They Create Worlds

TCW Podcast Episode 263 - Howell Ivy

 

Howell Ivy had a knack for taking familiar arcade ideas and pushing them somewhere new. He discovered video games through Computer Space while serving in the Air Force, and in his off time he built a ball-and-paddle game that led to a position at Ramtek. Clean Sweep gave the ball-and-paddle format a new twist and helped inspire Atari's Breakout. Ramtek Baseball pushed that idea further with stronger sound, presentation, and a CRT modified so it could sit perpendicular to the Earth's magnetic field and still work. At Exidy, Ivy kept pressing for what was next. He bought a 6502 processor with his own money to prove that the company needed to move toward microprocessors. That thinking showed up in Car Polo, a soccer game with cars, and later in Circus, which became the biggest hit of his career. Vertigo pushed even further with motion controls and vector displays, but it was too complex to manufacture in that form and was retooled into Top Gunner instead. SEGA was looking to expand into the US arcade space, and Exidy was in financial trouble, so the companies moved toward an acquisition. Howell Ivy and Gene Lipkin went to Japan to negotiate the acquisition, but the deal fell apart. Ivy suspected Lipkin had made a separate deal with SEGA when he became president of SEGA Enterprises USA. When Lipkin left SEGA, the company turned to Ivy because of the work Exidy had already done with them, and he joined as VP of Manufacturing in 1986. Ivy helped SEGA contract out manufacturing to US companies, pushed Japanese designers toward polygonal graphics, consulted on Daytona USA, and negotiated the partnership with GE Aerospace. Ivy later became president of SEGA Enterprises USA before retiring from SEGA in 2004 after Sammy acquired SEGA. In retirement, he volunteered at a school engineering program that helped students send projects to the International Space Station.

TCW 051 - Sons of Pong: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW051-sons-of-pong

TCW 201 - Advanced Balls and Paddles Part 1: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW201-advanced-balls-and-paddles-part-1

TCW 202 - Advanced Balls and Paddles Part 2: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW202-advanced-balls-and-paddles-part-2

TCW 232 - All The Other Home Pongs: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW232-all-the-other-home-pongs

Clean Sweep (Ramtek): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0OTBI9Zagw

TCW 211 - Ramtek: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW211-ramtek

Ramtak Baseball: https://youtu.be/vZKhpCPc34U?t=83
TCW 212 - The Exidy of the 70's: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW212-the-exidy-of-the-70s

TCW 213 - The Exidy of the 80's and 90's: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW213-the-exidy-of-the-80s-and-90s

Destruction Derby: www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRYduNYRmPY

Death Race: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmQ_hj21K5k

Car Polo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6-xHhi2-nI

Circus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFm3b7e2tV8

The Exidy Sorcerer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iMcOY1pH1Y

Crossbow: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vxd_6vYJWtU

TCW 075 - Gunning for Light: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW075-gunning-for-light

TCW 028 - Picking up the Pieces: The US Arcade Industry After the Crash: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW028-picking-up-the-pieces-the-us-arcade-industry-after-the-crash

Top Gunner: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MXYF260JdE

Daytona USA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAcMqFTkAs8

 

New episodes are on the 1st and 15th of every month!

 

TCW Email: feedback@theycreateworlds.com 

BlueSky: @theycreateworlds.bsky.social

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theycreateworlds

Alex's Video Game History Blog: http://videogamehistorian.wordpress.com

Alex's book: http://bit.ly/TCWBOOK1

 

Intro Music: Josh Woodward - Airplane Mode -  Music - "Airplane Mode" by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/song/AirplaneMode 

Outro Music: RoleMusic - Bacterial Love: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Rolemusic/Pop_Singles_Compilation_2014/01_rolemusic_-_bacterial_love 

 

Copyright: Attribution: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

TCW Podcast Episode 262 - Vectrex

 

The Vectrex came with its own screen, plastic color overlays, and roots in the aerospace industry. GCE brought Smith Engineering in to design and develop digital watch games, then calculator games, before the two companies set their sights on a full home console. That console had to include its own display because home televisions could not support vector graphics. The idea took shape when engineer John Ross came across a one-inch CRT designed for aircraft instruments, and that sparked the push toward a vector-based home console. GCE knew they were too small to compete in a saturated market on their own, so they sought out a larger company with the manufacturing and marketing muscle to give the Vectrex a real shot. Milton Bradley acquired GCE in September 1982. The Vectrex launched at $199 that holiday season, right into the Video Game Crash, and cost Milton Bradley $31.6 million before Hasbro bought what was left in 1984.

