RobotWar
Encyclopedia
RobotWar was a programming game
written by Silas Warner
. This game, along with the companion program RobotWrite, was originally developed in the TUTOR programming language language on the PLATO system in the 1970s. Later the game was commercialized and adapted for the Apple II family of computers and published by Muse Software
in 1981. The premise was that in the distant future of 2002, war was declared hazardous to human health, and now countries settled their differences in a battle arena full of combat robot
s. As the manual stated, "The task set before you is: to program a robot, that no other robot can destroy!"
The main activity of the game was to write a computer program
that would operate a (simulated) robot. The player could then select multiple robots who would do battle in an arena until only one was left standing. The robots did not have direct knowledge of the location or velocity of any of the other robots; they could only use radar pulses to deduce distance, and perhaps use clever programming
techniques to deduce velocity. No physical dexterity was required or even relevant in RobotWar; there was no way for the player to actually take part in the battle.
that could be used as variables or for the robots' I/O
functions. An example program from the game manual follows:
SCAN
AIM + 5 TO AIM ; MOVE GUN
AIM TO RADAR ; SEND RADAR PULSE
LOOP
IF RADAR < 0 GOSUB FIRE ; TEST RADAR
GOTO SCAN
FIRE
0 - RADAR TO SHOT ; FIRE THE GUN
ENDSUB
The robot with this program would sweep its radar in a circle, firing off radar pulses, and when it detected another robot in this way, would fire a projectile, set to explode at the correct distance as estimated by the radar pulse. This particular robot would stand still throughout the entire battle, as it never assigned any number to its movement registers.
In a way, RobotWar was a multiplayer game, in that different people could program their robots, then copy all the robots' source code
to the same floppy disk and load all the robots to fight in the arena.
The game was sold in cassette tape and floppy disk
versions.
is a similar game for the TRS-80 Color Computer
which was released in the same year.
RoboWar
is a similar game that was released later on the Macintosh
, and is now available for both Mac OS
and Windows
.
Crobots
is a related game that uses a simplified version of the 'C' programming language to program the robots. In Crobots the game arena is displayed as simple ASCII graphics.
MindRover
is a recent implementation of concepts taken from RobotWar and Robot Odyssey
, which allows users to design more customized and advanced robots, although with a paradigm based more on multicomponent circuitry design than programming.
RoboCode
the idea of RobotWar implemented in Java (opensource) and still supported since 2001.
praised the game's easy-to-learn language, comparable to BASIC
, and for its first few years hosted yearly contests in which contestants sent in their robot programs.
Programming game
A programming game is a computer game where the player has no direct influence on the course of the game. Instead, a computer program or script is written in some domain-specific programming language in order to control the actions of the characters...
written by Silas Warner
Silas Warner
Silas Warner was a game programmer and the first employee of Muse Software. Among other games, he created Castle Wolfenstein and Beyond Castle Wolfenstein....
. This game, along with the companion program RobotWrite, was originally developed in the TUTOR programming language language on the PLATO system in the 1970s. Later the game was commercialized and adapted for the Apple II family of computers and published by Muse Software
Muse Software
Muse Software was a software and computer game publisher and developer for the first generation of home computers. They first published for the Apple II, and later expanded to the Commodore 64, Atari, and the IBM PC....
in 1981. The premise was that in the distant future of 2002, war was declared hazardous to human health, and now countries settled their differences in a battle arena full of combat robot
Robot
A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
s. As the manual stated, "The task set before you is: to program a robot, that no other robot can destroy!"
The main activity of the game was to write a computer program
Computer program
A computer program is a sequence of instructions written to perform a specified task with a computer. A computer requires programs to function, typically executing the program's instructions in a central processor. The program has an executable form that the computer can use directly to execute...
that would operate a (simulated) robot. The player could then select multiple robots who would do battle in an arena until only one was left standing. The robots did not have direct knowledge of the location or velocity of any of the other robots; they could only use radar pulses to deduce distance, and perhaps use clever programming
Computer programming
Computer programming is the process of designing, writing, testing, debugging, and maintaining the source code of computer programs. This source code is written in one or more programming languages. The purpose of programming is to create a program that performs specific operations or exhibits a...
techniques to deduce velocity. No physical dexterity was required or even relevant in RobotWar; there was no way for the player to actually take part in the battle.
