Don Daglow
Encyclopedia
Don Daglow is an American
computer game and video game designer, programmer
and producer
. He is best known for designing a series of pioneering simulation games and role-playing games, as well as the first computer baseball game and the first graphical MMORPG
, all between 1971 and 1995. He founded long-standing game developer
Stormfront Studios
in 1988; as of 2007 more than 12,500,000 Stormfront games had been sold.
In 2008 Daglow was honored at the 59th Annual Technology & Engineering Emmy Award
s for Neverwinter Nights pioneering role in MMORPG development. Along with John Carmack of id Software
and Mike Morhaime of Blizzard Entertainment
, Daglow is one of only three game developers to accept awards at both the Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards and at the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences
Interactive Achievement Awards.
In 2003 he was the recipient of the CGE Achievement Award for "groundbreaking accomplishments that shaped the Video Game Industry."
in Claremont, California
. A computer terminal
connected to the Claremont Colleges
PDP-10
mainframe computer
was set up in his dorm, and he saw this as a new form of writing. Like Kelton Flinn
, another prolific game designer of the 1970s, his nine years of computer access as a student, grad student and grad school instructor throughout the 1970s gave him time to build a large body of major titles. Unlike Daglow and Flinn, most college students in the early 1970s lost all access to computers when they graduated, since home computers had not yet been invented.
Some of Daglow's titles were distributed to universities by the DECUS
program-sharing organization, earning popularity in the free-play era of 1970s college gaming.
His best known games and experiments of this era include:
programmers at Mattel
during the first Console wars
. Intellivision titles where he did programming and extensive ongoing design include:
As the team grew Daglow was promoted to be Director of Intellivision Game Development, where he created the original designs for a number of Mattel titles in 1982-83 that were enhanced and expanded by other programmers, including:
During the Video Game Crash of 1983
Daglow was recruited to join Electronic Arts
by founder Trip Hawkins
, where he joined the EA producer team of Joe Ybarra
and Stewart Bonn. His EA titles include:
In addition to Dombrower, at EA Daglow often worked with former members of the Intellivision team, including programmer Rick Koenig, artist Connie Goldman and musician Dave Warhol.
Daglow spent 1987–88 at Brøderbund
as head of the company's Entertainment and Education Division. Although he supervised the creation of games like Jordan Mechner
's Prince of Persia
, Star Wars
, the Ancient Art of War
series, and Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, his role was executive rather than creative. He took a lead role in signing the original distribution deal for SimCity
with Maxis
, and acquired the Star Wars
license for Brøderbund from LucasFilm
.
in 1988 in San Rafael, California
.
Between 1988 and 1995 Daglow designed or co-designed the following titles:
By 1995 Stormfront had placed on the Inc. 500 list of fast-growing companies three times and Daglow stepped back from his design role to focus on the CEO position. See the article on Stormfront Studios
for further information.
In 2003 and again in 2007 Daglow was elected to the Board of Directors of the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences
. He also serves on the San Francisco Advisory Board of the IGDA, the Advisory Board to the President of the Academy of Art University
and served on the Advisory Board to the Games Convention
Developers Conference until it was dissolved in 2008. In 2009, Daglow joined the board of GDC Europe. He has been a keynote speaker, lecturer and panelist at game development conferences in Australia, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.
New Voices playwriting competition in 1975. His 1979 novelette
The Blessing of La Llorona appeared in the April, 1982 issue of Fantasy and Science Fiction
magazine.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
computer game and video game designer, 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"...
and producer
Game producer
A video game producer is the person in charge of overseeing development of a video game.The earliest documented use of the term producer in games was by Trip Hawkins, who established the position when he founded Electronic Arts in 1982...
. He is best known for designing a series of pioneering simulation games and role-playing games, as well as the first computer baseball game and the first graphical MMORPG
MMORPG
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
, all between 1971 and 1995. He founded long-standing game developer
Video game developer
A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...
Stormfront Studios
Stormfront Studios
Stormfront Studios was a video game developer based in San Rafael, California which had one of the longest creative histories in the industry. In 2007, the company had over 50 developers working on two teams, and owned all its proprietary engines, tools and technology. As of the end of 2007 over...
in 1988; as of 2007 more than 12,500,000 Stormfront games had been sold.
