M.U.L.E. is a seminal multiplayer video
game written in 1983 by Dan Bunten of Ozark Softscape. It was published by Electronic Arts. While originally written for the Atari
400/800, it was later ported to the Commodore 64,
the Nintendo Entertainment System, and the IBM
PC Jr.. While it played like a game, it was actually an economic simulation taking place on a small colony planet.
In 1996, Computer Gaming World named M.U.L.E. as #3 on its
Best Games of All Time list.
Gameplay
Set on the fictional planet Irata (which is Atari backwards), the game is an exercise in
supply and demand economics involving competition
between four players, with computer opponents automatically filling in for any missing players. Players are provided with several
different choices for the race of their colonist, providing different advantages and disadvantages which can be paired to their
respective strategies. To win, players not only compete against each other to amass the largest amount of wealth, but must also
cooperate for the survival of the colony.
A Multiple Use Labor Element, the eponymous M.U.L.E.
Central to the game is the acquisition and use of "M.U.L.E."s (Multiple Use Labor Element) to develop and harvest
resources from the player's real estate. Depending on the terrain type, a M.U.L.E. can be
configured to harvest Energy, Food, Smithore (from which M.U.L.E.s are constructed), and Crystite (a valuable mineral available
only at the "Tournament" level). Players must balance supply and demand of these elements, buying what they need, and selling
what they don't. Players may also exploit or create shortages by refusing to sell to other players or to the "store", which
raises the price of the resource on the following turns. Scheming between players is encouraged by allowing collusion between two players, which initiates a mode allowing a private transaction.
Players must also deal with periodic random events such as run-away M.U.L.E.s, solar flares, and theft by space pirates. The
game features a balancing system for random events which impact only a single player, such that favorable events never happen to
the player currently in first place, while unfavorable events never happen to the player in last place. This same "leveling of
the playfield" is applied whenever a tie happens in the game (e.g. when two players want to buy a resource at the same price);
the player in the losing position automatically wins the tie.
Development
Initially called Planet Pioneers during development, M.U.L.E. was intended to be similar to Cartels & Cutthroats, with more graphics, better playability, and a focus on multiplayer. The
real-time auction element came largely from lead designer Dan Bunten's Wheeler Dealers.
The board game Monopoly was used as a model for the game, for its encouragement of
social interaction. It also inspired features such as the different species (as the different tokens in Monopoly).[1]
The setting was inspired by Robert A. Heinlein's Time Enough for Love, wherein galactic colonization is still done in the style of the
American Old West: A few pioneers with drive and primitive tools. The M.U.L.E. itself
is a cross between the genetically modified animal in Heinlein's novel and a Star
Wars Imperial Walker. Another Heinlein novel, The Moon Is a Harsh
Mistress, provided the decision to not have any government or external authority.[1]
Influences
M.U.L.E. was revolutionary in the ease with which it allowed multiplayer interaction through a single game/computer
console. Though this failed as a trend setter at the time, the game is still heralded as the first game to make effective use of
the multiplayer game concept.
Although not a bestselling title, the game was very popular in its day among certain groups, and has more recently become a
favorite of retrogaming enthusiasts. Various clones for modern computers exist, the most
recent commercial clone published in 2002. The original's theme song by
Roy Glover has been widely covered by remix groups.
Dani Berry (previously Dan Bunten) was working on an Internet version of the game until her death in 1998. In 2005, a program called Kaillera was finally integrated into an Atari emulator, enabling the original game to be played over the internet.[2]
Many game designers cite the game as one of the most revolutionary ever and an
inspiration for many of their games. Will Wright dedicated his game
The Sims, the greatest selling computer game of all time, to the memory of Bunten.
A modern version of the game entitled Space HoRSE was developed in 2004 by Gilligames
and is distributed by Shrapnel Games.
References
External links
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
