Battlezone Universe

Battlezone Universe => Battlezone 1 => Topic started by: Avatar on January 24, 2009, 07:26:31 AM

Title: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Avatar on January 24, 2009, 07:26:31 AM
I know, I know, I'm old.  Many of you are young enough that this won't apply...

As a fan of Battlezone did you/have you ever:

Have one of those huge Solar System posters with painted planets long before we even had decent pictures of the real things?  (can't find one on the net but I've got one on a shelf here, and here's the modern equivalent:)

(http://artfiles.art.com/images/-/Our-Solar-System-Poster-C12182524.jpeg)

Have the little green "army guys"?

(http://www.sdsoldiers.com/DSC0378.JPG)

Think "Major Matt Mason" was just about the coolest thing ever?  (remember, this is BEFORE video games of ANY kind, even pre-pong)

(http://www.majormattmason.net/gif/mmflare.jpg)
(http://www.mysteryisland.net/major7.jpg)
(http://www.majormattmason.net/catalogs/catalog2/m3c2p01.jpg)

Suffer through early UHF reception just to watch "Space:1999" and see REAL looking space craft?  (no dig against Star Trek, which I ate/slept/breathed, but it was very futuristic while Space looked like NOW...)

(http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~thompp/Images/Space1999.jpg)

Read everything Heinlein, Norton, or Asimov wrote?  The "Terra Calling" chapter of Norton's "Star Rangers" still gives me chills...

(http://img.epinions.com/images/opti/dc/89/Star_Rangers-resized200.jpg)

And people wonder why a game like "Battlezone" still holds onto me after a decade of playing...  :)

-Av-






Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Red Devil on January 24, 2009, 10:00:09 AM
Boy, we've sure learned a lot about the solar system since your day; just look at how close they had all the planets back then.

What's UHF?
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: mrtwosheds on January 24, 2009, 10:16:36 AM
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
No
Yes

Old scifi kids will probably enjoy these books
http://www.iain-banks.net/science-fiction/ (http://www.iain-banks.net/science-fiction/)
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Nielk1 on January 24, 2009, 12:18:13 PM
Heh... UHF... For a bit there I had a TV that still had a knob for that, and up to an amazing 10 pre-programmable digits that the remote could access. (Remote had a MASSIVE red ball light looking thing on the end.)
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Avatar on January 24, 2009, 12:26:00 PM
Quote from: Red Devil on January 24, 2009, 10:00:09 AM
Boy, we've sure learned a lot about the solar system since your day; just look at how close they had all the planets back then.

Well, they WERE that close back then...  that's why all the fuss about being invaded by Martians and such... they didn't have far to come if they were going to attack.  Could've tossed rocks and sticks and spit on each other back then.

Now that my generation's got all the planets further apart we can rest a little easier... 

:lol:

QuoteWhat's UHF?

Besides a really bad movie it's what they're calling "HD" now... each HD broadcast is actually using a few UHF frequencies to make one channel.

-Av-
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Nielk1 on January 24, 2009, 12:37:39 PM
Didn't some song have in it: "ON UHF!"
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Grendel on January 24, 2009, 01:49:07 PM
Little green army men - sure!
Planetary posters (ahm... star wars themed)- sure!
Various Sci-Fi books - sure!

Battlezone will always have a special place in my heart...
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Avatar on January 24, 2009, 02:29:13 PM
A word on "Major Matt Mason"...

This was Mattel merchandising  brilliance at it's finest.  Foam-rubber covered wire armatures that were guaranteed to break within the year, these things all self-destructed within a year of purchase.  Check them out on Ebay for a look at what that scarcity did to their resale value...

The 'jetpack' was another stroke of genius...  it had a pulley system and long strings.  You hooked a front string on a door or window and pull the rear one and the thing would ZIP down the string as if flying.  Lasted a week or so before the strings became a hopelessly snagged mess.

The Crawler was cool, also... and it took months for one of the little legs to break off.  :)

***

I forgot about this:

(http://chaoskids.com/ROBOTS/LISB9/B9.jpg)

:)
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Axeminister on January 24, 2009, 03:32:52 PM
I had Doc Savage: The man of Bronze, Tom Swift and Isaac Asimov books but admit that the Isaac Asimov books were a bit over my head. The Isaac Asimov books did instill a longing to understand a broader vocabulary and so I had a number of dictionaries at age 11. Had a Star Trek: Enterprise hanging model. No posters.
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Avatar on January 24, 2009, 03:46:17 PM
I didn't get into Burroughs until High School, but read a ton of Doc Savage, Pellucidar, Barsoom and Tarzan books once I did.   I think it's interesting that they're almost ready to do a movie of John Carter's exploits, although the Pellucidar stuff has sortof been done with rubber dinosaurs in very bad 70's movies.

