¢GAMES FOR THE FUTURE¢by Kevin Cooke¢¢ Recently, a question was sparked off in my mind. What games would I like to see on my Atari? To answer this question, I have written this article to let people know exactly what I think. It is basically a list of game ideas which I would love to see implemented on my favourite computer. How about it someone?¢¢Sports¢¢ How about a new tennis game. As far as I know, the only real tennis game we've ever had is the one by Atari Corp. Although it is still a great game, how about an even better one? Come to that, how about a different sport game altogether? Hockey would be a great idea and I'm sure that you could think of a couple of other sports which would convert well onto the XL/XE [Ed: rugby, snow-boarding, climbing, cycling or insect racing!]. We haven't had a sports game released for years, but please make the game a specific sport simulation, not another Olympics type game.¢¢Sim City¢¢ This is one game I would really like to see on my Atari 8-bit!¢¢[Ed: I agree 100%! I've wanted to see this on the 8-bit for years. Come on software developers - do your stuff!]¢¢ For those who don't know, Sim City is a simulation of building a city. Don't worry, it isn't as boring as it sounds. The aim of the game is to keep as much of the population as happy as possible and so keep your job for as long as possible.¢¢ At the start of the game you get a randomly generated landscape. This is where you eventually get to build your city, but before this, you name your city to start the game.¢¢ In the beginning you only get enough cash to build some of the possible items available. Roads, parkland, power stations (essential to give power to buildings) and houses are among the cheapest things to add (and you can add quite a few of them) but later on you can also build airports, train stations, stadiums, hospitals, police stations, fire stations and even sausage rolls (alright, I may have lied about the sausage rolls!).¢¢ At any one time, only a small section of the city is in view. This can be scrolled left, right, up or down to view the rest of your city. A map of the entire island can also be displayed.¢¢ The bulldoze option is another important feature. Certain ground has to be bulldozed before it can be built on. This also costs you money.¢¢ The real fun starts when people start moving into the buildings. You actually get to see little dots moving into the buildings and going along the roads to simulate occupants and traffic respectively. You can then start setting tax rates and waiting for the complaints to start coming in. The residents can complain about anything from taxes being too high to too much pollution from cars and power stations. It is then your job to try to solve this moaning by employing various techniques, eg. building a police station to combat crime or replacing the old coal power station with a spanking new nuclear power station!¢¢ If you so wish, you even get to unleash a number of disasters on your city to see how you cope with them. Tornados, fires, floods and even monster attacks can be set upon your city. See how well it stands up then!¢¢ Sim City is possibly my all-time favourite game. It is incredibly addictive and is one of the most realistic games available - the date even changes as time goes on. A save game feature is VERY important as you can easily play it for weeks! This is one game I would definitely buy for my Atari.¢¢A scrolling beat 'em up¢¢ How about a scrolling beat 'em up? Double Dragon is a good example of how this could work. Or how about a game like Robocop (which has appeared on other computers) where you walk your character along a scrolling screen and shoot people who attack you. Gameplay could be improved by allowing different weapons to be collected - machine guns and flame throwers are two examples (both would only have a limited usage of course!). I think that this would make a brilliant game.¢¢A racing game¢¢ Would someone like to have a go at writing a new racing-type game? It could be a car or motorbike game, but how about one with speedboats or something a little out of the ordinary? [Ed: jet-skis, bi-planes or karts]¢¢And so...¢¢ As you've probably realised by now, what I would like to see is a bit of a change from the same old shoot 'em up's and puzzle games. There are hundreds more game ideas waiting to be converted, providing those who can do it, do.¢¢ What we really need is some of those talented European programmers to have a go at one of these ideas. I would be quite willing to help in the designing of the game ideas - I can design different levels, settings, etc. Contact me at: 36 Buddle Lane, St Thomas, Exeter, Devon, EX4 1JH, UK.¢¢Let's look to the future!¢
