Reminiscence Commodore 64

It was 1986 and I was 9 years old, when I got my first computer, a Commodore 64. Back then I was too young to understand the revolution taking place, that is the democratization of the personal computer. For me it was a toy, putting colorful, animated pixels on the TV-screen. With their low resolution and rude pixels these games left plenty of room for imagination and completion.
Looking back I am still fascinated and amused by these pioneering software developments, which established the age of computer games.

Lucasfilm Games

My very special appreciation goes to Lucasfilm Games, the company of George Lucas. Their famous games „Zak McKraken and the Alien Mindbenders“ and „Maniac Mansion“ were more than just a challenge of speed and skill. These games opened up the living room to a world of adventure. With their fantastic stories and funny characters, these were more than just an one-time entertainment. Looking back, I think I must have been playing Zak McKraken for years, and never made it to the end. But always coming back to that game, finding new ways and answers. Don’t forget, it was the time before the internet. There were no forums or playthrough instructions available at that time. All the hints you had, you got from the kids living nearby you.

Zak McKraken and the Alien Mindbenders

„In Zak McKraken you are playing a reporter, who is finding out, that aliens are trying to take over the world and zombify humankind. And how do the aliens try to achieve that? They use a telephone company to make humans stupid through telephones. One has to admit, these games had some foresight, even in their storylines. „

The Crackers

And that was not the only thing you got from the kids living in the neighborhood. We were also sharing the games. Back then it was common, that computer games were copied and shared. For this to be possible, the copy protection of the games had to be removed. This was the job of the Crackers, the nerds of the time, which had a deeper understanding of the programs that allowed me to move the pixels on the tv-screen with my joystick. These Crackers didn’t try to stay anonymous, but rather immortalized themselves in crazy screen animations, at the beginning of the games this cracked. An attempt to get famous in the proliferating anarchic scene, which was connected to the personal computer from the very beginning.

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