel supply constantly. The majorobstacles here are the explosive skymines left by the planes. Most ofyour time in this mission will bespent shooting down mines andplanes with pulse cannons. If you donot, a large number of planes willaccumulate, leaving a great numberof mines to avoid. The answer issimpleshoot'em. But remember,firing pulse cannons is like pouringout fuel. It is wise to limit firingwhen fuel load is below 1500 gallons,and to stop firing when fuel load isunder 800. One difficulty which hasbeen the death of many in thismission is the duck. That's righttheduck. There is a small blue duckthat, from time to time, flies by andtries to steal your supplies. He can'tbe shot. You just have to get to yoursupplies before he does, which isdifficult when dodging planes. Inmission four, "Attack the Tank",you have your first encounter withheat-seeking missiles. This tank isjust as fast as the first one (use thesame trick on him), but he firesmissiles that follow you everywhere,until they run out of fuel. Themissiles are faster than you, butthey can't turn as quickly. Remem-ber that. There is little advice thatwill aid poor Star Blazers in thisone. Stay low to avoid the planes,shoot the missiles when they are infront of you, and pray.

Mission five is the ultimate. Largeblue planes cover the sky and leavesky mines across the screen. Small,ground missile stations fire heat-seeking missiles constantly. Towersmake bomb runs difficult, and theheadquarters area has increaseddefenses. It looks like a white air-traffic controller tower, almost

Continued on pg. 44


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One of the best features a strategyoriented computer game can have isthe ability to create your ownscenarios. GALACTIC GLADI-ATORS (GG) from SSI is but one ofseveral games that has a scenariobuilding feature. (See the INVASIONORION article for another).

GG is a game of space age combatbetween groups of individual war-riors. Fourteen different species canfight against each other in a varietyof terrain settings. The scenariosprovided with the game serve tointroduce the various races, weapons,and terrain types. After learning thegame mechanics, the gamer willwant to begin designing his ownscenarios.

We offer a scenario for GG basedon the movie STAR WARS (copy-right Lucasfilm Ltd., 1982). Re-member the opening scene of StarWars? The Imperial ship fired backto some object behind the audienceand we saw laser fire coming in fromabove the screen. We were over-whelmed when we saw the immenseimperial battleship pass over us andfill the screen. The rebel ship isdisabled and a boarding partybegins to burn through the hatch asthe rebel warriors prepare for theonslaught. As the outer hatch isblasted away, our scenario begins."SECURING A REBELSHIP"

The map in figure 1 provides thesetting for the scenario. One of theweaknesses of GG is the fact thatyou only have limited control as towhere units start. The large openarea to the left of the rebel ship isnecessary to prevent the computerrandomly placing imperial troopswithin the rebel ship at the start.When the player selects the "chooseinitial placement" option, the com-puter will randomly place your unitson your side of the board and youcan then move them. Unfortunately,

because of terrain features, theplacement may be problematic as inour scenario. Another limitation onthe set-up procedure is the fact thatyou can only set up units a limitednumber of squares towards thecenter of the battlefield. The rebelunits in this scenario can be nofurther forward than the doorwaynearest the bulkhead. The problemis more acute in scenarios in whichone team chases another team.There are several scenario possi-bilities from Star Wars which arelimited by this problem.

Team #1 should be made up of 4 or5 rebels. The rebels must defend thetarget hex in the upper right handcorner. The 4 or 5 imperial storm-troopers start on the left (outside therebel vessel). The troopers mustblast a hole into the ship (probablythrough the 1 square thick hatcharea). Then, troopers dressed intheir light armor, make their waydown the hallway, firing, loading,and blasting. The rebels lack thearmor but have the advantage offiring from behind the partial blockcorners as well as not having tomove.

The basic number of combatantson a team should be four. The fifthmember can be added to balance oneside or the other. The computeropponent in GG is not that great. Ifyou play against the computer youmay find it necessary to change theplay mode and command the com-puter's team for a turn or two to get itout of trouble (a nice feature). forexample, if the computer plays theimperial team in this scenario, thewarrior with the heat ray gun willchange weapons on the first turnrather than blasting the door.

Victory conditions are as per thegame's built-in scoring system. Theaverage number of turns to resolutionis twenty. You might want to playwith a "rush" variation. The imperialteam must get to the target squareby the 15th turn or face the wrath ofDarth Vader (you were too slow).When warriors have the same

speed rating, the computer willchoose the order of movementrandomly. This can be a problemwhen you are in tight quarters suchas a spaceship corridor. It is mostfrustrating to order four warriors tomove and watch the two behind tryto move first and waste their movebumping into the leaders. The bestyou can do is try to stagger thewarriors in such a way that eachhas a clear path of movement (Iknow; it's impossible).

The weaknesses already men-tioned aside, GALACTIC GLADI-ATORS is a noteworthy game.Using a game system which issimilar to ones that many boardgamers have played, GG brings tothe world of the Apple computer aplayable and fast moving combatgame system. The flexible nature ofGG (team types, weaponry, terrain)along with the scenario designingroutines should combine to keep GGinterseting long after other gamesare gathering dust on the shelf.Send in those scenarios, folks.


15/52

HER OIC FANTASY: An Interactive Role-Playing Gameor "How Revenge is Going to Be Sweet"

Although the name FLYINGBUFFALO (FB) may be new tomany computer garners, it willinstantly be recognized by mosttraditional board garners and role-players. FB, located in Arizona, hasbeen involved for a number of yearsin board, fantasy, and play-by-mail(PBM) games.COMPUTER MODERATEDPLAY-BY-MAIL GAMES

FB's PBM games are, for the mostpart, moderated by computers.STARWEB (SW), their most popularPBM is run on a Raytheon 704. Oneof their newest entries into the PBMgaming field, HEROIC FANTASY(HF), is run on a North Star Horizon.These PBM games allow peoplefrom all over the country, and theworld, to play against and with oneanother as they seek to conquer theuniverse or gain untold wealth and

experience in fantasy dungeons.SW, which presently is being playedby more than 1800 people in over 130games, utilizes as one of it's char-acter types "The Berzerker" (basedon Fred Saberhagen's popularBerzerker novels). In turn Saber-hagen has written a sci-fi novelbased upon SW. Entitled Octagon(Ace Books, 1981), the book dealswith a series of murders which aresomehow related to the playing of aSW game. Mysteriously, variouspeople in one particular SW gamebegin to be murdered. If you are agamer and/or sci-fi fan, you willfind Octagon entertaining reading.

