Bill Williams (game designer)
Encyclopedia
Bill Williams was a game design
er and programmer
.
games Salmon Run
, Necromancer
, and Alley Cat, and the Amiga
games Mind Walker
, Sinbad and the Throne of the Falcon
, Pioneer Plague
, and Knights of the Crystallion. Alley Cat was actually started by another programmer, John Harris
, who abandoned the project and left him to finish it. Near the end of his game development career he wrote Monopoly
for the Nintendo Entertainment System
and Bart's Nightmare
for Super NES
. The last game was poorly received by critics and Williams was himself disappointed with the way the game turned out, calling it "Bill's Nightmare."
Williams' games are admired for their unique and imaginative design concepts, beautiful graphics, innovative sound and music, and skillful implementation. Pioneer Plague was notable as the first Amiga game to make full use of Hold-And-Modify
mode for the in-game graphics.
A devoted Christian, Williams left game design to study at a seminary
in Chicago
in 1992, and he emerged two years later with a master's degree in theology. He died in 1998 of complications of cystic fibrosis
, a condition aggravated by the polluted city air of Chicago.
While he is most remembered for his computer game
s, he also published a theological work, Naked Before God: The Return of a Broken Disciple (ISBN 0-8192-1878-2). There he wrote, "I have a demon called cystic fibrosis, a minor twisting in the blueprints of life, and it cannot be straightened. For that I am being punished mercilessly".
Game design
Game design, a subset of game development, is the process of designing the content and rules of a game in the pre-production stage and design of gameplay, environment, storyline, and characters during production stage. The term is also used to describe both the game design embodied in a game as...
er and programmer
Game programmer
A game programmer is a software engineer, programmer, or computer scientist who primarily develops codebase for video games or related software, such as game development tools. Game programming has many specialized disciplines all of which fall under the umbrella term of "game programmer"...
.
Summary
He was the author of the acclaimed Atari computerAtari 8-bit family
The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers manufactured from 1979 to 1992. All are based on the MOS Technology 6502 CPU and were the first home computers designed with custom coprocessor chips...
games Salmon Run
Salmon Run (computer game)
Salmon Run is a 1982 computer game for the Atari 8-bit series created by Bill Williams and distributed via the Atari Program Exchange. Salmon Run was Williams' first game, followed by a string of successes noted for their oddball concepts....
, Necromancer
Necromancer (video game)
Jaseiken Necromancer is a fantasy role-playing game for TurboGrafx-16, PlayStation Network and the Virtual Console. The TurboGrafx-16 version was only released in Japan. In February 2011, the game was released as "Necromancer" on Apple's App Store....
, and Alley Cat, and the Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
games Mind Walker
Mind Walker
Mind Walker is a 1986 computer game by the late Bill Williams.-Summary:This video game was published by Commodore and is often cited as the first commercial title for the new Amiga 1000 computer, though there are other contenders. The game is perhaps best known for its unusual gameplay and concept....
, Sinbad and the Throne of the Falcon
Sinbad and the Throne of the Falcon
Sinbad and the Throne of the Falcon is a 1987 action adventure computer game developed and published by Cinemaware. It is set in a fantastical Arabian Nights-esque world...
, Pioneer Plague
Pioneer Plague
Pioneer Plague was a game for the Commodore Amiga computer system.It used the Hold-And-Modify display mode for in-game graphics. It may have been the very first commercial game to do so....
, and Knights of the Crystallion. Alley Cat was actually started by another programmer, John Harris
John Harris (software developer)
John D. Harris is a well-known computer programmer, hacker, and author of some classical 1980s Atari computer games.A lot of work carried out early in John's career is considered as groundbreaking in the industry...
, who abandoned the project and left him to finish it. Near the end of his game development career he wrote Monopoly
Monopoly (game)
Marvin Gardens, the leading yellow property on the board shown, is actually a misspelling of the original location name, Marven Gardens. The misspelling was said to be introduced by Charles Todd and passed on when his home-made Monopoly board was copied by Charles Darrow and thence to Parker...
for the Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
and Bart's Nightmare
Bart's Nightmare
Bart's Nightmare is a 1992 video game developed by American company Sculptured Software based on the television show The Simpsons. It was released to the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.-Plot:...
for Super NES
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
. The last game was poorly received by critics and Williams was himself disappointed with the way the game turned out, calling it "Bill's Nightmare."
Williams' games are admired for their unique and imaginative design concepts, beautiful graphics, innovative sound and music, and skillful implementation. Pioneer Plague was notable as the first Amiga game to make full use of Hold-And-Modify
Hold-and-Modify
Hold-And-Modify, usually abbreviated as HAM, is a display mode of the Commodore Amiga computer. It uses a highly unusual technique to express the color of pixels, allowing many more colors to appear on screen than would otherwise be possible....
mode for the in-game graphics.
A devoted Christian, Williams left game design to study at a seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
in 1992, and he emerged two years later with a master's degree in theology. He died in 1998 of complications of cystic fibrosis
Cystic fibrosis
Cystic fibrosis is a recessive genetic disease affecting most critically the lungs, and also the pancreas, liver, and intestine...
, a condition aggravated by the polluted city air of Chicago.
While he is most remembered for his computer game
Personal computer game
A PC game, also known as a computer game, is a video game played on a personal computer, rather than on a video game console or arcade machine...
s, he also published a theological work, Naked Before God: The Return of a Broken Disciple (ISBN 0-8192-1878-2). There he wrote, "I have a demon called cystic fibrosis, a minor twisting in the blueprints of life, and it cannot be straightened. For that I am being punished mercilessly".
External links
- Biography
- MobyGames's rap sheet for Bill Williams
- Essay on Bill Williams' game development career which also explores his game Necromancer