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Old 02-17-10, 09:57 AM   #6
Heretic
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Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Nebraska
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sonarman View Post
Here is an interesting quote I found a whille back on the original SSI Silent Hunter by Joel Billings in the book "Interactivity in action"...

The product with the most potential for SSI is "Silent Hunter" , it's a world war ii submarine simulation, and submarine simulations sell really well. - Aces of the Deep sold a ton. Silent Hunter is an outstanding product in every way and we are thinking it may well become our all-time biggest seller.

That's quite a compliment and an eye-opener considering SSI's output at the time.
Back then , that was the case. PC games were made by enthusiasts for enthusiasts. Back in the day, wargames were a good size chunk of the market. I bought almost every Gary Grigsby game SSI produced. It was a niche market.

Ironicly, technology played a big role in killing that. Better hardware allowed better graphics and sound, etc. Development costs shot up, so they had to cater to a wider audience to stay in business. It became a mass medium with all the pros and cons that goes with it.

Joel and Gary are still around. Still making great games. Still a niche market.
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