Game Development Two Decades Ago

I've been hunting around for things to watch on Google Video and I found this gem.

Imagine and Ocean were two very well known publishers and developers of games during the 8 bit computer era in the mid 80's. You could consider them like the Vivendi Universals and Electronic Arts are of now (yes, i know EA was around back then!).

This old documentary looks into the two companies during some trying times in the industry where sales were down due to the proliferating business of cassette pirating, and the explosion of game companies who were saturating the market with the same kind of games. Both companies are caught up in preparation for the highly critical Christmas sales period and you get an extraordinary look at what game development was like two decades ago, where games were sent in by sole teenage programmers and QA sessions were completed in computer clubs at local primary schools.

Imagine, the larger company with a massive 70 employees (the same as a reasonably sized team working on just one game these days) has some ambitious plans for a "Mega-game" costing a whopping 40 pounds (roughly $100 Australian), which was an incredible amount for a game in the 80's!. Consumers were used to buying games for 6 pounds ($14 AU), but the Mega-game would come with extra hardware and 30 pieces of items in the box (including a music cassette tape). During filming, you'll see problems with delays, a boardroom meeting of the severe cash crisis, and the resigning of company directors. Finally, you'll get to see the once famed company abruptly close its doors, locking their employees out to even grab their personal belongings.

If you grew up playing Commodore 64 games in the 80's, I'm sure you'll appreciate the inside look that this documentary offers!