A newer PBM game is HEROICFANTASY. Starting with theirpopular Tunnels and Trolls role-playing system, FB developed afantasy role-playing game thatcould be moderated by computer.The result, HF, is an interactivefantasy game in which severalplayers are thrust into the samedungeon, each initially unaware ofthe presence of others. Playing thegame involves each player sendingin orders for his party (which wasformed prior to the adventure thecharacters coming from traditionalfantasy races such as Elf, Dwarf,Human, Ogre, etc.). In the course ofthe adventure players will stumbleupon one another. Actions at thispoint tend to take one of twodirections: 1) talk first and hope theother side is friendly; 2) Attackwithout warning. This writer learned

by Graham Masters Jr.the hard way that option one can bea big mistake when the other playerchooses option two. More on thatlater.PLAYING THE GAMES OVERTHE SOURCE

FB has both HEROIC FANTASYand STARWEB set up so that usersof The Source telecommunicationsnetwork can play the game over thenetwork. This writer recently took aparty of six brave adventures into aHF game seeking fame and fortune.Playing two turns per week (otherHF games are set up for one turnevery week and one turn every twoweeks) I used The Source to enter myorders and to receive turn results.

Playing over The Source makes thegame a little more expensive but as acomputerist, I find the game moreinteresting when played in thismanner. Turn fees are normally$2.00. Using The Source adds 50cents per turn.SOME GAME MECHANICS

My party entered an on-goinggame on turn 29. My first few turnswere not very eventful. This gave mesome time to figure how the gamemechanics worked. The game systemallows each character (there weresix in my group) to enter one minorContinued on pg. 44

(LEVEL 1) CHARACTERS = 2 PARTY VALUE=38(YOU MAY ENTER A RESCUE PARTY: CHARACTERS=13 POINTS=62)BRIGHT ROOMDOORS: (NORTH 2), EAST 25, SOUTH 5,

HARACTERS WHO LEFT HERE:* (C44) BRONWYNN: FEMALE HUMAN FIGHTER, MOVES (3) NORTH.* (C105) ADMON FAYE: MALE OGRE FIGHTER. MOVES (3) NORTH.- (C190) BASEL: MALE HUMAN, ARRIVED FROM SOUTH, MOVES NORTH.#########################################################################WHITE ROOM (DEAD BODY)DOORS: NORTH 7, EAST 2, (SOUTH 2),MONSTER: BROWN BEAR. ASLEEP

P40: POTION P132: POTION* (C44) BRONWYNN: FEMALE HUMAN FIGHTER, ARRIVED FROM SOUTH.

STR=15 CON=30 EXP=240 PRIZES=1"OH NO, NOT OUR BELOVED LEADER DEATH TO THE METERS."PS: HEALING POTION (USE ME)=100- (C40) THERMO METER: MALE GOBLIN, TAKES POTION. USES POTION. ATTACKSROSHA (C50).- (C50) ROSHA: **DEAD** MALE OGRE FIGHTER, TAKES 40 HITS, TRIES TO USESTRENGTH POTION, ATTACKS (35) ODO METER (C86).

STR=35 EXP=120"IS THIS HOW YOU TREAT OVERTURES OF PEACE? DEATH TO THE METERS."- (C51) SERPHIMERA: **DEAD** FEMALE HUMAN MAGIC-USER. TAKES 34 HITS, TRIES TOSLEEP SPEEDO METER (C67).STR=10 EXP=45 (SPIED) "DEATH TO THE TREACHEROUS METERS "- (C67) SPEEDO METER: MALE OGRE, TAKES POTION, USES POTION, ATTACKSSERPHIMERA (C51).- (C74) MILI METER: FEMALE ELF MAGIC-USER, TAKES (0) SILVER RING. SPIES (0)SERPHIMERA (C51), ATTACKS (18) PEZI (C107).STR=20 CON=S (25) EXP=111 (SPIED) PRIZES=1SILVER RING=100- (C86) ODO METER: MALE OGRE, TAKES 34 HITS, TAKES POTION, USES POTION,ATTACKS ROSHA (C50).* (C105) ADMON FAYE: MALE OGRE FIGHTER, ARRIVED FROM SOUTH.STR=35 CON=40 EXP=295 PRIZES=1 "ARRGGHH DEATH TO THE METERS."P115: STRENGTH POTION (USE ME)=100- (C107) PEZI: **DEAD** MALE LEPRECHAUN MAGIC-USER. TAKES 17 HITS, SPIES (2)MILI METER (C74).

STR=3 EXP=45"THOUSANDS WILL HEAR OF YOUR TREACHERY DEATH TO THE METERS "- (C190) BASEL: MALE HUMAN, ARRIVED FROM SOUTH."WHEW THAT ROOM IS CROWDED "


16/52

by David MyersEvery computer gamer has a fav-orite game. And I'll bet that every

computer gamer also has, some-where in the back of his mind, an' ideal game. Maybe this game issome weird combination of the threepopular W's: Wizardry, Wolfenstein,and Warp Factor. Or perhaps (for usAtari fanatics) its an advancedversion of Eastern Front onewhere you look out the turrets ofyour panzers and actually see thosedetermined Ruskies coming at youover the hill.. .

