Those of you who were not playing video games on your Tandy 1000TXes in the mid-1980s may not have recognized the name of the game Max Sterling's playing on his Valkyrie's VDU when we first see him in issue 4 of Rogue Squadron. You might even have thought it was just some made-up in-universe thing.

Well, no. It's Thexder.

It's in the ROMs of every Valkyrie command system computer ever manufactured. You just have to know where to look in the diagnostic sub-menus.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

Loved that game, and was rather tickled when I saw it referenced. The fact that it's embedded in all the ROMs is even better. One question - did Stonewell-Bellcom officially license it, or is it a pirate copy? :)

Offsides

[...] in order to be a realist you must believe in miracles.
-- David Ben Gurion
EPU RCW #π
#include <stdsig.h>

>Loved that game, and was rather tickled when I saw it referenced. The
>fact that it's embedded in all the ROMs is even better. One question
>- did Stonewell-Bellcom officially license it, or is it a pirate copy?
>:)

It started out as a pirate rip (from Gryphon's own 3.5" diskette copy, which is why the Valkyrie ROM Thexder is still, in the 25th century, the Tandy 1000 version). After Contact, when the WDF's legal relationship with Earth was normalized, Stonewell was able to license it retroactively. By the 25th century, of course, it's long since in the public domain.

--G.
If you dig even deeper in the diagnostic menus, long-standing rumor has it you'll find Fire Hawk: Thexder the 2nd Contact and Silpheed as well.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

I've still never beaten Firehawk - I once got up to the robotic snake security system boss, but never got beyond that. I may have to dig it up again. Second-hardest game I had on my 286 behind Stargoose.

>By the 25th century, of course, it's long since in the public domain.
So copyright hasn't been made to last just long enough to keep Mickey in Disney's hands in UF. Good to know.

>Those of you who were not playing video games on your Tandy 1000TXes
>in the mid-1980s may not have recognized the name of the game Max
>Sterling's playing on his Valkyrie's VDU when we first see him in
>issue 4 of Rogue Squadron.

Actually, it was vaguely familiar to me in spite of never owning a Tandy; I used to play it on Tuesday nights, when my parents took me to the bowling alley. My brother was better at it than I was, though.

Peter Eng
--
Insert humorous comment here.

I had a copy on computer when I was a kid, thanks to my dad being a techno-nut, well for the 80s. I don't think I ever got past level 3.

Ah, the good old days of computer games, when the devs didn't pander to the masses, and when the game kicked your butt and you liked it.

Of course, I think they remade this, but I don't think it came out in the US, at least not in a big way.