RIP Steve Jobs

I miss Steve Jobs.

In memory of Steve, I’d like to reflect my own experience and history with Apple products and how they have shaped me to become the gamer I am today.

When I was first introduced to Apple products, I think I used a Macintosh LC II at my Elementary School. The thing that I remember mostly from using a Macintosh was how much better everything looked compared to the IBM and Tandy-based computers I previously used. Gaming-wise, we were allowed to play such edutainment classics as Super Munchers and Kid Pix. Even then for the Jobs-less Apple, Macintosh computers still had a sense of unique physical and graphical design that resides in everything Apple to this day.

In 1994 my family bought a Power Macintosh 6100/60 and it changed my life. It was the first computer that we had a modem for (14.4 kbs!). I had a subscription to Mad Addict magazine. Each issue had a CD filled with demos of games and programs that I could never afford as an 11 year old. I remember playing Warcraft, Warcraft 2, Abuse, Myth, Marathon, Day of the Tentacle, Sam and Max Hit the Road, Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, Star Wars: Dark Forces, Star Wars: Rebel Assault, Star Wars: Rebel Assault 2, Prince of Persia, and even Zork. Macintosh computers have never really been known for their gaming, but I was introduced to the likes of the Freeverse classics Sim Stapler and Jared. These games first introduced me to the world of indie gaming. I continued with the likes of Weekend Warrior, Mortal Pongbat, Ingemar’s Skiing Game, and Escape Velocity. It was a strange and wonderful time.

Today I own a Macbook and an iPod Touch. Since the return of Steve Jobs at Apple, the world of computing has changed drastically. Just the other day, I remember thinking about how society would be filled with flying cars and holograms by the year 2000. When 2000 came and went, I was sorely disappointed. Now finally with the advent and popularity of tablet PCs and smart phones, I am finally beginning to see some of the things I was expecting to see. I like to attribute this to two men: Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs. They may not have invented or designed the products that I attribute to them, but they definitely set the tone and had the know-how to get the products into the market in an appealing way. Many, including myself, have compared Nintendo and Apple in the ways that they approach the way they make their products. I think the comparison is appropriate. It’s one of the reasons why I cherish the two companies.

Apple will continue to produce great an amazing things, but all the while, one of the things that made them so special will be lost. Steve Jobs is synonymous to Apple as Shigeru Miyamoto is synonymous to Nintendo. It’s difficult to imagine either company without them. Even though I now own a gaming PC, I will still continue to play games on some Apple branded device. Although Apple is not a gaming company, they have and will continue to be a route in which I play games.

Goodbye Steve Jobs.