Countdown to Doom
Encyclopedia
Countdown to Doom is a text adventure computer game, more recently termed interactive fiction
, written in 1982 by Peter Killworth
. Its setting is the planet Doomawangara, which is coyly said to be shortened to "Doom". There are two sequels, Return to Doom and Last Days of Doom.
The game was first published for the BBC Micro
in 1982. It was ported to the Acorn Electron
in 1984 but only released as a ROM cartridge
for the Plus 1 expansion. This was the only game released exclusively as a ROM cart for the Electron. The game was later re-released in 1987 by Topologika
(who also published the game's sequels).http://www.lysator.liu.se/adventure/Topologika_Ltd.html This version was expanded by about 50% and as well as being released for the BBC and Electron (on disk only), the game was ported to many other systems including ZX Spectrum
(+3 disk only), PC
, Amstrad CPC
, Amstrad PCW
, Atari ST
and Nimbus
. It was also available for Acorn RISC OS
computers as a compilation with Return to Doom and Philosopher's Quest.
In this game, the player's spaceship crash-lands on Doom's inhospitable surface and they emerge from the wreckage to realise that, unless they can locate the necessary spare parts, their ship will corrode away in a mere 400 time units. There are many ways to be killed in this game.
Interactive fiction
Interactive fiction, often abbreviated IF, describes software simulating environments in which players use text commands to control characters and influence the environment. Works in this form can be understood as literary narratives and as video games. In common usage, the term refers to text...
, written in 1982 by Peter Killworth
Peter Killworth
Professor Peter D. Killworth was an English scientist known for both his work on oceanography and the study of social networks. A prodigious writer, his published output exceeded 160 scientific papers over the course of his career...
. Its setting is the planet Doomawangara, which is coyly said to be shortened to "Doom". There are two sequels, Return to Doom and Last Days of Doom.
The game was first published for the BBC Micro
BBC Micro
The BBC Microcomputer System, or BBC Micro, was a series of microcomputers and associated peripherals designed and built by Acorn Computers for the BBC Computer Literacy Project, operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation...
in 1982. It was ported to the Acorn Electron
Acorn Electron
The Acorn Electron is a budget version of the BBC Micro educational/home computer made by Acorn Computers Ltd. It has 32 kilobytes of RAM, and its ROM includes BBC BASIC along with its operating system....
in 1984 but only released as a ROM cartridge
ROM cartridge
A ROM cartridge, sometimes referred to as a cart, is a removable enclosure containing read-only memory devices designed to be connected to a computer or games console....
for the Plus 1 expansion. This was the only game released exclusively as a ROM cart for the Electron. The game was later re-released in 1987 by Topologika
Topologika
Topologika Software Ltd is a still-independent British publisher of educational software. Based in Brighton, the company was founded in 1983.Many of its early products were interactive fiction adventure games taken on after Acornsoft was sold to Superior Software who only continued to release their...
(who also published the game's sequels).http://www.lysator.liu.se/adventure/Topologika_Ltd.html This version was expanded by about 50% and as well as being released for the BBC and Electron (on disk only), the game was ported to many other systems including ZX Spectrum
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
(+3 disk only), PC
IBM PC compatible
IBM PC compatible computers are those generally similar to the original IBM PC, XT, and AT. Such computers used to be referred to as PC clones, or IBM clones since they almost exactly duplicated all the significant features of the PC architecture, facilitated by various manufacturers' ability to...
, Amstrad CPC
Amstrad CPC
The Amstrad CPC is a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad between 1984 and 1990. It was designed to compete in the mid-1980s home computer market dominated by the Commodore 64 and the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, where it successfully established itself primarily in the United Kingdom,...
, Amstrad PCW
Amstrad PCW
The Amstrad PCW series was a range of personal computers produced by British company Amstrad from 1985 to 1998, and also sold under licence in Europe as the "Joyce" by the German electronics company Schneider in the early years of the series' life. When it was launched, the cost of a PCW system was...
, Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
and Nimbus
RM plc
RM plc is a British company specialising in providing products and services to schools, colleges, universities and government education departments & agencies...
. It was also available for Acorn RISC OS
RISC OS
RISC OS is a computer operating system originally developed by Acorn Computers Ltd in Cambridge, England for their range of desktop computers, based on their own ARM architecture. First released in 1987, under the name Arthur, the subsequent iteration was renamed as in 1988...
computers as a compilation with Return to Doom and Philosopher's Quest.
In this game, the player's spaceship crash-lands on Doom's inhospitable surface and they emerge from the wreckage to realise that, unless they can locate the necessary spare parts, their ship will corrode away in a mere 400 time units. There are many ways to be killed in this game.
External links
- Prof. Peter D. Killworth - My Software at James Rennell Division for Ocean Circulation and Climate, National Oceanography Centre, Southampton
- Doom Trilogy hosted in the list of games in Infocom Z-Machine format at The Interactive Fiction Archive