Before the Bubble Burst: Jamie Fenton, Game Designer, 1982

When a group of independent video makers set out to document current tech trends for an ill-fated television show called Wired In, they hardly suspected they were capturing an industry poised on the edge of cataclysmic change. Like many young tech industries, video games were hot, and everyone wanted to get in on the action, but as more and more companies jumped in, often with subpar products, the bubble just grew and grew. In 1982, when this footage was shot, the North American video game industry was at its peak. One year later, the bubble burst in what is now known as the video game crash of 1983.
It was a major blow to a fledgling industry, and the landscape was forever changed. North America, which had been a major player, took the hardest hit, and Japan took over as the single leading producer of gaming consoles and software for next 30+ years.
Nonetheless, signs off the impending crash were starting to appear back in 1982, and perhaps the most poignant story captured in our archive is that of Jamie (FKA Jay) Fenton, a game designer at Bally-Midway whose game, The Adventures of Robby Roto, would in some ways mimic the industry's own fate.
In the video above, Fenton also shows off Ms. Gorf, a game she was working on at the time that would, ultimately, become a victim of the crash. The game has never been released, even unofficially, and footage of it in action is incredibly rare. She also talks a little bit about the future of video games, and proves to be surprisingly prescient.
Watch the full interview with Jamie Fenton for free at mediaburn.org:
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Or explore our Wired In collection in depth:
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[@JimHawkwind03411]

From what it looks like, Ms. Gorf was Bally Midway’s response to Robotron 2084; Williams and Bally Midway haven’t merged yet. The final controls would have been similar to Tron: an 8-way flight stick for movement with a trigger and thumb button for firing and shields, respectively, and a spinner used for aiming the turret.

[@RandyWaage]

Thank You for posting this. I know it's unlikely but it would be AWESOME if Ms. Gorf could be finished released someday.

[@professionalmagic]

yes it truly would ;)

[@Jamie-yp7qz]

I’m still hoping Ms. Gorf gets released someday. Jamie herself still has the source code and has expressed interest in releasing it.

[@DwDrake2000]

This was a great watch. Thank you for sharing.

[@depletable]

Awesome video. Need more like this.

[@RalphBarbagallo]

Predicted VR fitness games like Supernatural 40 years earlier.

[@urboboy]

Very talented

[@VjRobotkid]

Wonderful. Thanks for sharing!

[@LatestGameReviews]

Love this.

[@tonialoconte]

I'd point out that Donkey Kong was probably the top arcade game during the first half of 1982, and it didn't involve anything resembling war. The only things that arguably "died" were wandering fireballs. DK landed on his head every now and then too. Popeye, Joust, DK Jr., Mario Brothers, Pengo... all came out within a few months of this video being shot. So, Robby Roto didn't prove that people wanted shooters only. I think Jamie was overreacting to her Robby Roto disappointment a bit.

[@JimFisher182]

Really interesting. I didn't even know there was a game bubble and that burst in 1983.

[@martinhernandez656]

6:04 ms gorf was set on mame final burns bei to dump

[@ToolFan68]

7:20 = total geek, 10:20 = total visionary ;-)

[@Gosu85]

The invention of WORLD OF WARFCRAFT!! And of course Koreans starving in front of their pcs and other casual stuff

[@PedroSilvahf]

To this day i still play making noises like she did but sometimes its not as fun as it was in this video

[@vaughnparkes]

Nice video.

[@Nigaromia]

She is a pioneer of the industry. Worked for Bally in the 70's, worked on the pinball machine 'Fireball' the first game to feature 'Multiball'. I think worked on the Bally Arcade computer and created one of my favorite games Gorf. I wish she would have finished Ms. Gorf, that looked quite cool. Robby Roto was probably too complicated for people to understand. Love Eugene Jarvis spying on the competition, seeing what Bally are doing. I have to play Robby in MAME, didn't know the game existed. If only Ms. Gorf came out first, it would have gone up against Robotron 2084. It would have been a battle between the two. Williams VS Bally. Sadly, not to be. 9:08, she describes Ubisoft's Watch Dogs Virtual Trip modes.

[@dennisneo1608]

The Arcadinator He!

[@JimHawkwind03411]

It!

[@dbug64]

Some good insights but they also point out the lack of ideas when "this is our next pac man" turns out to be that Ms Gorf. A shitty version of Robotron? That guy is all over the place too, sometimes painfully childish and sometimes reason very intelligently.

[@juststatedtheobvious9633]

A sense of play helps in game creation. Especially back then, before advanced game design was a class you could take, and 8-bit pixel art became a mainstream aesthetic.

[@r12fre0n]

OMG I would commit first-degree murder to have that beautiful vintage Sony Trinitron the guy is sitting in front of.

[@vitardrinkovic718]

ahead of his time

[@missMoshie]

her*

[@joestitz239]

People back then knowing IT was trans, no wonder why THAT ONE failed