RobotWar | |
---|---|
Publisher(s) | Muse Software |
Programmer(s) | Silas Warner |
Platform(s) | PLATO, Apple II |
Release | 1981 |
Genre(s) | Programming |
- The first store dedicated to Mac games with over ten years of customer satisfaction. Thousands of Mac games to choose from! Instantly download and play most games for sale.
- Free fun interactive maze puzzles, online problem solving activities, no download: Robot programming game online for kids (girls & boys) of elementary school age to middle/ high school students to play now at home/ in the school classroom with teacher. New brain-teaser games for PC, Mac desktop, laptop, notebook.
Elementary Schools Robots at the elementary level can involve design and construction, basic circuitry and even basic programming. Investing in a good robotic kit means exposing your child to mechanical design, electronics and more and is a great investment in their learning and creative process.
RobotWar is a programming game written by Silas Warner. This game, along with the companion program RobotWrite, was originally developed in the TUTOR programming language on the PLATO system in the 1970s. Later the game was commercialized and adapted for the Apple II family of computers and published by Muse Software in 1981. The premise is that in the distant future of 2002, war was declared hazardous to human health, and now countries settled their differences in a battle arena full of combat robots. As the manual states, 'The task set before you is: to program a robot, that no other robot can destroy!'[1]
The main activity of the game is to write a computer program that operates a (simulated) robot. The player selects multiple robots which do battle in an arena until only one is left standing. The robots do not have direct knowledge of the location or velocity of any of the other robots; they only use radar pulses to deduce distance, and perhaps use clever programming techniques to deduce velocity. There is no way for the player to actually take part in the battle.
Robot programming[edit]
The robots' language is similar to BASIC. There are 34 registers that can be used as variables or for the robots' I/O functions. An example program from the game manual is:
The robot with this program sweeps its radar in a circle, firing off radar pulses, and when it detects another robot, fires a projectile set to explode at the correct distance as estimated by the radar pulse. This particular robot stands still throughout the entire battle, as it never assigns any number to its movement registers.
Reception[edit]
Harry White reviewed RobotWar in The Space Gamer No. 45.[2] White commented that 'RobotWar is worth [...] the price. And if you don't have an Apple, but do own some other brand of personal computer, just wait - there'll be a similar game for you soon. It has to happen.'[2]
In its first issue Computer Gaming World praised RobotWar's language as easy to learn,[3] and for several years hosted contests for robot programs.[4] In 1996 the magazine named it the 85th best game ever.[5]BYTE also praised Battle Language and its potential for teaching programming, as well as the sophisticated editor and debugger, but noted that the language's slow performance caused robots to sometimes behave in unexpected ways.[6]
See also[edit]
- Color Robot Battle is a similar game for the TRS-80 Color Computer released in the same year.
- RoboWar is a similar game that was released later on the Macintosh.
- Crobots uses a simplified version of the 'C' programming language to program the robots.
- MindRover is a 2000 implementation of concepts taken from RobotWar and Robot Odyssey.
References[edit]
- ^RobotWar, Baltimore, MD: MUSE SOFTWARE, Inc., 1981, p. 1
- ^ abWhite, Harry (November 1981). 'Featured Review: RobotWar'. The Space Gamer. Steve Jackson Games (45): 4.
- ^Edmunds, William (November–December 1981), 'RobotWar: A wargame for all programmers', Computer Gaming World, pp. 13–17
- ^Brooks, M. Evan (May 1994). 'Never Trust A Gazfluvian Flingschnogger!'. Computer Gaming World. pp. 42–58.
- ^'150 Best Games of All Time'. Computer Gaming World. November 1996. pp. 64–80. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
- ^Feigel, Craig (December 1981). 'Robotwar'. BYTE. p. 24. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
External links[edit]
- RobotWar can be played for free in the browser at the Internet Archive
- StoreBrowse Genres
- Specials
- Support
- 0
- Your cart is empty!
- Buy with confidence. All products on MacGameStore are authorized for sale by publishers. No gray-market worries here!
- Now availableViking Heroes CE
- Now availableDark City: Vienna CE
- Now availableLegendary Mosaics: the Dwarf and the Terrible Cat
- Now availableGrim Tales: Guest From The Future CE
- Now available12 Labours of Hercules X: Greed for Speed CE
- Now availableImperator: Rome - Magna Graecia Content Pack
- Now availableStellaris: Federations
Would you like to view prices in estimated EUR? (actual charges are made in USD) | Yes |