| The year was 1985. PC games were almost non | | | | you can use. The only graphics in the game, if |
| existent. The personal computer itself was in its | | | | you can call them graphics, occur whenever the |
| infant stages. The amount of memory you had in | | | | aftershocks hit. The screen shakes a bit.The |
| a PC was about 64K. PC games? Certainly there | | | | game, in spite of it being pretty bare bones, was |
| weren't any PC games back then even worth | | | | very hard. The number of puzzles you had to |
| playing, not with that kind of memory. Well, | | | | solve and items you had to get were numerous |
| actually there was. If you had yourself a Radio | | | | to say the least. Many times you would have to |
| Shack TRS 80, there was a game so popular that | | | | backtrack to a place you had been to before to |
| people who owned these computers couldn't stop | | | | pick up an item that only appears after you got |
| playing it. The game was called "San Francisco | | | | another item or another aftershock hits.For |
| Earthquake - 1906".The game was to take place | | | | example. There is one part of the game where |
| around the time of the great San Francisco | | | | you reach a pile of rubble. You search through it |
| earthquake of 1906. But the game itself was not | | | | but don't find anything. So you move on. Later on |
| really about the earthquake. Oh yes, it happens | | | | during the game, another aftershock hits. If you |
| during the game, which only makes things that | | | | think enough to go back to the pile of rubble, you |
| more difficult, but the main objective is to find | | | | will see that it had been disturbed and if you look |
| your wife who has been kidnapped.Played entirely | | | | closely enough you will now find an item that you |
| in text mode, no graphics, you awake to find a | | | | didn't see before.You had to really think outside |
| note by your bedside that your wife has been | | | | the box to play this game. There was no |
| kidnapped. You then receive a phone call with a | | | | instruction manual and no clue book. For those of |
| ransom demand. Suddenly there is a terrible | | | | you who are programmers, you can figure out |
| shaking and it hits. You're now in the middle of the | | | | where everything is. The game was written in a |
| worst earthquake in San Francisco history and | | | | combination of BASIC and Assembler Language. |
| your wife has been kidnapped. What a way to | | | | By printing out the source and object files, if you |
| start the day.The game is played by issuing | | | | can read this stuff, you can figure out exactly the |
| commands to the computer such as look, get, | | | | order for every item you need to find and where |
| north, south, east, west (to move around) open, | | | | they are found.The game was a real challenge. |
| close, inventory and a number of other | | | | And while it didn't have all the bells and whistles of |
| commands. There is a very limited help function | | | | the modern day PC games, it was far from |
| that basically gives you the list of commands that | | | | boring. |