Is Laser Gates really Inner Space?

[SpaceDice2010]

As the title says.

[Nukey Shay]

Hmm...

 

Laser Gates ©1983 Imagic

Innerspace (Warner Bros, 1987)

 

What was the question again?

[SpaceDice2010]

Oh... VentureVision announced three games. Rescue Terra 1, and two others. Laser Gates was programmed by Dan Oliver (I believe) as was Rescue Terra 1. Laser Gates appears to be the second game in the trilogy. The working title of game #2 at VentureVision was Inner Space (I believe). Now, if a homebrew designer really wanted to have fun they could create the third game in the series if Laser Gates is in fact Inner Space. It really looks like it is.

[Rom Hunter]

Oh... VentureVision announced three games. Rescue Terra 1, and two others. Laser Gates was programmed by Dan Oliver (I believe) as was Rescue Terra 1. Laser Gates appears to be the second game in the trilogy. The working title of game #2 at VentureVision was Inner Space (I believe). Now, if a homebrew designer really wanted to have fun they could create the third game in the series if Laser Gates is in fact Inner Space.

http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-2600-vcs-solar-defense_20277.html

 

[Zwackery]

What was the question again?

Who in the world is this SpaceDice2010 person?

[SpaceDice2010]

lol. I am a collector that was a lurker for the longest time. I grew up with these video games. In the past year I have been really interested in the history of video game companies. In fact, so much so, that I have been reading through bankruptcy filings of many of the companies as well as finding articles and interviews.

 

For full disclosure, I own a web development firm and as a "hobby" I am working on a tube site just for retro gamers as well as a blog.

 

Sorry if I have come off the wrong way. I am just very curious about the history of games. So much so, that it is more fun to me to try and understand what happened to a company and it's games than it is to pop in Mega Mania and play it.

 

The reason my name is SpaceDice2010 is I like MegaMania so much and SpaceDice was already taken. I am really a nice guy. I may just ask a lot of questions.

Edited September 24, 2010 by SpaceDice2010

[SpaceDice2010]

Oh... VentureVision announced three games. Rescue Terra 1, and two others. Laser Gates was programmed by Dan Oliver (I believe) as was Rescue Terra 1. Laser Gates appears to be the second game in the trilogy. The working title of game #2 at VentureVision was Inner Space (I believe). Now, if a homebrew designer really wanted to have fun they could create the third game in the series if Laser Gates is in fact Inner Space.

http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-2600-vcs-solar-defense_20277.html

 

 

So basically Dan Oliver was a programmer at Apollo who left and programmed Recue Terra 1 for VentureVision as well as Inner Space and Solar Defense. It appears that Imagic picked up Inner Space and re-named it Laser Gates. Solar Defense was probably never finished?

 

Here is a screen shot from an article in the Apr 83 VideoGaming Illustrated.

[Nukey Shay]

Is there proof that any work at all was done for Solar Defense (the third game announced for the series)? The screenshot could be a mockup.

 

As far as renaming the second game to Laser Gates goes, there was no reason to keep the original name if no plans were made to continue the series (and help disassociate it from a game released by another company).

[SpaceDice2010]

The image here

http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-2600-vcs-solar-defense_20277.html

 

Doesn't look like a mockup at all. I don't know much about Tilt magazine at all. 2600 Connection did an interview with Dan Oliver. I sure would love to read that. I see that you can order back issues of that magazine. Has anyone ever done that?

[Nukey Shay]

Proof = prototype, programmer/producer quote, etc. It's not difficult to create a mockup resembling a screenshot (and a fuzzy one at that). Some here create convincing "screenshots" without any programming expertise at all.

 

That might make a fun game...a mockup among actual games/protos' screenshots. Your task...spot the phoney

[SpaceDice2010]

I agree. That is why I would really love to read the interview that was done in 2600 Connection.

[Rom Hunter]

I agree. That is why I would really love to read the interview that was done in 2600 Connection.

That screenshot from Tilt is 100% real, not a mockup.

