Faceball 2000
Faceball 2000 is a first-person shooter. You control a H.A.P.P.Y.F.A.C.E., or Holographically Assisted Physical Pattern Yielded For Active Computerized Embarkation. The graphics consist of flat shaded corridors. Enemies are all simple geometric shapes with smiley faces on them. Although the graphic.
| MIDI Maze | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Xanth Software F/X |
| Publisher(s) | Hybrid Arts Bulletproof Software |
| Platform(s) | Atari ST, Game Boy, Game Gear, SNES, PC-Engine CD-ROM |
| Release | Atari ST: July 10, 1987 June 23, 1991 July 31, 1992 June 15, 1993 |
| Genre(s) | First-person shooter |
| Mode(s) | Multiplayer |
MIDI Maze is a networked first-person shooter for the Atari ST developed by Xanth Software F/X and released in 1987 by Hybrid Arts. The game takes place in a maze of untextured walls. The world animates smoothly as the player turns, much like the earlier Wayout, instead of only permitting 90 degree changes of direction. It has been suggested that MIDI Maze, using the built-in MIDI ports of the Atari ST for networking, introduced the concept of deathmatch combat.[1] The game found a wider audience on the Game Boy as Faceball 2000.
The original MIDI Maze team consisted of James Yee as the business manager, Michael Park as the graphic and networking programmer, and George Miller writing the AI and drone logic.[citation needed]
Gameplay[edit]
Up to 16 computers can be networked in a 'MIDI Ring' by daisy chaining MIDI ports.
The game area occupies only roughly a quarter of the screen and consists of a first-person view of a flat-shaded maze with a crosshair in the middle. All players are shown as Pac-Man-like smileyavatars in various colors.[2][3] Bullets are represented as small spheres.
The game is started by a designated master machine, which sets rules, divides players into teams, and selects a maze. A number of mazes come with the game, and additional mazes can be constructed using a text-editor.
Faceball 2000[edit]
A Game Boy version was developed by the original developers, Xanth Software F/X, and published in 1991 by Bulletproof Software, with the title Faceball 2000.[4] James Yee, owner of Xanth, had the idea of porting the 520ST application to the Game Boy. George Miller was hired to rewrite the AI-based drone logic, giving each drone a unique personality trait.[citation needed]
A Super Nintendo Entertainment System version was released the following year, supporting two players in split-screen mode. The SNES version features completely different graphics and levels from the earlier Game Boy version. A variety of in-game music for this version was composed by George 'The Fat Man' Sanger.[citation needed]
A Game Gear version was released to the Japanese market.[5] It is a colorized version of the monochrome Game Boy edition, supporting two players via two handhelds connected by a cable.
Now you can move to the next location. The reward will let you search your tomb. It is not very large are in comparison to others. Now go back to Arundel and say what you learned in the Shadow Valley and will send you to the Temple of Forgotten God. But before you go there, go back to Mirek to finish his quest, and to the bartender in the pub and tell him about the clash in the valley and ask for the priestess's things. Icewind dale 2 walkthrough.
A version for the PC-Engine CD-ROM, titled Faceball, was released in Japan.[citation needed] A multiplayer networked version for the IBM PC was prototyped, but never released.[citation needed]Faceball was nearly completed and built for Nintendo's Virtual Boy console, but it was canceled.[citation needed]
Reception[edit]
Entertainment Weekly picked Faceball 2000 as the #5 greatest game available in 1991, saying: 'The Game Boy meets virtual reality (i.e., artificial, computer-enhanced, first-person perspective). In Faceball 2000, you assume the identity of a Holographically Assisted Physical Pattern Yielded for Active Computerized Embarkation — or HAPPYFACE — and hunt down your opponents. You can play alone or link up with as many as three additional players. More fun than real-life tag, and much more stimulating.'[6] In 1994, Sandy Petersen reviewed the game for Dragon magazine, giving it 2 out of 5 stars.[7]
CNET Gamecenter called MIDI Maze one of the 10 most innovative computer games of all time.[8]
Legacy[edit]
A prototype of MIDI Maze was found[when?] for the Atari 8-bit family. It is possible to connect ST and 8-bit to a network and play together.[9]
MIDI-Maze II was later developed by Markus Fritze for Sigma-Soft and released as shareware.[citation needed]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^Thomson, Iain. 'Gaming timeline.' Personal Computer World. 2008-02-21. Retrieved 2012-10-21 via HighBeam Research. URL.
- ^'25 years of Pac-Man'. MeriStation. July 4, 2005. Retrieved 2011-05-06. (Translation)
- ^'Gaming's Most Important Evolutions'. GamesRadar. October 8, 2010. p. 5. Retrieved 2011-04-27.
- ^Schiffmann, William. 'In your Face! New toy will wow Game Boy owners.' Chicago Sun-Times. 1992-05-22. Retrieved 2012-10-21 via HighBeam Research URL.
- ^Komarechka, Don. 'Interview: EPO talks to Darren Stone about Faceball 2000.' Electric Pickle Online. 2006-03-19. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
- ^Video Games Guide, Bob Strauss, November 22, 1991, EW.com
- ^Petersen, Sandy (January 1994). 'Eye of the Monitor'. Dragon. No. 201. pp. 57–62.
- ^Features - The Hall of Game Innovation, GAMECENTER.COM, ..Midi Maze..Hybrid Arts..Derivatives: Doom and its countless clones..
- ^Reichert, Matt. 'MIDI Maze'. AtariProtos.com. Retrieved 2007-11-27.
External links[edit]
- MIDI Maze at Atari Mania
- Faceball 2000, #25 of 1UP's Essential 50