‘Holy smoke, can I be dreaming?
What's that waltzing up the strand?
Dinosaurs from deeps are streaming,
Come to jumble-job the land!’
– Ray Bradbury, Lo, the Dear, Daft Dinosaurs!, 1980.
Played during the Backloggd’s Game of the Week (Mar. 7 – Mar. 13, 2023).
A prolific writer, Ray Bradbury has been the subject of numerous anthologies over the decades, collecting his work under various books. While most of the more romantic short stories had already been published in The Golden Apples of the Sun (1953), Dinosaur Tales (1983) collected several new pieces and provided original illustrations to accompany them. The Poe-like poem Lo, the Dear, Daft Dinosaurs! (1980), about dinosaurs doing ballet and other dances, was illustrated by Overton Loyd. The reader is treated to burlesque scenes featuring dinosaurs of comic proportions and almost frightening expressions. There is a certain tenderness to this whimsical creation of the imagination. Dinosaur Tales provides all sorts of material for children's imaginations – this is indeed the main subject of the short story Besides a Dinosaur, Whatta Ya Wanna Be When You Grow Up? (1983).
PasokonDeacon gave some context to the creation of Nanosaur, whose demo aimed to push the boundaries of 3D, particularly in the way models were articulated. The groundbreaking nature of the project led to Brian Greenstone being commissioned by Apple to turn it into a full game within three weeks. The title proved to be a huge success as it was bundled with the iMac. In this short showcase entry, the player assumes the role of a time-travelling dinosaur in the late Mesozoic era, collecting eggs from other species to support the future population, before the impact of the massive asteroid. The absurd premise of Nanosaur is reflected in the design of its protagonist: the Deinonychus is equipped with a jetpack and a machine gun to defend itself against creatures from the past.
The title remains relatively simple, as the objective is to collect five different eggs on a single map. On each run, the dinosaurs are positioned in the same places, as are the eggs, all of which can be collected quickly. On reasonable difficulty levels, the opposition is almost non-existent, and it is possible to complete the mission by jumping over the Tyrannosaurus Rex's charges without firing a shot. Players progress linearly through more or less open spaces until they find an egg: they then drop it into one of the time portals and move on to the next section. From a primeval forest, the Deinonychus proceeds along the slopes of a volcano before reaching a steep canyon.
As the first game for many American children, Nanosaur has a simple charm that stimulates the ingenuous imagination. Just as in Besides a Dinosaur... young Benjamin Splauding, fed by images from Irwin Allen's The Lost World (1960), dreams of the Ice Age and fiery skies under which dinosaurs fight, so Nanosaur seems to be the product of the overactive imagination of a child, who would have strapped a little plastic gun to the claws of his favourite dinosaur toy. The soundtrack, with its clear bass and airy marimba, paints the picture of a strange Mesozoic with a mysterious and appealing aura. The title is little more than a window into a new world, that of 3D, whose potential was irresistible at the time. As the player completes they mission, they are given a glimpse into the dinosaurs' future through one of the most universal of allegories: an egg about to hatch.
What's that waltzing up the strand?
Dinosaurs from deeps are streaming,
Come to jumble-job the land!’
– Ray Bradbury, Lo, the Dear, Daft Dinosaurs!, 1980.
Played during the Backloggd’s Game of the Week (Mar. 7 – Mar. 13, 2023).
A prolific writer, Ray Bradbury has been the subject of numerous anthologies over the decades, collecting his work under various books. While most of the more romantic short stories had already been published in The Golden Apples of the Sun (1953), Dinosaur Tales (1983) collected several new pieces and provided original illustrations to accompany them. The Poe-like poem Lo, the Dear, Daft Dinosaurs! (1980), about dinosaurs doing ballet and other dances, was illustrated by Overton Loyd. The reader is treated to burlesque scenes featuring dinosaurs of comic proportions and almost frightening expressions. There is a certain tenderness to this whimsical creation of the imagination. Dinosaur Tales provides all sorts of material for children's imaginations – this is indeed the main subject of the short story Besides a Dinosaur, Whatta Ya Wanna Be When You Grow Up? (1983).
PasokonDeacon gave some context to the creation of Nanosaur, whose demo aimed to push the boundaries of 3D, particularly in the way models were articulated. The groundbreaking nature of the project led to Brian Greenstone being commissioned by Apple to turn it into a full game within three weeks. The title proved to be a huge success as it was bundled with the iMac. In this short showcase entry, the player assumes the role of a time-travelling dinosaur in the late Mesozoic era, collecting eggs from other species to support the future population, before the impact of the massive asteroid. The absurd premise of Nanosaur is reflected in the design of its protagonist: the Deinonychus is equipped with a jetpack and a machine gun to defend itself against creatures from the past.
The title remains relatively simple, as the objective is to collect five different eggs on a single map. On each run, the dinosaurs are positioned in the same places, as are the eggs, all of which can be collected quickly. On reasonable difficulty levels, the opposition is almost non-existent, and it is possible to complete the mission by jumping over the Tyrannosaurus Rex's charges without firing a shot. Players progress linearly through more or less open spaces until they find an egg: they then drop it into one of the time portals and move on to the next section. From a primeval forest, the Deinonychus proceeds along the slopes of a volcano before reaching a steep canyon.
As the first game for many American children, Nanosaur has a simple charm that stimulates the ingenuous imagination. Just as in Besides a Dinosaur... young Benjamin Splauding, fed by images from Irwin Allen's The Lost World (1960), dreams of the Ice Age and fiery skies under which dinosaurs fight, so Nanosaur seems to be the product of the overactive imagination of a child, who would have strapped a little plastic gun to the claws of his favourite dinosaur toy. The soundtrack, with its clear bass and airy marimba, paints the picture of a strange Mesozoic with a mysterious and appealing aura. The title is little more than a window into a new world, that of 3D, whose potential was irresistible at the time. As the player completes they mission, they are given a glimpse into the dinosaurs' future through one of the most universal of allegories: an egg about to hatch.