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Kevin Bunch (ubersaurus)
@atariarchive.org

Last night I got access to a digitized film reel from 1969 that shows off a computer artillery game called Potshot. And to explain why that’s a big deal, I need to talk about Dartmouth and the BASIC computer language.

Kevin Bunch (ubersaurus)@atariarchive.org

Here’s a clue that will probably only mean something to 5 people

Kevin Bunch (ubersaurus)
@atariarchive.org

In 1963-64, university faculty John Kemeny and Tom Kurtz developed the Dartmouth Time Sharing System, a time-share system notable for its speedy responses and accessibility for students and staff alike.

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Kevin Bunch (ubersaurus)
@atariarchive.org

This was augmented further by their development of the BASIC computer language in 1964. That’s where a certain physics professor came in. Arthur Luehrmann saw the value of this system for education and entertainment early on, becoming an early evangelist for BASIC.

Kevin Bunch (ubersaurus)
@atariarchive.org

Luehrmann developed Potshot as an educational tool to show his physics students about gravity and velocity in an entertaining way. You can learn more through my interview with him from a few years ago: www.atariarchive.org/an-interview...

atariarchive.orgAn interview with Arthur Luehrmann, Atari ArchiveI'm excited to bring what may be about the only interview ever done with computer gaming and programming pioneer Arthur Luehrmann, who graciously sat down...
Kevin Bunch (ubersaurus)
@atariarchive.org

The former was written up in People’s Computer Company in 1973, and that seems to have catalyzed the “artillery genre,” effectively making Potshot the progenitor! Games such as Artillery Duel, Scorched Earth, Gorillas.bas and Worms all trace their lineage back to Potshot.