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Message: 3906

Author: andrewbroad

Date: 29/01/2004

Subject: Re: What makes MM/JSW so great?

 

andrewbroad wrote:

Why do I continue to play and edit MM/JSW to the exclusion of all
other games?

* I love their particular jumping platform style; it's very
therapeutic and addictive.

* I love the elegant game-mechanics, the pixel-precise nature of
the movement, the way you know exactly how far you can stand on
the edge of a platform, &c.

* I love discovering and exploiting quirky features (in general,
and in particular MM/JSW games).

* There's enough freedom in room-design to accommodate a very wide
range of subject-matter without the games seeming too "samey". I
don't think I'd get the same artistic freedom from any other game-
editor. I can't see this potential in my other favourite games.

* Once I start writing a MM/JSW room, it tends to flow naturally
from me. If my inspiration does sag, I always find my list of
quirky features a great tonic.

* The non-compressed room-formats enabled me to decipher them and
write my own editors. It feels great to be at the cutting edge.

* These games - and Spectrum computing in general - give me a
warm, nostalgic glow.

I forgot to mention one other important factor: that there exists a
vibrant MM/JSW community on the Internet, where we share each
other's games. I worked on MM/JSW in isolation in 1991-1994, lost
interest in 1995, and regained my passion when I discovered the
Spectrum-emulation scene and the first few unofficial MM/JSW sequels
in 1996. The `cyber-friends' that I've made through MM/JSW are the
best I've ever had.

--
Dr. Andrew Broad
http://www.geocities.com/andrewbroad/
http://www.geocities.com/andrewbroad/spectrum/
http://www.geocities.com/andrewbroad/spectrum/willy/

 

 

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