Page 19 - OSG Presents Classic Gamer Magazine #3

By Kyle Snyder

CGM: What is your back-
ground in programming,
and had you programmed
any other games before Indenture?
Craig Pell, aside from being an CP: Originally it was going to be
avid classic gamer and collector, is called Adventure. In fact, I have CP: It goes all the way back to the
also known for programming an conditional directives so that I first time I used an Apple in third
amazing port of the Atari 2600 car- could recompile it with the title grade. It was around sixth grade
tridge, Adventure, in assembly, en- screen saying Adventure instead of when I made games - in Basic, of
titled “Indenture.” In his words, In- Indenture. The reason for the name course - and it wasn't long before I
denture will work on: "any PC from change has to do with the round- discovered Basic wasn't fast
the lowliest 8088 to a Pentium III." I about treatment I got from Atari enough to do anything decent. So I
recently spoke with Craig regarding Corp. After over a year of negotia- learned assembly. In 1990 I pro-
Indenture. tion with them, I was rapidly losing grammed Tetris in C; not because
patience. Indenture seemed appro- it was a challenge, but it was a
CGM: Why Adventure in particu- priately sarcastic. good way to teach myself C.
lar? Why not begin with something I've done a few others: in junior
simpler, such as Combat? CGM: Have you heard anything high I wrote a vaguely Space In-
from Adventure programmer, War- vaders-ish game for the Tandy
CP: Adventure was the game I ren Robinett, concerning Inden- CoCo in Basic, which I actually
wanted more of. Combat is fun, but ture? sold to a few students who really
you don't play it and think "Oh Man! liked it. I fooled around with a Ro-
If only there were FIVE planes at a CP: Not directly. I heard he had botron-like game in high school
time!" When I played Adventure, seen the game and found the extra and later, a somewhat Scramble-
there were specific points where I rooms rather tedious. I must admit, like game. The Scramble-like game
was hoping for more. For example, I added a tremendous amount of turned out to be too complex, but a
using the dot at the line barrier them, which changed the feel of few years later, I started all over
near the white castle to see the game on a basic level. again in assembly, and got it about
if there's anything beyond it. 80% finished. While I was working
CGM: What is your favorite classic on that, a guy named Tim
CGM: I've heard that you created system to collect games for? Sweeney, in the computer lab at
additional levels than the Atari de- the University of Maryland, hap-
signed three. How are these levels CP: Definitely the Atari 2600. pened to notice it on the screen.
different from the original three? Probably because I had one back He was there working on a game
in "the day." too; it was called Jill of the Jungle.
CP: Well, it's just one level, in the Needless to say, we got to talking,
sense that game two and game CGM: How about to program for? and it looked like I was going to be
three are one level. Game two and a part of the then fledgling Epic
game three contain 31 rooms. CP: I've never programmed any Megagames. We turned out to
Game 4 and game 5, which I classic system, except for the have some creative differences,
added, contain 300-plus rooms, but Tandy Color Computer. I know and I decided to go my own way.
the original 31 rooms are present in 6502 assembly, and I've given
exactly the same configuration. thought to programming the CGM: Are you working on any
There are some additional objects 2600 several times, but I never had other games now?
too. One is an object which lets you the hardware to do it. And now that
temporarily neutralize the bat. there are emulators available, and I CP: No, but I do have a few that I
don't need special hardware, I find would like to do, if I ever have the
CGM: How long did Indenture take that I don't have the time. time. Being out of college and hav-
to program? ing a job makes it difficult.
CGM: And to play?
CP: Two or three years, off and on. Indenture can be downloaded at:
CP: I'm not sure I have a favorite. http://softwarezone.com/
CGM: Why did you name it Inden- The 2600 obviously has a bunch of noframes/game65.html
ture, rather than using its original great games, but Colecovision and
title? Intellivision games tend to have
more depth.

Classic Gamer Magazine Spring 2000 19