Defender is an arcade computer game developed and released by Williams Electronics in 1980 in the genre of Shoot 'em up with two-dimensional graphics. The game takes place on a fictional planet, where the player must defeat the upcoming waves of aliens, defending astronauts . The development was led by Eugene Jarvis ( born Eugene Jarvis ), who worked at Williams as a programmer for pinball machines . Defender was the first computer game of Jarvis. Her ideological inspirers were Space Invaders and Asteroids . Williams planned to present the game at the Amusement & Music Operators Association (AMOA), but because of delays the development team worked on the game until the very beginning of the show.
| Defender | |
|---|---|
| Developer | Williams Electronics |
| Publisher | Williams Electronics |
| Date of issue | 1980 |
| Genre | scrolling shooter |
| Creators | |
| Game Designers | Eugene Jarvis Larry DeMar |
| Programmers | Eugene Jarvis Larry DeMar Sam Dicker |
| Technical details | |
| Platforms | Arcade , other |
| Game modes | single player and two players (in turn) |
| Control | joystick and buttons |
| Type of shell | vertical , horizontal |
| Display | raster , 16 colors |
The game was a commercial success: it sold more than 55,000 machines, which made this game the best in sales among the games of the company. Positive reviews from critics included the quality of the audio-visual component of the game and the gameplay. The game is often called one of the best components of Jarvis's contribution to the video game industry. It is also considered one of the most difficult computer games. Defender ported to many platforms, inspired the development of other games, sequels and imitations.
Gameplay
Defender - a two-dimensional horizontal scrolling shooter , which takes place on the surface of an unnamed planet. The player controls the spacecraft, which can move left or right. The joystick sets the height of the flight, and five buttons allow you to control horizontal movement and armament. The goal is to destroy the invading aliens and protect astronauts on the planet from being kidnapped. Abducted people return as mutants who attack the ship. Destruction of aliens allows you to move to a new level. Failing to protect astronauts leads to the explosion of the planet and filling the level with mutants. If a player survives a mutant attack, the planet is restored. Players are given three lives to complete the game, extra lives are given for achieving a certain number of points. Life is lost if the player’s ship comes in contact with the enemy or its projectiles. After all lives end, the game ends [1] [2] [3] [4] .
Development
Defender was the first independent game developed by Williams Electronics: the company's previous game was a clone of Pong [1] . The popularity of arcade coin accepting machines prompted the company in 1979 to shift its priorities from pinball to arcade machines [5] . In order to lead the development, the company chose Eugene Jarvis, who had successful experience in developing Williams pinball machines [1] . They helped Jarvis Larry DeMar ( eng. Larry DeMar ), Sam Dicker ( eng. Sam Dicker ) and Paul Dussault ( eng. Paul Dussault ) [6] . At that time, the Williams staff was small, and the management was not familiar with the technology of electronic games, so the development team was given a lot of creative freedom [5] .
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 3 Kent, Steven. The Golden Age (Part 1: 1979–1980) // The Ultimate History of Video Games. - Three Rivers Press , 2001. - p. 144–147. - ISBN 0-7615-3643-4 .
- 100 Top 100 Arcade Games: Top 20–6 // Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition 2008 / Craig Glenday. - Guinness, 2008-03-11. - P. 234. - ISBN 978-1-904994-21-3 .
- ↑ Stearny, Mark. The Ghost From Space Invaders to Zaxxon (Eng.) // JoyStik: journal. - 1982. - September ( no. 1 ). - P. 8-29 .
- ↑ Sellers, John. The Golden Age of Video Games. - Running Press , 2001. - p. 50–53. - ISBN 0-7624-0937-1 .
- 2 1 2 Eugene Jarvis // Halcyon Days : Interviews with James Hague. - Dadgum Games, 1997.
- ↑ Barton, Matt; Bill Loguidice. The History of Defender: The Joys of Difficult Games . Gamasutra (July 14, 2009). The appeal date is December 6, 2009. Archived on January 27, 2013.