Tass Times in Tonetown

Last updated
Tass Times in Tonetown
Tass Times in Tonetown.jpg
Developer(s) Interplay
Brainwave Creations
Publisher(s) Activision
Designer(s) Michael Berlyn
Muffy McClung Berlyn
Programmer(s) Rebecca Heineman
Platform(s) Atari ST, Amiga, Apple II, Apple IIGS, Commodore 64, IBM PC, Mac.
Release1986
Genre(s) Adventure
Mode(s) Single-player

Tass Times in Tonetown is an adventure game published by Activision in 1986. It was designed by Michael Berlyn and Muffy McClung Berlyn and programmed by Rebecca Heineman of Interplay (credited as Bill Heineman) in cooperation with Brainwave Creations. [1]

Contents

Tass Times was released for the Atari ST, Amiga, Commodore 64, Apple II, Apple IIGS, Mac, and IBM PC compatibles. It was the first commercial game for the IIGS. [1]

Plot

The plot of the game involves the player getting sucked into Tonetown, a surreal alternate world seemingly based on a distillation of 1980s culture, with overtones of punk and new wave culture (such as pink hair, etc.). The word "Tass" in the title refers to an adjective used within the parallel world of Tonetown. Its basic meaning is somewhat akin to "cool" or "hip". Game designer Michael Berlyn gives the following source for the word:

Muffy and I were employed there [at Harvard], teaching creative writing. And the motto of Harvard is 'Veritas,' which means 'truth.' We took to saying 'very tass' to mean, 'very true,' or 'too true.' Our students picked it up and started applying it to something that was cool. So very tass turned into very hip or cool. [2]

The game's narrative begins with the player character inside a cabin belonging to "Gramps", a relative and inventor who has gone missing. While searching the cabin, the player activates one of Gramps' latest inventions: a device that resembles an electronically powered hoop. Gramps' pet dog, Spot, jumps through the active hoop and disappears. The player follows him and is transported to the mysterious Tonetown world alongside Spot, discovering that "Spot", in this world, is not only sentient and capable of speech but is actually a celebrity resident named "Ennio the Legend". Ennio travels along with the player, providing commentary and advice as well alerting the player to danger.

The player learns that Gramps' mysterious disappearance extends even into the Tonetown world, and may have been arranged by the villainous Franklin Snarl. Snarl, a surreal combination of a pig, a raccoon and (most obviously) a crocodile, is a ruthless business magnate. He is also a murderously hostile Tonetown nativist, openly violent to most "tourists" (foreigners) he encounters. His negative effects on the local culture had begun to attract media attention against him, culminating in the disappearance of Gramps.

To progress in the game, the player must assimilate into Tonetown's culture, using guitar picks as currency and partaking in its party scene, its "tass" music, including the popular band The Daglets, and such delicacies as "GloBurgers". The player encounters technology unique to Tonetown such as the "zagtone" (a device that plays variable notes depending on what object it is struck against), as well as bizarre creatures including the cute but destructive "blobpet" and dangerous monsters. The blobpet also makes an appearance in the animated intro exclusive to the Apple II, Commodore 64, and PC ports.

Gramps is eventually revealed to be Snarl's prisoner, held captive in an island office tower. After rescuing him, the player brings the group to a final confrontation with Snarl at his mansion, with Snarl possessing the Tonetown world's iteration of the hoop device. While Ennio holds Snarl at bay, Gramps activates the hoop and the player throws Snarl through it. The player enters the hoop and is returned to the "normal" world just outside Gramps' cabin, discovering that Snarl's arrival into the normal world has transformed him into three separate creatures - which the game's narrator describes as "a cute little pig, a darling raccoon, and a little crocodile shedding a few tears".

Talking to Snarl during the final sequence reveals that Gramps himself had created him, using the hoop device and the three original animal specimens, and that he had captured Gramps with the intention of continuing his work at any cost. It is also hinted that Tonetown itself may have been created entirely by Gramps' imagination, who then discovered a way to physically travel to it.

Gameplay

Starting location (Apple IIGS) Tass Times in Tonetown screenshot.png
Starting location (Apple IIGS)

The game is an example of the graphical text adventure genre. Somewhat like classical text adventures or the early Sierra games, players use text commands (e.g. "TAKE HOOPLET") to interact with the game, but like LucasArts adventure games (or the later Sierra games), they also use an intuitive GUI. The player viewed the world of the game through a small window at the top left of the screen in which their surroundings were displayed. Much like The Bard's Tale , this view was static (or mostly so); it was not animated, though it was context-sensitive (players could click on objects in this window rather than typing their names).

Like many text adventures of this era, Tass Times had its share of possible unwinnable situations in which players can discover themselves trapped. The most infamous of these is Gramps' lab book, which is found in his cabin at the start of the game, and is used to complete the game at almost its very end. Hapless players can leave the book behind only to realize it is needed for game completion right when they are on the verge of completing it. Other scenarios include many possible instances of saving the game in situations in which death can never be avoided in time, such as in a location too far away from the shopping boutiques, so that Snarl will kill a player still deemed a "tourist" before Tonetown apparel and hairstyles can ever be purchased.

