Tuesday, September 17, 2013

The Bold Future World Of Video Games, 1982 Style!!

You know, people can complain about too much commercialization of heroes in comics books, about books being based on video games, but let me tell you...

2000 AD taught us that selling out is A-OK!!

Yes, in December 1982, 2000 AD used not just an annoying banner or blurb, but their entire cover for a contest/advertisement for the Intellivsion video game system.

This would be akin to, say, a cover of Justice League featuring Batman and Flash playing PS4 while the cover copy pushed a contest to win the amazing new tech.

And the contest?

Ooooooh....

And the special "voice unit"? (Sorry it's so small--click to embiggen)

Yes, in those Flintstones days, anything more than the most basic MIDI sounds wasn't possible on the tiny cartridges--actual voice required more ROM than the games themselves!--so Intellivision came up with special Intellivoice "module" that worked with "certain games" to create voices. Only $100! Only 5 games were ever published that worked with it! Oooohhhh....

I wonder how long the winners of this had it before it ended up buried in a closet of under the bed for decades?

Still, that was hardly the most obsolescent-in-advance video game technology to take up space in the issue, as the back cover featured:

Dare I, Philips? Dare I??? 

Apparently, not many dared.


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