Top 24-26 best games in 1974, Reviews: Space War, Wander (included game), Spasim

All list top 32 games.

Space War (TRS-80)

This is an action game where you move from right to left, which is a rather atypical direction. You earn a point for each enemy destroyed. The game lasts for 60 seconds or until you are destroyed.

Wander (included game)

Most likely the first text adventure, released even before Colossal Cave Adventure. Its author is Peter Langston.

But in reality, the main goal was to create a tool for interactive art literature, and this adventure was added as an example for inheritance. It was much simpler than Colossal Cave. There was no score counting, and the player simply traveled through rooms and locations with the goal of collecting as many valuable items as possible.

It was considered lost for a long time, but in 2015, the author managed to find the source code in his friend's email.

Spasim

This game challenges the title of the first first-person shooter. However, the graphics were vector-based. In this game, four teams of eight players each had to win not only in battles but also by skillfully managing resources.

The capabilities of such multiplayer were naturally available only on large university computers. Still, in the first version, the emphasis was on battles, and the strategic component was added later. Your team had its own planet, and you had to collectively manage it to prevent rebellion, which significantly reduced resources.

The combat system operated at a rate of 1 frame per second. You could use both phasers and torpedoes, as well as adjust the angle. All commands were given through text input of a specific key (each responsible for its own action).