No time to do this properly, but for those who didn't catch it, this thread is worth a read: https://twitter.com/tomscott/status/1085596994196987904 https://twitter.com/tomscott/status/1085651896830816256 One thing that did turn up in that thread was a handy VT clock generator, at http://mdfs.net/Software/Video/VTClock/ - which looks like it may still be in use in parts of the BBC. It goes without … Continue reading The search for BBC TV software
As with a lot of these nowadays, it started with a tweet: https://twitter.com/DavidJBodycombe/status/1082011631402528768 I answered in the conversation, but I thought a more detailed explanation was worth writing here for preservation purposes. Plus I wanted an excuse to write some loose pseudocode on this site, and this is a good example. For reference, here's a … Continue reading In it to win it – Dale’s Non-Musical Chairs
I think the story is pretty well known, in the last series before the Gordon Burns-helmed Krypton Factor went off air, it was decided to give the show more dynamism by making the final round an apparent test of all of the abilities required, rather than just using the General Knowledge round as before. Courtesy … Continue reading Krypton Factor ‘Super’ Round (scare quotes author’s own)
For the previous article in this series, click here. Aside from the syndicated games used in this field, the TV companies themselves would produce or buy in their own titles. These significantly predated the more technologically sophisticated solutions, but were none the worse for it. The very first such title may not be considered a … Continue reading Press 6 to move right – the world of phone in video games (Part 3, BBC and ITV in house)
The following was originally intended as a footnote in the final part of Press '6' to Move Right. As it's a significant digression from that article, I've spun it out here as a separate entity. The BBC Special Projects division could be described as a significant inspiration to me in so many ways, both here … Continue reading The Special Projects Division or “Only at the BBC”
Click here for Part 1. The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. Blur and Oasis. Swap Shop and Tiswas. X Factor and Strictly. For every stand out success, there is always a rival up against it, conflicting and complementing. Aside from blatant SEO, the analogy extends to phone in games, with ITE matched against Total Control … Continue reading Press 6 to move right – the world of phone in video games (Part 2, Total Control Media)
Just doing a random YouTube scout and I saw a video from Neil Robinson showing off what looked like the timer from Futuristic in the original maze. https://youtu.be/-aW3mMEkIXY It is genuine, and you'll see on the video page his efforts to repair it. It just makes me wonder how many of these props and other … Continue reading One a’maze’ing find
As soon as this blog went live, one of the the first requests made was to look into the traditional Blockbusters game board - a sophisticated setup that implied a massive complex display screen without a traditional monitor in sight. First, let's look at what's being discussed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7bOVvaCJeQ So, the game board is a 4x5 matrix … Continue reading Taking the ‘P’ – The Big Blockbusters board
Following on from the Crystal Maze Arcade Game discussion, I stumbled upon the PC version via the Collection Chamber. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mq56LbBLmPE As you can see in the Retro Pixel Lizard video, the general principles are similar to the Team Challenge, in that individual players can be assigned to particular games. However, unlike the arcade game, each of … Continue reading Cyberdrome in your own home ? – the PC Crystal Maze
Recently, I've been watching Bob the Fish's brilliant chronicle of UK Saturday morning TV "Watch and Smile", which in its 5th episode talks briefly about the ITV's (wrong) answer to Live and Kicking, Tricky, amongst other ITV missteps (look, I'm still bitter about the cancellation of WOW, but that's another story). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcCpNMsPAJE Watch and Smile … Continue reading Press 6 to move right – the world of phone in video games (Part 1, ITE)
