CH104 - Pac-Man - II

Although Evelyn's approach to crafting was clear, Woz's involvement boosted Ethan's confidence. However, programming, like mathematics, is not a science where one can easily translate ideas into reality just by talking.

Even if Evelyn's analysis was spot-on, everyone understood that the core selling point of the game "Pac-Man" lay in the personalities of the four ghosts chasing the protagonist. However, when it came to coding, they had to proceed step by step.

First, they had to design the levels and the player-controlled characters, as the ghosts could only have room to manoeuvre when the map and goals were defined.

Even though Ethan didn't understand coding, he couldn't just sit on the sidelines being a mouthpiece. Evelyn slapped a sketch pad in front of him, instructing him to convert the pre-drawn map, represented by 0, 1, 2, 3, into symbols that the computer could understand.

In simpler terms, 0 represented roads, and 1 represented walls. When presented in rows on the computer, a map that the machine could comprehend emerged.

The area marked as 2 was the spawn point for the protagonist and the ghosts, as well as the respawn point for the ghosts after death. Without these coordinates, the game couldn't even begin.

As for 3, it was the location of the invincible star on the map.

Once all these key coordinates were confirmed, the code related to the pursuit of the protagonist and the ghosts entering the map could truly be established. The dynamic tracking of the ghosts relied on calculations based on the representation of roads (0) and walls (1), while avoiding the respawn point (2).

The task was not complicated, just tedious. Ethan quickly grasped it in a few minutes. However, while assisting, numerous question marks appeared on his forehead. "So, do we have to hand-draw 255 level maps supported by the 8-bit CPU?"

"Of course!" Evelyn said. "Do you expect the program to generate maps on its own?"

"Is it impossible to write code for that?" Ethan asked cautiously.

This statement made Evelyn laugh. She shook her head and said, "Oh, Ethan, I admit you have talent in game design. Perhaps it's because of your extraordinary imagination that you naturally elevate the current level of technology."

"The technology you mentioned, where game maps are generated automatically, may be achievable in the future, but not now. Your ideas exist only in the summaries of various professors' papers at major universities."

"We also hope to use such intelligent technology to liberate human productivity, but so far..."

Listening to his sister, Ethan instantly understood why Evelyn had mentioned that the production time of this game might take years.

Manually writing 255 maps would consume a considerable amount of time. Setting the AI for the four ghosts would kill off their brain cells, but the most painful part was the testing after completing the game. How to ensure that the four ghosts perfectly chased the player across 255 maps was the crucial step because what players would see after the game's release was only this one-sided presentation.

"Damn, how much time will this take?" Ethan felt a bit uneasy.

In his view, such a massive workload was not something two technicians could handle.

Not to mention, Evelyn still had to go to school, and Woz had to go to work.

However, as Ethan was pondering whether he needed to recruit a group of programmers to help them with the tedious work, on the second day of game production, Evelyn didn't even go to school. After getting up, she stayed in her garage, writing code, and Woz went even further. Like a self-employed worker, he brought an APPLE 1 and drove to their house to work.

This situation puzzled Ethan, and when he asked them why they weren't going to school or work...

Evelyn directly said, "Go to school? Why should I go to school now? Oh, Ethan, my foolish little brother, I've told you many times. I choose to continue going to school because I find the field of computer science fascinating. I want to constantly understand the latest technology in this field, try to learn it, master it, and ultimately apply it."

"Now, how to make the characters in the game perform human-like operations is the best topic!"

"So, since I can research at home, why should I go to school?"

"I have already informed the school, and I won't attend classes temporarily. The teachers know I'm starting a business, so they agreed. Also, I have a feeling that if we really make this game, implementing the concept of artificial intelligence in the game, the school will not only directly award me a diploma but also hire me as a professor."

"After all, presenting a concept in a paper is just the first step, while practical application is the first step in technology."

This idea made Ethan admire her.

At the same time, he smiled and gave his affirmation. "Oh, Evelyn, then let me congratulate you in advance."

"Perhaps next year, I'll have to call you Professor Johnson?"

"Oh, thank you," Evelyn waved her hand, appreciating how Ethan addressed her.

As for Woz, his answer was even simpler.

"Oh, Ethan, didn't Steve tell you? The thing I like to do the most is actually playing games!"

"Do you know why Steve went to work at Atari? It's because after he started working at Atari, we could play games without spending money!"

"Before that, he often took me to Atari at night, using the excuse of testing to let me play games!"

"Now, since I can sit in your house and write games directly, why should I go to work at HP?"

Ethan was completely astonished by this story! Woz, the tech guru, actually climbed over Atari's factory wall in the middle of the night just to play games?

Oh no!

Was he free product testing for Atari?

What the heck!

However, before he could express his surprise, Woz said again, "And Ethan, you might not know, but Steve has been urging me to resign every day."

"He wants me to quit my job at HP, start a company with him, and sell personal microcomputers."

"Not only that, he has already thought of a name for the company, Apple."

To be honest, regarding starting a business, I've always been hesitant because I really like the environment at HP. It allows me to access the latest technology and research things I want to study. But now..."

"I think the game of Destiny is more interesting!"

"Ethan! Your idea is really fun! It's much more interesting than HP's research!"

"If Steve and I don't start a company, then how about I come to work for you?"