In 2008 Daglow was honored at the 59th Annual Technology & Engineering Emmy Award
Technology & Engineering Emmy Award
A Technology and Engineering Emmy Award is given by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for outstanding achievement in technical or engineering development...
s for Neverwinter Nights pioneering role in MMORPG development. Along with John Carmack of id Software
Id Software
Id Software is an American video game development company with its headquarters in Richardson, Texas. The company was founded in 1991 by four members of the computer company Softdisk: programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer Tom Hall, and artist Adrian Carmack...
and Mike Morhaime of Blizzard Entertainment
Blizzard Entertainment
Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. is an American video game developer and publisher founded on February 8, 1991 under the name Silicon & Synapse by three graduates of UCLA, Michael Morhaime, Allen Adham and Frank Pearce and currently owned by French company Activision Blizzard...
, Daglow is one of only three game developers to accept awards at both the Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards and at the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences
Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences
The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences , founded in 1996, is a non-profit organization that promotes computer and video game entertainment with the annual D.I.C.E. Summit event, where its Interactive Achievement Awards ceremony has been held annually since 1998...
Interactive Achievement Awards.
In 2003 he was the recipient of the CGE Achievement Award for "groundbreaking accomplishments that shaped the Video Game Industry."
University mainframe games in the 1970s
In 1971 Daglow was studying playwriting at Pomona CollegePomona College
Pomona College is a private, residential, liberal arts college in Claremont, California. Founded in 1887 in Pomona, California by a group of Congregationalists, the college moved to Claremont in 1889 to the site of a hotel, retaining its name. The school enrolls 1,548 students.The founding member...
in Claremont, California
Claremont, California
Claremont is a small affluent college town in eastern Los Angeles County, California, United States, about east of downtown Los Angeles at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains. The population as of the 2010 census is 34,926. Claremont is known for its seven higher-education institutions, its...
. A computer terminal
Computer terminal
A computer terminal is an electronic or electromechanical hardware device that is used for entering data into, and displaying data from, a computer or a computing system...
connected to the Claremont Colleges
Claremont Colleges
The Claremont Colleges are a prestigious American consortium of five undergraduate and two graduate schools of higher education located in Claremont, California, a city east of downtown Los Angeles...
PDP-10
PDP-10
The PDP-10 was a mainframe computer family manufactured by Digital Equipment Corporation from the late 1960s on; the name stands for "Programmed Data Processor model 10". The first model was delivered in 1966...
mainframe computer
Mainframe computer
Mainframes are powerful computers used primarily by corporate and governmental organizations for critical applications, bulk data processing such as census, industry and consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning, and financial transaction processing.The term originally referred to the...
was set up in his dorm, and he saw this as a new form of writing. Like Kelton Flinn
Kelton Flinn
Kelton Flinn is an American computer game designer who is a major pioneer in online games. He is a co-founder of the seminal online game company Kesmai, which they began in 1982...
, another prolific game designer of the 1970s, his nine years of computer access as a student, grad student and grad school instructor throughout the 1970s gave him time to build a large body of major titles. Unlike Daglow and Flinn, most college students in the early 1970s lost all access to computers when they graduated, since home computers had not yet been invented.
Some of Daglow's titles were distributed to universities by the DECUS
DECUS
The Digital Equipment Computer Users' Society was an independent computer user group related to Digital Equipment Corporation.The Connect User Group Community, formed from the consolidation in May, 2008 of DECUS, Encompass, HP-Interex, and ITUG is Hewlett-Packard’s largest user community...
program-sharing organization, earning popularity in the free-play era of 1970s college gaming.
His best known games and experiments of this era include:
- Baseball (1971) — First-ever computer baseballBaseballBaseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
game, now recorded in the baseball Hall of FameHall of FameA hall of fame, wall of fame, walk of fame, walk of stars or avenue of stars is a type of attraction established for any field of endeavor to honor individuals of noteworthy achievement in that field...
in Cooperstown, New YorkCooperstown, New YorkCooperstown is a village in Otsego County, New York, USA. It is located in the Town of Otsego. The population was estimated to be 1,852 at the 2010 census.The Village of Cooperstown is the county seat of Otsego County, New York...
