Sure; it’s easy to make fun of what kids say. They’re young, inexperienced, and they’ll do anything to finish a forced elementary school project on time. But I believe there’s no harm in finding entertainment in the whimsical creative works of children, especially when they attempt to write a history of video games. While some of the student-written history I’ve found online is impressively accurate, other times it seems ridiculously and hilariously mangled, probably the result of some quick copies and pastes from an online source. Either way, it’s all gold.

I find it exciting that certain teachers are web-savvy enough to let their students create online reports. It’s not only good for the kids, but it’s often funny as hell for everyone else. The following examples were taken from two different student reports on a real US elementary school website. I’d love to link to the actual pages themselves, but the URLs have been removed to protect the innocent and their microscopic bandwidth. You’ll just have to trust me on this one.

[ Continue reading Kids Say The Darndest Video Game History » ]

[ “Ask RedWolf” is a regular column where Benj Edwards (aka RedWolf) answers readers’ questions about computers and video games. ]

Late last year, I started fielding questions for a new series called “Ask RedWolf”(“RedWolf” being my long-time online alias that I used to go by on this blog). Many months later, I’m finally getting around to releasing the first one.

This time around, I discuss a technical question on the Sharp Twin Famicom and give my best educated guesses on two requests for game identification, which our readers might be able to help with. And of course, you can always ask me questions yourself for the next column. On with the show.

[ Continue reading Ask RedWolf: On Famicom, Winds, and Pyramids » ]

Earlier this year, I spent a few months getting into everything Civilization for an in-depth look at the history of Sid Meier’s classic. The result of that work is now up on Gamasutra as “The History of Civilization.” It also includes (at the end of the article) the transcript of a lengthy telephone interview I conducted with Sid Meier on the topic.

I’d like to extend special thanks to Sid Meier, Bruce C. Shelley, and Troy S. Goodfellow for their indispensable help in putting the piece together. I hope you enjoy reading it.

Let’s get wired up and play Jumpman!

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Sixteen years after its humble emergence in the golden age of the BBS, Wendell Hicken’s timeless 1991 artillery simulation remains a hallmark in shareware history. Scorched Earth stands as nothing less than a masterpiece in the field of computer games.

With its numerous gameplay settings, variable computer AI, and an impressive variety of entertaining power-ups, Scorched Earth possesses nearly infinite replay value. It’s also one of the greatest party games ever devised: up to ten players can take turns plotting the explosive demise of their closest friends at the hands of a Nuke, MIRV, or Death’s Head over as many as 1000 rounds. As a testament to the pure strategy of the game, veterans skilled in the ways of Scorch know the best ways to dispatch foes — or merely survive as others duke it out — under any circumstance, rain or shine, springy walls or rubber.

   

Many of today’s game designers seem envious of Scorch’s ability to consistently entertain for over a decade. Fans of Hicken’s classic have attempted modern remakes of or improvements upon Scorched Earth, but to this day, none has even begun to approach the solid feel, intricate balance, or professional production values of the original. That’s how good it is.

Hicken didn’t invent the artillery game; he perfected it. And as long as our computers run without smoking, we’ll still be playing the original Scorched Earth as good Wendell intended.