Apple II Bits

Mike Maginnis and I were driving home from KansasFest 2012, half-listening to the Major Nelson podcast, when I thought I heard news of something called “Lode Runner Classic“, featuring the Apple II game’s original 150 levels. Since this was primarily an Xbox 360 podcast, and I consider Lode Runner one of the best games ever, I was excited by the prospect of a follow-up to 2009’s Lode Runner sequel. I love remakes and reboots, but there’s just something about going back to the source that can be extremely satisfying.

I rewound the podcast to hear the details I’d missed… and alas: the game was released for Windows Phone 7, a mobile operating system I’ll never have access to.

Yesterday, Kotaku ran a "one month later, this game is still great" review. As an aside, the author, Mike Fahey, briefly mentions: "Nearly three decades later, Tozai Games has released Lode Runner Classic for Windows Phone 7, with versions coming soon for iOS and Android."

WHAT?! iOS version? Truly??

The developer’s official Web site says only: "Don’t worry, Android and iOS fans — your versions will be releasing soon with shared leaderboards, country-code bragging rights and achievements!"

Okay. I can wait. After all, it was nearly two years between when Lode Runner for Xbox 360 was announced and it was released. I just need to remember to breathe. In the meantime, I’m glad to know I’m not the only one excited by this release. Said the franchise’s creator, Douglas E. Smith, on the game’s official Web site:

When Lode Runner came out on the Apple II, the last thing I expected was that the game would be alive and kicking on platforms as advanced as today’s smartphones. It’s really gratifying to me that so many people are still interested in the game.

And, as the Kotaku critic commented:

Thirty years down the road I feel I’ve developed a much deeper appreciation for Lode Runner than I had as a child. This seemingly simple title is actually a rather complex mechanism crafted specifically to hand me my [butt]. I’ve not gotten any better at it, but at least now I understand my failure is a result of brilliant programming.

The Apple II is proving an endless font of inspiration for modern-day video game remakes. Not only is Wizardry coming to the PlayStation Network, but it will soon be joined on that service by Choplifter, that seminal side-scrolling action game, set on the landscape of a far-off purple desert.

I remember playing Choplifter on my Apple II, one of the few games for which I could use the joystick instead of the keyboard. I enjoyed the dichotomy of the player’s charges: not only did I have to evade unfriendly fire and destroy enemy tanks, but I also had to rescue captured hostages and diplomats. Such realistic humanitarian directives were rare in an era where video games were about shooting down space invaders or rescuing damsels in dysfunction. Choplifter was even good for a lesson in vocabulary, having taught me the word “sortie”.

Check out the experience that the remake hopes to recapture:

Dan Gorlin’s Choplifter was the first second game to make the transition from computer to arcade, instead of the other way around. It enjoyed many console-exclusive sequels as well, most recently the 1994 release of Choplifter III for Super Nintendo, among others.

The latest sequel, Choplifter HD, comes from inXile Entertainment, the company headed by Interplay founder Brian Fargo. Originally announced two years ago, the game received received more details this week, including a tentative release date of Fall 2011. Here’s the trailer:

It looks like the core gameplay hasn’t changed much, with action still occurring primarily in two dimensions, keeping it from straying too far into the Desert Strike franchise that Choplifter itself inspired. Time will tell if it captures more than the look and feel but also the spirit of the original.

The affordability and accessibility of downloadable games certainly seems inviting for industry veterans to dust off old ideas. What other Apple II classics would you like to see remade for modern consoles?

UPDATE: This game will launch in Fall 2011. Dan Gorlin is onboard as a consultant, and players will get to save both POWs and survivors of the zombie apocalypse.

Tomorrow sees the release of the film Prince of Persia, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and starring Jake Gyllenhaal. Although the latest of many video-game-to-movie adaptations, it marks perhaps the first time an Apple II game has been translated to the silver screen — an honor not yet bestowed upon Choplifter, Lode Runner, or even Castle Wolfenstein.

Despite not all video games making for great movie material, I’ve been encouraged by the constant presence of the original game’s creator, Jordan Mechner, throughout this project. When interviewed in the December 2008 issue of Game Informer magazine, he reflected:

With Prince of Persia, I’ve had the opportunity and the challenge of recreating the character and story anew, not just once but several times, since the first Apple II version 20 years ago… Each of these projects gave me the chance to work with a great creative team in a new medium—a triple opportunity that in my Apple II days I could have only dreamed of.

Around that time, Mr. Mechner published a wealth of historical data about the evolution of his original vision and game. For a game designer to extensively document his creative process, retain that information for decades, and then make it available to the masses is ever historian‘s dream. In addition to his handwritten notes from the era, he also uploaded several videos of his younger brother David that he rotoscoped to serve as the animation for the titular prince. Observe this source material:

Now compare it to an early draft of the art that would appear in the final game:

For the Apple II to have played host to such a early depiction of realistic motion is an honor. It warrants at least a cameo by Jordan or David Mechner in the film. What better an Easter Egg could there be?

(Hat tip to Juiced.GS Volume 13, Issue 4 [Mar 2008], pages 18–19)

When Game Informer magazine published its 100th issue in August 2001, it presented the staff’s top 100 games of all times. At number #52 was a piece of software every reader of this blog should recognize:

Appearing first on the Apple ][E, Lode Runner wasn’t a platformer, didn’t have a proper maze, and was levels above any simple shoot ’em up title. With only two abilities, digging or climbing, you had to make your way through over 100 boards — some with mind-boggling configurations. Featuring set traps and loads of strategy, yet imbued with a fast pace, Lode Runner was a true challenge in the early era of games

Nearly ten years later, Game Informer revisited the topic with their top 200 games in issue #200, published in November 2009. A decade of impressive entertainment software was sure to have an impact on the old standings, but Lode Runner held on, slipping to #173 yet remaining on the chart:

My next door neighbor when I was growing up was the only kid on the block with an Apple IIe, so I bugged this kid mercilessly all the time to go over to his house and play games on it. Poor ***. We spent hours and hours in the summer cooped up in his room playing Lode Runner, Karateka, The Bilestoad, Zork, and a bunch of other stuff. I have a feeling he doesn’t look back at this time as fondly as I do.

I grew up playing Lode Runner, one of the first computer games to be ported to the arcade instead of vice versa. Since then, I’ve bought versions of the game for the Nintendo and Xbox 360, and Juiced.GS reviewed the iPhone version. The added features of these updates — online play, leaderboards, portability, and more — keep the franchise fresh and fun, but the series progenitor had a certain novelty that hasn’t been beat: was it an action game? A puzzler? What were the possibilities of the unprecedented level editor it came bundled with? And once I’ve beaten the game, can I do it again — with the accelerator card enabled?

Lode Runner is a fantastic concept worth exploring on any platform, but especially the Apple II. To enjoy the game vicariously, check out podcast 1 MHz‘s review of Lode Runner, and visit Tozai Games’ Web site for the full history of Doug E. Smith’s franchise.