. Daglow continued to expand Baseball throughout the 1970s, and ported the game to the Apple IIApple IIThe Apple II is an 8-bit home computer, one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products, designed primarily by Steve Wozniak, manufactured by Apple Computer and introduced in 1977...
in 1981, adding graphics in 1982. The simulation model in the Apple version in turn was ported to the IntellivisionIntellivisionThe Intellivision is a video game console released by Mattel in 1979. Development of the console began in 1978, less than a year after the introduction of its main competitor, the Atari 2600. The word intellivision is a portmanteau of "intelligent television"...
in 1982 as the basis for Intellivision World Series BaseballIntellivision World Series BaseballIntellivision World Series Major League Baseball is a baseball sports game , designed by Don Daglow and Eddie Dombrower and published by Mattel for the Intellivision Entertainment Computer System. IWSB was the first video game of any kind to use multiple camera angles, and the first sports game...
. - Star TrekStar Trek (script game)Star Trek was a text-based mainframe computer game written by Don Daglow on a PDP-10 timesharing computer at Pomona College in 1972, and upgraded periodically through 1974, including contributions by Jonathan Osser...
(1972) — The second of two popular Star TrekStar TrekStar Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
computer games widely played in American colleges during this era. - Ecala (1973) — Improved version of the ELIZAELIZAELIZA is a computer program and an early example of primitive natural language processing. ELIZA operated by processing users' responses to scripts, the most famous of which was DOCTOR, a simulation of a Rogerian psychotherapist. Using almost no information about human thought or emotion, DOCTOR...
computer conversation program. This project paved the way for his later work by suggesting new kinds of game interfaces. - DungeonDungeon (computer game)Dungeon was one of the earliest computer role-playing games, running on PDP-10 mainframe computers manufactured by Digital Equipment Corporation.-History:...
(1975) — The first computer role playing game, based on the then-new Dungeons & DragonsDungeons & DragonsDungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
gaming system. The game was steadily expanded over the following five years. - Spanish Translator (1977) — As he experimented with parsers he created a context-sensitive Spanish translation program.
- Killer Shrews (1978) — A simulation game based on the cultCult filmA cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a highly devoted but specific group of fans. Often, cult movies have failed to achieve fame outside the small fanbases; however, there have been exceptions that have managed to gain fame among mainstream audiences...
sci-fi film The Killer Shrews. The player has not many decisions to make, only when to try to escape the island during the simulation of the depleting of the food that is there. - Educational Dungeon (1979) — An attempt to make rote computer-aided instructionE-learningE-learning comprises all forms of electronically supported learning and teaching. The information and communication systems, whether networked learning or not, serve as specific media to implement the learning process...
(CAI) programs more interesting by taking Dungeon and making correct answers propel the story.
Intellivision and Electronic Arts in the 1980s
In 1980 Daglow was hired as one of the original five in-house IntellivisionIntellivision
The Intellivision is a video game console released by Mattel in 1979. Development of the console began in 1978, less than a year after the introduction of its main competitor, the Atari 2600. The word intellivision is a portmanteau of "intelligent television"...
programmers at Mattel
Mattel
Mattel, Inc. is the world's largest toy company based on revenue. The products it produces include Fisher Price, Barbie dolls, Hot Wheels and Matchbox toys, Masters of the Universe, American Girl dolls, board games, and, in the early 1980s, video game consoles. The company's name is derived from...
during the first Console wars
Console wars
"Console wars", also known as "System wars" is a term used to refer to periods of intense competition for market share between video game console manufacturers. The winners of these "wars" may be debated based on different standards: market penetration and financial success, or the fierce loyalty...
. Intellivision titles where he did programming and extensive ongoing design include:
- Geography Challenge (1981) — an educational title for the ill-fated Intellivision Keyboard component.
- UtopiaUtopia (video game)Utopia is a video game, released on Intellivision in 1981 and often regarded as among the first sim games and god games. It is also regarded as setting the scene for the real-time strategy genre. It was designed and programmed by Don Daglow....
