MegaWars
Encyclopedia
MegaWars was a series of real-time online multiplayer space empire building games which were hosted on CompuServe
in the 1980s and lasted well into the 1990s. The original MegaWars I was a port of Decwar
, originally developed at the University of Texas at Austin
. A port using a basic client/server protocol and a basic graphical interface on the TRS-80 Color Computer
as MegaWars II was never released. MegaWars III
followed, based on an entirely different engine originally developed by Kesmai
.
CompuServe
CompuServe was the first major commercial online service in the United States. It dominated the field during the 1980s and remained a major player through the mid-1990s, when it was sidelined by the rise of services such as AOL with monthly subscriptions rather than hourly rates...
in the 1980s and lasted well into the 1990s. The original MegaWars I was a port of Decwar
Decwar
DECWAR is a multiplayer computer game first written in 1978 at the University of Texas at Austin for the PDP-10. It was developed from an earlier two-player version, WAR, adding multi-terminal support for between one and eighteen players. WAR and DECWAR are essentially multiplayer versions of the...
, originally developed at the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
. A port using a basic client/server protocol and a basic graphical interface on the TRS-80 Color Computer
TRS-80 Color Computer
The Radio Shack TRS-80 Color Computer was a home computer launched in 1980. It was one of the earliest of the first generation of computers marketed for home use in English-speaking markets...
as MegaWars II was never released. MegaWars III
MegaWars III
MegaWars III was a massively multiplayer empire building game written by Kesmai and run continuously on CompuServe between 1984 and 1999. It was one of CompuServe's most popular games throughout its lifetime, and was only shut down because they switched to their web-based "CompuServe 2000"...
followed, based on an entirely different engine originally developed by Kesmai
Kesmai
Kesmai was a pioneering game developer and online game publisher, founded in 1981 by Kelton Flinn and John Taylor. The company was best known for the combat flight sim Air Warrior on the GEnie online service, one of the first graphical MMOGs, launched in 1987...
.