Whenever I load in a brand newgame, I get visions of my idealgame. I get a rush, thinking thatmaybe this is the one, maybe thisone is going to be really good, reallyfun.But it doesn't happen.Or else it does happen for thefirst couple of playings and then

that elusive "fun" factor slowlyfades away.Many of you have shelves full of

computer games few of which arereplayed with any regularity. Andmany of you may, like me, feel thateven while you're playing yourfavorite computer game, somethingis missing. If you're like me, thenyour favorite game and your idealgame are still far apart.Why?I don't believe that it's because ofthe lack of appropriate hardware on

which to design games. My idealAtari is not my current 800, but thegame-player interface is improvingall the time and already it's user-

friendly enough for me. Nor do Ithink it's because of any lack of skillor intelligence on the part of the bestgame designers. Their creations areclever, make good use of machinecapabilities, and can be both funand informative.But there is a problem. And Ibelieve the problem lies in a lack ofvision, a lack of clear-cut directionon the part of the game designers.Sure, the computer game industry ismoving fast so fast that few can

keep up with it but I often wonderif it's going anywhere in particular,not to mention getting anywhere inparticular.Let me explain myself. Gamedesigners have always been in-fluenced by games, not by gamersand this confuses an effect for a

cause. The proof is in your localgame store. There's Pacman, Scarf-man, Ghost Hunter, Jawbreaker,and nauseam some better, someworse, all similar. The first computergame of renown, Pong, was aderivative of hockey/tennis. Nowwe have much better derivatives tennis balls that casts shadows onthe court, and hockey games withstickhandling and passing but westill have derivatives.

Even Eastern Front my favoritecomputer game is (I almost hateto admit it) a board game derivative.So what's the answer? The answeris more consumer research into the

psychology of gaming, and moreattention paid to the growing com-munity of garners by the gamedesigning industry. And here, by

the way, is where a magazine likeComputer Gaming World can betruly useful in providing a forumfor gaming interests, and helping toshape the future development of theindustry through the ideas andopinions of the people who mattermost you and me, pal: the gamers.

Fortunately, Atari seems to betaking this tack. Their marketingapproach is strongly oriented towardthe general public and can only helpto humanize the field. Much hasbeen made of computer gameswhich use all the capabilities oftheir host machines. Equally im-portant are games which make useof all their players' capabilities. Infact, in this instance, the aim ismuch more important than thearrow.

The ideal game will not overlyconcern itself with new and uniquehardware characteristics of homecomputers; rather it will concentrateon the old and unique humancharacteristics each gamer bringsto the game.Computer gaming is often asubstitute for playing games with

another person. And it's a greatsubstitute. You don't have to serveyour home computer milk andcookies and you don't have to listento it chatter, or make excuses, orgloat when it wins. But it's still asubstitute. The human connectionin gaming should remain primary.After spending a lot of time in a localcomputer store, it becomes obviousto me that the games most frequentlyplayed (and replayed) are thoseoffering the possibility of player


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INTERACTIONTYPE Interactionoutside of

game playinteractionwithingame play

quantitativeinteraction

qualitativeinteraction*

Pacman,Star Raiders,Eastern Front, etc.

Cartels & Cutthroats,Galaxy,Computer Acquire, etc. ATARI READERS

Wizardry

interaction and, specifically,multiple player interaction. Ulti-mately the computer and the gameare communication devices, so itseems reasonable to assure that theideal computer game will be thatgame which most effectively in-creases communication links anddecreases communication barrierswithin the very human context ofthe game-world.

For quick examples of how presentgame offerings measure up to thisideal:

1.Arcade games. In arcade games let Pacman be our example here the player interaction is minimaland usually revolves around com-paring each other's final score.2. Role-playing games. In role-playing games I must reference

Wizardry, despite its unavailabilityto Atari owners player interactionremains restricted due to the solitairenature of play. But, outside of gameplay, it is dramatic experienceswhich are interchanged amongplayers. The human connection ismuch stronger in this case, as eachplayer edits and revises the gameexperience until it exists as much inhis/her individual imagination ason the video screen.

3. Multiple player games. Increas-ingly, multiple player games aremaking their way into the market-place. A current favorite in Austin isSSI's Cartels & Cutthroats. (Galaxyby Avalon Hill is another, similarexample.) This type of game allowsplayer interaction during game play a significant achievement. Butthis interaction is presently only ofthe arcade variety: direct com-

???

petition between players and thepost-mortem comparison of quan-titative game achievements.

4. ???. My fourth example doesn'texist. Not quite not yet. It's goingto take a few more RS-232's, a littlemore commitment to networking,and a little more vision and dra-maturgy on the part of gamedesigners. But there are hints.There's Starmaster and Starweb.There's Decwars and SpaceWars onThe Source. And there's that vagueideal game that a lot of us arecarrying around in our heads.

The true value of any gameo Y ar's Revenge c o m e s f r o m s h r i n g t h e e x p e r i e n c ewith other, real-life players, exchangingstrategies and tactics, and gaininginsights into both games andgarners. Mathematics is an inter-national language, so is chess, soare computer games. The onlydifference is that computer gameshave the potential to be a muchdeeper language, with more intimateconnections to the human psycheand the power to tap into the innerhuman drama. One of the few placeswe can all come together withoutsocial barriers or prejudices orhandicaps is in the ideal in ourimagination, in our play.

And that's where I want to go.

In place of Atari Arcade, CGWfeatures an article by DavidMyers entitled Atari: The HumanConnection. We would encourageour Atari readers to begin adialog with David on Atari gam-ing. Here is a message fromDavid:Hey Atari gamers Where doyou want to go? Since computergames aren't presently providingus with a gamer group consci-ousness, we're going to have to doit on our own, the old, mechanical

way, through physical effort andpaper and pencil. Write me withyour opinions: things you likeabout the current Atari gamecrop and (just as importantly)things you don't like.

Here's a topic to get you started:EASTERN FRONT has somegreat features: the graphics andthe AI being two outstandingones. But it also has some clunk-ers. Chris Crawford has alreadymentioned his regret at includingthe loud buzzing raspberry thatoccurs whenever an EF playeraccidently inputs a diagonalmove a very easy thing to dousing the Atari joystick. But thiscan be alleviated by turningdown the volume. More annoyingto me is the game s completeshutdown after the final move.Suddenly, after two hours ofintense combat, I can no longerfind out the names of my unitsMy men disappear and I'm leftwith anonymous white rectanglesscattered over the Russiancountryside hardly conduciveto a post-game victory celebration.

What s the worst element ofyour favorite game?I'll be looking forward to hearingfrom you.

