Tricks of the Mac Game Programming Gurus/TricksOfTheMacGameProgrammingGurus.iso/Information/Inside Mac Games/9312 (December 1993)/IMG Dec⁄93/IMG Dec_93.rsrc/TEXT_135.txt

Text File | 1993-09-01 | 3.5 KB | 98 lines

 












IMG: Fair Game
by Ross Scott Rubin

                                                                        The Sight Before Christmas

’Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house
All you could hear were the clicks of my mouse
The Disney screen saver lent monitor care
With Kensington filters to help shield the glare
I sat at my desk and I gazed at the glow
Pondering spreadsheets for E. Scrooge & Co.
And when I could no longer read cells or write ’em
I chose Excel’s File menu’s very last item.

A glance up at SuperClock caused me to frown
It was getting late and I had to shut down.
But just as I started to call it a night
The cursor moved up and it started to fight.
“All right,” I said, with my face changing its hue,
“Who is the joker using Timbuktu?”
But no reply came from the night’s quiet calm
Just a silence as dead as a Type 15 bomb.

When what to my wondering eyes did appear
But a sleigh-bound games folder and eight rendered deer.
This was no screen saver or Stupid Mac Trick
But a digital version of good old St. Nick.
He walked to the Trash and decided to sit
And he looked pretty good (for a guy in 8-bit),
Though he moaned as he pulled the great bag from his back,
“If I see one more Barney doll, I’m gonna yak!”

“Oh, Santa,” I said, “I’m a terrible mess.
I’ve done such a bad thing, you just couldn’t guess
I’ve been so tied up figuring means and ends
That I didn’t get presents for any Mac friends.”
“Now, Ross,” he said, “that is a serious crime
But it’s still Christmas Eve and we still have some time.”
And then with a wave of his hand came to me
A double-speed CD drive from NEC.

“This is great,” I exclaimed, “did you buy it alone?”
“Nope. Charged it to your VISA card at Mac Zone.
Relax, though” he said, as the sweat filled my palms.
I just want to show you some cool CD-ROMs.”
“Oh, give me a break. About CDs I know
They’ve got some neat graphics, but, man, are they slow!
Why, Congress could run up a trillion-buck tab
By the time you got through half the scenes in Hell Cab.”

Said Santa, ignoring my lack of humility,
"But I've got a few with darn good playability.
Oh sure, they've got graphics in copious amounts
But they also are good games, and that is what counts.”
Then with cat-like reflexes that would shame Felix
He showed me Drew Pictures’ space-age Iron Helix.
It had a fun plot and good game play and all
But the active area was three sizes too small.

Then Santa looked up and with twinking eyes luminous
He showed me a copy of Cyberflix’ Lunicus.
It wasn’t a journey that I had to master
But a great arcade shoot-’em-up stopping disaster.
Then Santa did something I couldn't resist
He showed me a copy of Cyan’s new MYST
This CD-ROM was so responsive, it roared
And the graphics and music and plot had me floored.

I had been won over for now I was sure
That CD-ROM games have begun to mature
It’s clear that great graphics won't cut it alone,
But now we've got CD games that hold their own.
I sat down with MYST and started to get in it
Going through ages Stoneship, Selenitic.
Marvelling at how its mystery unfurled
Enjoying its detail of virtual worlds.

I must not have noticed as he took his reigns,
Happy to see I’d been hooked on the games.
Calling the name of each harnessed non-predator
(Some of which sounded a bit like our editor).
He slipped ’neath a window and then on his venue
Left my screen flying past the Apple menu
Yet I heard him exclaim to all kids, men, and women
Merry Christmas to all! Keep those CD-ROMs spinnin’ !