CGE 2004

[DEBRO]

Dennis,

 

If you want to email or PM me the questions, I'll pass them along to Garry for you.

 

John

Thanks John, I'll get my thoughts together and send them to you. They're just a few questions about his 2600 code and how he started. It's be so long I doubt he remembers a lot about it.

[purenergy]

Sometimes change is good.....

 

I will admit that Las Vegas was fun every time that I attended CGE. Great shows, great food, although the Plaza rooms were a bit old.

 

But, with more classic gaming alumni attending this years show, it makes CGE that much better.

[digitalpress]

Quick update.

 

We have NEVER had this many confirmed guests this early. Usually we get confirmations a few weeks before the show. It's very promising - and there are many more who are shuffling schedules around to be at what I promise will be the best CGE ever!

 

MR. LEE ACTOR

-- Lee was the first programmer at Nolan Bushnell's Sente and designed the revolutionary coin-op, Snake Pit. He also was responsible for Hat Trick, Team Hat Trick, and Street Football.

MR. AL ALCORN

-- Atari's co-founder, designed Atari's first hit (and first commercially sucessful coin-op game), Pong as well as the venerable Atari VCS (2600).

MS. JAN BOEHM

Jan is known as the "Prototype Lady" in collecting circles because many of Atari's protos state: "Return to Jan Boehm, Consumer Division, Software Dept."

MR. STEVE CARTWRIGHT

-- Activision designer responsible for the Atari VCS games Megamania, Barnstorming, Plaque Attack, Frostbite and Seaquest.

MR. GARTH (TONY) CLOWES

-- Garth founded Entex Industries, best known in videogame circles for it's incredible line of handheld games including the best-selling Space Invaders, as well as the highly sought after Adventurevision console.

MR. FRANK COHEN

MR. DAVID CRANE

-- Co-founder of Activision in 1979, where he designed such classics as Pitfall!, Dragster, Decathlon, Fishing Derby, Freeway and Ghostbusters.

MS. JAMIE FENTON

-- Pioneered the electronic era with her design of the Astrovision Home Arcade, also designed popular coin-ops Gorf and Robby Roto.

MR. ANDY FUCHS

-- Atari 2600 fans may remember the sounds from Millipede, Obelix, Pengo, or Stargate - all of these were crafted by Fuchs.

MR. ROGER HECTOR

-- Has been involved in projects as early as the coin-op version of Warlords, was president of the Sega Technical Institute, overseeing the Sonic the Hedgehog series among others, and is currently President of Universal Interactive.

MR. MATT HOUSEHOLDER

-- Matt is the designer and co-programmer of Krull (arcade), programmer, artist, and sound designer of Moon Patrol for the ColecoVision, contributor to the "Games Series" by EPYX and Contributor to Blizzard Entertainment's Diablo II.

MR. MATT HUBBARD

-- Designed Submarine Commander (while at Atari) and Dolphin (while at Activision) for the Atari 2600, and is also credited with Road Rash II for Genesis and Defenders of Dynatron City for NES.

MR. JIM HUETHER

-- Jim's credits span many systems, including Atari 2600 classics Flag Capture and Sky Diver; Steeplechase, which became a Sears exclusive, RealSports Football and Xevious on the Atari 5200, Joe Montana Football and Castle of Illusion starring Mickey Mouse, and many more.

MR. DAN KITCHEN

MR. GARRY KITCHEN

-- Creator of Space Jockey, Keystone Kapers and Pressure Cooker for the Atari 2600. For the Commodore 64 computer, he wrote The Designer's Pencil and Garry Kitchen's Gamemaker.

MR. MARK KLEIN

-- Designed games on a number of different platforms from Subterranea (for Atari 2600) to Mouse Trap Hotel (Game Boy). Also co-founded the pioneering Digital Pictures studio/development house.