David Myers5106 N. Lamar #123Austin, TX 78756The more response we get fromAtari writers/readers, the moreAtari coverage we will be able toput in CGW.

*A gamer can derive a quality and "qualitative" experience from anygame. It is human nature to try and do so with all games. The point here isthat some games actively promote this sort of experience through design;others achieve it only through the imagination of their players.


18/52

G uadalcanal C am paign: Review & N otesB A S I C I N F O R M A T I O N

N A M E :uadalcanal CampaignT Y P E :argameSYSTEM:pple II 48K App lesoftF OR MAT:isk PLAYERSor 2A U T H O R :ary GrigsbyP R I C E :59.95P U BL I S H E R:trategic S im ulations465 F airchild Dr.,Suite 108M ountainview. C A94043

GENERAL DESCRIPTIONSSI's recent release, GUADAL-CANAL CAMPAIGN, has begunthe move from arcade-style gamingto the "monster games" of the hard-core wargamers. While limited toone strategic area and one map, itattempts to present the centralaspects of the Solomons Campaignof WW II in an interface of land, sea,and air combat. Ships are listedindividually (down to destroyers,seaplane tenders, and destroyer

transports). The game is offeredwith three short scenarios (CoralSea, Eastern Solomons, and SantaCruz) of four to 10 turns in lengtheach. In addition, two campaigngames are offered: a shortened cam-paign game (Oct. 1 through Dec. 31,1942); and the entire campaign(Aug. 7 through Dec. 31). One or two-player games (as is common withSSI titles) are possible. Difficultylevels are numbered one to four,with four being the easiest and onebeing the hardest. Increased diffi-culty levels enable Japanese attacksto have greater chances of success.There was a misprint in the earlycopies of the rulebook. Difficultylevel three should be regarded as thehistorical level of difficulty for theJapanese, instead of (as printed) dif-ficulty level four.

Guadalcanal Campaign may becalled "user-friendly", in that in-formation access and checks for theplayer exist on potentially falsemoves or errors. The sequence ofplay is as follows: American taskforce adjustments; American move-ment; Japanese task force adjust-ments; Japanese movement; Japa-nese air operations; American airoperations; combat resolution; rein-

by Richard Charles Karrforcements, replacements, and re-pair/refits; and the save gamephase.

Task force adjustments allowformation, combination, anddivision of task forces, as well asloading of cargo, training of carrierpilots, checking for reinforcements,an air group display, a map display,a list of sunk ships (and their victorypoint totals), and a Guadalcanaltroop status check. Movement onthe map or screen is based on adivision of a task force's speed by 21/2 knots for every movement pointwith a minimum movement of 3.Movement north, south, east or westcosts two per square, and movementnortheast, northwest, southeast,and southwest costs three per square.Air operations allow for combatair patrol (directly over the launchingtask force or base), distant combatair patrol (a sliding percentage ofavailable CAP depending on dis-tance), search for enemy ships,search for enemy submarines, thelaunching of air attacks, the pre-paration of a counterstrike forcarriers, or aircraft transfers. Navalvessels of cruiser size or larger havea built-in search capability (one ortwo float planes each).

Combat resolution takes 20 sec-onds (when nothing is happening)to 3-4 minutes (when everything ishappening). In general Japanesegunnery is superior (using thehistorical options) to Americangunnery, Japanese torpedo fire isoften devastating (while Americantorpedo fire is abysmal), torpedoplanes are fairly inept on both sides,and dive bombers are reasonablyeffective on both sides, althoughrather little damage is done in-dividually. A word on increasing theJapanese difficulty levels though:At level four (below the historicallevel) the Japanese are as inept asthe Americans with most every-thing, missing torpedo shots,attacking destroyers instead ofaircraft carriers in a task force, anddoing the usual American booberywith naval and air combat. At levelthree the Japanese are significantlysuperior in naval combat, with asurface group (in the daytime) of onecombat BB, four or five CA's, two orthree CL's, and six to nine DD'sbeing the full equal of any Americansurface group that is realistically

available. At level two the Japanesepull off naval blitzkriegs at thewrong moments: transport groupsin air range of Rabaul usually haveone ship sunk and/or two to threeheavily damaged by Bettys. At levelone an American player feels verymuch the helpless victim, as theJapanese player (or computer)attacks with supernatural effec-tiveness. Bettys from Rabaul WILLblitz anything within range, andthis includes strong carrier groupswith lots of CAP.

Reinforcements, replacements,and repair/refit is an automaticbookkeeping phase that takes about20-30 seconds for the computer tocalculate. The save game optionsimply allows players the chance tolive useful lives during a campaign(i.e., the player and computer are nottied up for 294 campaign turns).You've got to go to work sometime.

The physical graphics are typicalSSI: slick hard box; 16-page rulesbooklet; two maps; and disk. Therules booklet is well organized andshould present no problem for eitherwargamers or computer game players.THE GAME AS GAME

After the rules are mastered, playis rapid and fairly closely linked tothe historical campaign. To under-stand and master the system of therules, several short scenarios shouldbe attempted. A number of problemsthat this writer encountered duringthe early stages of learning thegame system included the forma-tion (while in port) of the appropriatetypes of task forces (loading of cargoshould take place before transporttask forces are formed); separationof cripples from task forces so thatthe main body of a task force is notdrastically slowed; retention of

PLEASETAKE TIME

TO FILL OUTREADER INPUT

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enough dive-bombers for properanti-sub work when things get slowdown in the slot; the completereorganization of the fleet so that allof the BB's, CA's, and CL's aretogether for the bi-monthly trashingof the Japanese (or if you prefer,American) fleet; and keeping CV'smixed with all of the availableCLAA's and enough DD's to do thejob.

