History You Can Play: The Making of Karateka Is the First in a Series of Interactive Documentaries

Digital Eclipse believes that classic games deserve to be given more respect. As the developers of last year’s critically acclaimed releases Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga CollectionThe following are some examples of how to get started: Atari 50th anniversary celebration, we’ve tried to chart a new path forward and set the standard for how our industry preserves and enhances the legacy of landmark video games.

Today on the [email protected]The next stage in our journey was revealed at Showcase: the Gold Master Series. It’s a new line of independent, self-published games that we think are best described as “interactive documentaries.” Through video, digital artifacts, audio, photos, playable games, and more, Gold Master Series releases will tell the full stories of games that changed the world.

The first game in the Gold Master Series, titled Gold Master 1, is available on Xbox One. Karateka: A Making of Karateka, and it’s all about the fascinating story behind a game that changed the industry. Jordan Mechner developed Karateka, an Apple II game, which was a major leap in the fields of cinematic storytelling, animation and music. Many players felt that it was their first experience with an interactive movie. This set the standard for cinematic games to follow.

You can also find out more about the following: Karateka: A Making of Karateka, you’ll meet Jordan Mechner – not the legendary veteran game designer we know today, but the unknown teenage college student who was desperate to break into the video game business. Through excerpts from his college journals, galleries of his design documents, and all-new video interviews, you’ll share Jordan’s struggles and triumphs as he creates a video game like no one had ever seen before.

We’ll also introduce you to Francis Mechner, Jordan’s father and one of the unsung heroes of video game history. After seeing his son struggle to create lifelike figures in animation, Francis suggested Jordan experiment with rotoscoping. He even put on his wife’s karate gi and ran around in the woods behind their house in upstate New York so that Jordan could film his performance (this is how Francis, a celebrated behavioral psychologist, businessman, and concert pianist, became one of the first motion capture actors in video game history!). Through our interactive Rotoscope Theater, you’ll go hands on with Jordan’s design materials and see how the film footage became in-game sprites – no small feat for 1984 technology.

And, of course, you’ll get to play games – not just the finished retail versions of KaratekaWe’ve included not only the finished version, but several prototypes that were never completed, such as Jordan’s original pitch to publishers. We’ve even included several prototype versions of DeathbounceDeathbounce, a shooting arcade game Jordan created before starting Karateka. Deathbounce was not released during its original release, but is being made available as part Karateka: A Making of Karateka.

At Digital Eclipse, we’re all about adding quality-of-life features to legacy game titles, so of course you’ll be able to save and load your games anywhere, use Rewind to get out of sub-optimal situations, and choose from a variety of authentic borders and screen filters. Watch Mode allows you to watch a full playthrough and then start the game at any point. You can play the game at any time by using our Watch Mode. Karateka: A Making of Karateka, we’re expanding on Watch Mode by adding a chapter select function that lets you jump immediately to key gameplay moments, as well as a commentary track from both Jordan and Francis.

Also, we love updating classic games to the modern age. Karateka remastered It’s a new, updated version of the original, with improved graphics, sound, and gameplay. An optional commentary track from Digital Eclipse’s president Mike Mika discusses how he created this new version, and what made Jordan’s original so special.

Last but not least, we’ve even created an all-new version of the unreleased game DeathbounceThe’s called Deathbounce (Rebound), a fast and furious twin-stick shooter built on Jordan Mechner’s original ideas, sketches, and notes. These two new games can be found exclusively in Karateka: A Making of Karateka.

Karateka: A Making of Karateka is the deepest, most exhaustive exploration of the making of a single video game that’s ever been attempted in a video game itself. Our belief is that video games provide the best way to share the story of the game’s history. Karateka: A Making of KaratekaS & Xbox One later this year, is sure to convince you.|S and Xbox One.