Mark was nice enough to invite me to his home studio when I was a new high school grad to talk working in games as an artist. He told me the story of the fight over dithering. I give him strong partial credit for ending up a game engine/art pipeline coder instead and got to thank him after his most excellent GDC presentation on the lost power of palettized textures https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=aMcJ1Jvtef0

You can see that power in action here

http://www.effectgames.com/demos/canvascycle/ (Hit show options)

http://www.effectgames.com/effect/article-Old_School_Color_C...

BTW: Deluxe Paint has been remade in Python if you want to give it a try https://github.com/mriale/PyDPainter

Wow. The fact that those "animations" (the fire and water effects) were all done with palette shifting is mind-bending.

I loved reading this! Not just because some of those games are deeply ingrained in my childhood, but also because the writing itself is exceptional. The structure is strong, there’s no fluff, and it’s still vivid and playful. I loved it.

I also read the author's thoughts on the writing process, and the way he described it closely mirrored how I approach working on music, which was illuminating.

I also loved the article about how software development is a form of knowledge building. Once again, excellent writing!

I started researching Skywalker Ranch recently and I've found it quite difficult to find floor plans or pictures of the interior of the building.

It's kind of odd. I wonder what Disney has in store for that place.

I hope that it is preserved due the historical role that it had in being the site of the genesis of so many of our cherished cultural artifacts.

I’ve heard him recount the story of how he ended up at LucasFilm Games before, so I could tell that ”Mark” refers to Mark Ferrari. But it certainly feels a little unusual to tell a story like this using only his first name.

It worked for me. It's intentionally written like a piece of fiction, you don't even have to know the characters are all real people to enjoy the story. Though I guess most readers at least know who "Ron" refers to.

Most, perhaps, but I have no clue.

Beautifully written and worth the read. And the screensaver nerd snipe is epic.

That was a great read!

The library at Skywalker Ranch looked like a wonderful place.

Anyone have a link to "Purcell’s million-dollar animation" of the grail scene? I'm really curious to see it now.

lol, gave me flashbacks of dying again and again ...and again playing dragon's lair.

Interesting: not Donovan, but Indy. And my first reaction was "mehhh" but then I told my brain to quit being a smartass, would my 15-year-old self have been impressed? Damn straight they would've.

Fantastical sfumato in the first picture.

So is this fact or fiction?

Anybody?

Most of the "structural" events of the story are true, most of the scenes are made up or pastiche. If you're interested in the facts, I suggest taking a look at the sources at the bottom, especially the Mark Ferrari interviews: https://youtu.be/ri4_3P2Oh14?feature=shared

Wonderful read, thanks for sharing!