Dungeon Hacks: How NetHack, Angband, and Other Rougelikes Changed the Course of Video Games
In 1980, computers were instruments of science and mathematics, military secrets and academia. Stern administrators lorded over sterile university laboratories and stressed one point to the wide-eyed students privileged enough to set foot within them: Computers were not toys.

Defying authority, hackers seized control of monolithic mainframes to create a new breed of computer game: the roguelike, cryptic and tough-as-nails adventures drawn from text-based symbols instead of state-of-the-art 3D graphics.

Despite their visual simplicity, roguelike games captivate thousands of players around the world. From the author of the bestselling Stay Awhile and Listen series, Dungeon Hacks: How NetHack, Angband, and Other Roguelikes Changed the Course of Video Games introduces you to the visionaries behind some of the most popular roguelikes of all time and shows how their creations paved the way for the blockbuster videogames of today—and beyond.

1138872460
Dungeon Hacks: How NetHack, Angband, and Other Rougelikes Changed the Course of Video Games
In 1980, computers were instruments of science and mathematics, military secrets and academia. Stern administrators lorded over sterile university laboratories and stressed one point to the wide-eyed students privileged enough to set foot within them: Computers were not toys.

Defying authority, hackers seized control of monolithic mainframes to create a new breed of computer game: the roguelike, cryptic and tough-as-nails adventures drawn from text-based symbols instead of state-of-the-art 3D graphics.

Despite their visual simplicity, roguelike games captivate thousands of players around the world. From the author of the bestselling Stay Awhile and Listen series, Dungeon Hacks: How NetHack, Angband, and Other Roguelikes Changed the Course of Video Games introduces you to the visionaries behind some of the most popular roguelikes of all time and shows how their creations paved the way for the blockbuster videogames of today—and beyond.

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Dungeon Hacks: How NetHack, Angband, and Other Rougelikes Changed the Course of Video Games

Dungeon Hacks: How NetHack, Angband, and Other Rougelikes Changed the Course of Video Games

by David L. Craddock
Dungeon Hacks: How NetHack, Angband, and Other Rougelikes Changed the Course of Video Games
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Dungeon Hacks: How NetHack, Angband, and Other Rougelikes Changed the Course of Video Games

Dungeon Hacks: How NetHack, Angband, and Other Rougelikes Changed the Course of Video Games

by David L. Craddock

Overview

In 1980, computers were instruments of science and mathematics, military secrets and academia. Stern administrators lorded over sterile university laboratories and stressed one point to the wide-eyed students privileged enough to set foot within them: Computers were not toys.

Defying authority, hackers seized control of monolithic mainframes to create a new breed of computer game: the roguelike, cryptic and tough-as-nails adventures drawn from text-based symbols instead of state-of-the-art 3D graphics.

Despite their visual simplicity, roguelike games captivate thousands of players around the world. From the author of the bestselling Stay Awhile and Listen series, Dungeon Hacks: How NetHack, Angband, and Other Roguelikes Changed the Course of Video Games introduces you to the visionaries behind some of the most popular roguelikes of all time and shows how their creations paved the way for the blockbuster videogames of today—and beyond.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781032051543
Publisher: CRC Press
Publication date: 08/11/2021
Pages: 172
Product dimensions: 7.00(w) x 10.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

David L. Craddock writes fiction, nonfiction, and grocery lists. He is the author of over a dozen nonfiction books about videogame development and culture, including the bestselling Stay Awhile and Listen series, Arcade Perfect: How Pac-Man, Mortal Kombat, and Other Coin-Op Classics Invaded the Living Room, and fiction for young adults including The Dumpster Club and Heritage: Book One of the Gairden Chronicles. Find him online @davidlcraddock on Twitter.

Table of Contents

About This Book xi

Introduction: Rodney and Friends xiii

Acknowledgments xv

About the Author xvii

1 The BAM-Like: Exploring Beneath Apple Manor 1

Environmental Conditions 1

BAM 2

Going Commercial 5

Great-Grandfathers 6

Side Quests 7

All in the Family 7

Beyond BAM 7

R&D 8

Options 8

Roguelikes and BAM-Likes 8

Beneath Apple Archives 8

Lineage 9

Notes 9

2 Procedural Dungeons of Doom: Building Rogue, Part 1 11

A Thirst for Adventure 11

Curses and Cursors 13

Where Are You @? 15

Procedural Creativity 16

Forked 18

Side Quests 19

Make Your Own Adventure 19

New School 20

"@" Through the @ges 20

An "@" Named Rodney 20

Stages of Grief 20

Save Scumming 21

Notes 21

3 Rodney and the Free Market: Building Rogue, Part 2 23

Arbiters 23

Keepers of the Code 25

Widespread Distribution 26

Typewriters and Mainframes 27

Friendly Rivalry 28

Legacy 30

The Michael Toy 31

Side Quests 32

Like Father, Like Son 32

Tactics 33

Intellectual Property 33

A Bite of Forbidden Fruit 33

The Copy Protection Mafia 34

Inked 34

Black Magic 34

More Than a Pretty Face 34

Spice of Life 35

Notes 35

4 There and Back Again: Retrieving the Sword of Fargoal 37

Creative Encouragement 37

The Protectorate Sword 38

The Sword of Fargoal 41

Groundwork 43

Side Quests 44

All in the Family 44

PEEKing and POKEing 44

Automatic Convalescence 44

Lost in a Maze 45

Capulets and Montagues 45

Notes 46

5 When the Inmates Run the Asylum: Hack-mg at Lincoln-Sudbury High School 49

No Official Status 49

All Hands on Deck 50

The Computer Gang 52

Reinventing the Wheel 53

Community 54

Notes 56

6 It Takes a Village: Raising NetHack 57

Hack + 1 57

Traffic Jam 58

Curator 59

Teamwork 61

Cult of Personality 63

TDTTOE 64

Pioneers 66

Side Quests 67

Missing Data 67

Man's Best Friend 68

Notes 68

7 None Shall Pass: Braving the Mines of Moria 71

Side Quests 81

Koeneke's Early Games 81

Through the Curtain 81

The Lost Moria 5.0 82

Notes 82

8 Neapolitan Roguelike: The Many Flavors of Angband 83

Arcane Games 83

The Years of the Lamps 85

The Years of the Trees 87

Simulating Virtual Reality 90

The Years of the Sun 91

Test of Time 93

Side Quests 94

Assimilation 94

Deep, Dark Secrets 94

Farming 94

Feedback 94

Notes 95

9 Wish You Were Here! Questing for Postcards in Ancient Domains of Mystery 97

Decisions 97

Preparing to Climb 98

First Steps 99

Corruption and Quests 100

Magical Moments 102

Lapses 103

Crowd Support 105

Looking to the Future 107

Side Quests 108

Creator's Day 108

Notes 108

10 The Future of Play 109

Notes 115

Rogue's Gallery 117

Bonus Round: Reading, Writing, and Programming-An Interview with Brian Harvey 127

Bonus Round: Work and @Play-An Interview with John Harris 137

Index 145

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