Robot programming
The robots' language was similar to BASIC. There were 34 registersProcessor register
In computer architecture, a processor register is a small amount of storage available as part of a CPU or other digital processor. Such registers are addressed by mechanisms other than main memory and can be accessed more quickly...
that could be used as variables or for the robots' I/O
I/O
I/O may refer to:* Input/output, a system of communication for information processing systems* Input-output model, an economic model of flow prediction between sectors...
functions. An example program from the game manual follows:
SCAN
AIM + 5 TO AIM ; MOVE GUN
AIM TO RADAR ; SEND RADAR PULSE
LOOP
IF RADAR < 0 GOSUB FIRE ; TEST RADAR
GOTO SCAN
FIRE
0 - RADAR TO SHOT ; FIRE THE GUN
ENDSUB
The robot with this program would sweep its radar in a circle, firing off radar pulses, and when it detected another robot in this way, would fire a projectile, set to explode at the correct distance as estimated by the radar pulse. This particular robot would stand still throughout the entire battle, as it never assigned any number to its movement registers.
In a way, RobotWar was a multiplayer game, in that different people could program their robots, then copy all the robots' source code
Source code
In computer science, source code is text written using the format and syntax of the programming language that it is being written in. Such a language is specially designed to facilitate the work of computer programmers, who specify the actions to be performed by a computer mostly by writing source...
to the same floppy disk and load all the robots to fight in the arena.
The game was sold in cassette tape and floppy disk
Floppy disk
A floppy disk is a disk storage medium composed of a disk of thin and flexible magnetic storage medium, sealed in a rectangular plastic carrier lined with fabric that removes dust particles...
versions.
Related works
Color Robot BattleColor Robot Battle
Color Robot Battle is an early programming game for the TRS-80 Color Computer, released in 1981 by The Image Producers.-Robot Programming:The aim of the game is to write a computer program that controls a robot. Two programs are selected to do battle in an arena with the last robot standing being...
is a similar game for the TRS-80 Color Computer
TRS-80 Color Computer
The Radio Shack TRS-80 Color Computer was a home computer launched in 1980. It was one of the earliest of the first generation of computers marketed for home use in English-speaking markets...
which was released in the same year.
RoboWar
RoboWar
RoboWar is an open source video game in which the player programs onscreen icon-like robots to battle each other with animation and sound effects...
is a similar game that was released later on the Macintosh
Macintosh
The Macintosh , or Mac, is a series of several lines of personal computers designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. The first Macintosh was introduced by Apple's then-chairman Steve Jobs on January 24, 1984; it was the first commercially successful personal computer to feature a mouse and a...
, and is now available for both Mac OS
Mac OS
Mac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. for their Macintosh line of computer systems. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface...
and Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
.
Crobots
Crobots
Crobots is a programming game released for the first time by Tom Poindexter in December, 1985.The robots are controlled by a program written in a stripped-down version of C. The robot's mission is to seek out and destroy other robots, each running different programs...
is a related game that uses a simplified version of the 'C' programming language to program the robots. In Crobots the game arena is displayed as simple ASCII graphics.
MindRover
MindRover
Mind Rover is a video game, developed by CogniToy. The game, which can be thought of as an successor to the Learning Company's Robot Odyssey, revolves around two activities:* Assemble a virtual robots from a library of stock parts....
is a recent implementation of concepts taken from RobotWar and Robot Odyssey
Robot Odyssey
Robot Odyssey is an adventure game, published by The Learning Company in 1984. It was released for the Apple II, TRS-80 Color Computer, and DOS.-Story:...
, which allows users to design more customized and advanced robots, although with a paradigm based more on multicomponent circuitry design than programming.
RoboCode
Robocode
Robocode is an open source educational game started by Mathew Nelson . Currently contributions are being made by various people; officially Flemming N. Larsen and Pavel Šavara are working on Robocode to keep it current and fix the bugs...
the idea of RobotWar implemented in Java (opensource) and still supported since 2001.
Reception
In its first issue, Computer Gaming WorldComputer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World was a computer game magazine founded in 1981 by Russell Sipe as a bimonthly publication. Early issues were typically 40-50 pages in length, written in a newsletter style, including submissions by game designers such as Joel Billings , Dan Bunten , and Chris Crawford...
praised the game's easy-to-learn language, comparable to BASIC
BASIC
BASIC is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages whose design philosophy emphasizes ease of use - the name is an acronym from Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code....
, and for its first few years hosted yearly contests in which contestants sent in their robot programs.