After the above difficulties aremastered (about 3-8 hours of normalplay), play moves at the rate ofabout 7-12 minutes for the one-player games and 10-25 minutes forthe two-player games. In all casesthe shorter scenarios should beattempted first, to avoid the frustra-tion of living with your mistakesand the boredom of waiting for thecarriers to come out and play withthe Japanese surface fleet.THE GAME AS HISTORY

A comparison between GUADA-LACANAL CAMPAIGN and boardwargames covering this same theaterand period reveal that SSI is makinga serious attempt to come near"state of the art" levels of designand historicity in this simulation.The general pulse of the campaign isfelt: marginal American air super-iority in the day and a powerfulJapanese naval superiority at night.On general reflection, the shipsinvolved are historical (this writer isfuzzy on some of the British/Austra-lian destroyers), although aircrafttypes are limited in all scenariosexcept for Coral Sea to U.S. SBD3'sand 4's (Dauntless), TBD's (Devas-tator), TBF2's (Avenger), F4F's(Wildcat), and B-17D's (FlyingFortress); and Japanese MitsubishiA6M3 (Zeke), Mitsubishi G4M1(Betty), Aichi D3A1 (Val), andNakajima B5N (Kate). PBY's (Cata-lina), B25's (Mitchell), P40's, andJapanese naval floatplanes (Jake)are not included in the game (al-though they were peripheral to themain action of the campaign, withthe exception of the P40). Thesimplification of the search results(number of planes being used forsearch and range being determin-ants) is adequate for imprecisereporting of enemy task forces. Asolution to the problem of Japanesetactical surface naval superiority(especially at night) is evident in theaccuracy and damage of Japanesegunnery and torpedoes in the game.

Two problems emerge as unsolvedin the design by Gary Grisby: navalpilots becoming purely land-basedpilots when transferred from a

carrier to a land base (naval pilotsmust be retrained to land on CV'safter having been transferred to aland base for even a short time); andthe inability of task forces to moveother than a stated speed (10 forcruising/patrol speed and 12 for fastspeed (for example), so as to conservefuel. Obviously, programming pro-blems would be difficult at best if thegame system had to keep track ofwhich individual aircraft werenaval and which were land-based(partially trained), in addition to theinformation that must be currentlyaccessed. The problem of changingspeeds of task forces and fuelconsumption includes the problemof vessel bunkers (ship fuel) capa-city, and the time it takes for ships ofvarying displacements to bunker.Gary Grisby leaves the above twoproblems well enough alone and hasconcentrated his efforts on theprimary aspects of the SolomonsCampaign.

In general, Guadalcanal Cam-paign emerges as an honest attempt(with decent research) to have ahistorical simulation that is also funto play.

NOTES ON PLAYThe following notes on play arepart of the experience of the writerafter 80+ hours of gaming time withthis program, in the one player longcampaign game (twice). They shouldnot be considered definitive: ratherthey offer suggestions of what couldbe considered possible.In the one-player long campaigngame, the first task facing theAmerican player (the computer canonly play the Japanese side) is tore-group the task forces around

Guadalcanal into decent combatgroups. As there is a limit of seventotal task forces possible within thegame, the division re-combination,and organization of task forces isoccasionally tricky. Don't evenbother with a "B" (bombardment)mission task force, merge it into a"C" (combat) task force, and dividethe new task force into a CV/CLAA/DD group and a BB/CA/CL/DDgroup. The only time that CA's andCL's are useful in a "T" (transport)mission task force is when the

Continued on pg. 19


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Bettys from Rabaul are looking forsomething to hit. Keep the CV groupjust outside of Betty bombing range(one square SE of Malaita is good),and keep all of the CV fighters ondistant CAP (to wear down theBetty attack abilities). After theAugust 7 night turn (game turn 2),stick around Henderson with trans-ports only during the day turns only(night time is no time to be in thisneighborhood). Yes, this slowsdown the discharge of cargoes fromthe transports considerably, andallows the possible loss of those slowtransports to Bettys (this is what theCV's are for), but I assure you frompainful experience that "the Slot"(Henderson) is no place to stickaround after the sun goes down.After the transports slowly andpainfully discharge their cargoes,get them back to Espiritu Santo(Brisbane will turn them aroundfaster, but the net savings in timewill be one game turn, and the netcost will be the perpetual use of oneof the task force units that you'llneed elsewhere). When possible,damaged or crippled ships should goto Brisbane for repairs (with thepossible exception of the slowtransports or destroyers, as the timesaved will be minimal when com-pared with the use of the task forceunit). Repairs in Brisbane are mademore quickly.

Carriers start with an enduranceof 60 turns; 2 turns per day an en-durance of less than 50 when the CVdocks means that the carrier(s) inquestion will remain out of the gamefor a while. It is quite possible totake a fresh group out of Brisbane toEspiritu Santo by moving along theshortest and straightest route,where they will immediately refitand be ready the next turn. It is inthe nature of this game system tohave cyclical periods of activity:during one common cycle the Japa-nese will be in the Slot dropping offtroops and supplies, and on theother alternate nights they willhave an average of one BB, twoCA's, and five DD's pounding onHenderson. After the first week ofthe long campaign game this is asroutine as it is inevitable. You (asthe American player) can't stopthem, all you can do is sink themnow and again. Do not allow yourselfto be tempted into a position ofnickel-diming the U.S. fleet; therejust isn't enough of it to spare. U.S.CA's will be lost if you're not careful,and even if you are careful, they stillwill be lost. If the cyclical periodarises when two or more U.S.

carriers are active, you should havethe surface element (all availableBB's, CA's, CL's, and DD's) alongfor the ride from the turn they leaveEspiritu Santo. The carriers shouldwait off of Henderson (again, onesquare SE of Malaita is great) withtheir fighters on distant CAP,pounding on Bettys until they arereduced to fewer than ten returningback to Rabaul, and then the U.S.should seek battle. Surface actionsshould be fought in the Shortlands(two squares S of Choiseul is the bestplace) in the day. With the presenceof one or more BBs, six or moreCA's, one or two CL's, and all of theDD's you can spare, it should beuneven (and vindictively fun). Hope-fully during these periods of U.S.naval activity, the "Tokyo Express"of night raids on Henderson cancease for two nights, long enough tohopefully resupply your starvingmarines. Four days of cheerfullyromping from New Georgia toRabaul with a powerful U.S. carriergroup supported by a powerfulsurface group pounding on crippleswill absolutely make your game

Continued on pg. 46

Carriers should be sent to Brisbanewhen they start running thin onendurance points whenever possible(you'll get them back a week faster).As the carriers are heading back toBrisbane (frequently with less thanfour endurance points left), aircraftshould be transferred to Hendersonor Espiritu Santo or other carriersfrom damaged CV's. The damagedCV's will take a long time to repair(even in Brisbane), and the aircraftstill on them when they dock will beout of the game until the CV inquestion is fully repaired. It oftenhappens after September that arefitted or repaired carrier in Bris-bane will have no aircraft (or fewaircraft) left on it. In that case, havethe unused carrier train Brisbanepilots to be naval aviators, so thatthe otherwise unusable Brisbaneaircraft can get into the game.Another option when there aren'tmany Brisbane aircraft around (oryou're feeling frisky) is to havebanged-up or worn out carrierscoming into Brisbane transfer theiraircraft to the empty unused carrierin that port, moving that CV one ortwo turns out to sea to intercept theirtransfer.


