OXO (1952, A.S. Douglas)
EDSAC EMULATOR FOR WINDOWS
Oxo was one of the first graphical games to run on a computer, the game wasn't widely available to play because the EDSAC computer it ran on was unique to Cambridge university. I can see how this would have been a big draw in 1952 with the fact you could interact with a computer.
Today however from a pure game playing experience it's unfair, why ? Because the EDSAC was programmed to play a perfect game of Tic-Tac-Toe therefore the very best outcome you can achieve is a drawn game.
The original EDSAC loaded programs via paper tape. The emulator, which is simple and accessible simulates this. You then choose whether to go first or let the EDSAC start proceedings. You place your mark on the grid by dialling the relevant number on a simulated dial eg 9 places your marker in the top left square of the grid. The user interface is intuitive enough and the emulator does a great job of giving you some idea of what it must have been like to experience the game.
So I look on this game with two eyes. It was designed to demonstrate what computers could do and show that one day they will take over the world so from that angle it succeeds. However is it fun to play ? No because there is no reward element to the game, therefore no sense of achievement because you cannot win, it is futile.
So OXO is a relic of it's time, but Tic-Tac-Toe would return with various home computer and console versions being released especially during the initial wave of second generation consoles.
Sut's Score: 2 out of 5
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