The Oregon Trail (computer game)
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The Oregon Trail is an educational/edutainment computer game about American pioneer life that has a long history. The game was inspired by the real-life Oregon Trail and was designed to teach schoolchildren about the realities of 19th century pioneer life on the trail.
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History
The first version of the game was made in 1971 and was designed for the teletype machines operating at Carleton College. One of the original developers, Don Rawitsch, later began working at the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium (MECC) in 1974, where he introduced the game to that organization. The game was distributed through that state-funded consortium to educational institutions. It became a very common program for Apple computers in public schools during the 1980s and 1990s. Later versions were distributed by Brøderbund.
Overview
Players start out at the beginning of the trail, in Independence, Missouri, where they select a profession for their character from a number of choices such as banker or carpenter. Each profession has different advantages and drawbacks, such as starting money, end game point bonuses, and special circumstances; for example, sick or injured characters are less likely to die with a Doctor party, and the starting money is relatively high, but the end game point multiplier is low when compared to a more challenging starting party. Players then buy equipment, oxen, and food for the journey.
Along the way, numerous events can occur. Friendly or hostile Indians might be encountered; a member of the family might fall ill or die of a snakebite; rivers must be forded or ferried; wagon parts might break; and so forth. Players usually have several different choices of how to deal with each situation. The wrong choice may cause the player to lose oxen or rations, and possible death could result for members of the caravan. Although it is a children's video game, it is by no means sugar-coated; death and disease are common occurrences, and hunting for food features the player moving around a relatively open field armed with a rifle and shooting at wildlife. Periodically, the wagon train stops at outposts along the journey, where goods might be purchased at ever-increasing prices, and where players can learn historical facts about each location. At any point between outposts and landmarks, players can rest, trade with passing travellers and natives, or hunt; though excessive hunting in one area leads to scarcity of wildlife.
At the end of the journey, points are awarded according to a formula weighted by the profession chosen, the number and health of surviving family members, remaining possessions, and cash on hand.
Editions of the game
The game first appeared on Elementary Volume 6 - Social Studies for the Apple II by MECC. This text-only version featured hunting for food with success based upon how quickly the user could type the word BANG on the keyboard.
A later incarnation with the same title appeared on its own for the Apple II, including rudimentary graphics and physical hunting. Hunting was performed by directing a little man around a field from an overview perspective, turning and shooting at passing wildlife. The only choices for professions were banker, carpenter, and farmer.
A second edition of the game was released which introduced first-person perspective hunting: the player would position his sights over the animals as they ran laterally across the screen. Three more editions of the game have been produced, including the "150th anniversary" 3rd edition.
External links
- Broderbund: The Oregon Trail 5th Edition (http://www.broderbund.com/jump.jsp?itemID=147&mainPID=147&itemType=PRODUCT&RS=1&keyword=oregon+trail)
- Gamespot: Oregon Trail (http://www.gamespot.com/gamespot/features/all/greatestgames/p-34.html)
- ClassicGaming.com: Oregon Trail (http://www.classicgaming.com/rotw/otrail.shtml)
- Interview with the creators of The Oregon Trail (http://www1.collegehumor.com/newsletter/165/)