Synergistic Software
Encyclopedia
Software developer
A software developer is a person concerned with facets of the software development process. Their work includes researching, designing, developing, and testing software. A software developer may take part in design, computer programming, or software project management...
and a former video 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...
. Founded in 1978 under the name Synergistic Software, the company published some of the earliest available games and applications for the Apple II family of computers. They continued developing games for various platforms into the late 1990s.
History
Synergistic was founded in 1978 by Robert Clardy and Ann Dickens Clardy. One of the earliest successful third-party software developers for the Apple II platform, they are most well known for their Dungeons & DragonsDungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & 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...
inspired Dungeon Campaign / Wilderness Campaign game, which was later expanded and repackaged as Odyssey: The Compleat Apventure
Odyssey: The Compleat Apventure
Odyssey: The Compleat Apventure was a videogame written by Robert Clardy and released by Synergistic Software in 1980. It was created for the Apple II platform and is considered one of the first microcomputer-based role playing games...
. Dungeon Campaign / Wilderness Campaign is one of the earliest D&D-like games that is epic in scope (compared to the more commonplace "dungeon crawl" games, such as Temple of Apshai
Temple of Apshai
The Temple of Apshai is a computer role-playing game from Epyx. The game was first released for the TRS-80 in 1979, then the Apple II and Atari home computers in 1980. In 1983, it was released for the Commodore VIC-20, Commodore 64, and IBM PC compatibles. Even later it was made available with...
.
Synergistic also published a number of business applications, including a word processor and a simple database program.
PC revival
Unlike many other companies that could or did not make the jump to other platforms, Synergistic continued as an independent developer as the IBM PCIBM PC
The IBM Personal Computer, commonly known as the IBM PC, is the original version and progenitor of the IBM PC compatible hardware platform. It is IBM model number 5150, and was introduced on August 12, 1981...
DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
platform became dominant. Possibly the most successful titles they ported during this period were Thexder
Thexder
is a classic action-arcade game from Game Arts, released on a number of platforms throughout the late 1980's and 1990.-Background:In the game, the player is a fighter robot, but is able to transform into a jet. Originally released in 1985 for the NEC PC-8801 platform in Japan, the game quickly...
, a side-scrolling shooter game and Silpheed
Silpheed
is a video game series developed by Game Arts and designed by the late Takeshi Miyaji. It made its debut on the Japanese PC-8801 in 1986, and was ported to the Fujitsu FM-7 and MS-DOS formats soon after. It was later remade for the Mega-CD and has a sequel called Silpheed: The Lost Planet for the...
, a 2D shooter (developed by Game Arts
Game Arts
is a Japanese video game software developer located in Tokyo, Japan. Originally established in 1985 as a computer software company, they have since expanded their enterprise to produce for a number of game console and handheld systems...
and published by Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
for the Sega CD console).
Merger and acquisition
Synergistic was acquired by SierraSierra Entertainment
Sierra Entertainment Inc. was an American video-game developer and publisher founded in 1979 as On-Line Systems by Ken and Roberta Williams...
in 1996. They maintained their identity as an independent development group within Sierra for several years. However, the studio was closed on February 22, 1999 as part of a Sierra's restructuring plan.
In 1998, Robert and Ann Clardy, along with several other principals from Synergistic Software, began a new venture under the name of Eclectic Games, with plan to make the first game in early 1999, but Eclectic failed to obtain sufficient funding to begin development, and the project was subsequently abandoned.
Northwest Synergistic Software/My Pattern Designer era
Not longer part of the Sierra group, a number of the development staff at Synergistic, returning to their previous name of Northwest Synergistic Software, left the entertainment software market in 2000 to devote their development resources to custom fit apparel pattern-drafting software, which continues to be their major focus at this time, under the name My Pattern Designer, LLC.List of Titles
- Dungeon Campaign / Wilderness Campaign (1979)
- Odyssey: The Compleat ApventureOdyssey: The Compleat ApventureOdyssey: The Compleat Apventure was a videogame written by Robert Clardy and released by Synergistic Software in 1980. It was created for the Apple II platform and is considered one of the first microcomputer-based role playing games...
(1980) - Higher Text II (1980)
- Data Reporter (1981)
- Apventure to Atlantis (1982)
- Bolo (1982)
- Crisis Mountain (1982)
- Escape From Arcturus (1982)
- Microbe (computer game) (1983)
- The Fool's ErrandThe Fool's ErrandThe Fool's Errand is a 1987 computer game by Cliff Johnson. It is a meta-puzzle game with storytelling, visual puzzles and a cryptic treasure map...
(1986) (as publishers of DOS port) - Pitstop IIPitstop II-Summary:This video game allows players to race head-to-head on a split screen. It is a sequel to the 1983 Pitstop and was available on many popular platforms of the era....
(1984) - ThexderThexderis a classic action-arcade game from Game Arts, released on a number of platforms throughout the late 1980's and 1990.-Background:In the game, the player is a fighter robot, but is able to transform into a jet. Originally released in 1985 for the NEC PC-8801 platform in Japan, the game quickly...
(1985) - Sidewinder (computer game) (1988)
- SilpheedSilpheedis a video game series developed by Game Arts and designed by the late Takeshi Miyaji. It made its debut on the Japanese PC-8801 in 1986, and was ported to the Fujitsu FM-7 and MS-DOS formats soon after. It was later remade for the Mega-CD and has a sequel called Silpheed: The Lost Planet for the...
(1988) - J.R.R. Tolkien's War in Middle Earth (1988)
- Spirit of ExcaliburSpirit of ExcaliburSpirit of Excalibur is a 1990 computer game developed by Synergistic Software for PC, Amiga, Atari ST, Apple IIGS and Apple Macintosh, and distributed by Virgin Mastertronic, Inc.....
(1990) - Vengeance of ExcaliburVengeance of ExcaliburVengeance of Excalibur is a 1991 computer role-playing game developed by Synergistic Software and distributed by Virgin Games. It is a sequel for Synergistic's 1990 title Spirit of Excalibur, set in Spain around the turn of the 10th and 11th Centuries...
(1991) - Conan: The Cimmerian (1991)
- Spectre (video game) (1994)
- Triple Play '97 (1996)
- Birthright - The Gorgon's Alliance (1996)
- Diablo: HellfireDiablo: HellfireDiablo: Hellfire is an expansion pack that Sierra On-Line produced for the video game Diablo. It was released in 1997 and developed by Synergistic Software, a Sierra division. Hellfire is the only authorized expansion pack released for Diablo. Blizzard Entertainment has never released a...
(1997)
External links
- My Pattern Designer, LLC. page
- MobyGames rap sheet on Synergistic Software.
- Eclectic Games website in 1998 (maintained by the Internet Wayback Machine)