— the first sim game or god gameGod gameA god game is an artificial life game that casts the player in the position of controlling the game on a large scale, as an entity with divine/supernatural powers, as a great leader, or with no specified character , and places them in charge of a game setting containing autonomous characters to...
(1982). Utopia was a surprise hit and received wide press coverage for its unique design in an arcade-dominated era. The game has been named to two different video game halls of fame. - Intellivision World Series BaseballIntellivision World Series BaseballIntellivision World Series Major League Baseball is a baseball sports game , designed by Don Daglow and Eddie Dombrower and published by Mattel for the Intellivision Entertainment Computer System. IWSB was the first video game of any kind to use multiple camera angles, and the first sports game...
(1983) — the first video game to use multiple camera angles to display the action rather than a static playfield.
As the team grew Daglow was promoted to be Director of Intellivision Game Development, where he created the original designs for a number of Mattel titles in 1982-83 that were enhanced and expanded by other programmers, including:
- Tron Deadly DiscsTron Deadly DiscsTRON: Deadly Discs is a video game for Mattel's Intellivision console, and was published by Mattel in 1982. The initial game design was done by Don Daglow, with further design and programming by Steven Sents. It is the first of three Intellivision games based on the Disney motion picture Tron...
(programmed by Steve Sents) - Shark! Shark!Shark! Shark!Shark! Shark! is an Intellivision game originally designed by Don Daglow, and with additional design and programming by Ji-Wen Tsao, one of the first female game programmers in the history of video games. The player is a fish who must eat smaller fish in order to gain points and extra lives while...
(programmed by Ji-Wen Tsao) - Buzz BombersBuzz BombersBuzz Bombers is a single-player video game developed by Mattel Electronics for its Intellivision video game system and released in 1983. In the game, Mattel's answer to the Atari 2600 version of the arcade hit Centipede, the player controls a can of bug spray trying to ward off swarms of...
(programmed by Michael BreenMichael BreenMichael Breen may refer to:* Michael Breen wrote The Koreans* Mike Breen * Michael Breen from Montreal, Canada who was nominated at the Juno Awards of 1989* Mike Breen founder of ....
) - Pinball (programmed by Minh-Chau Tran).
During the Video Game Crash of 1983
Video game crash of 1983
The North American video game crash was a serious event that brought an abrupt end to what is considered the second generation of console video gaming in North America. Beginning in 1983, the crash almost destroyed the then-fledgling industry and led to the bankruptcy of several companies producing...
Daglow was recruited to join Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
by founder Trip Hawkins
Trip Hawkins
William M. 'Trip' Hawkins III is a Silicon Valley American entrepreneur and founder of Electronic Arts, The 3DO Company and Digital Chocolate....
, where he joined the EA producer team of Joe Ybarra
Joe Ybarra
Joe Ybarra is one of the original game producers at Electronic Arts in 1982 , where the concept of a game producer was created by Trip Hawkins...
and Stewart Bonn. His EA titles include:
- Realm of ImpossibilityRealm of ImpossibilityRealm of Impossibility is a computer game created by Mike Edwards and published by Electronic Arts in 1984 for the Apple IIe, Atari 8-bit family and Commodore 64 computer systems. It was converted to the ZX Spectrum in 1985 and published by Ariolasoft UK Ltd.-Summary:The game was originally...
(1984) - Adventure Construction SetAdventure Construction SetAdventure Construction Set is a program written by Stuart Smith that is used to construct tile-based graphical adventure games. ACS was originally published by Electronic Arts in 1984 on the Commodore 64, and was later ported to the Apple II, Amiga and MS-DOS platforms...
(1985) - Racing Destruction SetRacing Destruction SetRacing Destruction Set is a car racing and motocross computer game that was published in 1985 by Electronic Arts. It was developed for the Commodore 64 computer system, and was advertised as being Commodore 128 compatible...
(1985) - Mail Order MonstersMail Order MonstersMail Order Monsters is a 1985 computer game created by Paul Reiche III, Evan Robinson and Nicky Robinson and published by Electronic Arts for the Commodore 64 and Atari 8-bit family home computers....
