Nowadays it is a well-known fact that the following names are given: video game These are chosen by a committee that spends years considering which ones will appeal to the target audience and the general public (or which ones are more reminiscent of other popular works without infringing copyright). It will be.but In the 80s, imagination was key in the industry: Everything was unexplored, and like in the 50's William Castle movies, quite a few people came up with tricks that were more like fair stands than details that really mattered in gameplay. But there is nothing like what we are going to talk about today.
The game is all about serial
It may be difficult to understand, but in 1982 Video games' bloodiest battle took place…in the offices of two cereal companies. On the one hand, General Mills, which bought Parker Brothers (owner of Cheerios and Lucky Charms, among others); Meanwhile, Quaker Oats (owner of Cap'n Crunch or Mr. T cereals) acquired US Games to try their luck. One day you sell the crunchiest cereal and the next pixel on the screen. That's life.
The battle was quickly decided. In 1982, Parker introduced the “Frogger'' or “The Empire Strikes Back', Now you can find out who was the winner.But telling success stories is so boring, so let's take a look What happened to American gaming?a breakfast cereal-funded video game company wanted to create a successful title for the Atari 2600 on a shoestring budget.
The first work was “Space Jockey”. You may have never heard of it, but there's a good reason for it. A million units were sold, most of them at discounted prices with no profit. This title was followed by 13 more of his works, including “Eggomania,'' “Word zapper,'' and “Towering inferno,'' all of which were huge failures. But before the Quakers cut off funding, someone at the studio had a bright idea. Releasing a game with no name and throwing a lot of money into an impossible contest. No one imagined what would happen next.
What name should we give it?
In 1982, “Name this Game and Win $10,000” was released. On the cover, a diver points a harpoon at an octopus, with a shark and treasure lurking on the side. The original idea of the studio that created this game and gave it to US Games was not to call it by this strange name, but to create a licensed adaptation of the still popular Jaws, which came out seven years ago. It was to make. However, the Parker brothers who owned the rights (note the twist!) refused. And from cereal to cereal.
The five-person team, who had just finished polishing it for the US game, initially called the game “Tesoros de la profundidad,” then “Los Guardes del tesoro,” and later prototypes were called “Octopussy.” Ta. But just as we were about to launch it, we started receiving disastrous sales reports. They needed something to counter them, and they needed it now.. Thus began a crazy contest in which he would give away $10,000 to the user who could come up with the most original name for the game by April 30, 1983.
In fact, the back cover promised 100 sets of US games and 1000 sets of your choice from the catalog, plus $3,500 and $1,500 in side prizes. You can guess what happened since US Games is currently not in contention. Nintendo Capcom to be exact. surely: The 1983 video game crash devoured US games before the contest ended And it remained unresolved forever. Well, more or less.
octopus and galleon
The game was later given an official title, but not in the United States. In Europe, it was called “Octopus” and even had another title: “El Oro del Galleon” (Gold of the Galleon). Amiga planned to give it this name when they wanted to include the game on their Power Play Arcade #2 cartridge, but that ultimately didn't happen. However, many people believe that it was the name that actually won the contest. I guess we'll never know.
There's one more twist. Digital Press is a popular video game website (formerly a magazine). Another contest was held in 1994 and was won under the name “Going Under”. Winner Russ Perry Jr. was intended both as a reference to the game and what it means for the American game.
You already know what happened next. The video game crisis has ushered in a new stage of prosperity, and we are still in it.…and no one would dare to release it 'call of duty' In a suicide contest. Did we come out on top? Frankly, I doubt it.