 

TCW 199 - The History of Handheld Games Part 2: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW199-the-history-of-handheld-games-part-2

Major Matt Mason: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sNoiDT0BMw

Creepy Crawlers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJOd3pPUcEo

TCW 025 - Matel Electronics?: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW025-mattel-electronics

TCW 177 - The Intellivision Part 1: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW177-the-intellivision-part-1

TCW 178 - The Intellivision Part 2: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW178-the-intellivision-part-2

GCE Game Time Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Bf1ShRP0sU

GCE Arcade Time Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sgPMbbyfyw

GCE Sports Time Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9K0Ty5MVr0

GCE Chase N Counter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeXaPOwrPq4

GCE Space N Counter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXaBH2hVnZ4

TCW 009 - The History of Mediagenic Part 1: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW009-history-of-mediagenic-part-1

TCW 010 - The History of Mediagenic Part 2: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW010-history-of-mediagenic-part-ii

TCW 225 - Games By Apollo: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW225-games-by-apollo

Towering Inferno (Atari): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9E4xYtUmqE

Entombed (Atari): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6D21cBQ8zPI

TCW 080 - Vector Lights: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW080-vector-lights

TCW 133 - Rolling Dice With The Parker Brothers: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW133-rolling-dice-with-the-parker-brothers
Mine Storm: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jPFGKVyD6E

Starhawk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjv6lnt98zY

Solar Quest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzPwfY82Aok

Rip Off: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0d-fcGnMpI8

Space Wars: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTxl8WAr2WI

Armor Attack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAShNvM8I9U

Blitz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qend3Al4Rw

Star Trek: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gzrsb5c8dB4

Cosmic Chasm: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkaDXjOKMv0

Cosmic Chasm (Arcade): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-9ZRSs2ATU

Berzerk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tarHYgKekeI
Scramble: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tDBZwoiblQ

Hyperchase: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvHKW7dnIUs

Clean Sweep: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2jpYm6ZwIs

Vectrek Accessories: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9LLEJ63_Rw

Star Castle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29ZYcNK_Fe4

Spinball: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpT29NOsASw

Fortress of Narzod: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYiWPBljWHk

Spike: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNsyOWHQ71s

Pole Position: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfxKt4iZgRc

 

 

New episodes are on the 1st and 15th of every month!

 

TCW Email: feedback@theycreateworlds.com 

BlueSky: @theycreateworlds.bsky.social

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theycreateworlds

Alex's Video Game History Blog: http://videogamehistorian.wordpress.com

Alex's book: http://bit.ly/TCWBOOK1

 

Intro Music: Josh Woodward - Airplane Mode -  Music - "Airplane Mode" by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/song/AirplaneMode 

Outro Music: RoleMusic - Bacterial Love: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Rolemusic/Pop_Singles_Compilation_2014/01_rolemusic_-_bacterial_love 

 

Copyright: Attribution: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

TCW Podcast Episode 261 - StarFox

 

Before Star Fox, there was a developer in Britain building copy protection tools, a dinner party that opened the right door, and a Game Boy prototype game that could do something it was never supposed to do. Jez San's Argonaut Software caught Nintendo's attention at CES and was invited to Japan. The meeting led to a two million dollar deal to build a custom chip to bring real 3D to the SNES. A team of Argonaut programmers moved to Japan and worked alongside Shigeru Miyamoto and Katsuya Eguchi to build one of the most technically ambitious games on the system. The Super FX chip made it possible, and a Kyoto fox shrine gave it its identity. Star Fox sold well, but its late arrival in the SNES lifecycle meant a nearly completed Star Fox 2 was shelved and not released until the SNES Classic. The collaboration that made it all possible did not end on the warmest terms. Nintendo retained some of Argonaut's programmers, and San walked away feeling the partnership had given Nintendo far more than it had given Argonaut.

 

TCW 017 - The British 8-bit Computer Market - Hardware: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW017-the-british-8-bit-computer-market-hardware

TCW 018 - The British 8-bit Computer Market - Software: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW018-the-british-8-bit-computer-market-software

TCW 049 - Old and Elite: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW049-old-and-elite

Skyline Attack (C64): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXb1IlVOTVM

Star Wars (Atari - Arcade): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJv94FPRddA

StarGlider (ZX Spectrum): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0nxTSc-4os
TCW - 130: Uncle Clive's Radionics: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW130-uncle-clives-radionics
TCW 131 - Sir Clive of ZX: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW131-sir-clive-of-zx

Sinclair C5: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjiiayrKiuk

Micro Men: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXBxV6-zamM

TCW 244 - The History of Commodore Pt 1: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW244-the-history-of-commodore-pt-1

TCW 245 - The History of Commodore Pt 2: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW245-the-history-of-commodore-pt-2

TCW 246 - The History of Commodore Pt 3: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW246-the-history-of-commodore-pt-3