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GALACTIC GLADIATORSIndividual C om bat in the 28th C entury

David LongBA S I C INF ORM A T I ON

N A M E :alactic GladiatorsT Y P E :trategyS Y S T E M :pple and AtariF ORM A T :is k P L A Y E R S :or 2A U T H O R :oni Ream yPRICE:39.95Publisher:trategic S im ulations465 F airchild Dr.,Suite 108M ountain View, C A94043GALACTIC GLADIATORS (GG)is SSI's new game of alien combat in

the 28th Century. You and youropponent, human or computer,choose teams from the races ofmany far flung stars to then battle usually to the death with thedeadly weaponry of the distantfuture. Each player chooses hismoves, then the computer carriesout all orders. Phasors fire greenand red bolts, of energy, Gemstonesflash across the screen and explode,Gladiators move, all in excellent hi-res graphics.THE GLADIATORS

The seven "regular species" aredivided into the Lightweights,Middleweights, and Heavyweights.The Lightweights, the Koraci andthe Cygnians, are fast and agile,(speed determines who moves first;agility who attacks first), but not toostrong, and are relatively quick to"gas out" (when strength reaches 0the gladiator is dead; when en-durance reaches 0, the gladiatormust rest).

At the other end of the spectrumare the Heavyweights, the Trog-lodytes, Dulbians, and the Zorcons.These three species are slower andless agile, but they make up for this"clumsiness" with greater strengthand endurance.

We Humans, with our genetic off-shoots, the Wodianties comprise thethird group, the Middleweights. Asmight be expected, speed, agility,strength and endurance are all inthe mid-range for these two species.Each species has been designed tocompete equally with the others,and there are an infinite variety ofteams which you can create, with

from one to ten Gladiators of anyspecies per team.

When you begin to get the hang ofthe game and learn which speciesare better at which types of fighting,you can begin to incorporate theeight "special species" into yourbattles.

These include the Gorsai, a race ofsuper warriors originally bred fromhuman stock; Robots; Banshees;Mutants (unarmed, but with aradioactive "death touch"); SlimeDevils; Night Stalkers, and Or-anguphins. The last of the specialspecies are the Monsters, which youcreate in any form and with which-ever characteristics you desire.

The rules tell you that Bansheescan only travel in pairs, Monsterstravel alone, and that neither ofthese two species (the toughest twospecies in the galaxy) can join otherteams. Don't believe it Bansheescan travel singly. And both speciescan be combined with other species.By using the 'merge' option whenviewing an existing team you cancombine both Banshees and Mon-sters with any other team. When youdevelop strong and experiencedteams and need 'quality' opponents,try "cloning" your toughest team(change the names) and mergingthem with a couple of Banshees anda Monster or two . . . Good Luck andGood ShootingTHE WEAPONSEach combatant can choose froman assortment of twelve differentweapons and two types of armor, aslong as he or she has the strength tocarry that particular item. Weaponsfall into three basic categories,Hand-to-Hand combat weapons(such as Laser Swords, Stun Wands,and Disrupters), Ranged weapons,(Hand Phasors and Phasor Rifles),and Guided weapons (Gapers andGemstones). Both Ranged weaponsand Guided weapons may attackfrom a distance, with effectivenessdependent on the skill level of bothattacker and defender as well as therange. Both Gapers and Gemstonesare one time shots - once used theyare gone - and all Phasor weaponsmust be reloaded after firing. AllHand-to-Hand combat weapons

may be used repeatedly withoutreloading, but are effective onlywhen adjacent to the defender.

In the early stages of your training,you will find that your marksman-ship is generally pretty lousy. AllPhasor weapons have an unlimitedrange, but, if, as a beginninggladiator you can consistently hityour target from a range of morethan four or five, then "you're abetter man than I am, Gunga Dinh." -Don't worry though, because asyour experience and weapon skillsincrease, you marksmanship willimprove. My "Dead-eye" Drak,Experience 345/Phasor Skill 20.rarely misses.THE BATTLEGROUNDS

Unlike many wargames wherethere is a single unchanging battle-field, GG contains many battlefields.But when these become "old hat"you can opt for a random selection ofterrain on either a small, medium orlarge battlefield. You can furtherspecify whether you want it Open,Semi-Open, Normal, Semi-Crowded,or Crowded. Now that is varietyAnd if that's still not enough, youcan create your own arena, placingterrain features on any size battle-field, indoor or outdoor, and thenyou can save your creations on discfor future use. The result is that youneed never use the same battlefieldtwice

THE SCENARIOSEleven different scenarios arepresented for your combative enjoy-ment, starting with the introductory"Brawl At Cosmic Mike's Place,"

which will have you playing thegame within five minutes afteropening the box. There is also the"Create a Game" option, whichallows you to do just about anythingyou want. Games consist of combatbetween two teams of from one toten gladiators each, and may beeither a fight to the death, or for con-trol of a particular square, which-ever you choose.

For those with a grain or two ofimagination you can string togetherContinued on pg. 45


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Announcing The Second AnnualComputer Gaming World

Robotwar Tournament

Yes, its the event you've beenwaiting for COMPUTER GAMINGWORLD proudly announces theSECOND ANNUAL ROBOTWARTOURNAMENT. Enter your ro-bot(s) against other robots fromaround the nation.