(1985) - Thomas M. Disch's Amnesia (1986)
- Lords of ConquestLords of ConquestLords of Conquest is a 1986 strategy video game developed by Eon Software, Inc. and produced by Don Daglow.-Summary:...
(1986) - World Tour GolfWorld Tour GolfWorld Tour Golf is an 1986 computer game by Evan and Nicky Robinson and published by Electronic Arts for Commodore 64, Amiga, Apple IIGS and DOS.-Summary:...
(1986) - Super Boulder DashBoulder DashBoulder Dash, originally released in 1984 for Atari 8-bit computers, is a series of computer games released for the Apple II, MSX, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, and ColecoVision home computers, and later ported to the NES, BBC Micro and Acorn Electron, PC, Amstrad CPC, Amiga and many other platforms...
(1986) - Ultimate Wizard (1986)
- Earl Weaver BaseballEarl Weaver BaseballEarl Weaver Baseball is a baseball computer game , designed by Don Daglow and Eddie Dombrower and published by Electronic Arts. The artificial intelligence for the computer manager was provided by Baseball Hall of Fame member Earl Weaver, then manager of the Baltimore Orioles...
(1987) — again teamed with Eddie Dombrower. One of the earliest EA SportsEA SportsEA Sports is a brand of Electronic Arts that creates and develops sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they tried to mimic real-life sports networks by calling themselves "EA Sports Network" with pictures or endorsements of real commentators such as John...
titles, EWB was later named to the computer game Hall of Fame by Computer Gaming WorldComputer Gaming WorldComputer Gaming World was a computer game magazine founded in 1981 by Russell Sipe as a bimonthly publication. Early issues were typically 40-50 pages in length, written in a newsletter style, including submissions by game designers such as Joel Billings , Dan Bunten , and Chris Crawford...
and GameSpyGameSpyGameSpy Industries, Inc., known simply as GameSpy, is a division of IGN Entertainment, which operates a network of game websites and provides online video game-related services and software. GameSpy dates back to the 1996 release of an internet Quake server search program named QSpy. The current...
. CGW named it as one of the top 25 games of all time in 1996. - Patton Versus RommelPatton Versus RommelPatton vs. Rommel is a computer war game designed and programmed by Chris Crawford, and published by Electronic Arts in 1987 for the Macintosh and PC systems...
(1987) - Return to Atlantis (1987)
In addition to Dombrower, at EA Daglow often worked with former members of the Intellivision team, including programmer Rick Koenig, artist Connie Goldman and musician Dave Warhol.
Daglow spent 1987–88 at Brøderbund
Brøderbund
Brøderbund Software, Inc. was an American maker of computer games, educational software and The Print Shop productivity tools. It was best known as the original creator and publisher of the popular Carmen Sandiego games. The company was founded in Eugene, Oregon, but moved to San Rafael,...
as head of the company's Entertainment and Education Division. Although he supervised the creation of games like Jordan Mechner
Jordan Mechner
Jordan Mechner is an American video game designer, screenwriter, author, and filmmaker, best known for creating the Prince of Persia video game franchise.- Life and career :Mechner was born in New York City...
's Prince of Persia
Prince of Persia
Prince of Persia is a platform game, originally developed by Jordan Mechner and released in 1989 for the Apple II, that represented a great leap forward in the quality of animation seen in video games....
, Star Wars
Star Wars (arcade game)
Star Wars is an arcade game produced by Atari Inc. and released in 1983. The game is a first person space simulator, simulating the attack on the Death Star from the final act of Star Wars - Episode IV: A New Hope...
, the Ancient Art of War
Ancient Art of War
The Ancient Art of War is a computer game developed by Evryware and published by Broderbund in 1984. In retrospect, it is generally recognized as one of the first real-time strategy or real-time tactics games.-Overview:...
series, and Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, his role was executive rather than creative. He took a lead role in signing the original distribution deal for SimCity
SimCity
SimCity is a critically acclaimed city-building simulation video game, first released in 1989, and designed by Will Wright. SimCity was Maxis' first product, which has since been ported into various personal computers and game consoles, and spawned several sequels including SimCity 2000 in 1994,...
with Maxis
Maxis
Maxis is an American company founded as an independent video game developer in 1987. It is currently a subsidiary of Electronic Arts . Maxis is the creator of one of the best-selling computer games of all time, The Sims and its first sequel, The Sims 2...
