Sunday 3 June 2012

Elite... or Elite?

Today, I'm going to play some Spectrum games.  Or, I might just play one Spectrum game.  I'm either going to play Elite, or I'm going to play several games by Elite.


I've played Elite on and off over the years, without ever really getting anywhere.  It's a great game, but I never quite mastered it and therefore never explored as much of the galaxy as I could, or should have.  I remember watching one of my mates play it though, and he was pretty awesome at it.  His skills meant that watching those dogfights was pretty exciting!


Please don't crash.  Please don't crash.  Bet you I crash.




I've searched for accessible Elite-type games ever since, and none has quite hit the spot.  Freelancer came pretty close, I have to admit.  The X series was also a good attempt.  I've chipped in to a Kickstarter called Drifter that looks pretty promising, too.  And then there's Oolite, which I really need to spend more time with.  So the space pirate genre is well catered for, but for this book, I need to go back to the beginning.


Can't we all just get along?




But it might serve a wider purpose right now if I play a range of games released by Elite Systems Ltd.  Some of the Spectrum's most revered programmers were in their stable, knocking out a huge number of successful arcade conversions and original games.  It would do me some good to get a batch of screenshots and I'd probably have more fun into the bargain.  It's not that Elite isn't fun, it's just not as... immediate.


On a different note, I've been contacted by a programmer offering support, quotes and, crucially, contacts.  This is a big step forward, even at this early stage, and I'm very grateful for that.  If I can get everybody on board as willingly and easily as that, I'll be a happy man.  Of course, the road ahead is probably about as smooth as a level of Moon Patrol...

No comments:

Post a Comment