Ports

The port for IBM PC compatibles allows use of a computer mouse. At the time of release, PC mice were rare and the programmers had to code their own routines to read a serial mouse. [2] [ unreliable source? ]

Reception

Compute! stated that the Amiga version of Tass Times in Tonetown was a "fascinating new game" with "superb color graphics", calling the story "unusual". [3] Hartley and Pattie Lesser similarly commented on the game in their "The Role of Computers" column in Dragon #116 (1986), stating "This one is truly bizarre". [4] Computer Gaming World 's Charles Ardai agreed, stating that the "strange story" did not interest him. [5]

Roy Wagner reviewed the game for Computer Gaming World , and stated that "This game is a relatively easy adventure with the added twist of the reality in which it is played. Get tass, stay tone-ly and find Gramps." [6]

Macworld reviewed the Macintosh version of Tass Times in Tonetown, calling it a "Challenging, unique game with [a] sense of humor." Macworld praises its gameplay, puzzles, and atmosphere, stating that "the game demands that you familiarize yourself with a vernacular and logic particular to Tonetown. ... Tass Times in Tonetown grows much tricker as you progress. What makes the game so challenging is also what makes it unique: the novelty of Tonetown, its mores, and its inhabitants. These same qualities make many clues difficult to decipher." Macworld compares Tass Times in Tonetown's gameplay to other adventure games, including Déjà Vu , Uninvited , and Mindshadow . Macworld notes that Tonetown lacks an 'operate' command as Déjà Vu and Uninvited do, instead requiring context-sensitive verbs for actions, i.e typing "unlock" to unlock a door. Macworld criticizes Tonetown's difficulty, as well as its graphics, expressing that "The games's graphics, although imaginative and professionally constructed, sometimes lack detail and are relegated to a small part of the screen", and suggests that a zoom feature would remedy this. [7]

Macworld inducted Tass Times in Tonetown into its 1987 Game Hall of Fame in the Adventure Game category, ahead of runners-up the Infocom text adventures released over the preceding year, in particular Bureaucracy and Stationfall . Macworld called Tass Times in Tonetown "something that seems a cross between Raw magazine, The Face , and the Bizarro World of DC Comics" and praised it as a fun game with a user-friendly interface. [8]

Related Research Articles

Infocom was an American software company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that produced numerous works of interactive fiction. They also produced a business application, a relational database called Cornerstone.

<i>Suspended</i> (video game) 1983 video game

Suspended: A Cryogenic Nightmare is an interactive fiction video game written by Michael Berlyn and published by Infocom in 1983. Infocom's sixth game, it was released for Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, Commodore 64, Commodore Plus/4, IBM PC compatibles, TRS-80, and TI-99/4A. It was later available for Mac, Amiga, and Atari ST.

<i>The Bards Tale</i> (1985 video game) 1985 video game

The Bard's Tale is a fantasy role-playing video game designed and programmed by Michael Cranford for the Apple II. It was produced by Interplay Productions in 1985 and distributed by Electronic Arts. The game was ported to the Commodore 64, Apple IIGS, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Amiga, Atari ST, MS-DOS, Mac, and NES. It spawned The Bard's Tale series of games and books. The earliest editions of the game used a series title of Tales of the Unknown, but this title was dropped for later ports of The Bard's Tale and subsequent games in the series.

The Adventure Game Interpreter (AGI) is a game engine developed by Sierra On-Line. The company originally developed the engine for King's Quest (1984), an adventure game that Sierra and IBM wished to market in order to attract consumers to IBM's lower-cost home computer, the IBM PCjr.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinemaware</span> Video game developer

Cinemaware was a video game developer and publisher. It had released several titles in the 1980s based on various film themes. The company was resurrected in 2000, before being acquired by eGames in 2005.

<i>The Bards Tale II: The Destiny Knight</i> 1986 video game

The Bard's Tale II: The Destiny Knight is a fantasy role-playing video game created by Interplay Productions in 1986. It is the first sequel to The Bard's Tale, and the last game of the series that was designed and programmed by Michael Cranford.

<i>Uninvited</i> (video game) 1986 video game

Uninvited is a black-and-white horror-themed point-and-click adventure game. It was originally developed for the Macintosh by ICOM Simulations and released in 1986 by Mindscape as part of the MacVenture series.

<i>Infidel</i> (video game) 1983 video game

Infidel is an interactive fiction video game published by Infocom in 1983. It was written and designed by Michael Berlyn and Patricia Fogleman, and was the first in the "Tales of Adventure" line. It was released for the Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, Commodore 64, IBM PC compatibles, TRS-80, and TI-99/4A. Ports were later published for Mac, Atari ST, and Amiga. Infidel is Infocom's tenth game.

Transylvania was the name of a trilogy of computer games released for several home computers of the 1980s. The games were graphic adventure games created by Antonio Antiochia and produced by Penguin Software/Polarware.

