Monday, 21 October 2013

Play testing (retro gaming)

During our lesson (BTEC IT Level 3) we had been asked to go on the like provided below and play some of the games which are on there. It was not a chill out lesson we was asked to play it and talk about the games. I have looked at these aspects, What decade is it from, When was it made, What company made it, What platform/s was it available on in its original form and also What platform/s was it converted for if at all.

  1. Commodore
  2. Classic Dos Games
  3. Real Classic Games
  4. Retro Games Collector
  5. Snessy
Above, are the link you can go on to access lots of the retro gamings.


This is the game i have played and have chosen to talk about, The game is called Asteroids and it is a very addictive game. This was a video game which was released by Atari in November 1979, it was one of the most influential game of the golden age of arcade. This This game sold more than 70,000 arcade cabinets!!!

I think the reason for this to be successful was the simplicity, un like games not it does not have high graphic (3D realistic astroid and space ship) it was very simple and and it needed skills. This is what new games now dont think about much, its not about the look mostly it about the way you play the game. This games required skills and dedication, and this is one of the reason why it was successful.

This was the best-selling Atari 2600 game prior to Pac-Man (reference). Asteroids was so popular that arcade operators sometimes had to install larger boxes to hold the number of coins that were spent by players. This shows dedication to gaming because you are willing to pay for everything you play a game and also this show how popular and addictive this game was.

Where and when was the game released:

  • 1981 - Ported to multiple Atari's systems: Atari 2600, 7800, Atari Lynx.
  • 1993 - Release for PCs with Windows 3.1 as part of the original Microsoft Arcade package.
  • 1990s (late) - new version of Asteroids was developed forPlayStation, Nintendo 64, Windows, and the Game Boy Color in the late 1990s.
  • 1999 - Asteroids Hyper (update) released for the Nintendo 64 on December 14. It includes fully 3D environments, new weapons, over 50 levels, and a 2 player split-screen mode; including a Versus mode, a Co-op mode, and a Team mode.
  • 2001- Infogrames released Atari Anniversary Edition for the Sega Dreamcast and PC compatibles which included emulated versions of Asteroids and other classics.
  • 2004 - Asteroids was released as part of Atari Anthology for both Xbox and PlayStation 2.
  • 2007 - Asteroids was released via Xbox Live Arcade for the Xbox 360 on November 28
  • 2010 - Both Asteroids and Asteroids Deluxe were also re-released to Microsoft's Game Room download service for the Xbox 360 and Windows-based PCs in 2010.
  • 2011 - Asteroids was released on Windows Phone on February 23.
  • 20011 - Asteroids was released as part of Atari Greatest Hits for iPhone on June.
  • 2011 - Asteroids Gunner was released on the iOS and Android app stores on November.

Thats all about the successful game Asteroids, and below is how it looks like when you play the game using a PC with the first version (Click here to play the game).



This was not my first score, i have played this game so much i can get past the first 4 wave easily. So addictive that i have played it 3 time while doing this blog!





Monday, 14 October 2013

Games and platforms

There are new platforms for games and the way we play and see things has changed. In the 80s donkey Kong was a massive hit even though the graphic is not very good from out point of view. The reason why it was popular its because it used skills and you had no limit if you are a starter with lots of level.

Is that the same now in the 20th century? do we care about graphic and how each games look? do we really need more and more advanced graphic to make are gaming seem real and more interesting?

Currently Fifa 14 has been released and the graphic on that is outstanding compare to the old games.


This is how the game looks when it come to in game experience.


Also this is Fifa 98 and this how it looked, you can see the leap in graphic from then to now.

So you can say with graphic it you can see more and more texture and get an experience as though you are watching a real game (playing god).

But on the other had there is another game which is more popular and it has no limit to where you can move unlike Fifa and also there is no end (open world). Its called Minecraft, it is a pixel based games in a 3D world below you can see the screenshot of the game play.


 
This is the game and more and more people are getting on to it to play this game, does this mean our generation is going back to the days when there was pixel?
 
NO! More people are playing this game because you are able to buld thing with no limit and you are made to do everything on your own. From protecting your self to building a shelter and other things of your choice. More people like this type of game because it gives you freedom to do what ever you want and also go ever you want with no end to the map.
 
Of the other hand Fifa and racing games have one of the best graphic but it does not let you go outside the map at all. It is important for them types of games to be real because you got use to it and its interpreting the real things into games but adventure games like minecraft are not. So we are not going back to retro gaming but we want games which gives you the freedom to do anything in a game.
 
You can argue GTA has the best graphic and allows you to go any where but it does not. One day you will get to the end of the map and also you are not able to dig hole bulid house etc. on GTA.
 
Over all games are advancing for a good reason but some such as COD have graphic but no good story or freedom as you wish it should and this is why Minecraft is a hit at this time.