One simple little iPhone game that inadvertently served as a major catalyst (though not the only catalyst) for large-scale transformation. This is the story of how two such revolutions - one local, the other global - intersect with one simple little game. In videogames we’ve seen many revolutions - many rapid, seemingly-sudden transformations, driven by technological and design innovations that rendered the old ways immediately obsolete: programmable cartridges, gamepads, smooth-scrolling graphics, digitised sound, first-person shooters, CD-ROMs, discrete graphics cards, downloadable content, app stores, multi-touch input, microtransactions, and more - every one of these a revolution, every one foreshadowed by a slow build up of ideas and innovations and trends that ultimately coalesced into the kind of rapid all-consuming upheaval that we know as a revolution. Revolutions bubble up beneath us, slowly, chaotically, quietly gathering energy - building up pressure, waiting for their moment, waiting for years - decades even - before suddenly something pushes them past an unknowable threshold and they explode out, violently, and change our world. (I also accept commissions and the like over email, if you're after something specific or just don't want to deal through those platforms.) To support my work, so that I can uncover more untold stories from video game history, you can make a donation via /mossrc or subscribe to my Patreon. Thank you to my Patreon supporters for making this episode possible - especially my producer-level backers Joel Webber, Vivek Mohan, Seth Robinson, Simon Moss, Carey Clanton, Scott Grant, Wade Tregaskis, and Rob Eberhardt. He says he's also writing a script for a new game some ex-Defiant people are building, consulting on various upcoming game projects, and writing short stories (which he describes as a "very nice" change of pace, as he can get a story done in days rather than the years most games he's worked on took to complete). And Morgan is also enjoying the home life after winding down Defiant in 2019, happy that it had served its purpose and was no longer needed. Rob is a stay-at-home dad, years deep in a bigger-than-he'd-expected project to design his family's new house. If you're curious what these guys are up to nowadays, you'll find Eli at GameClub carving out deals to pull more old iOS and Android games out of purgatory and into their subscription catalogue. I also briefly touched on early iPhone hit Trism in episode 6 - ROM Hack - which featured Trism creator Steve Demeter talking about his stint in the ROM hacking and translations community. For more from me on the early mobile games business, be sure to check out episode 1 - Race to the bottom as well as the extended interview I posted with Pocket Gamer co-founder Jon Jordan after that episode came out.
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