TCW 247 - The History of Commodore Pt 4: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW247-the-history-of-commodore-pt-4

Nintendo president Yamauchi gives a speech at Spaceworld 95: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3V8tUea4Hbs&t=36s
TCW 198 - The History of Handheld Games Part 1: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW198-the-history-of-handheld-games-part-1
TCW 199 - The History of Handheld Games Part 2: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW199-the-history-of-handheld-games-part-2

TCW 200 - The History of Handheld Games Part 3: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW200-the-history-of-handheld-games-part-3

Pilotwings (SNES): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8A1hX1rGRfY

X (Game Boy): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LETr1NoteMM

Scmuplations - Star Fox 1993 Developer Interview: https://shmuplations.com/starfox/

Starblade (Arcade): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqWhFddNopM

Starglider 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sg3uQM83dl8

Thunderbirds S1E1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLiH4xrCITI

Starfox SNES Box Art: https://gamesdb.launchbox-app.com/games/images/1659-star-fox

Fushimi Inari Shrine: https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3915.html
StarFox Coms (SNES): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkjR_9WVAHc
Starfox Prototype: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rsRTCExBLA
StarFox (SNES): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EkVHxE0Y8I

 

 

 

New episodes are on the 1st and 15th of every month!

 

TCW Email: feedback@theycreateworlds.com 

BlueSky: @theycreateworlds.bsky.social

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theycreateworlds

Alex's Video Game History Blog: http://videogamehistorian.wordpress.com

Alex's book: http://bit.ly/TCWBOOK1

 

Intro Music: Josh Woodward - Airplane Mode -  Music - "Airplane Mode" by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/song/AirplaneMode 

Outro Music: RoleMusic - Bacterial Love: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Rolemusic/Pop_Singles_Compilation_2014/01_rolemusic_-_bacterial_love 

 

Copyright: Attribution: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

TCW Podcast Episode 260 - Vivendi Electric Boogaloo

 

How does a Canadian liquor company end up owning Universal Studios and, eventually, help create Activision Blizzard? Seagram chased diversification as liquor sales softened, tried to take over Conoco, and instead wound up with a 25% stake in DuPont that generated most of its earnings. Edgar Bronfman Jr. sold that stake to buy MCA from Matsushita, inheriting a mismanaged Universal. He then doubled down on music with a $10.6 billion PolyGram deal just as Napster, the dot com bubble, and changing listening habits blew up the old record business model. With media stocks riding high, the rest of the Bronfman family wanted out, and Jean-Marie Messier at Vivendi stepped in, using Canal+ and an all‑stock transaction to fold Seagram into Vivendi and create Vivendi Universal. On the games side, Havas Interactive and the former CUC and Cendant software assets were combined with Universal’s own games business, including the franchises of Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon, under a new label: Vivendi Universal Games. Then the bubble burst, Vivendi’s debt and deceptive cash accounting caught up with Messier, and he was forced out, leaving his successors to sell assets and manage the fallout. Inside the games group, Blizzard’s success defined the division, culminating in World of Warcraft’s launch and the later decision to combine Vivendi’s games business with Activision. That deal created Activision Blizzard, gave Vivendi a way to tap cash when its telecom business went bad, and set the stage for Activision Blizzard's eventual separation from Vivendi. Vivendi made one last, mostly unsuccessful push into games through moves on Ubisoft and the takeover of Gameloft.

 

TCW 064 - Rise and Fall of Infogrames Part 1: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW064-rise-and-fall-of-infogrames-part-1
TCW 065 - Rise and Fall of Infogrames Part 2: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW065-the-rise-and-fall-of-infogrames-part-2

TCW 114 - The Wizards of Sir-Tech: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW114-the-wizards-of-sir-tech

TCW 115 - The Return of the Sdraziw of Sir Tech: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW115-the-return-of-the-sdraziw-of-sir-tech

TCW 251 - Virgin Games: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW251-virgin-games

TCW 184 - A Very Naughty Dog Pt 1: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW184-a-very-naughty-dog-pt-1

TCW 185 - A Very Naughty Dog Pt 2: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW185-a-very-naughty-dog-pt-2

Spyro the Dragon (PSX): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrVKjNR0-SE

Crash Bandicoot (PSX): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HtPF0ers1w

TCW 162 - Spinnaker Software: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW162-spinnaker-software
TCW 071 - A Story of Brøderbund: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW071-a-story-of-broderbund

TCW 072 - The Mysteries of Brøderbund: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW072-the-mysteries-of-broderbund
TCW 039 - On-Line Systems: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW039-on-line-systems

TCW 040 - Sierra On-Line: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW040-sierra-on-line

TCW 221 - North to Hellgate London: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW221-north-to-hellgate-london

TCW 249 - New World Computing: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW249-new-world-computing

TCW 055 - Blizzard Hellfire and the World of Warcraft: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW055-blizzard-hellfire-and-the-world-of-warcraft

Play Nice: The Rise, Fall, and Future of Blizzard Entertainment: https://www.amazon.com/Play-Nice-Future-Blizzard-Entertainment/dp/1538725428

Disney's Dreamlight Valley: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOuZFZOVLmc

 

New episodes are on the 1st and 15th of every month!

