Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2
Path: utzoo!utgpu!utstat!philip
From: philip@utstat.uucp (Philip McDunnough)
Subject: Re: Your Ultima Quote
Message-ID: <1991Apr29.050557.6865@utstat.uucp>
Organization: U of Toronto Statistics
References: <14795@darkstar.ucsc.edu> <854@seer.UUCP> <10920@hub.ucsb.edu>
Date: Mon, 29 Apr 1991 05:05:57 GMT

In article <10920@hub.ucsb.edu> 6600prao@ucsbuxa.ucsb.edu (Parik Rao) writes:

[More on the subject of game sales.]

I had to respond to this.Oh and by the way, Ensemble is a very sophisticated
midi player on the NeXT. It still does not match DT. I don't agree with
your analysis of the GS's sound capabilities. Like fonts, synthesizers 
are not all of the same quality, and I do not feel that the digitized
ones found on PC's, Amiga's, NeXT's,etc...can match the Roland MT-32's
and Ensoniq's of the world. Designing sounds is an art. Anyway, back to
the current topic.

Just to set the record straight, I have purchased all the programs you
mentioned. They are basically very good programs- excellent in fact.
However, the game world has been generating variations on a theme for
years and charging customers far too much for the quality. The ones you
mention are exceptions, but they are really rare. The bottom line is 
that games are best left to the Nintendo's, CDTV's, etc...of the world.
The GS has many unique qualities which would allow for a whole new
generation of programs. Ones that use sound, HCGS, HS, etc...Ones that
are educational and not simply mindless arcade lore. It may be fine to
have these. I suspect we'd be far better off getting them from ftp sites,
shareware, pd, etc...The computer gaming world is finished on all but a
few platforms. This will only increase as the game players use CD-ROM,
storage,etc... 
 
I don't have much sympathy for companies who produce products which don't
sell, and then whine about it. Let them come out with stuff that does.

On another note, is there a utility which I can run un my next in order
to binscii a whole lot of GS stuff? What's the limit, in size and number
of files.

back to games: the Mac does not do much better in that area. The PC does,
due to its large installed base and the fact that some people will pay
$50 for any piece of questionable software. If you want to look at VGA
pictures in a game go out and become a camera buff.

Philip McDunnough
University of Toronto
philip@utstat.utstat.utoronto.ca
[my opinions,etc...]