Asimov has done such a wide range of books, and I didn't think the Robot or Foundation books were that out of reach...  Sure, once he gets going he can put a physicist to sleep, but when he keeps it simpler they're darn good stuff...

Kids nowadays don't realize how amazing things like cable/satellite TV, on demand movies, DVD's, the Internet, Console games, etc. are.  We had none of that, and arcades were places you had to sneak off to as most parents didn't want their kids hanging out there (not to mention money was something you raked leaves, shoveled driveways, and took out trash for).

In short, the past was SO BORING compared with now.  :)  Things like those shown above were that much more special for their scarcity.

-Av-

Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: AHadley on February 02, 2009, 12:20:41 PM
Yes to the first two, no to all the rest... mind you, the juys of being born in the early nineties are enjoyable.

That posted reminded me of the days when pluto was still a planet :P
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: bigbadbogie on February 02, 2009, 01:35:37 PM
Now its just a planetoid.  :cry:
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Nielk1 on February 02, 2009, 02:03:55 PM
I still count it, and Ceres too...
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: squirrelof09 on February 02, 2009, 07:06:03 PM
QuoteThat posted reminded me of the days when pluto was still a planet

That's about all I can say about the post too. Born in 91. I didn't really pay attention to all the changed until probably 11-13 I guess.. The only change I saw was win 98 to xp.. never played on the 2000's until probably 16. I'm 17 now and I was diagnosed with a major case of add and adhd back then (for all of you who have known me since I joined this board - you have probably seen changes in me :P). I've gotten control of I guess most of my ADD. I never took medicine in my entire life for anything except the occasional allergy pills once a month during warmer seasons, and I have allergies reallllllllly bad... I hate medicine. I flat out refuse to take it when my mom offers it to me.. I only take it when I want a break from all my allergies..

I guess one change I have noticed during my attentive years is how more and more parents think their newborns have ADD, ADHD, and all the other disorders... yeah.. it's annoying
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Nielk1 on February 02, 2009, 07:32:10 PM
Every kid has ADD according to them.
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: General BlackDragon on February 02, 2009, 07:32:18 PM
ADD and ADHD don't exist. It's called THEY'RE CHILDREN! DEAL WITH IT!

parents should stop labeling their children wierd stuff.
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Nielk1 on February 02, 2009, 07:37:12 PM
Actually, I know someone who has... something. He says he is passing all his classes when often he never attended. He flunked out of two colleges and likely has issues stemming from his bipolar father. Oh, and he won that show "Smartest Kid in America II".

I was born in 1989, so I am not old enough for a lot of this stuff. I did have some of those posters though AV.
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: General BlackDragon on February 02, 2009, 07:49:59 PM
stop describing yourself XD
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Nielk1 on February 02, 2009, 08:55:23 PM
Quote from: General BlackDragon on February 02, 2009, 07:49:59 PM
stop describing yourself XD

Andrew Turcich, Battle of the Child Geniuses II, Grand Champion, NOT ME!
See here: http://www.angelfire.com/wa/gsjackpot/100k.html


Wow, I remember trying to get him to play BZ2... No luck. BZ1 either. I am always trying to get ppl to play it but no one ever likes it enough for me to seek out an official disk for them.
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: AHadley on February 07, 2009, 07:35:48 AM
The problem is that that would cost money.
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Feared_1 on February 07, 2009, 04:17:41 PM
Quote from: AHadley on February 07, 2009, 07:35:48 AM
The problem is that that would cost money.

Ahh yes, money is quite expensive these days.

$0.99 on eBay with $3.99 shipping. What have you got in that dusty couch?

--

Oh, and I've never heard of any of those things in the first post, :) and I did NOT have a solar system in my room. I think I had a bunch of pictures with Mr. Rogers on them or something, does that count?
Title: Re: As a fan of Battlezone, when you were a kid did you...
Post by: Russian Roulette on April 30, 2009, 08:29:40 AM
Little green army men... YES!
A poster with planets on it... if you call that giant wingcommander poster with the galaxy chart on it... I think you will find our solar system in the Terra sector.
UHF? Hilariously dumb movie, also a frequency used on old TVs and now new TVs.
Mork and Mindy, nanu-nanu :D