Gather 'round, GAFers! I have a story to tell.
Once upon a time, there was a publisher of tabletop games by the name of FASA Corporation. Initially publishing supplements for the pen-and-paper RPG Traveller, FASA released a number of tabletop games throughout the 80's and 90's, including the venerable Shadowrun. One of their other famous creations was a miniatures wargame called BattleDroids, later changed to BattleTech for fear of getting sued by George Lucas. BattleTech itself was never riotously popular, but inspired a number of spinoffs including over a hundred novels set in its sci-fi universe, several other tabletop RPGs, and the MechWarrior series. The most interesting of these developments was a joint venture with Virtual World Entertainment LLC that gave rise to a series of virtual reality venues that simulated the series' signature giant robot battles.
These full-sized cockpits, also known as pods, used proprietary software, a joystick and throttle, assorted instrument panels, and a 12-speaker surround sound system to put the player in control of a heavily armed walking death machine in networked battles supporting up to 16 players.
The "Virtual World" franchise eventually expanded to comprise 26 locations in the United States and Japan, with the software being updated to support online rankings, new gametypes, and an entirely new game called Red Planet. Virtual World's success was not meant to last, as advancements in arcade and computer games lead to a steady decline in the popularity of these locations, leading to many of the original locations to go out of business.
FASA and Virtual World continued undaunted, introducing the "Tesla II" pod and a new software suite called "BattleTech Firestorm," based on the engine used for MechWarrior 4.
Despite these improvements, the popularity of the entire BattleTech franchise dwindled, causing more BattleTech centers to close and compounding legal problems FASA faced over the designs of several robots featured in their earlier rulebooks. However, all is not lost for this gem of 1980's science fiction! Eight BattleTech centers remain in operation, and the BattleTech Firestorm software is still being developed by Virtual World LLC and Mektek.
I recently learned that one of the surviving locations, Fallout Shelter Arcade is located a mere two miles from my apartment. After numerous delays, I went there are played seven missions with a few friends and found it to be an experience unlike any other. It's one thing to play MechWarrior on PC with a joystick and throttle setup, but another entirely to be in a fully enclosed cockpit with green-on-black CRT instrument panels, dozens of backlit buttons, and a joystick that feels like it came out of a fighter jet.
If any GAFers live relatively close to one of the BattleTech centers on the Wikipedia linked below, or are planning to attend a convention where the pods go on tour, I highly recommend spending the $5-10 it'll cost to get a taste of one of the most unique arcade experiences ever created.
Links: Wikipedia's Listing of BattleTech Centers
Map of Conventions with Pods
Clip from a 1993 Discovery Channel Special on Virtual World
Once upon a time, there was a publisher of tabletop games by the name of FASA Corporation. Initially publishing supplements for the pen-and-paper RPG Traveller, FASA released a number of tabletop games throughout the 80's and 90's, including the venerable Shadowrun. One of their other famous creations was a miniatures wargame called BattleDroids, later changed to BattleTech for fear of getting sued by George Lucas. BattleTech itself was never riotously popular, but inspired a number of spinoffs including over a hundred novels set in its sci-fi universe, several other tabletop RPGs, and the MechWarrior series. The most interesting of these developments was a joint venture with Virtual World Entertainment LLC that gave rise to a series of virtual reality venues that simulated the series' signature giant robot battles.
These full-sized cockpits, also known as pods, used proprietary software, a joystick and throttle, assorted instrument panels, and a 12-speaker surround sound system to put the player in control of a heavily armed walking death machine in networked battles supporting up to 16 players.
The "Virtual World" franchise eventually expanded to comprise 26 locations in the United States and Japan, with the software being updated to support online rankings, new gametypes, and an entirely new game called Red Planet. Virtual World's success was not meant to last, as advancements in arcade and computer games lead to a steady decline in the popularity of these locations, leading to many of the original locations to go out of business.
FASA and Virtual World continued undaunted, introducing the "Tesla II" pod and a new software suite called "BattleTech Firestorm," based on the engine used for MechWarrior 4.
Despite these improvements, the popularity of the entire BattleTech franchise dwindled, causing more BattleTech centers to close and compounding legal problems FASA faced over the designs of several robots featured in their earlier rulebooks. However, all is not lost for this gem of 1980's science fiction! Eight BattleTech centers remain in operation, and the BattleTech Firestorm software is still being developed by Virtual World LLC and Mektek.
I recently learned that one of the surviving locations, Fallout Shelter Arcade is located a mere two miles from my apartment. After numerous delays, I went there are played seven missions with a few friends and found it to be an experience unlike any other. It's one thing to play MechWarrior on PC with a joystick and throttle setup, but another entirely to be in a fully enclosed cockpit with green-on-black CRT instrument panels, dozens of backlit buttons, and a joystick that feels like it came out of a fighter jet.
If any GAFers live relatively close to one of the BattleTech centers on the Wikipedia linked below, or are planning to attend a convention where the pods go on tour, I highly recommend spending the $5-10 it'll cost to get a taste of one of the most unique arcade experiences ever created.
Links: Wikipedia's Listing of BattleTech Centers
Map of Conventions with Pods
Clip from a 1993 Discovery Channel Special on Virtual World
