f13.net forums - Thanks For Not Sucking Like Everyone Else

I finished a bottle of Brown Brothers 2004 Shiraz, which is on special at my local liquor store and it was so good I googled for reviews. I am thinking of buying their entire stock and more.

Anyway, one of the results that came up was a gaming article called "Thanks For Not Sucking Like Everyone Else", so I was intrigued and clicked on it. And it was a flashback to what I consider the good old days.

I'm an aging gamer, 37. But if the article below is meaningless to you, please research the names in this article. Particularly if you are in the games industry. This article stirs in me memories of wonderful games that are not reflected in those of today - games by Andrew Braybrook, Archer McLean, Geoff Crammond, Sensible Software and even crazy Jeff Minter. Just like nobody has bettered the experience of Braben and Bell's Elite in the space genre.

If you take away one thing from this stupid post, take this: Paradroid needs to be remade today.

It was also the era of Julian Rignall and Gary Penn, who reviewed and rated these games for the gamers. Rignall went on to start IGN, while Penn is often rumoured to ghost write various biting gaming columns in print, but it's always "not him".

I sold my C64, games and Zzap!64 magazine collection to buy an Amiga 500, which I then sold to fund a trip to central Australia. I've still got the hat. But I'd trade it for a C64 with Paradroid, Iridis Alpha, IK+ and Wizball. And more of the shiraz, please.

Quote

Thanks For Not Sucking Like Everyone Else
Written by Flamey
Tuesday, 27 June 2006

Man, video games are a funny business, and by funny I actually mean completely soul crushing and a perfectly good reason to take up drinking as a serious concern. What i mean is that for many people, video games just materialise on a shelf at your local game store before being neglected by the gaming public and sold for less than half price a year later in a clearance sale.

(Caption: Today's update was brought to you by two bottles of Brown Brothers 2004 Shiraz, a pretty good drop that's guaranteed to make you write like a King that's getting serviced by 4 buxom wenches. While you're eating a steak.)

I'm lucky enough to know who some of the people behind the games are. I'm really insanely lucky to have met a handful of them. Being able to thank Eugene Jarvis for making Defender and Robotron and Smash TV and Cruisn' USA (Yeah, I thought Cruisin' USA was the shit, so don't even start) in person was the best moment of the whole show. Screw that wavy magic wand thing Nintendo are peddling, I got to have my photo taken with the guy who made Star Gate, the game that is guaranteed to rip your balls off and feed them back to you within 10 seconds of hitting the Start button.

So…with that being said, and the fact I never got to say thanks to Jim Henson or Charles Schulz, I want to say thanks to the following people that I haven't had a chance to say in person:

David Braben: For making Elite, the game that made the lightbulb go off above my head and go holy fuck, anything can happen in a computer game, and nobody has ever done anything like this before, this is something special.

Sid Meier: Not only did he make the best aquaduct-based game ever made, he's given us plenty to make fun of in the Podcast. So thank you and sorry for making fun of you, Mr. Meier.

Will Wright: For making everyone else look like a complete putz. For introducing the concept of game designers having interests and life experience that has nothing to do with video games.

Takashi Tezuka: No list is complete without a Nintendo figure in here but everyone picks Shigeru Miyamoto. Takashi Tezuka was the producer on a couple of games called The Legend Of Zelda: A Link To The Past and Super Mario Bros. 3. He's a real unsung hero.

Archer Maclean: For making International Karate and International Karate + and Dropzone and too many damn pool games. For making games that relied on skill and technique and how quick you were with a joystick, instead of covering the screen with swirly colours and saying "good enough" and making it crap. I heard tonight he isn't doing the new Mercury. I hope he's making something amazing.

Geoff Crammond: He made The Sentinel, a game so different from everything else back in the day that the gaming press didn't give it scores. And he made Stunt Car Racer. I love Stunt Car Racer. if you like Stunt Car Racer I think you are a wonderful, special, totally amazing human being and I want to know you so much more.

Um…I think I'm running out of people I have yet to thank. Um…I'd put Andrew Braybrook on here for making Paradriod, a game that still hasn't been bettered, but he's off making insurance software now or something so fuck that. Oh! The Sensi Soft guys! You made Wizball. By doing that you made the world have at least one thing that is worth not giving up video games for good for.

Just for the record the list used to have Jeff Minter on it, but I already managed to assault him while he was looking awkward at the Nuon DVD player booth. And I got to play Tempest 3000 which was tits and ice cream. So now, let me know who you want to thank…

(PS: I just realised that Angry Gamer is 6 months old as of today. Holy crap, who would have thought it took this long for the novelty to wear off?)