The new forums will be named Coin Return (based on the most recent vote)! You can check on the status and timeline of the transition to the new forums here.
The Guiding Principles and New Rules document is now in effect.
Planet M.U.L.E. is live, has online play - Return of the original Econ Strategy game!
XiaNaphryz
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Back to Irata, fools! Versions for Windows, OSX, and Linux are out.
Planet M.U.L.E. is a free remake and tribute to the 26 years old original game M.U.L.E. from Dan Bunten/Ozark Softscape*.
Planet M.U.L.E. is an economic strategy game for up to four players connected over the internet or your local network. It is based on one of the earliest multiplayer games of all time: Dan Buntens M.U.L.E. by Ozark Softscape.
With the blessings of the Bunten Family, we are proud to present you the first official internet version since the game was released 26 years ago – and it’s free for anyone to play!
So please register, download the latest client and join the M.U.L.E. community to help us make it even better!
Happy gaming!
Players Guide
Instruction Video (Not up yet, will be posted at that link)
Until the vid above is up, here's a review on the original game you can watch in the meantime:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uHUckK765I&fmt=18
GamePro article on the remake:
M.U.L.E. reborn online
Originally released in 1983, Ozark Softscape's M.U.L.E. is one of the most fondly-remembered games of a generation. Now it has been reborn as an online game for PC and Mac.
M.U.L.E., released in 1983 by the fledgling Electronic Arts, and designed by Dani Bunten of Ozark Softscape, is one of the original multiplayer strategy games. Originally released for the Atari 400/800, and later the Commodore 64, IBM PC Jr, and Nintendo Entertainment System, M.U.L.E. was a four-player strategy game that relied heavily on its simulation of an economic system. Set on the fictional planet of Irata (that's Atari backwards) players were tasked with balancing the supply and demand of an assortment of different resources; food, energy, smithore, and crystite by buying and selling them with other players. The M.U.L.E.s of the title were "Multi Use Labor Elements" - mechanical beasts of burden that were used to develop and harvest resources on Irata.
Not only was the game unique for its reliance on economic systems, rather than combat for its strategic gameplay, it was also unusual in that it was always a four-player game, whether other human players were present or not. In this regard, it paved the way for numerous other multi-faction strategy games, including spiritual successors like Sid Meier's Civilization. According to lead designer Bunten the game was somewhat inspired by Monopoly, and the setting of Irata themed on Robert A. Heinlein's Time Enough for Love.
Why the quick history lesson? Well, after years of fans saying "someone should remake M.U.L.E. and make it an online game," someone finally has. Developed by Swedish studio Turborilla with the blessings of the Bunten family, the free-to-play Planet M.U.L.E. is a faithful reproduction of the original (albeit with slightly updated visuals) that works either online, or over a local network. Currently there are (free) clients for both the PC and the Mac with a Linux version pending. Given that the game only launched yesterday, and it is, to all intents and purposes a labor of love, it's not without some quirks. As a multiplayer game, it relies on community involvement, obviously, but it should also be noted that any kind of matchmaking is done the old-fashioned way; you show up in the game's forums and find some buddies to play with. Also, we've noticed that some folks are having some issues with this initial release. Mac owners, in particular, have noted that they've had some troubles getting the game to run. Bizarrely the game is a downloadable Java application. Nope, not a web app and not a Flash app - Java. Also, it's not exactly the friendliest game in the world to set up. Players wishing to host a game are informed that they must change settings to their firewall in order to do so. If you can't affect the settings on your home network, you're not going to be able to host a game and control the people that come into it. You'll still be able to join other games, just not start your own.
While all of this is more exciting to those of us of an... ahem... older persuasion, newbies are welcome in the Planet M.U.L.E. community, and there's a full tutorial on how to play the game that you can find here. It should probably be noted that the game is an incredibly faithful revival of the original game. While the gameplay stands the test of time remarkably well, some of the quirky content that made the original so amusing back in 1983 seems a little weird now. References to joysticks notwithstanding, there are also some comments that may seem a little off-color in today's society. Things like "Space Gypsy Cousins" may prompt the occasional wince.
So anyone interested in setting up some games? :P
XiaNaphryz on
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This game was amazing back when I was just 1 year old
I'm getting this
This is what they need to work on next
It was designed by the same dude and is just as fun