Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.games
From: Bob Knowlden <knowlden@ll.mit.edu>
Subject: Re: RE:Help! Stuck in Marathon
Message-ID: <1994Aug3.011429.21641@ll.mit.edu>
X-Xxdate: Tue, 2 Aug 1994 01:17:35 GMT
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Organization: MIT/Lincoln Laboratory
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References: <1228799901.9082@rev.rev.iceonline.com>
Date: Wed, 3 Aug 94 01:14:29 GMT
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Subject: RE:Help! Stuck in Marathon
From: William T. Fleming, William_T._Fleming@rev.iceonline.com
Date: 01 Aug 1994 20:44:37 -0700
In article <1228799901.9082@rev.rev.iceonline.com> William T. Fleming,
William_T._Fleming@rev.iceonline.com writes:
>>Is this game actually available now??? Is there a demo????
>
>Yeah I saw it in the macwarehouse mailorder catalog (or at least on of
 them).
>It looks alot like Pathways into Darkness, it was created by the same
 people
>you know. Anyway I have no idea about a demo though.
>-------------------------------------------------------------
>  From The Revelation BBS * Vancouver, BC * (604) 929-1615
>-------------------------------------------------------------

I was down at Macworld Expo Boston today. Bungie was showing Marathon,
and taking orders to be shipped in "a couple of weeks". Cause for delay?
The packaging! Supposedly, people ordering directly from Bungie will get
it before it becomes available through resellers. Observe me holding my
breath...

First impressions: it shows its PiD ancestry, but the graphics are more
interesting. Definitely less blocky than DOOM, and better-looking than
the Wolfenstein 3D port that MacPlay was showing (which looked like
low-res graphics reworked for the Mac, rather than a clean-sheet remake).
I wonder if it plays worth a damn on non-PPC macs. It was also stated to
support multiplayer network play (kiss your jobs goodbye!). The monsters
are claimed to be smarter, and they communicate with each other to gang
up on you. (On the other hand, the "puzzles" are claimed to be easier, in
response to complaints. Apparently people were offended by having to
collect a set of objects and clues while monsters were sneaking up on
them.) Perhaps playing other *people* will be easier than going mano a
mano with your computer!(?)

Bungie also had an interesting-looking virtual reality rig running: this
was a headset, plus a toy plastic gun in hand. I didn't wait in line to
try it, but it looked like the aiming was entirely through the headset
(the gun provided only a trigger; it may as well have been a pushbutton.)
I shudder to think what the giz must cost, if it were for sale. (Perhaps
it is, but it looked far too light and compact to be cheap.)

BTW, I asked the Bungie employee who took my order what the age was of
their eldest employee. It's 28. This gives an entirely new meaning to
"children's games" 8-)

Bob Knowlden
(Unauthorized to speak for...)
MIT/Lincoln Lab




Subject: Re: Help! Stuck in Marathon
Date: Fri,  5 Aug 94 00:51:37 GMT
Message-ID: <00098A66.fc@bcsmac.org>
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Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.games
From: Jack_M._Miller@bcsmac.org (Jack M. Miller)
X-HoloGate: 1.1b64
Lines: 28


X Bungie also had an interesting-looking virtual reality rig running: this
X was a headset, plus a toy plastic gun in hand. I didn't wait in line to
X try it, but it looked like the aiming was entirely through the headset
X (the gun provided only a trigger; it may as well have been a
X pushbutton.)
X I shudder to think what the giz must cost, if it were for sale. (Perhaps
X it is, but it looked far too light and compact to be cheap.)

$700, actually.  I asked a guy there.

BTW, I too plunked down the $35 for MARATHON.  It was running on an 040 there
and it wasn't half bad.  Don't count on it being playable on anything lower,
though.  They did say that you can turn just about all the features on or off
for speed variations: hires, lores, compass, radar, big screen, small screen,
full screen, stereo output, etc.

The BIG win in MARATHON is being able to look up and down.  I watched a guy look
up to a catwalk and see his opponent, launch a bazooka, blow the guy OFF the
catwalk,and into the wall.  The guy STUCK to the wall for a sec, and then slid
down in, leaving atrail of blood.

You will all like this game.  A lot.

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