MR. DENNIS KOBLE

-- In 1982 he and Bill Grubb established Imagic, only the second third-party software publisher in the history of videogames. For three years, the storied company flourished under his guidance. Koble programmed Atlantis, Trick Shot, Shooting Gallery and Solar Storm, all big sellers for the Atari VCS console.

MR. FRANZ LANZINGER

-- Franz worked as a programmer and game designer at Atari Games Inc. and Tengen. He designed the ground-breaking arcade hit, Crystal Castles, founded Bitmasters in 1990, and designed Sega Genesis games Ms. Pac-Man, Championship Pool, and NCAA Final Four.

MR. MARK LESSER

-- This is the man responsible for the handheld Mattel Football and Mattel Baseball, and he's credited with numerous other Mattel handhelds. He also designed the Atari 2600 games Frogger II and Lord of the Rings and enjoyed further success for Electronic Arts developing for the Sega Genesis platform with John Madden '93 and the NHL Hockey series from '94 to '97.

MR. DAVID LEVINE

MR. ED LOGG

-- Designer of a plethora of arcade classics including Asteroids, Gauntlet, Centipede, and Super Breakout, among many others.

MR. RONALD LOGSDON

MR. STEVE MAYER

MR. ALAN MILLER

-- Alan wrote several 2600 games for Atari before co-founding Activision where he authored such classics as Checkers, Tennis, Ice Hockey, Starmaster, and Robot Tank.

MS. KAREN NUGENT

-- A talented artist who designed the graphics for BurgerTime, Super Pro Football, Mission X, Scooby Doo's Maze Chase and Flintstone's Keyboard Fun. Currently with Disney, working on animated feature films.

MR. SAM PALAHNUK

-- Sam has designed, produced and shipped more than 25 products, including the classic coin-op hit, Star Trek.

MR. BOB POLARO

-- Responsible for the Atari computer hit Lemonade Stand as well as such 2600 classics as Defender, RealSports Volleyball, Desert Falcon, Road Runner, Rampage and Sprintmaster.

MR. KEITH ROBINSON

-- Intellivision programmer while at Mattel Electronics and designer of TRON Solar Sailer for the system. Co-founder of Intellivision Productions, makers of "Intellivision Lives!," a CD-ROM compilation of the original games for play on the PC and Mac.

MR. STEPHEN RONEY

-- Co-designed and co-programmed the Intellivoice games Space Spartans, B-17 Bomber and Space Shuttle, designed and programmed the unreleased Intellivision game Hypnotic Lights and programmed the conversion of the Intellivision game Utopia to the Aquarius Home Computer System.

MR. ED ROTBERG

-- Best known for his work with both Atari and Sente's coin-op division, he designed Atari Baseball and Battlezone during his first stint with Atari, then Snake Pit, Goalie Ghost, and Hat Trick with Sente. He later returned to Atari to design S.T.U.N. Runner and Blasteroids and co-design Steel Talons with Ed Logg.

MR. MIKE ROUNDS

MR. OWEN RUBIN

-- The third programmer hired at Atari, where he worked for almost 9 years. Developed some of Atari's early arcade hits like Sky Diver and Human Cannonball, which were later ported to (and popularized on) the Atari VCS console. He was also heavily involved with Atari's vector games Space Duel, Major Havoc, and Tunnel Hunt.

MR. JOHN SKRUCH

MR. TOM SLOPER

-- A dedicated video game enthusiast, Sloper joined Activision in 1988 as a video game producer. He has since left his mark on numerous titles, including Alien vs. Predator for the SNES and Game Boy, Mechwarrior for the SNES, Blast Chamber for the PlayStation, Shanghai II: Dragon's Eye for many systems, Sargon V, Shanghai: Great Moments, Shanghai: Dynasty, and Leather Goddesses of Phobos II for personal computers, Radical Rex for the SNES and Sega Genesis, and the NES Ghostbusters series.

MR. JAY SMITH

-- A true gaming visionary, In 1979, Jay designed Milton Bradley's Microvision, which was the world's first handheld system to use cartridges. Three years later, his design for the Vectrex, the first vector-based game console was launched by CGE.