Our first Robotwar tournament,announced in our charter issue(Nov.-Dec. 1981) invited readers topit their best robot against sub-missions from across the U.S. Thetournament was won by NORDEN+,designed by Richard Fowell.NORDEN+'s source code was givenin our March April 1982 issue(2.2).

There will be a trophy andROBOTWAR T-shirt for the winner.Other finalists will also receive aROBOTWAR T-shirt.

Use the following guidelines inmaking submissions to the tourna-ment:

1) Send your robot program(source and object codes) on adiskette to COMPUTER GAMINGWORLD, 1919 E. Sycamore #203,Anaheim, CA, 92805. Mark yourpackage "Attention

2) Include a brief description ofthe robot. What is it designed to do?3) More than one entry per de-signer will be accepted, however wecan only guarantee one opening perdesigner. If you submit more thanone robot, designate a primarycontestant. Your other robots will beentered as space allows. If secon-dary entries are determined by thestaff of CGW to be merely a variantof the primary entry, the secondaryentry will not be allowed.4 ) Include your name, addressand phone number with your sub-mission(s). If you wish your diskettereturned also include return postage.5) CGW reserves the right to print

the source code of the winning robot.

6) CGW reserves the right toreproduce entries in disk form (withcredits) for possible sale through themagazine. This right will be waivedfor a submission if so requested bythe designer in writing.6) Include T-shirt size (S,M,L,XL)in case you are a winner.6) Entries must be received byDecember 10, 1982.7) Winners will be announced inour March April 1983 issue. Around robin style tournament will

be used to determine the winner.Each entry will fight in at least 20battles. A effort will be made toseparate multiple entires by a singledesigner in competition. NORDEN+is eligible to be entered again.

ERROR CORRECTION: The listingof NORDEN+ in CGW 2.2 has aminor error. The first two statementsof the actual program (1 TOSPEEDY; 256 TO U TO V) shouldeach be indented one space.


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B AS I C I N FO R MATI O NN A M E :he Road T o GettysburgT Y P EtrategyS Y S T E M :pple II or Apple II+F O R M A T :iskette (DOS 3.31 P L A Y E R S : o r 2AUT HO R :aul M urrayPRICE:59.95PU BL I SH E R : S t ra tegic S im ul at ions I nc.465 F airchild Dr.,Suite 108M ount ain View, CA 94 0 4 3T H E R O A D T O G ET T Y SBU R Gby Bob Proctor


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GET ON THE B NDW GONComputer Games by Cable

In this age of electronic entertainment, twoentertainment forms are becoming increasinglypopularcable television and computer games.The cable television field is best known for itsmovie, sports, and news channels. The computergaming field is best known for handheld, coin-op,home video, and personal computer games. Theinevitable marriage of these two entities is now areality. The GAMES NETWORK TM , based inLos Angeles, is putting together what looks to be awinner a cable computer gaming network.Cable systems will soon have available a naturalcompanion to all those movies, sport and newsprograms; and the computer gaming field willsoon be finding a new media in which to grow.BACKGROUND

THE GAMES NETWORK (TGN) is the brain-child of Larry Dunlap and Thom Keith. Dunlap

combines a strong background in the enter-tainment industry with a longstanding interest inthe gaming hobby. As founder of the nation's firstcable television station, CATV in Laguna Hills,California, Keith has been called the "Father ofCable Television Programming". Dunlap andKeith have formed International CablecastingCompanies, Inc. and are working not only on theimplementation of THE GAMES NETWORK, butare also working towards the creation of THEFANTASY CHANNEL and THE I.Q. CHANNEL.

The GAMES NETWORK, however, is not thefirst cable gaming network to come into being. In1980 a computer gaming network called PLAY-CABLE T M was introduced. The system uses theMattel Intellivision game system. Jim Summers,Director of Program Acquisitions at TGN, does notfeel that PLAYCABLE is a serious competitor for


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TGNs audience. Summers says that TGN hasdefinite advantages over the PLAYCABLEsystem. The initial outlay by the end user ofPLAYCABLE is more than $200 (the price of anIntellivision set) whereas the initial outlay forTGN will be a $50 installation fee. The hardwareinstalled by TGN will be a 6502 processor unitsupporting 64K of memory. Obviously, the TGNhardware can handle more sophisticated pro-grams than the Intellivision. PLAYCABLEallows you to download any of the Intellivisiongames (which number a little over 30) for play onyour television. TGN will draw from the widerfield of personal computer games and coin-opgames to provide the local user with 20 games eachmonth. Each month five new games will beavailable as five others rotate off the list. Over theperiod of a year the subscriber will be able to play80 different computer games. A preliminaryadvertisement for TGN shows people playing,among other games, SWASHBUCKLER by Data-most and CONGO by Sentient Software. Softwarehouses that have, to date, granted licensingagreements for their games to TGN are:Avant-Garde, Adventure International, Broderbund,Cavalier, CPU Inc., Datamost, Edu-Tek, Hayden,Micro-Lab, Microsoft, Sierra On-Line, PhoenixSoftware, Piccadilly, Sentient, and Innovative.

The most exciting aspect of this entire system isthat THE GAMES NETWORK is two-wayinteractive. TGN has the capability to allow two ormore computer gamers in different locations toplay against one another via the network. This,however, is tempered by the fact that many cablestations do not yet support two-way interactivechannels. In this sense, TGN is ahead of thetechnology which presently exists in most cablesystems. It is hoped that interest in TGN will helpcause local cable systems to make the inevitableswitch to a two-way interactive system at a muchearlier date than might otherwise be so.WANTED: GAMES

THE GAMES NETWORK is currently in theplaytest stage in homes of a Southern Californiacommunity. The playtest is being conducted byTGN in association with GROUP W CABLE.TGN is shooting for an early 1983 date for going"on-line" to cable subscribers. In the mean timeTGN is accepting game submissions. With thecurrent cable market at 25 million subscribers,TGN could conceivably pay as much as $80,000 inroyalties per month per game that they offer. Thisis based on TGN reaching 10% of the cable market-place and the game in question being a monthlyselection by all the local cable systems whichmake up that 10%. While it is not likely that anygame will actually draw that kind of income, and

getting 10% of the cable markets to sign up forTGN is not a certainty, it can be seen that thepotential income through licensing the cablerights to your computer game are large; muchlarger than what game designers are making now.

