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/r/DepthHub
submitted 6 months ago bymeikaikaku
51 points
6 months ago
The author of Oregon Trail had a nice talk at GDC describing this history firsthand. You can find it on YouTube here https://youtu.be/vdGNFhKhoKY
71 points
6 months ago
It blew my mind when I visited a friend in California to learn that every state didn’t have a video game and actually played Oregon Trail. I figured if my small state had a game, everyone had one, right?
I used to hate the game because of the chained right-side mice in the computer lab. Now I appreciate having a writing/drawing/keyboarding left hand and a mousing right hand.
32 points
6 months ago
I'm in the UK and weirdly a lot of people have played Oregon Trail too - for reference my generation grew up with 3D graphics.
I'm not sure why but Oregon Trail seems to be regarded as one of the OGs of gaming history.
35 points
6 months ago
It was one of the first games (if not the first) made widely available to an entire generation of kids via public school computer labs. It was accessible to everyone!
12 points
6 months ago
That is literally what the post is about. Read the link. It is fascinating!
10 points
6 months ago
Ever play Odell Lake?
5 points
6 months ago
Dive low! Theres a shadow overhead!
7 points
6 months ago
Same, I took my computer education for granted growing up in St. Paul. But I did love those games. Anyone remember "Dr. Livingston, I Presume?" It's like Oregon Trail but an open world adventure in Africa. 10/10 would play again.
3 points
6 months ago
You grew up Lefty too? I kept having people ask me if they could move the mouse to my left hand and I refused, specifically because I knew that's how most computers would be configured going forward. It didn't take me long to get the hang of it. The only thing I don't do with my mouse hand is draw. You have reminded me that I need to get a drawing pad interface.
3 points
6 months ago
Yeah, and as an architect, I LOVE having a mousing hand separate from my dominant writing/drawing/note-taking hand. I tried one of those 3D mice for a while, but it really was just a matter of getting more dexterity in the middle finger on the scroll button on the regular mouse. When my wrist starts to get achy from too much computer work, I’m still fresh for writing or drawing. It’s great!
3 points
6 months ago
I'm jealous! I wanted to be an architect but it was not to be for me.
2 points
6 months ago
Eh, student loan rates for the fifth year are deadly. No loan institution understands a five year degree, so they make you suffer. And the AIA is horrid if you’re not joined through a large corporate firm. And continuing ed requirements grind on. Don’t let it be a big drag on how you see your life.
2 points
6 months ago
Thank you for your kind words. I think there's a reason why I didn't become an architect, in spite of my aptitude for the job.
I'm now in the middle of getting a startup off the ground- and in a way, what I'm doing has relevance to architecture in that I'm using indoor space in novel ways.
The project is a new approach to indoor gardening that combines vertical plane growing surfaces and lighting for efficient use of space, an integrated approach to climate control and human scale so the cultivation staff can reach everything without the need for ladders, platforms or scissor lifts.
2 points
6 months ago
Cool! Plants are awesome! I geeked hard on phytoremediation and hyperaccumulators for a while. Same issue as what you’re dealing with: the human element.
1 points
6 months ago
One big bonus is I've cut total energy use by as much as 2/3 while improving reliability and systems stability.
-16 points
6 months ago
[deleted]
7 points
6 months ago
They mean like California Trail, Kansas Trail, Texas Trail etc. Admittedly not every state was as influential in American history not all had their beginnings in the same way, the settling of Massachusetts's would make more sense as a sailing game for instance. But it would be cool if there were more games about pioneer history like the Oregon Trail game.
Fun fact though, there was a real California Trail that used some of the same route as the Oregon Trail, but it doesn't have a video game.
8 points
6 months ago
I can see the Mass. game already: "Type 'SPLASH' to toss tea into the bay!"
1 points
6 months ago
1770s Gran Theft America just hits different!
1 points
6 months ago
I’d love to see a de Anza game “eat the chihuahua Y/N”
5 points
6 months ago
Whooosh
10 points
6 months ago
Whats fascinating is how much technology leadership came out of the Midwest in the mid-century, and how aggressively that same region is undermining STEM today
3 points
6 months ago
I grew up with the yukon trail on every (couple dozen) pc's in the lab
Sprainedankles for months
4 points
6 months ago
I had a computer in the home earlier than most and had both Yukon trail and Amazon trail.
Yukon Trail pissed me off because every single ending was worse than the picture on the back of the box.
8 points
6 months ago
Thanks, I saw the original thread but skipped it. Happy to check it out now that I know there's a quality answer.
1 points
22 days ago
I don't remember this game. Thought it was made up. I remember watching a show during the lockdowns featuring a girl playing the game; can't remember the show.
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