The Golden Age of Computer Gaming

Chapter 4: When Games Got Real

← Previous: Chapter 3 | [Series: Chapter 4 of 12] | Next: Chapter 5 →]

When Games Got Real

THE ESSENTIAL TRUTH

Somewhere between play and reality, a new kind of game emerged. Not about high scores or victory conditions, but about the joy of creation, the thrill of mastery, the satisfaction of watching systems grow.

THE PERFECT CITY

Will Wright had spent his childhood in the 1960s fascinated by model trains, creating intricate model cities and designing systems that his imaginary citizens would use to live their lives through transit, power, and roadway networks. As he grew older, Wright's fascination with city modeling and urban planning only grew stronger, influenced by policy manifestos like Jane Jacobs' "The Death and Life of Great American Cities" which introduced concepts of community-oriented design, mixed-use development, and city revitalization efforts.

In 1984, while working on the game Raid on Bungeling Bay, Wright found that he had more fun creating the islands with his level editor than he had actually playing the game. He created a new game based on this idea that would later evolve into SimCity, but he had trouble finding a publisher. The game was unusual in that it could neither be won nor lost, and as a result, game publishers did not believe it was possible to market and sell such a game successfully.

FROM THE PLANNING OFFICE

Wright spent four years trying to find a publisher for his city simulation game. Many major publishers, including Brøderbund, were scared off by the innovative gameplay of SimCity and declined to publish the title when Wright proposed it. The first version of the game was developed for the Commodore 64 in 1985, with the original working title "Micropolis." Publishers couldn't understand a game with no winning conditions, no enemies to defeat, no princess to rescue.

In 1986, Wright met Jeff Braun, an investor interested in entering the computer game industry, at what Wright calls "the world's most important pizza party." Together they formed Maxis the following year in Orinda, California. Finally, Braun, founder of the tiny software company Maxis, agreed to publish SimCity as one of two initial games for the company.

TECHNICAL MASTERY

The structuralist dynamics of SimCity were in part inspired by the work of two architectural and urban theorists, Christopher Alexander and Jay Wright Forrester. Wright was influenced by Christopher Alexander's book "A Pattern Language," which formalized spatial relationships into a grammar for design, and by Jay Forrester's "Urban Dynamics," which laid the foundations for what would become SimCity's systems thinking approach.

Wright later explained that he was interested in the process and strategies for design, wanting to work toward a grammar for complex systems and present someone with tools for designing complex things. The game reflected Wright's approval of mass transit and disapproval of nuclear power, with Maxis president Jeff Braun stating that "We're pushing political agendas."

THE DESIGNER SPEAKS

Wright and Braun returned to Brøderbund to formally clear the rights to the game in 1988, when SimCity was near completion. After Brøderbund executives Gary Carlston and Don Daglow saw SimCity, they signed Maxis to a distribution deal for both of its initial games. With that, four years after initial development, SimCity was released for the Amiga and Macintosh platforms in 1988, followed by the IBM PC and Commodore 64 in 1989.

For Wright, games were a way of helping people create "mental models" for understanding parts of the world. The team at Maxis would research a topic like urban dynamics and create a game where players could experiment with those ideas. The goal wasn't to teach anything directly, but rather to help the player get the model of SimCity in their head, so that playing this game could help them understand how the different systems within a city interact.

THE PERFECT NETWORK

SimCity was critically acclaimed and received significant recognition within a year after its initial release. By December 1990, the game had won numerous awards including Best Entertainment Program 1989, Best Educational Program 1989, Best Simulation Program 1989, and Game of the Year 1989 from Computer Gaming World. SimCity was a hit and has been credited as one of the most influential computer games ever made, earning Wright widespread recognition in computer magazines.

The subsequent success of SimCity spawned an entire genre of simulation games. Will Wright and Maxis developed myriad titles including SimEarth, SimFarm, SimTown, Streets of SimCity, SimCopter, SimAnt, SimLife, SimIsle, SimTower, SimPark, SimSafari, and The Sims, as well as SimsVille and SimMars, which were never released. They also obtained licenses for some titles developed in Japan, such as SimTower and Let's Take The A-Train.

TOUCHING THE SKY

When Microsoft Flight Simulator appeared in 1982, it did something unprecedented: it took simulation beyond game and into reality. But its origins stretched back even further, to 1976, when Bruce Artwick wrote his master's thesis on a flight simulator he'd designed to run on Digital Equipment Corp.'s PDP-11 minicomputer.

Bruce Artwick studied electrical engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, yet he found time to pursue a dream many teenagers think about but few fulfill: he learned to fly. It was at the university's flight-instruction program that he met Stu Moment, who would later become his business partner. Microsoft Flight Simulator began as a set of articles on computer graphics, written by Bruce Artwick throughout 1976, about flight simulation using 3D graphics.

