Message-ID: <9035@mgweed.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 9-May-84 16:11:25 EDT
Article-I.D.: mgweed.9035
Posted: Wed May  9 16:11:25 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 10-May-84 00:35:33 EDT
Organization: AT&T Consumer Products - Montgomery Illinois
Lines: 32

[]

According to the Wall Street Journal, May 9, 1984, Atari announced the
forthcoming release of two new video games that have been developed
by Lucasfilm Ltd.  They have been under development for nearly two
years under a joint venture between Atari and Lucasfilm.

Atari executives said the games are among several new products,
including new video game and computer hardware, that the company will
introduce this year.  Atari is hoping the Lucasfilm video games will
help rekindle consumer interest in video games.  One official said
these games are the most significant thing to happen in video games
since "Pac-Man".

The games are designed to be played on existing hardware systems.  They
use more sophisticated computer graphics and animation techniques and
have more of a three-dimensional appearance than most existing games.
They use computer-generated music and sound effects.

The games are named "Ballblazer" and "Rescue on Fractalus" and will
retail for about $35.  That is a little hard to believe since most
of Atari's new games go for $49.95 retail.

I plan to attend the Consumer Electronic Show here in Chicago next
month.  I'll report on what's new for Atari.

 
					Kit Kimes
					AT&T Consumer Products
					Montgomery Works
					Aurora, Il. 60507
					..!ihnp4!we13!mgweed!kek
  
  

Message-ID: <3298@fortune.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 14-May-84 15:33:24 EDT
Article-I.D.: fortune.3298
Posted: Mon May 14 15:33:24 1984
Date-Received: Wed, 16-May-84 07:13:21 EDT
References: <9035@mgweed.UUCP>
Organization: Fortune Systems, Redwood City, CA
Lines: 15

[]


	Okay, I'll tell.  I've seen early versions of both the lucasfilm
    games, and played one of them quite a bit.  They are tentatively called
    "Behind Jaggai Lines" and "Ballblaster".  They are without any doubt
    the greatest games I have seen on any home computer system.  BJL is
    a shoot the aliens game, and BB is a bumbercar soccer game. Both have
    3-D graphics, with the screen looking like a viewport into the real
    world.  BJL has a better flight simulator than the ones running on
    the IBM-PC.  BB is fast, exciting and an incredible amount of fun.
	Definitely the biggest thing since pacman.   You can stop wondering.


							-Glenn
  
  

Message-ID: <504@sequent.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 16-May-84 12:49:00 EDT
Article-I.D.: sequent.504
Posted: Wed May 16 12:49:00 1984
Date-Received: Mon, 21-May-84 05:27:04 EDT
References: <9035@mgweed.UUCP> <3298@fortune.UUCP>
Organization: Sequent Computer Systems, Portland
Lines: 38

[color=blue]>  From: grw@fortune.UUCP[/color]
[color=blue]>  Message-ID: <3298@fortune.UUCP>[/color]
[color=blue]>  Date: Mon, 14-May-84 12:33:24 PDT[/color]
[color=blue]>  [/color]
[color=blue]>  	Okay, I'll tell.  I've seen early versions of both the lucasfilm[/color]
[color=blue]>      games, and played one of them quite a bit.  They are tentatively called[/color]
[color=blue]>      "Behind Jaggai Lines" and "Ballblaster".  They are without any doubt[/color]
[color=blue]>      the greatest games I have seen on any home computer system.  BJL is[/color]
[color=blue]>      a shoot the aliens game, and BB is a bumbercar soccer game. Both have[/color]
[color=blue]>      3-D graphics, with the screen looking like a viewport into the real[/color]
[color=blue]>      world.  BJL has a better flight simulator than the ones running on[/color]
[color=blue]>      the IBM-PC.  BB is fast, exciting and an incredible amount of fun.[/color]
[color=blue]>  	Definitely the biggest thing since pacman.   You can stop wondering.[/color]
[color=blue]>  [/color]
[color=blue]>  [/color]
[color=blue]>  							-Glenn[/color]

I too have played both games.  Definitely HOT.  Jaggi still amazes me
about the number of necessary calculations in realtime necessary to get
the picture on the screen.  I dunno how they can even *approach* the
computational complexity that it appears to have with the poor ole' 6502.
Sounds, talk about sounds!  The ship flying through space makes great
sound stuff.  The music on Blaster is really great (not the standard arcade
quality music either... these guys go full out).  And the pace of Blaster
(even on you vs. the machine) is something that even my world-class video
champ brother Ron (who scored the record for Defender @ 25M points last
year) is challenged by.  It's hard to find a game that keeps Ron interested
any more... Blaster succeeded.  That's a statement in itself.

Those guys at Lucasfilm are pretty hot.  I hope they come out with LOTSA
good games that astound and amaze me as much as Star Raiders did 5 years
ago.  (How do they do those things with the Atari processor?)

-- A particularly personal and original observation from the thought-stream of
Randal L. ("blasted ball") Schwartz, esq. (merlyn@sequent.UUCP)
	(Official Legendary Sorcerer of the 1984 Summer Olympics)
Sequent Computer Systems, Inc. (503)626-5700 (sequent = 1/quosine)
UUCP: {decwrl,ogcvax,pur-ee,rocks34,shell,unisoft,vax135,verdix}!sequent!merlyn