BioTerror! is a turn-based strategy simulation in which you manage resource units to quarantine cities, research a cure, and eradicate infections. The game was written in 2011 for
a 1977 Commodore PET 2001-8. This computer only had 8kb of RAM and 40 columns on a colorless screen.
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If this game sounds interesting to you:
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- QUARANTINE [CITY NAME OR #] - quarantines cost Resource Units every day to maintain. You can quarantine any city, whether infected or not. If the city is infected, a quarantining will minimize the risk of outbreak. If the city is uninfected, the quarantine will minimize the risk of becoming infected. Manage your quarantines carefully though. As time goes on, the quarantines become less and less effective. The cost of a quarantine is dependent on a city's population count.
- LIFT QUARANTINE FROM [CITY NAME OR #] - removing a quarantine can free up resource units for other activities, such as upgrading your research level. Removing the quarantine for a day will also reset the effectiveness rating back to 100%, but this is an expensive strategy.
- RESEARCH [CURE CODE] - Conducting research is the first step to eradicating the infection. The simulation selects a random series of letters and numbers (no duplicates). The player guesses at these random characters and the simulation flags the code when you've found a character.
- UPGRADE RESEARCH - The player can only conduct research 1 time per day. Upgrading your research will give you additional daily research attempts, and will also generate more Resource Units each day.
- CURE [CITY NAME OR #] - Once you've found the cure, you must share it with each city. The cost for curing a city is dependent upon the remaining population. High populations cost more to cure.
- NEW DAY - You have to move to a new day in order to conduct more research. This command initiates your next turn.
- DAY [NUMBER] - If you are lazy or you just want to watch the numbers, you can jump straight to a particular day. You can hit any key to halt the simulation on a given day as it plays through.
- REPORT - this page shows the user the city numbers, starting and current population counts, and percent of population infected.
- MAP - shows the strategic map.
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The idea for BioTerror! began 25 years ago when I was making key-graphic (aka PETSCII) screens on my C-64.
After watching the movie WarGames,
I wanted to produce my own version of Global Thermonuclear War. I started with the map of the Unites States.
I did not have the artistic vision at the time to create a decent map, and since I was only 15,
I got bored with the idea and let it rest...for 25 years.
I began programming this game on a PET that I picked up on Craigslist, but my machine died and I resumed coding on a PET emulator available here: http://vice-emu.sourceforge.net. Since I saved the map to tape, I was able to read the analog cassette through my soundcard and convert it to a d64 disk image for use with WinVice. Here's the wav file. The game concept evolved over the course of a few nights. I wanted more game elements than I could cram into 8kb though, and some of my best ideas were axed to keep the game small enough to run on the original 8kb PET. I cut out the animated intro screen, which was later turned into a loader page as a separate file to save RAM. I had programmed "Gene Code Mutations" but was forced to remove that feature to conserve memory. Once you found the cure code, it was possible for the code to mutate, forcing the player to research another piece of the code. This also had the nasty byproduct of re-infecting previously cured cities. Despite eliminating many aspects of the game, I feel that my original concept remained intact. The final product was both fun and time consuming. The game has given me a great platform for introduction to other Commodore enthusiasts, and for me, that has been the real payback for my efforts. My son and play-tester, Logan, at the 2011 CCAG Show in Cleveland. He's sporting a finely stitched Commodore Hockey Jersey (#8). We had many computers on display, but since the PET was dead, I had to run a video of BioTerror! on my tablet.  The game was transfered from the emulator to tape by a couple different Redditors. Here is the game running on a fleet of PETS by one of those users.  Thanks for your interest in my game! Jason Grow Comments or bug reports? jcgrow@gmail.com |
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