Echo #03 31 марта 1997

Люди

What are heard behind the hill - What is now doing all the known Western manufacturers software on Speccy? ..

       What's there to be heard behind the hill?



   kAMIKAZe'97



   All have, perhaps, know that Spectrum
in the West died in a commercial computer
(Only the "scene": demomeykery and
other enthusiasts). But what happened to those companies and 
programmers, who became famous for it on the Spectrum? On the 
basis of popular computer magazines over the past 3-4 years can 
be traced the activities of these firms, which I tried to do. 
So, here we go: 


   First, it is no secret that many well-known on the Spectrum 
manufacturers toys, in principle, the producers were not ...;) 
explain: for example, appeared on any other computer (Amiga,

C-64, Atari, IBM) new game which
enjoyed a certain popularity.
The company is interested in obtaining the greatest profit, and 
seeks to move it to other platforms, but its staff members 
might not be programmers on Z80, and therefore, this work rely 
on any another firm or person (for example - SimCity,

author - Maxis, the author at the Speccy - Probe).
That is precisely such "cross platform" company virtually 
nothing is lost after withering away of the Spectrum. Notable 
examples - Ocean, Psygnosis, Gremlin Graphics

(Gremlin interactive), Virgin (Virgin
interactive), Domark, Codemasters,
Activision, Core Design, etc. firms smaller, focused only on 
the Spectrum died almost immediately (Dinamic, TopoSoft,

CRL, Hewson (too), MirrorSoft, etc.).


   Now go through the firms.


   -Codemasters: specialize only
on budget software (deshevoe. .. (in the sense
for the price!)). Last game at the Spectrum yet
went somewhere before 1993. In 1994 they published a collection 
of games SMASH 1916: Sky High Stuntman, SAS Combat Simulator, 
The Guardian Angel, Super Hero, MiG 29, Ghost

Hunters, Super Robin Hood, Frankenstein
Junior, Super G-Man, Terra Cognita, KGB
Super Spy, Ninja Massacre, Arcade Flight
Simulator, Kamikaze, Poltergeist, Lazer
Force, and everything was practically on the Spectrum
culled. Instead, they tried to Spectrum
to occupy with their games other platforms, but the quality of 
their products were not satisfied with the Amiga and PC users 
and, therefore, began to specialize Codemasters at 8 and 16-bit 
game consoles. Already in 1994 at the ECTS (European Computer

Trade Show) in London, they are exposed to
Console Global Golf, Excellent Dizzy,
Capt'n Havoc, Drop Zone Dino Racer, Micro
Machines 2. Roam the world and their other work 
poslespektrumovskogo period: Micro Machines 1, CJ Elephant 
Fugitive, Cosmic Spacehead, Dinobasher, etc., but the firm

can already be considered dead, since their game
remained on urovne Speccy, and such
Level one is not satisfied. At the same
while their counterparts from the Big Red Software, which 
released for Codemasters best work, still managed to rebuild 
and even managed to Coy what issue (eg Big Red Racing for PC). 
However, at ECTS 1996 Codemasters has announced Micro Machines 3

for Sony Playstation and Sega Saturn, see what comes of it ...


   -OCEAN: Spectrum after the decline continued to release 
games in large numbers and now clings to all the major

platforms.


   -Psygnosis: continued to write games and was recently 
purchased by the Japanese with the giblets and now writes 
potryasmeyshie games at different Platform: Discworld, 
Benefactor, different Lemmings, Formula 1 (PSX), Krazy Ivan,

Wipeout 2097, Destruction Derby 1'2, and so
etc.


   Interested in the fate of Spectrum, and many programmers. 
For example, John Ritmen (John Ritman), dates back to ZX81, 
then a 1983 released their game Cosmic Debris, one year later 
released Matchday (published by company Ocean). Next were 
issued: Batman (a huge success, selling 100,000

copies, which at that time was incredible)
Matchday 2, Head over Heels. All of these games
out and Commodore-64. With the end of an eight-bit computer era 
Ritmen working at RARE, specializing in games for consoles, 
which participates in the creation of Donkey Kong Country. He 
then founded his own firm Cranberry Source, which worked on the 
game Citizens, published by Microprose, and now over 
Quintessential Art of Destruction. It He uses a new 
three-dimensional algorithms called Landscape System. When 
Ritmena Asked whether it was difficult to move from

Spectrum on the PC, he replied: "Gentlemen, this is
is only computers! "