THE PERFECT FLIGHT

When the editor of the magazine told Artwick that subscribers were interested in purchasing such a program, Artwick founded Sublogic Corporation in 1977 to commercialize his ideas. At first the new company sold flight simulators through mail order, beginning with systems for 8080 computers such as the Altair 8800 and IMSAI 8080. In 1979, Sublogic released FS1 Flight Simulator for the Apple II, followed by a version for the TRS-80 in 1980.

Around 1981, Microsoft contacted Bruce Artwick of Sublogic to develop a new flight simulator for IBM compatible PCs. This version was released in November 1982 as Microsoft Flight Simulator. It featured an improved graphics engine, variable weather and time of day, and a new coordinate system that would be used by all subsequent versions up to version 5. Advertisements claimed "If flying your IBM PC got any more realistic, you'd need a license," and promised "a full-color, out-the-window flight display."

BEYOND THE GAME

In the early days of less-than-100% IBM PC compatible systems, Flight Simulator and Lotus 1-2-3 were used as unofficial compatibility test software for new PC clone models. If a computer could run Microsoft Flight Simulator and Lotus 1-2-3, it was considered 100% IBM PC-compatible. This wasn't just a testament to the software's technical demands, but to its accuracy and precision.

Real pilots used Flight Simulator for training, aviation enthusiasts learned actual navigation procedures, and flight schools incorporated it into their curricula. The line between game and simulation had disappeared completely. Every instrument reading, every weather effect, every flight response had to be perfect because real pilots were depending on it for training purposes.

THE TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT

Bruce Artwick left Sublogic in 1988 to form BAO Ltd. (Bruce Artwick Organization), retaining the copyright to Flight Simulator, which they continued to develop. BAO started with six employees and grew to over 30 by 1995, expanding beyond entertainment to include flight simulator products for the Federal Aviation Administration. BAO produced aviation-related software for tower control simulation to train air traffic controllers, proving that the technology had transcended entertainment to become a serious training tool.

Microsoft recognized the value of Artwick's work and acquired BAO and the copyright to Flight Simulator in January 1995. The acquisition brought the development team to Microsoft's Redmond campus, where Flight Simulator continued to evolve as both entertainment and professional training software.

THE PERFECT BALANCE

Flight Simulator didn't just simulate flying; it created pilots. The software demanded understanding of real aviation principles, proper radio communication procedures, navigation techniques, and emergency protocols. Players weren't scoring points; they were learning skills that could transfer directly to real aircraft. The entertainment had become education, and education had become indistinguishable from reality.

The success of Flight Simulator proved that simulation games could serve multiple purposes simultaneously. They could entertain while educating, challenge while teaching, and engage while training. Most importantly, they demonstrated that reality, when properly modeled, could be as compelling as any fantasy.

THE SIMULATION LEGACY

By the end of the 1980s, simulation games had proved something profound about the potential of computer entertainment. SimCity showed that players would embrace open-ended creativity over traditional win/lose scenarios. Flight Simulator demonstrated that absolute realism could coexist with engaging gameplay. Together, they established that the most compelling virtual worlds were often those that mirrored, enhanced, or let players experiment with reality.

These games succeeded because they trusted players' intelligence and curiosity. Instead of providing simple challenges to overcome, they offered complex systems to understand. Rather than scripted experiences to consume, they created tools for exploration and discovery. They proved that the best games didn't just entertain players; they empowered them to become creators, planners, pilots, and architects of their own experiences.

THE LASTING IMPACT

The influence of these pioneering simulation games extends far beyond entertainment. Urban planning departments began using SimCity-like tools for public demonstrations and education. Flight training schools incorporated sophisticated simulators into their standard curricula. The boundary between game and professional tool had blurred beyond recognition.

More importantly, these games changed how people thought about computer software itself. They demonstrated that computers could be more than calculation machines or word processors; they could be laboratories for experimentation, workshops for creativity, and windows into complex systems. The personal computer had become a tool for understanding and shaping reality, not just processing information about it.

THE PERFECT TRUTH

These simulation games proved that the real world, with all its complex systems and interactions, provided endless possibilities for play. They showed that learning and entertainment weren't opposing forces but complementary aspects of human engagement. Most importantly, they demonstrated that the most powerful games weren't escapes from reality but new ways of understanding and interacting with it.

The golden age of simulation gaming had established principles that would influence software development for decades to come. Reality could be engaging. Complexity could be accessible. Learning could be fun. And players, given the right tools, would become teachers, students, and explorers all at once. The foundation was laid for a future where the distinction between game and simulation, between entertainment and education, would become increasingly meaningless.