Mac Game Marathon [large images]
Aug 23, 2010 17:31:35 GMT -5
Post by Weasel on Aug 23, 2010 17:31:35 GMT -5
Derboo's doing a magnificent job on documenting Korean, Taiwanese and Chinese games, and Sketcz and Kurt are helping a lot with documenting Japanese PC games. I figure I should pitch in some info on obscure Macintosh games, including enhanced ports of games from other platforms, and the myriad of shareware that's only playable on Mac computers. I've got a 350 MHz G3 running Mac OS 9.2.2 with which to test these. For those that want to play along using Basilisk II, SheepShaver, Mini vMac, or Mac OS X Classic mode, your mileage may vary.
The Bilestoad Pre-alpha v0.9e (1992/1995, Marc Goodman)
In 1982, an Apple ][ game by the name of The Bilestoad was released. It was a decidedly stand-out game for several reasons. The first is that it could possibly be considered the first video game with a skeletal animation system, despite being 2D. The second is that it was among a handful of Apple ][ games noted for being able to play background music at the same time as keeping track of game events, which is evidently quite the accomplishment for the hardware.
The most important reason, though: it's really quite violent. So violent, in fact, that the author was worried he might be in trouble for allowing players to hack off each other's limbs, so he opted to sign his game under the name "Mangrove Earthshoe" instead.
The objective of The Bilestoad is to track down your opponent (using a series of mini-maps on the right side of the screen) and kill him with your axe, while defending with your shield. The controls are a little bizarre, as you can control the movement of your "meatling" as well as the movement of his left and right arms (shield and axe, respectively - the movement keys for these will swing them in and out). There is a locational damage system in place, so hitting the right place on your opponent's body with your axe will cause his arms to detach and sit there on the battle field until the match is over.
Here, have a video of the Apple ][ version.
In 1992, the author began work on a color Macintosh remake of The Bilestoad.
The game plays pretty much the same as the Apple ][ version, except at twice the frame rate (not that big of an accomplishment, especially considering the requirement of a 33 MHz 68030 processor). New additions include the map zooming in and out between a few fixed levels (Star Control-style) as the players get farther apart from each other, and randomized objectives for each player (sometimes you'll win a match by killing the opponent, others you win by escaping on one of the many face-shaped teleporters). Also present is the ability to select one of four "meatlings" with different appearances and weapons, though I'm sure this is just for sake of aesthetics.
While it's nothing really impressive nowadays, The Bilestoad went on to inspire Treyarch's 1997 Die By The Sword.
You can download the Mac remake from this link - I haven't tested to see if it still works in Mac OS X's Classic mode.
The Bilestoad Pre-alpha v0.9e (1992/1995, Marc Goodman)
In 1982, an Apple ][ game by the name of The Bilestoad was released. It was a decidedly stand-out game for several reasons. The first is that it could possibly be considered the first video game with a skeletal animation system, despite being 2D. The second is that it was among a handful of Apple ][ games noted for being able to play background music at the same time as keeping track of game events, which is evidently quite the accomplishment for the hardware.
The most important reason, though: it's really quite violent. So violent, in fact, that the author was worried he might be in trouble for allowing players to hack off each other's limbs, so he opted to sign his game under the name "Mangrove Earthshoe" instead.
The objective of The Bilestoad is to track down your opponent (using a series of mini-maps on the right side of the screen) and kill him with your axe, while defending with your shield. The controls are a little bizarre, as you can control the movement of your "meatling" as well as the movement of his left and right arms (shield and axe, respectively - the movement keys for these will swing them in and out). There is a locational damage system in place, so hitting the right place on your opponent's body with your axe will cause his arms to detach and sit there on the battle field until the match is over.
Here, have a video of the Apple ][ version.
In 1992, the author began work on a color Macintosh remake of The Bilestoad.
The game plays pretty much the same as the Apple ][ version, except at twice the frame rate (not that big of an accomplishment, especially considering the requirement of a 33 MHz 68030 processor). New additions include the map zooming in and out between a few fixed levels (Star Control-style) as the players get farther apart from each other, and randomized objectives for each player (sometimes you'll win a match by killing the opponent, others you win by escaping on one of the many face-shaped teleporters). Also present is the ability to select one of four "meatlings" with different appearances and weapons, though I'm sure this is just for sake of aesthetics.
While it's nothing really impressive nowadays, The Bilestoad went on to inspire Treyarch's 1997 Die By The Sword.
You can download the Mac remake from this link - I haven't tested to see if it still works in Mac OS X's Classic mode.