MR. JOHN SOHL

-- Designer of the Intellivision classic Astrosmash and was the lead designer on B-17 Bomber. He also worked on C-64 versions of Mind Pursuit and 221-B Baker Street for Data East and as a consultant for Mattel on their Power Glove input device for the NES.

MR. BRAD STEWART

-- Programmed the incredible Asteroids and Breakout games for the Atari 2600 VCS, Atari's Music Composer cartridge for the 8-bit line of computers, and Firefighter while with Imagic.

MR. DAVE WARHOL

-- Designed and programmed Mind Strike for the Intellivision Entertainment Computer System, programmed the Intellivision game Thunder Castle, supervised the Intellivision version of Bump 'N' Jump, and, as founder and president of Realtime Associates, produced all of the original Intellivision releases for INTV Corporation. On top of all that, he contributed sound effects and music to over two dozen Intellivision games.

MR. HOWARD SCOTT WARSHAW

-- Howard Scott Warshaw came to Silicon Valley in 1979, where after a brief stint as a network designer for Hewlett Packard, shifted his career focus entirely and joined Atari. There he produced Yar's Revenge (Atari's biggest selling original game), Raiders of the Lost Ark and E.T., the game that New Media magazine described as having toppled a billion dollar industry.

MR. BILL WENTWORTH

-- Although Bill doesn't like to brag about his skills, he is a true graphics genius. Bill has almost 20 years of experience in the graphic design field and has inked some of the best game covers around including numerous titles for Absolute Entertainment. He is currently the Vice President of Creative Development at Skyworks Technologies.

MR. BOB WHITEHEAD

MR. STEVE WOITA

-- Designer of Atari 2600 classics Quadrun, Taz, and Asterix, Tengen's Super Sprint for the Nintendo Entertainment System, and Sonic 2, Kid Chameleon and Sonic Spinball for the Sega Genesis.

 

(Bios for some of the new guests are in the works. Stay tuned.)

[ApolloBoy]

Holy crap, look at all those guests! Now I'm definetly gonna be there!

[digitalpress]

We had a few more confirmed this week, perhaps you've heard of these guys.

 

MR. ROB FULOP

-- Designed Night Driver and Missile Command for Atari and in 1981 he co-founded Imagic, designing Billboard's 1982 Video Game of the Year Demon Attack and Cosmic Ark shortly thereafter. He was a catalyst for FMV interactive movies and engineered the design and production of both Sewer Shark and Night Trap. He is also well-known for his work with PF Magic, who has produced games like Ballz 3D, CATZ and DOGZ.

 

MR. JERRY LAWSON

-- Designer of the Fairchild Channel F and most of its software.

 

There is SO much more in the works, I'll pop in with highlights from time to time. A few more blockbuster guests, new game releases, and a complete line-up of arcade games, exhibitors, and museum attractions to follow.

 

Game ON.

[ubersaurus]

I'm hittin up CGE for sure, and I can't wait.

 

If I got the chance, I'd have to tell Rob Fulop about the time that the augers from night trap kidnapped my friend Jason, in what was a scene so hilarious I wish we coulda taped it.

[Trip_Cannon]

I've gone for the past two years and have loved every minute of it. Vegas was a huge push for me to go because I love Vegas. You know, whatever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas and all that crap... I had a great time.. except for the dead hooker incident.. but that had its charm as well..

 

Anyhoo, when I heard it was in San Jose I was like, WTF? What else is there to do in San Jose? Especially when I have nobody to hang out with afterward.. Now I'm not sure if I'm going or not.. not that anybody cares if I'm going or not..

 

What other reasons are there to go if the show is in San Jose. So far I've gathered that there are a few more guests and a bigger museum to look at but not touch... what else?

[cx2k]

What other reasons are there to go if the show is in San Jose. So far I've gathered that there are a  few more guests and a bigger museum to look at but not touch... what else?

