ICOM Simulations explained

ICOM Simulations, Inc.
Type:Private (defunct)
Industry:Software
Fate:Dissolved
Founder:Tod Zipnick
Location:Wheeling, Illinois
Products:MacVenture

Beavis and Butt-Head in Virtual Stupidity
Homepage:N/A

ICOM Simulations, Inc.[1] (later known as Rabid Entertainment) was a software company based in Wheeling, Illinois. It is best known for creating the MacVenture series of adventure games including Shadowgate.

Following the foundation in 1981 a number of game titles for the Panasonic JR-200 were produced. Later products for the Apple Macintosh included the debugger TMON and an application launching utility called OnCue.

History

ICOM Simulations was formed as TMQ Software[2] on March 4, 1981, by Tod Zipnick. With the MacVenture series, ICOM pioneered the point-and-click adventure interface and later multiplatform CD-ROM development with . Zipnick died of Hodgkin's disease in 1991[3] [4] just as the company was beginning to take off.

In the early-to-mid 1990s, ICOM Simulations was a major third-party developer for the TurboGrafx-16 (TG-16) platform in the US. They produced many games for the console, including the TG-16 exclusive Shadowgate sequel, Beyond Shadowgate.

The company was acquired in 1993 by Viacom New Media which closed its operations in 1997.[5] Renamed to Rabid Entertainment, VNM/ICOM was dismantled in 1998.

The rights to ICOM's game portfolio were held by the company Infinite Ventures, but they are now owned by David Marsh who obtained most of the rights in January 2012.[6] On March 5, 2012, Dave Marsh and Karl Roelofs, both former developers at ICOM Simulations, formed a new game development company called Zojoi, LLC, and have begun releasing upgraded versions of previous ICOM Simulations titles, starting with for iOS Tablets.[7] [8]

Games

Title Release Date Credited As Published By Platform
Déjà Vu: A Nightmare Comes True ICOM Simulations Macintosh, Apple IIGS, Atari ST, Commodore 64, NES, Game Boy
Uninvited ICOM Simulations Macintosh, Apple IIGS, Atari ST, Commodore 64, NES
Shadowgate ICOM Simulations Macintosh, Apple IIGS, Atari ST, Commodore 64, NES
Déjà Vu II: Lost in Las Vegas 1988 ICOM Simulations Macintosh, Apple IIGS, Atari ST, Game Boy Color
Addams Family, The 1991 ICOM Simulations TurboGrafx-CD
Yo' Bro 1991 ICOM Simulations TurboGrafx-16
1991 ICOM Simulations ICOM Simulations PC
1992 ICOM Simulations ICOM Simulations PC
Road Runner's Death Valley Rally 1992 ICOM Simulations SNES
Ghost Manor 1992 ICOM Simulations TurboGrafx-16
Shape Shifter ICOM Simulations TurboGrafx-CD
1993 ICOM Simulations ICOM Simulations PC
Beyond Shadowgate 1993 ICOM Simulations TurboGrafx-CD
Camp California 1993 ICOM Simulations TurboGrafx-CD
1993 ICOM Simulations SNES
Dracula Unleashed ICOM Simulations PC
Bugs Bunny Rabbit Rampage 1994 SNES
Nickelodeon GUTS 1994 SNES
1994 Macintosh, PC
Are You Afraid of the Dark? The Tale of Orpheo's Curse1994Viacom New MediaViacom New MediaMacintosh, DOS
April 1994 Viacom New MediaViacom New MediaSNES
Beavis and Butt-HeadNovember 1994Viacom New MediaViacom New MediaGenesis, SNES, Game Gear, Game Boy
1995Viacom New MediaViacom New MediaPC, Classic Mac OS
Phantom 2040 June 1995 SNES
Aaahh!!! Real MonstersAugust 15, 1995Viacom New MediaViacom New MediaGenesis, SNES
Beavis and Butt-Head in Virtual Stupidity August 31, 1995 PlayStation, PC
Beavis and Butt-head in Little Thingies 1996 PC
Beavis and Butt-head in Wiener Takes All 1996 PC
Beavis and Butt-head in Calling All Dorks 1996 PC
1996 PlayStation
DeathDromeOctober 31, 1996Viacom New MediaViacom New MediaPC
Beavis and Butt-head in Screen Wreckers 1997 Macintosh, PC

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Office Computer Games Can Be Waste of Time or Good Training . Scripps Howard News Service . . July 16, 1989 . October 3, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304065536/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1989-07-16/business/8902170643_1_arcade-style-icom-simulations-leisure-suit-larry . March 4, 2016.
  2. Web site: Adler. Darin. Darin Adler. Monologue. 1986–1987: Macintosh community. December 28, 2007.
  3. Web site: Tod Zipnick, Innovator In Video-game Industry . July 9, 1991 . December 30, 2016.
  4. Web site: AG Staff . An overview of genre history, by The Art of Point-and-Click Adventure Games: Part I . Adventure Gamers . Nito Games network . 18 June 2021 . June 12, 2020.
  5. Web site: Viacom buys interactive video-game company. UPI. en. 2020-01-28.
  6. Web site: Interview with David Marsh About His Sherlock Holmes, Consulting Detective Kickstarter Project . Lucard . Alex . March 29, 2012 . . October 3, 2012.
  7. Web site: Zojoi FaceBook Page . . June 4, 2012 . October 3, 2012.
  8. Web site: Goninon . Mark . Where are they now? - ICOM Simulations . Choicest Games . . 18 June 2021 . August 5, 2015 .