, and acquired the Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
license for Brøderbund from LucasFilm
Lucasfilm
Lucasfilm Limited is an American film production company founded by George Lucas in 1971, based in San Francisco, California. Lucas is the company's current chairman and CEO, and Micheline Chau is the president and COO....
.
Stormfront Studios in the 1990s and 2000s
Looking to return to hands-on game development, Daglow founded game developer Stormfront StudiosStormfront Studios
Stormfront Studios was a video game developer based in San Rafael, California which had one of the longest creative histories in the industry. In 2007, the company had over 50 developers working on two teams, and owned all its proprietary engines, tools and technology. As of the end of 2007 over...
in 1988 in San Rafael, California
San Rafael, California
San Rafael is a city and the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area...
.
Between 1988 and 1995 Daglow designed or co-designed the following titles:
- Tony La Russa BaseballTony La Russa BaseballTony La Russa Baseball is a baseball computer and video game console sports game series , designed by Don Daglow, Michael Breen, Mark Buchignani, David Bunnett and Hudson Piehl and developed by Stormfront Studios. The game appeared on Commodore 64, PC, and Sega Genesis, and different versions were...
(1991–1997) — with Michael BreenMichael BreenMichael Breen may refer to:* Michael Breen wrote The Koreans* Mike Breen * Michael Breen from Montreal, Canada who was nominated at the Juno Awards of 1989* Mike Breen founder of ....
, Mark Buchignani, David Bunnett and Hudson Piehl, winner of multiple Game of the Year awards from Computer Gaming WorldComputer Gaming WorldComputer Gaming World was a computer game magazine founded in 1981 by Russell Sipe as a bimonthly publication. Early issues were typically 40-50 pages in length, written in a newsletter style, including submissions by game designers such as Joel Billings , Dan Bunten , and Chris Crawford...
and other publications. - Quantum SpaceQuantum SpaceQuantum Space was the first play-by-email game offered as part of a major commercial online service. It ran on AOL from 1989 to 1992. The game was developed by Stormfront Studios, designed and programmed by Don Daglow and produced by Kathi McHugh....
(1989–1991) — The first original play by emailPlay-by-mail gamePlay-by-mail games, sometimes known as "Play-by-post", are games, of any type, played through postal mail or e-mail. One example, chess, has been played by mail for centuries . Another example, Diplomacy, has been played by mail since the 1960s, starting with a printed newsletter written by John...
game offered by a major online service - Gateway to the Savage FrontierGateway to the Savage FrontierGateway to the Savage Frontier is a Gold Box Dungeons and Dragons computer game developed by Stormfront Studios and published by SSI for the Commodore 64, PC and Amiga personal computers...
(1991) — A Gold BoxGold BoxGold Box is the name for a series of computer role-playing games produced by SSI. The company won a license to produce games based on the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game from TSR, Inc...
Dungeons and Dragons RPG for SSI, went to #1 on the U.S. game charts. - Rebel SpaceRebel SpaceRebel Space was the second play-by-email game offered as part of a major commercial online service. It ran on Prodigy from 1992 to 1995. The game was developed by Stormfront Studios, designed by Don Daglow and programmed by Mark Buchignani....
(1992–1993) — with Mark Buchignani, David Bunnett and Hudson Piehl. - Treasures of the Savage FrontierTreasures of the Savage FrontierTreasures of the Savage Frontier is a Gold Box Dungeons and Dragons computer role-playing game. It was developed by Stormfront Studios and published by SSI for the Amiga and DOS.-Development:...