If you have a game on the market, you may wantto ask your software house to look into licensingthe game to TGN. "Don't give the cable rights toyour game away . . . There is a lot of money to bemade in the cable gaming industry by licensingthose rights" says Summers. TGN is acceptinggame submissions. Although you may find iteasier to deal through a software house, TGNencourages submissions from ALL 6502 gamedesigners.

Summers emphasizes "playability" as the mostimportant element in games that will be selectedfor TGN. Although TGN is two-way interactive,many cable systems are not. Thus games thatrequire only one "down load" with little or no diskaccess during play will have a better chance ofbeing licensed by TGN than games that utilize alot of disk access. As cable companies becomemore uniformly two-way interactive, TGN will be-come more interested in two-way interactivegames and games that require a larger degree ofdisk access. Game submissions should be made toJim Summers, The Games Network, Box 36E19,Los Angeles, CA 90036; 213-932-1950.


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ROUTE 80 - THE ROAD TO ADVENTUREby Dick McGrath

In the beginning there was ParkerBrothers. And they created "Mono-poly". And everyone played and sawthat it was good. And they said,"Never will there be a game betterthan Monopoly". And then cameAvalon Hill and they created "Tac-tics II". And everyone played andsaw that it was even better thanMonopoly. And they said, "Neverwill there be a game better than Tac-tics II". And then came "Blitzkrieg:And everyone played and theysaid. . . well, you know what theysaid.

And so it went. From the begin-ning of time, man has simulated hisenvironment, practiced his skills,trained his young, and entertainedhimself through the challenge ofgames. Throughout history, everygeneration has created more realis-tic, more sophisticated, and morecomplex games to satisfy the com-petitive spirit. . .each generation ofgame designers building on theexperiences of the past. The earliestgames were probably simple reenact-ments of the chase, the hunt, com-bat, and other facets of daily life.Gradually, they were refined intomicrocosms of reality, utilizingtwigs, stones and bones, with play-ing areas outlined in the dirt. By thetime the Parker Brothers finally didmake their appearance, we hadaccumulated thousands of years ofgaming experience, playing suchancient and sophisticated pastimesas chess, checkers and backgammon.

Today, we are just getting our firstclear look over the brink of a newhorizon. . .with a view of gamingsophistication that was not evenimagined just ten years ago. Real-life simulations, fantasy, role play-ing, electronic arcades, and aboveall, the world of computer gaming.

As gaming enthusiasts, we are theWalter Mittys of the world. We liveout our fantasies over the gameboard and the video display. Theyprovide our means of escape toanother dimension. . .a world of il-lusion in which we can satisfy ourthirst for challenge and excitement

I want to join you on this road toadventure, through the columns ofthis new COMPUTER GAMINGWORLD department, devoted ex-

clusively to that most endangered ofspeciesthe TRS-80 computer garner.

For those of you who are still withme, that rustling you just heard wasthe Apple and Atari owners turningthe page. If you are still reading, I'mgoing to assume that you're a TRS-80 owner and, therefore, you havesome of the same interests that Ihave. Mainly, what games areavailable for my machine, wherecan I get them, how do I play themand who has a solution for my mostrecent problem, whatever it may be.

I don't know about you, but myego needs a boost. I'm tired ofsneaking into Apple dealer show-rooms, gazing down the rows ofApple software and whispering tothe salesman, "Do you carry any-thing for TRS-80"? A primary goalof this column will be to provide arallying point and informationexchange for TRS-80 owners. But Ineed your help I don't even knowhow many of you are out there. Sohow about letting me know Justdrop me a note at 2008 Calle Miranda,Fullerton, CA 92633, or call (714)525-4969. Tell me what computergames you play: Fantasy? . . .Arcade? . . . Real life simulations?. . . D & D type adventures?.. .What model TRS-80 do you have?How much memory? Disk or cas-sette? What are your computer read-ing interests? . . . Game reviews? . . .Playing aids? . . . Technical articleson software? . . . on hardware? . . . ofnew products? . . . Feature articles?. . . Interviews with game authors?. . . Strategy and playing hints?. . . Previews Exchange of practicalideas with other TRS-80 garners?Whatever you want, we'll try toprovide it.

In the meantime, here are someshort items to get the columnrolling.MODEL I INTERF CEDISCONTINUED

The latest word from Radio Shackheadquarters in Fort Worth is thatproduction for the Model I Interfacehas been discontinued. Those of youwho are using a 16K Model I with acassette drive and still intend toupgrade sometime in the future, thefuture is here There are still someinterfaces in stock, but if you plan toadd disk drives or memory to your

economy grade model, you'd betterdo it now, while the interfaces arestill availableP R O G R A M S BYSUBSCRIPTION

If you live in an area where compu-ter software retailers are a rarity,you might consider obtaining yoursoftware by mail on a regular basisfrom one of several subscriptionservices. It's like looking forward toa surprise Christmas present everymonth One of the best is CLOAD,published by Cload Magazine, P.O.Box 1448, Santa Barbara, CA 93102.Their monthly cassette tape costs$50.00 a year or $30.00 for 6 months,and is worth every penny You'llgenerally receive eight programseach month, of which, about halfwill be games. The others willinclude utilities, business andfinance programs, tutorials, instruc-tional programs, and whatever elsethe editor, Dave Lagerquist, cancome up with. Each month, Daveincludes a brief newsletter with pro-gram documentation, bits of down-home philosophy, and helpfulcomments on TRS-80 computing ingeneral. His style is friendly andpersonal. You get to know everyonein the company by first names,including the dog, Jed, and Robinand Mike's new baby, Morgan. No, Inever met any of them in person, butI plan to visit some day soon andinclude an interview with Dave in alater column. Next month, I'll putyou on to another subscriptionservice.

I also hope to include some side byside comparisons of similar pro-grams published by rent companies,hints on converting programs fromtape to disk,

computer gaming world 006

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