UOC celebrates technological nostalgia with RUMSXPLORA 2024 conference

One of the reasons why in recent years retro games (that is, restoring old games, preferably from microcomputers) is nostalgia from that early period. But it is also because a number of programmers gathered around this movement and demonstrated the extent to which they could continue to exploit the advantages of the architecture of systems like MSX or Commodore. This allowed them to tap into Internet and even develop new video games, but in a classic style. And this is the atmosphere that you will feel in RUMSKSPLORA 2024 July 6 at the UOC base in Can Jomandreu (Barcelona).

Look into the future from the past

The main event of this edition of the RUMSXPLORA conference will be the presentation by the British Jeff Mintera pioneer in the development of video games for microcomputers in the early eighties. Through his company LlamaSoft, he developed, specifically for Commodore, such popular games of the time as Gridrunner And Attack of the mutant camels. Joan Arnedo, director of the university’s Master of Video Game Design and Programming program, emphasizes that Minter is “a person who is widely recognized in the world.” retro sceneand one of the pioneers of the first systems in Europe (and still in operation!), even with documentary “The fact that he is present at the event creates a noticeable reaction among people in the know,” Arnedo adds.

The program also features another international guest: programmer Bart van Velzen. In its country of origin (Holland), “MSX has also had a tangible impact, as it did in Spain,” says the UOC professor. That’s why Van Velzen devotes himself to “creating new games for MSX in the 21st century as a kind of “unofficial” continuation of old games, such as Space Bow 2.

Indigenous Peoples’ Perspectives

Among the MSX experts in our immediate circle, RUMSXPLORA 2024 was chosen as the speaker. Roberto Vargaslow-level software developer for companies like ARM or Sony, and Santi Otagnon, Senior AI Engineer from Google and the creator of the MSX video games as a personal challenge. According to Arnedo, what is interesting is that both figures “combine their daily lives with developing video games on these systems and perceive it as a personal challenge, given the natural limitations of these systems.” In terms of hardware, Jordi Solismember of the MSXMakers Association, will be responsible for demonstrating how the IMSAI 8080, the microcomputer that appeared in the film, worked. War games (1983), John Badham.

In order to include in the publication an academic and research section more in line with the philosophy of the university, a round table was organized with the participation of Victor Navarro, Marsal Mora And Alba Torrents. Joan Arnedo defines them as “researchers and outstanding figures in the field game research and as for video games, media and Japan, in the case of the MSX it is a very current topic. “The influence of the Japanese country and its aesthetics on Spain was not only through anime and manga, but also through the first important video games.”

And the evolution of the European video game market cannot be separated from the phenomenon that microcomputers 8-bit in the eighties, like the MSX itself. The fact that the audio cassette, the most popular gaming format at the time, was so economical increased its popularity and led to the creation of a large pool of local companies that, as they note, flooded the market, experimenting with highly competitive products. Researchers Jesper Juul and Laurel Carney in their study “Do You Want Games on This Computer? Revisiting the History and Culture of Early Commodore 64 Gaming.”

electronic melodies

Another contribution of RUMSXPLORA 2024 will be concert what Narciso Quintana (Narcisound) will give. As Arnedo notes, this “old 8-bit game soundtrack maker in Soft Topo and Soft Operavery famous Spanish companies”, he continues to compose music on old microcomputers such as the Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum and MSX. His music can be heard in late classics such as Zone 0, desperate 2, Tour 91 And Jai Alaiamong the others.

Visitors to the event will also be able to see the stands presented in Can Jomandreu, as well as Party (dedicated to showing works in MSX) and Arcade Zone (the goal of which is to allow everyone to try out games on the system). All of this will be supplemented tournaments from Hat trick (Commodore 64) and massacre (Amiga 500) and with Assembly shop MP32C64, an emulator that allows you to download Commodore 64 games from your mobile phone in MP3 format.

As Joan Arnedo points out, “although we started very well in the previous edition, with Kazuhiko Nishi, my expectations are good, both because of the union of the two communities and because we have better facilities that allow us to carry out new events: competitions, forecasts…and a musical performance.”

An ever growing event

Entrance Rafael PerezSecretary of the Association of Friends of MSX (AAMSX), as a teacher at the UPC Master’s program in video game design and programming, paved the way for cooperation between the two organizations. Especially considering that the creator of the aforementioned microcomputer Dr. Kazuhiko Nishisaid that “he wanted to come to Barcelona to present his new systems,” says Joan Arnedo. This fact prompted the union of forces to organize “not only a talk, but a full day with the support of the university to convince someone of this category,” he points out.

From there, the evolution began: from the semi-annual AAMSX meetings to conferences with the UOC. As for the previous issue, Arnedo notes that “many people in the retro scene were impressed.” For this reason, this issue approved the proposal to include the Explora Commodore Association as a co-author, in order to expand the vision offered in the universe. microcomputers 8 bit. The UOC professor emphasizes that thanks to this, RUMSXPLORA 2024 offers “a more spacious and open space, new systems, a competition open to the entire community, a live trivia, projections and a machine assembly shop”, through “spaces with a rich program and a great desire to engage in a slightly different activity throughout the day within the UOC, open to the general public.”