 

It's from 1983 and you can clearly see the interference.

 

[A.J. Franzman]

Here is a screen shot from an article in the Apr 83 VideoGaming Illustrated.

Thanks for that scan -- Inner Space looks just like Laser Gates to me.

[SpaceDice2010]

Inner Space is Laser Gates. Just play both of them and do the math, I also believe that work was done on Solar Defense as well. That is why I would love to read that 2600 Connection article. The next job that Dan Oliver did was a prototype for Atari on the 5200. Dan was a decent programmer.

[CRV]

The next job that Dan Oliver did was a prototype for Atari on the 5200.

 

Do you mean Telepathy for the 2600 or something else?

 

Issue 10 of Arcade Express reported that Robert Weatherby (who did some games for VSS [2600 Chuck Norris], later worked for Atari Games [super Sprint, RoadBlasters], and later started Mesa Logic [Area 51, Maximum Force]) was working on two games (Inner Space and Solar Defense, I assume) with Oliver.

Edited September 25, 2010 by CRV

[A.J. Franzman]

Inner Space is Laser Gates. Just play both of them and do the math

[emphasis added]

 

Sure, if you'll tell me where to get the VentureVision VCS binary of Inner Space...

Edited September 26, 2010 by A.J. Franzman

[Nukey Shay]

OP may have meant Rescue Terra 1 + Laser Gates.

 

"Do the math" has me puzzled in that case, tho...because RT1 isn't all that similar to LG, and he was the one that posed the question of whether LG was the real sequel to begin with.

 

Thread's getting difficult to follow.

[SpaceDice2010]

When I said I do the math, I meant read what VentureVision described Inner space as and compare it to Lser Gates. It also appears that Dan Oliver improved the Shields, Energy etc part of the game for Laser Gates. (Which appears to be Inner Space).

 

And atarihg actually says that it is InnerSpace.

"Laser Gates had the same exact graphics and play as Inner Space, a game programmed by Dan Oliver and previewed by VentureVision at the Las Vegas CES in January of 1983. Apparently, Imagic bought the rights to the game shortly after VentureVision went out of business. "

http://www.atarihq.com/2678/3party/imagic.html

[SpaceDice2010]

The next job that Dan Oliver did was a prototype for Atari on the 5200.

 

Do you mean Telepathy for the 2600 or something else?

 

 

Yes. And he also worked on Final Legacy for the 5200. Interesting that the rom exists for Telepathy.

[MagMax667]

 

 

Here is a screen shot from an article in the Apr 83 VideoGaming Illustrated.

 

Very interesting article. The screenshot at the bottom of Inner Space is clearly an early version of Laser Gates.

 

The article mentions several other games VentureVision was working on, which were to be released in pairs. The first pair (Inner Space and Solar Defense) were going to be released in April of that year, while three more pairs of games were going to be announced in June, September, and November. I'd love to find out more information on these missing games.

[Rom Hunter]

The screenshot at the bottom of Inner Space is clearly an early version of Laser Gates.

How's that?

 

Edited September 27, 2010 by Rom Hunter

[SpaceDice2010]

The weird part about these three games is the order in which they were released. Inner Space (aka Laser Gates) was released before Solar Defense. But, your goal in Inner Space is to destroy the computer that controls Tera 1.

 

Btw, Dan Oliver was an amazing programmer. Take a look at Telepathy and Final Legacy. Amazing games.

[DanOliver]

I ran into this old thread while cruising and saw some of the posters were still active so thought I'd provide what info I could.

 

Dan was a decent programmer.

What hurts the most is "was". Like the first time someone called me "sir" or the first time a rain drop passed unobstructed to hit my scalp.

[DanOliver]

Btw, Dan Oliver was an amazing programmer. Take a look at Telepathy and Final Legacy. Amazing games.

Finally, someone who is clearly an insightful judge of progamming ability. But sadly, "was"...

[+Random Terrain]

Time to make more Atari 2600 games and turn "was" into "is."