Retrogame Archeology Exploring Old Computer Games
Drawing on extensive research, this book explores the techniques that old computer games used to run on tightly-constrained platforms. Retrogame developers faced incredible challenges of limited space, computing power, rudimentary tools, and the lack of h
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Retrogame Archeology Exploring Old Computer Games
Retrogame Archeology
John Aycock
Retrogame Archeology Exploring Old Computer Games
123
John Aycock Department of Computer Science University of Calgary Calgary, Alberta, Canada
ISBN 978-3-319-30002-3 ISBN 978-3-319-30004-7 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-30004-7 Library of Congress Control Number: 2016935859 © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. Printed on acid-free paper This Springer imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG Switzerland
For my mother, who gave me computers and games that are now retro
Preface
I’m not very good at playing computer games. However, through sheer luck I happened to be alive, using computers and playing games, at more or less the right time to have experienced the retrogame era. I also happened to learn programming and study computer science at a time when there was a strong emphasis on lowlevel work, when getting a program working sometimes meant being clever enough to sidestep all kinds of limitations. Now, fast-forward several decades. After reading two compelling books – Montfort and Bogost’s Racing the Beam and Maher’s The Future Was Here1 – it finally dawned on me that I could use my training and good fortune to dig into the guts of old games, to seek and showcase game authors’ implementation marvels that lurked under the hood. In Ian Bogost’s book How to Do Things with Videogames, he wrote2 ‘We need more media entomologists and media archeologists overturning rocks and logs to find and explain the tiny treasures that would otherwise go unseen.’ I wanted to become a retrogame archeologist. What I found surprising in my research was that many retrogame implementation techniques had modern applications, and not only in games. I won’t go so far as to say that retrogames were the first to use these techniques or that modern uses are directly inspired by retroga
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