(1992) — Gold Box D&D RPG for SSI, the first game where an NPCNon-player characterA non-player character , sometimes known as a non-person character or non-playable character, in a game is any fictional character not controlled by a player. In electronic games, this usually means a character controlled by the computer through artificial intelligence...
could fall in love with a player character. - Neverwinter NightsNeverwinter Nights (AOL game)Neverwinter Nights was the first multiplayer online role-playing game to display graphics, and ran from 1991 to 1997 on AOL.-Gameplay:Neverwinter Nights was developed to be played similarly to the Gold Box series of games...
(1991–1997) — The first graphical MMORPGMMORPGMassively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
, with programmer Cathryn MatagaCathryn Mataga-Biography:Mataga has worked on Neverwinter Nights. She was born William Mataga and at some point underwent sex reassignment surgery.- Credited games :*Grand Theft Auto Advance , Rockstar Games, Inc....
, and the top revenue producing title in the first ten years of online games. NWN paved the way for Ultima OnlineUltima OnlineUltima Online is a graphical massively multiplayer online role-playing game , released on September 24, 1997, by Origin Systems. It was instrumental to the development of the genre, and is still running today...
(1997), EverQuestEverQuestEverQuest, often shortened to EQ, is a 3D fantasy-themed massively multiplayer online role-playing game that was released on the 16th of March, 1999. The original design is credited to Brad McQuaid, Steve Clover, and Bill Trost...
(1999), and World of WarcraftWorld of WarcraftWorld of Warcraft is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game by Blizzard Entertainment. It is the fourth released game set in the fantasy Warcraft universe, which was first introduced by Warcraft: Orcs & Humans in 1994...
(2004). - Stronghold (1993) — The first 3D RTSReal-time strategyReal-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
game, with Mark Buchignani and David Bunnett - Old Time BaseballOld Time BaseballOld Time Baseball is a baseball computer personal computer game designed and programmed by Don Daglow, Hudson Piehl, Clay Dreslough and James Grove...
(1995) — a baseball sim with over 12,000 players and 100 years of teams.
By 1995 Stormfront had placed on the Inc. 500 list of fast-growing companies three times and Daglow stepped back from his design role to focus on the CEO position. See the article on Stormfront Studios
Stormfront Studios
Stormfront Studios was a video game developer based in San Rafael, California which had one of the longest creative histories in the industry. In 2007, the company had over 50 developers working on two teams, and owned all its proprietary engines, tools and technology. As of the end of 2007 over...
for further information.
In 2003 and again in 2007 Daglow was elected to the Board of Directors of the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences
Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences
The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences , founded in 1996, is a non-profit organization that promotes computer and video game entertainment with the annual D.I.C.E. Summit event, where its Interactive Achievement Awards ceremony has been held annually since 1998...
. He also serves on the San Francisco Advisory Board of the IGDA, the Advisory Board to the President of the Academy of Art University
Academy of Art University
The Academy of Art University , a for-profit university owned by the Stephens Institute, was founded in San Francisco, California in 1929 by Richard S. Stephens...
and served on the Advisory Board to the Games Convention
Games Convention
The Games Convention, sometimes called the Leipzig Games Convention and abbreviated as GC, was an annual video game event held in Leipzig, Germany, first held in 2002. Besides video games, the event also covers Infotainment, Hardware, and Edutainment...
Developers Conference until it was dissolved in 2008. In 2009, Daglow joined the board of GDC Europe. He has been a keynote speaker, lecturer and panelist at game development conferences in Australia, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Fiction
During the late 1970s Daglow worked as a teacher and graduate school instructor while pursuing his writing career. He was a winner of the National Endowment for the HumanitiesNational Endowment for the Humanities
The National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency of the United States established by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities. The NEH is located at...
New Voices playwriting competition in 1975. His 1979 novelette
Novelette
A novelette is a piece of short prose fiction. The distinction between a novelette and other literary forms is usually based upon word count, with a novelette being longer than a short story, but shorter than a novella...
The Blessing of La Llorona appeared in the April, 1982 issue of Fantasy and Science Fiction
The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction
The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction is a digest-size American fantasy and science fiction magazine first published in 1949 by Mystery House and then by Fantasy House. Both were subsidiaries of Lawrence Spivak's Mercury Publications, which took over as publisher in 1958. Spilogale, Inc...
magazine.