This Old Gamer: Tetris, Glider, Bolo, oh my!

By Joey Cooper 

Since there have been computers, there have been computer games. In fact, games like Pong actually led us to our current technology industry (as strange as that sounds!). There have been computer games for the Mac since the beginning (*who can tell me what the first Mac game was?*). Early on, the computer game business wasn't as well-funded as it is now, and most developers were simply hobbyists. That meant most games were shareware or freeware, distributed via bulletin board systems and floppy disks.

Instead of just rehashing the many games I remember from the history of Mac games, I'm gonna take a different approach in this series about Old Games. I'm actually going to tell about the old games I have installed on my iMac RIGHT-NOW! That's right: I actually own quite a few games, but the ones I play tend to be ones from the late '80s!

One of my family's favorite games of all time is Tetris, like just about everyone else in the world. Anyway, I have a black and white version of the game on my iMac that we used to play on our SE 30 (although I believe it works on an original Mac). Everyone knows what Tetris is, so no explanation is needed, other than it is one heck of an addicting game! I play it almost daily. (I also own a least one newer Tetris rip-off game, but it's not nearly as fun!)

Another game from that's not as old is Glider. I currently have Glider Pro installed on my iMac, and I'm afraid most of my brothers and sisters are addicted to the game, which is many ways is very bad for my writing productivity. (You can just imagine it: "But I WANT ON THE COMPUTER!!! You've been playing Glider for TWO Hours! Mom, make him get off...") Glider Pro isn't exactly the most addicting game of all time; it's fun, but Tetris beats it out is pure mindless playing. The great thing about this game by john calhoun is that it includes a easy to use "Room Editor" to create your own houses to fly your airplane through. I guess I'm just one of those people who loves to create things (be it houses for paper airplanes, websites, page layout, etc.). Glider Pro is the sequel to the popular Glider game, which is practically the same game except some additional features (but the concept is the same).

Another neat game action game which doesn't require a computer capable of displaying the most complex graphics is Bolo, a game most of you will probably be familiar with. The idea of the game is to play against friends over the Internet or LAN, driving a tank around an island. You can build roads, barriers, gun turrets, or harvest trees, all in an effort to destroy your opponents. I have this game installed on my iMac, and although I don't play it much, occasionally playing with my brothers is a good way to relieve stress (or sometimes create more stress!).

There are many other older games that I play from time to time, which I'll probably cover in a future article. Now I want to hear from you: are there one or more Mac games that are very old but you just can't stand to part with? Send your stories in and we might future you in an upcoming article about old Mac games.

Joey Cooper doesn't have time for Myth, Command & Conquer, or Starcraft anymore.

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