 

TCW Email: feedback@theycreateworlds.com 

BlueSky: @theycreateworlds.bsky.social

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theycreateworlds

Alex's Video Game History Blog: http://videogamehistorian.wordpress.com

Alex's book: http://bit.ly/TCWBOOK1

 

Intro Music: Josh Woodward - Airplane Mode -  Music - "Airplane Mode" by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/song/AirplaneMode 

Outro Music: RoleMusic - Bacterial Love: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Rolemusic/Pop_Singles_Compilation_2014/01_rolemusic_-_bacterial_love 

 

Copyright: Attribution: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

TCW Podcast Episode 259 - A Cendant to Vivendi

 

CUC International looked like a company that never missed. Quarter after quarter, just barely beating estimates, right up until the moment Henry Silverman got access to their books and found out why. When a new customer signed up, CUC booked a full year of revenue immediately, even though billing was monthly. If that customer left before the year was up, CUC never corrected the books. The money just stayed there. Perfectly functional assets were declared worthless on paper, with the supposed losses paid off using money from merger funds. That same merger money was then counted again as incoming revenue, making the company look larger and more profitable than it was. Over $500 million in income that never existed. Walter Forbes was forced to resign and was eventually convicted of the largest accounting scandal of the time. Cendant realized the software and games division itself had been part of the machinery. They sold it to French media company Havas. That sale landed in the orbit of Vivendi, a sprawling conglomerate that had started as a 19th century French waterworks company. Its CEO Jean-Marie Messier had bigger things in mind. AOL had just merged with Time Warner, and Messier was not going to watch an American walled garden of films, music, and games swallow the market he wanted to own.

 

TCW 258 - The Shenanigans of CUC Software: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW258-the-shenanigans-of-cuc-software

TCW 039 - On-Line Systems: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW039-on-line-systems

TCW 040 - Sierra On-Line: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW040-sierra-on-line

TCW 054 - Blizzard: Vikings and Warcraft: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW054-blizzard-vikings-and-warcraft
TCW 055 - Blizzard: Hellfire and the World… of WarCraft: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW055-blizzard-hellfire-and-the-world-of-warcraft

TCW 219 - Diablo 1: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW219-diablo-1
TCW 220 - Diablo 2: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW220-diablo-2

TCW 221 - North to Hellgate London: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW221-north-to-hellgate-london

TCW 230 - Crafting the World of WarCraft: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW230-crafting-the-world-of-warcraft
Space Jam Website: https://www.spacejam.com/1996/

The Digital Antiquarian - The End of Sierra as We Knew It - Part 1 - The Acquisition: https://www.filfre.net/2025/04/the-end-of-sierra-as-we-knew-it-part-1-the-acquisition/

The Digital Antiquarian - The End of Sierra as We Knew It - Part 2 - The Scandal: https://www.filfre.net/2025/04/the-end-of-sierra-as-we-knew-it-part-2-the-scandal/

The Digital Antiquarian - The End of Sierra as We Knew It - Part 3 - The Dog Days of Oakhurst: https://www.filfre.net/2025/05/the-end-of-sierra-as-we-knew-it-part-3-the-dog-days-of-oakhurst/

The Digital Antiquarian - The End of Sierra as We Knew It - Part 4 - Chainsaw Monday: https://www.filfre.net/2025/05/the-end-of-sierra-as-we-knew-it-part-4-chainsaw-monday/

TCW 139 - Tec Toy and Brazil: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW139-tec-toy-and-brazil


 

New episodes are on the 1st and 15th of every month!

 

TCW Email: feedback@theycreateworlds.com 

BlueSky: @theycreateworlds.bsky.social

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theycreateworlds

Alex's Video Game History Blog: http://videogamehistorian.wordpress.com

Alex's book: http://bit.ly/TCWBOOK1

 

Intro Music: Josh Woodward - Airplane Mode -  Music - "Airplane Mode" by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/song/AirplaneMode 

Outro Music: RoleMusic - Bacterial Love: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Rolemusic/Pop_Singles_Compilation_2014/01_rolemusic_-_bacterial_love 

 

Copyright: Attribution: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/