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What exactly about Bolo made it a good [network] game, in your experience/opinion?

by i336_ 11y ago

pmarreck 11y ago
To supplement what matheweis excellently related... Bolo vid 1 showing Windows version with some strategy action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5K0qTh-Vmk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5K0qTh-Vmk Bolo vid 2 showing loading it up on Mac and playing it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bz_gYZ5kMvc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bz_gYZ5kMvc There really (weirdly) has not been anything like it since. It was like the ultimate tank game with resource management and worldbuilding (like 2d Minecraft-like) elements
matheweis 11y ago
It was arguably one of the first (the first?) multiplayer RTS's in existence, so there's probably a significant nostalgia factor... but some of the points being - in order of significance. * In-game map changes. You could create your own walls, moats, mines, create rubble, etc. in game, so everything was very dynamic, especially once you had several players going. * (mostly) limited resources. Trees were required to build walls and boats, but there wasn't an unlimited number of them. Even after they were all used up, more would grow ( although if you had some around they would grow more often). Bullets/mines were also limited; you had to go back to base to refill, and you could also use up the base's resources if you were too aggressive. * Easy to learn/difficult to master. Bolo had just about the right balance for this. * Headless network play. No server was required (a matchup server existed, but not required); any particular player rage quitting didn't end the game for the rest. * Bug factor. Not quite sure how this phenomenon works, but like the bugs in the oddly popular Goat Simulator there were a few glitches in Bolo that you could take advantage of - without cheating - for a (slight) advantage. Not aware of any games in the last 30 years that have a similar balance.
- pmarreck 11y ago
  Thank you for putting to words what would have been difficult for me to communicate! I would have figured that something comparable/inspired by it would have come along by now
- i336_ 11y ago
  Thanks for the insight. I have a bit of a side project to find out what forgotten bits of computer history "got it right," if you will, for various contextually-defined definitions of "right," so I'll either be seeing if I can get AlphaTalk going in BasiliskII/SheepShaver (ahahaha...), or I know what I'll want to do if I ever come across a couple old Macs!

What exactly about Bolo made it a good [network] game, in your experience/opinion?

by i336_ 11y ago

What exactly about Bolo made it a good [network] game, in your experience/opinion?

To supplement what matheweis excellently related... Bolo vid 1 showing Windows version with some strategy action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5K0qTh-Vmk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5K0qTh-Vmk Bolo vid 2 showing loading it up on Mac and playing it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bz_gYZ5kMvc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bz_gYZ5kMvc There really (weirdly) has not been anything like it since. It was like the ultimate tank game with resource management and worldbuilding (like 2d Minecraft-like) elements

matheweis 11y ago

It was arguably one of the first (the first?) multiplayer RTS's in existence, so there's probably a significant nostalgia factor... but some of the points being - in order of significance. * In-game map changes. You could create your own walls, moats, mines, create rubble, etc. in game, so everything was very dynamic, especially once you had several players going. * (mostly) limited resources. Trees were required to build walls and boats, but there wasn't an unlimited number of them. Even after they were all used up, more would grow ( although if you had some around they would grow more often). Bullets/mines were also limited; you had to go back to base to refill, and you could also use up the base's resources if you were too aggressive. * Easy to learn/difficult to master. Bolo had just about the right balance for this. * Headless network play. No server was required (a matchup server existed, but not required); any particular player rage quitting didn't end the game for the rest. * Bug factor. Not quite sure how this phenomenon works, but like the bugs in the oddly popular Goat Simulator there were a few glitches in Bolo that you could take advantage of - without cheating - for a (slight) advantage. Not aware of any games in the last 30 years that have a similar balance.

pmarreck 11y ago
Thank you for putting to words what would have been difficult for me to communicate! I would have figured that something comparable/inspired by it would have come along by now
i336_ 11y ago
Thanks for the insight. I have a bit of a side project to find out what forgotten bits of computer history "got it right," if you will, for various contextually-defined definitions of "right," so I'll either be seeing if I can get AlphaTalk going in BasiliskII/SheepShaver (ahahaha...), or I know what I'll want to do if I ever come across a couple old Macs!