 

Check here for a list of things to do in San Jose and the surrounding areas:

 

http://www.cgexpo.com/location.htm

 

Show-wise, there will be some new vendors including 4-Jays, Jakks Pacific, and others.

 

New games include several CD-I titles, Bristles for the Atari 5200, and others that the mfrs. have yet to announce.

 

We'll also have an actual swap room this year, not just an hour before the auction.

 

Stay tuned for more announcements as we get closer to the show...

 

John

[+Allan]

 

New games include several CD-I titles, Bristles for the Atari 5200, and others that the mfrs. have yet to announce.

 

 

Hey John,

Can you give us any info on who's doing the 5200 Bristles game? Is this a prototype find or a conversion?

 

Thanks,

Allan

[atarian1]

Anyhoo, when I heard it was in San Jose I was like, WTF? What else is there to do in San Jose?  

 

What other reasons are there to go if the show is in San Jose. So far I've gathered that there are a  few more guests and a bigger museum to look at but not touch... what else?

 

Yeah, many of the better known "tourist attractions" are around San Francisco. Maybe it's me being a local, but the "Other things to do" links in the CGE page, just don't look that interesting for tourists.

 

I went to San Jose State back in the late 90s, and Downtown was pretty dead. Boy was I bored on weekends there! It doesn't look like it's changed much.

 

Transportation is a big difference. In Vegas, there are so many cheap shuttles that take you to any hotel in the area. Not so here. Supershuttles and car rentals cost twice as much here. You could walk the Strip or downtown and take CAT public transit or other hotel shuttles between the Strip/Downtown. You didn't even need a car (as long as you stay in those two places). The San Jose VTA light rail is fine for travel between the airport and hotel (maybe Great America), but that's about it. It's mainly for commuters. Renting a car is pretty much a given in San Jose as all the attractions are so spread out.

 

I think having the show closer to San Francisco would have been better to attract the "let's turn the CGE trip into a vacation" people. To get there from San Jose takes 1 hour 40 minutes by Caltrain (the only public transit between the two cities). I don't know how many people have that patience. San Francisco is a very walkable city and well connected to public transit (like the LV Strip/Downtown). As a tourist, I would want to save the money spent on a rental car and $2.20/gal gas on more games!!!

 

The out-of-towners coming to CGE will probably be the hard-core gamers who won't turn this into a vacation, and/or gamers with deeper pockets willing to pay the extra cost of a rental car among other things.

[Trip_Cannon]

If 7800 Missing In Action makes its debut at CGE then I'm THERE! Otherwise I'm not so sure..

[jsoper]

I'll be there since I'm a local.

 

One thing I mentioned on DP once is that anyone who is madly in love with Vegas can still do a vacation there and simply fly up for the day. Two 1.5 hour flights, four quick cab rides and you're all set. And the cheapness of Vegas will even cover some of the cost.

 

And if you feel bad about spending too much money at the show, check out the local home prices, will cheer you right up

[digitalpress]

New games include several CD-I titles, Bristles for the Atari 5200, and others that the mfrs. have yet to announce.

 

Don't forget Good Deal Games has at least one new ColecoVision game and at least one new Sega CD game debuting at CGE.

 

Also we've got several newly unearthed (previously "Rumor Mill") Atari 2600 titles and at least one for Vectrex on display and playable.

 

I'm working on the T-Minus 30 list... we've got quite a line-up of goodies this year.

[DEBRO]

I'm working on the T-Minus 30 list... we've got quite a line-up of goodies this year.

I can't wait!!! Only 6 more days to go

[zmweasel]

Check out http://www.cgexpo.com/dvd.htm for more information, and to pre-order. Thanks!

 

-- Z.

[DEBRO]

Check out http://www.cgexpo.com/dvd.htm for more information' date=' and to pre-order. Thanks![/quote']

I guess this info is going to be T-MINUS 30 I will be signing up for that

[MegaManFan]

http://www.cgexpo.com/newprod.htm is still showing new products from 2003, even on day t-minus 30.