Atomino
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Atomino is an action puzzle game, inspired by a chemistry textbook and the pace of Tetris. It is the first video game imported from East Germany (then part of the Socialist bloc till October 1990).
Volker Strübing got the idea in February 1990 while visiting his friend Tobias Herre, a night-school student. With their graphic artist friend Uwe Beneke, they formed Game-o-ware and developed Atomino (C64). In April, the three unemployed East Germans sent a newsletter to West German companies and received know-how, money and devices from Blue Byte in North Rhine-Westphalia. Because this was a first, major news magazine Der Spiegel published an exclusive interview with Game-o-ware on January 21, 1991. Soon after, all Atomino versions were published in Germany by Blue Byte (under their Play Byte label) and worldwide by Psygnosis.
Atomino (DOS) was also developed by Game-o-ware, whereas Atomino (AMI) and (AST) spawned new graphics and songs. Beneke, Strübing and a Blue Byte co-founder wrote a comprehensive and humorous manual.
The game consists of an 8×7 grid and a tube. In the tube, atoms queue up, and you have to place the bottom one onto the grid. Each atom is surrounded by 1–4 electrons to connect to adjacent atoms. The goal is to build a closed connection between atoms so they form a molecule and dissolve. The game (and game song) ends when the tube overflows. (Strübing about the antirealism: "My old chemistry teacher would probably tear his hair.")
If you form a huge molecule with an exact size and no leftovers, an extra round (and extra song) starts: The grid fills up with atoms, and no atoms queue up until you form a molecule. In the main menu, you can choose between two modes: In mode B, you form molecules for points till game-over. In mode A, you play through thousands of levels, the first 60 predesigned and the rest generated pseudo-randomly. In every level, you must form specific molecules, and then make sure no atoms are left.
As of 2006, Strübing is still proud of his idea, but finds his music pretty ghastly.
Games
Notable Songs
Notable Audio Personnel
Notable Companies
Links
- mobygames.com/game/atomino - MobyGames.
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| Notable Songs | Title |
| Notable Personnel | Volker Strübing • Hans-Hermann Franck |
| Notable Companies | Blue Byte • Psygnosis |