"I think you wouldn't mind having one more person, right?"

"Oh, wait! If I remember correctly, you invested money with Steve?"

"Oh, well, let's make it happen. We can't let your money go to waste."

Ethan certainly wouldn't mind having one more person!

Not to mention, Woz's technology was a top representative of this era!

When major computer manufacturers were still tinkering with modular components, this guy had already integrated all major functions!

While this ingenious approach stemmed from his father's military experience, he was the first to take the plunge, and it was magnificent!

"Sure, Stephen, as long as you're willing to play, I welcome you anytime," Ethan said, patting the chubby guy's shoulder.

"If you find it troublesome to travel back and forth, you can stay at my place," he added.

"Really?" Woz exclaimed with joy.

"Of course, we're friends," Ethan said with a smile.

How could he not welcome someone with technical skills, interest, willingness to work voluntarily, and the acceptance of a black-and-white 007 deal? This was truly the perfect employee in the eyes of many bosses!

"Oh, in that case, I'll move in tomorrow," Woz decided. "From now on, unless I'm meeting my girlfriend, I won't go back home."

"WTF?" Ethan was a bit surprised. "You have a girlfriend?"

"Yes, we're deeply in love," Woz said. "We met at HP."

After a brief chat, Ethan gained a simple understanding of Woz's life. When he learned that Woz was planning to marry his current girlfriend, he abandoned the freeload decision and decided to pay him a salary.

"How about a weekly salary of five hundred?" Ethan asked with a smile.

"Oh, isn't that too much?" Woz wanted to refuse.

But Ethan shook his head, "Brother, your skills are worth that price!"

"And, you need to know one thing, romance can be bought with money."

"Wish you happiness."

Woz was happy with the high salary set by Ethan.

As the development of "Pac-Man" was not progressing rapidly, Ethan took the opportunity to discuss Apple.

He wanted to know how Apple was preparing.

Through this conversation, Ethan discovered that Steve Jobs was currently in a state of chaos.

Although Jobs received fifty thousand dollars in sponsorship from Ethan and purchased two hundred MOS 6502 from Chuck Peddle's company, there was still no official plan for the sale of microcomputers so far.

This was not because the APPLE 1 product was not completed, but because the future Jobs was a bit lost. He had no idea how to sell personal microcomputers. In his view, the target users for personal microcomputers should be computer enthusiasts, but this market represented by these people was too small. Moreover, those who understood technology were a bit difficult to handle. Therefore, Jobs desired a larger market but didn't know how to sell personal microcomputers to the general public.

"He's trying to figure out how to sell personal microcomputers to the masses," Woz said. "Of course, he won't waste time aimlessly. He assured me that if he couldn't find a solution within three months, he would first promote the computers to computer enthusiasts next year, capture those troublesome users, and then try to find a new way."

Ethan had nothing to say about the problems Jobs faced. He understood that the key to making the public accept personal computers was the adaptability of the software. People didn't need a computer for programming; they needed an assistant tool to solve life problems. So, Jobs could confidently sell, and the technology-savvy enthusiasts would help him solve the rest.

However, this was something he couldn't say. Jobs had to comprehend it himself.

The reason he invested in Jobs was that this guy had the vision and ability to turn tech products into consumer goods.

It was precisely because of this ability that Apple truly came into being.

Although his intervention could promote Apple's growth, what about tomorrow? Could he still intervene? Could he still remind?

In his previous life, he wasn't involved in technology after all. He wasn't aware of everything in the industry. Take "Pac-Man" for example; when he decided to make it, he didn't expect the game to be so challenging. If Evelyn hadn't grasped the technical points, he might have failed.

In a situation where he couldn't control everything, letting knowledgeable people do what they were good at was his best choice.

Although Jobs was immature now, still a version of a spirited young man, it didn't matter because Apple, which currently had no survival pressure, could provide Jobs with the space to make mistakes. And when he passed the development stage...

Apple would truly explode.

After chatting casually and relaxing for a bit, Woz continued to write code.

Ethan, on the other hand, tried to fill in the game levels of "Pac-Man" up to 255 and express it in computer language.

Although the work was tedious, Ethan enjoyed it.

Because at a certain moment, he suddenly felt that he was playing a game.

TL Note:

I don't know if the original version of "Pac-Man" was indeed designed with 255 levels by the designer personally, but back then, there was indeed no technology to generate levels. What puzzled me is that when a player cleared "Pac-Man" and showed the achievement to Namco, Namco didn't even know that "Pac-Man" could be completed. This is quite amusing. Steve Jobs worked at HP before joining Atari. He assembled circuit boards there, and the reason for joining Atari, as mentioned in the text, was that he and Woz found out that playing games at Atari didn't cost money. Even legends in the industry have had their share of absurd experiences when they were young. In reality, Jobs and his team were not confused when selling Apple 1. Their failure was more about showing off. While other companies were using multiple motherboards, Woz had already created a single motherboard similar to modern computers. To showcase this technology, Jobs boasted about how amazing their technology was when promoting Apple 1. The ads for Apple 1 also highlighted this, but many people couldn't understand it. It was only with Apple 2 that they truly started making products, adding a keyboard and casing. The driver mentioned in the text was modified because showing off was absurd; that wasn't making a product but rather showing off, and the protagonist wanted to punch him for it.