<i>Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord</i> 1981 video game

Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord is the first game in the Wizardry series of role-playing video games. It was developed by Andrew C. Greenberg and Robert Woodhead. In 1980, Norman Sirotek formed Sir-Tech Software and launched a beta version of the product at the 1980 Boston Computer Convention. The final version of the game was released in 1981.

<i>Portal</i> (1986 video game) 1986 video game

Portal is a text-driven adventure with a graphical interface published for the Amiga in 1986 by Activision. The writing is by American author Rob Swigart, and it was produced by Brad Fregger. Ports to the Commodore 64, Apple II, and IBM PC were later released. A version for the Atari ST was announced and developed, but not published. Until recently, it was thought that a Mac version left unpublished. The published Mac version was rediscovered in 2021 by a game collector.

<i>Amnesia</i> (1986 video game) 1986 video game

Amnesia is a text adventure written by science fiction author Thomas M. Disch and programmed by Kevin Bentley. It was published by Electronic Arts in 1986 for IBM PC compatibles and Apple II. A Commodore 64 version was released in 1987. Disch's ironic, rich writing style is in distinct contrast to the functional or tongue-in-cheek tone of most text adventures. Over half of Disch's novel-length manuscript had to be cut from the published version to fit on a 5¼" floppy disk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rebecca Heineman</span> American video game programmer

Rebecca Ann Heineman is an American video game designer and programmer. Heineman was a founding member of video game companies Interplay Productions, Logicware, Contraband Entertainment, and Olde Sküül. She has been chief executive officer for Olde Sküül since 2013.

Michael Berlyn was an American video game designer and writer. He was best known as an implementer at Infocom, part of the text adventure game design team. He is also known as the designer behind Bubsy in Claws Encounters of the Furred Kind (1993) and Bubsy 3D (1996).

<i>The Movie Monster Game</i> 1986 video game

The Movie Monster Game is a computer game released by Epyx for the Apple II and Commodore 64 in 1986. The game offers a variety of scenarios, playable monsters, and cities to demolish. The monsters are based on popular movie monsters such as The Blob, Mothra, the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man, and the Transformers, and Epyx was able to officially license Godzilla.

<i>The Last Ninja</i> 1987 video game

The Last Ninja is an action-adventure game developed and published by System 3 in 1987 for the Commodore 64. It was converted to the Apple IIGS, MS-DOS, BBC Micro and Acorn Electron in 1988, the Apple II in 1989, the Amiga and Atari ST in 1990, and the Acorn Archimedes in 1991.

<i>World Games</i> (video game) 1986 video game

World Games is a sports video game developed by Epyx for the Commodore 64 in 1986. Versions for the Apple IIGS, Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum, Master System and other contemporary systems were also released. The NES version was released by Milton Bradley, and ported by Software Creations on behalf of producer Rare.

<i>Space Quest I</i> 1986 video game

Space Quest: Chapter I – The Sarien Encounter is a graphic adventure game, created by Scott Murphy and Mark Crowe, and released in October 1986 by Sierra On-Line. It is the first game in the Space Quest series, and sees players assume the role of a lowly janitor on a research ship, who becomes involved in stopping an alien race using a new form of technology for evil purposes.

<i>Quarterstaff: The Tomb of Setmoth</i> 1988 video game

Quarterstaff: The Tomb of Setmoth is an interactive fiction role-playing video game developed by Scott Schmitz and Ken Updike and released by Infocom for Macintosh in 1988. The game features a text parser, graphics, a dynamically updated map, and a graphical interface that incorporates Mac OS hierarchical menus.

<i>Shanghai</i> (video game) 1986 video game

Shanghai is a computerized version of mahjong solitaire published by Activision in 1986 for the Amiga, Atari ST, Atari 8-bit computers, Commodore 64, MS-DOS, classic Mac OS, Apple IIGS, and Master System. Shanghai was originally programmed by Brodie Lockard. It was released as an arcade video game by Sunsoft in 1988.

References

  1. 1 2 WHAT IS THE APPLE IIGS?, Tass Times in Tonetown
  2. 1 2 Tass Times trivia from MobyGames
  3. Bateman, Selby (October 1986). "A Great Year For Games". Compute!. p. 18. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  4. Lesser, Hartley and Pattie (December 1986). "The Role of Computers". Dragon (116): 69–76.
  5. Ardai, Charles (June–July 1987). "Titans of the Computer Gaming World / Part Three of Five: Ardai on Activision". Computer Gaming World. p. 36.
  6. Wagner, Roy (December 1986). "Commodore Key". Computer Gaming World. Vol. 1, no. 33. p. 36.
  7. DeMaria, Rusel (June 1987). "Stranger in a Strange Town: Tass Times in Tonetown Review". Macworld. Mac Publishing. p.  165-166.
  8. Levy, Steven (December 1987). "The Game Hall of Fame". Macworld . Vol. 4, no. 12. San Francisco, CA: PCW Communications, Inc. p. 122.