Way, Way Back in the Olden Days...
The year was 1991. Can you believe that? I had been quite a nerdy girl most of my life, learning to program in Basic on the Apple IIe and Basica on my father’s original IBM PC, but it was a solitary and lonely pursuit. Then, I started university, and my room-mate’s father, who was a computer programmer, gave us an old Amiga he had lying around and a 300 baud modem. For those who don’t know, that was insanely slow, even for 1991. However, I did not know that. It was my first modem, and I was thrilled.
My friend Max had decided that he was going to hit the big-time by creating his own on-line game, which he called, “Space Bar,” and we all played it. It was a MUD, which you might know stands for “multi-user dungeon,” and it was a text adventure. Most of the time, Space Bar was more of a chat room than a game although there were gaming aspects to it.
Dialing the Space Bar at 300 Baud
Because there was no world wide web yet (if you can imagine), we had to dial in to connect to the game. I still remember what a thrill it was to hear the modem make all its beeping and whirring noises of handshake and connection to the server on the other end.
I was at a huge disadvantage with my 300 baud modem, though. Even though it was a text adventure, the text loaded so slowly that I literally sat watching as each character loaded onto my screen while people typed to me. It might have been excruciating except that it was probably the most exciting thing that had ever happened to me. Did I mention that I was a bit of a nerd girl?
One strange thing in those days was that I had to carefully guard my gender. Being female online was just not a sane choice unless you wanted to spend your entire game time fending off people hitting on you. This was not even flattering because these guys had no idea what I looked like. Were they really so desperate that any girl would do? So, I took on a gender neutral identity in the game, and I frequently got asked “ru m/f?” – a ridiculous question I refused to answer.
I remember almost nothing about the actual game play, probably because it was not memorable. I think it was the regular text adventure fare. You pick a direction, find things, add them to your inventory, fight things (if there is anything to fight), keep going, and so on.
The Best Part Was Meeting Fellow Weirdos
Probably the best part about the game was that most of the players lived within 50km of my home, and I ended up meeting many of them. This might not sound like a big deal these days because the internet really allows people to connect if we so choose, but in those days, it was not always easy to find the proper sort of weirdos and misfits that one might like to socialize with. The game drew in the sort of people I wanted to meet (some were even female!) and I met a lot of very cool people in real life as a result of it.
I don’t know what ultimately happened to Max’s project. I mean, it fell apart, but I don’t know why. Initially, it was free to play, and I think when he tried to monetize it, people got upset, which was pretty silly since he put in a huge amount of time and energy, not to mention the server. However, for me, it was a very interesting introduction to the world of online gaming. Also, it taught me a lot about life online in general. It was a more naïve time in which most people did not have computers; there was barely email, and no world wide web. Meeting people online was practically unheard of.
I learned that people are not always who and what they say they are. I learned (and this will seem obvious now) that people can be very mean sometimes when they are hiding behind a computer screen. However, I also learned that you can find a community of people with whom you have a lot in common. I did not imagine that would ever really be possible for me. And it began with an online game. It began with the Space Bar.
That's a lovely piece 😀
It must have been magical to see those characters typing themselves out. I would love to know what software your friend used to build the MUD.
I remember having an Atari ST around that time and reading about modems and BBS's, but I couldn't convince my parents it was a good idea to get one.
It wasn't until the mid to late 90's that we got a modem for the purpose of getting on the internet. I remember using it to dial up a few BBS's before we got our ISP setup.
I spent one night playing Doom against someone on a BBS through some clever networking trick. I suppose it was my first online gaming experience and I was just amazed, although I don't think my parents were very pleased with the phone bill after 😂
It's great that you felt you had found like minded people. I remember finding IRC and thinking the same at the time.
I will always look back fondly on the 90's BBS/Internet culture and only wish I could have joined in sooner.
IRC! That really takes me back! I laughed out loud when you mentioned the phone bill for Doom. I have no idea how Max built the MUD. I am still friends with him. Maybe I will ask. I wonder if he looks back on that project with regret. It was a failure for him, I think, but it brought so many of us together, and it brought us joy. I don't think I ever thanked him because, when you're young, sometimes, it doesn't occur to you to be as thankful as you should be. I promise myself to contact Max and thank him today! Better late than never.
No matter where you meet people, be it in real life or on the internet, you'll mett assholes. That's just the way it goes. Nonetheless we always find someone we match up with and can connect to. I've never heard of Space Bar, which probably isn't surprising, but I'm glad you got to have a fun experience with it!
Thank you for your comment. That is exactly what I learned from my experience. It was all so new back then!
I identify a lot with the experience you had in the mud, because I at my beginnings to give something similar, it was capturing the screen, but it was played in a BBS and exactly I remember the classic sound of the telephone connection, that was very exciting, although it arrived A moment when it became disturbing for me.
Always to female players are usually tagged and underestimated, and I'm going to tell you something, my best PVP partner was always a woman. She was superior by far all the best players of her class, I remember she was Shaman in Wow.
Your publication transported me to the old days, to feel that flavor of when Karateka played in the Apple IIC, to those epocas. Thank you very much for making me evoke those beautiful moments, I have given you my support I gave Reblog to your content, I hope that contributes that you receive better rating, because I honestly think you deserve it.
Aww. Thank you so much. They are wonderful memories for me also. I am glad they brought up fond remembrances for you too!
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