| BASIC Computer Games | |
|---|---|
| Author(s) | David H. Ahl |
| Subject(s) | Computer programming |
| Publication date | 1973 |
BASIC Computer Games (1973, 1978, 2010) is a compilation of type-in computer games in the BASIC programming language collected by David H. Ahl. Some of the games were written or modified by Ahl as well. It was the first million-selling computer book.[1]
The first edition of the book, released in 1973, contained 101 games that had been collected from a newsletter Ahl wrote for DEC's education department. Many of these games had originally been written on different platforms and then ported to DEC machines. These were easy enough to port to other popular platforms of the era, and many of the games re-appeared on other popular systems like the Data General Nova and HP 2100 series.
Copies of the original collection were still widely available when the first hobbyist microcomputers started appearing in 1975, and it became quite popular with these owners. The release of the "1977 Trinity" machines (Apple II, Commodore PET and TRS-80) resulted in millions of new platforms appearing almost overnight, and demand for the book led to a second edition in 1978. Sales remained strong for years, and spawned similar collections in More Basic Computer Games (1979), and Big Computer Games (1984) and Basic Computer Adventures (1984).
The BASIC Computer Games are playable under the new Microsoft Small Basic Development Environment for Kids.[2] Computer Science for Kids has released a 2010 Small Basic Edition of the classic Basic Computer Games book called Basic Computers Games: Small Basic Edition.[3]
The programs can also be run on a modern Microsoft Windows machine by downloading the GW-BASIC interpreter.[4]