Space Psycho was a minor QBasic sensation back in the early days of the internet. Basically I'm posting this source code as a tribute to Hacksoft. Which I assume is some solo programmer that decided to write some code one day. This source code is avaiable at various places on the web, but I want to immortalize it on github. I didn't write this code. I don't know who exactly Hacksoft is. The credits say some dude named Smack Johnson, this is probably an alias. They also say they were originally on the web at
http://members.aol.com/jeffereys/index.htm
this link is long dead, and has been ever since I got the internet.
A large part of the reason I'm posting this code is that it was a major influence in me becomming a professional video game developer today.
Some thoughts I have on this code is that it is really bad. The game loop works but it's not very smooth. Partly this was due to the limits of QBasic, partly it is due to the fact that the authors just didn't know much about programming. One of my early graphics engines was based on this code. The stuff I'm working on now is not based off this code at all.
I kind of wonder whatever happened to the guy that programmed this. I'd like to know what he's doing today. I'd like to meet him. I mean, seriously, he's got to know that his game is still out there on the internet. I wonder if he ever became a real game programmer. I did, and in part thanks to him.
On another note. I'm giving away the ending of the game here, but Arnold Schwarzenegger is the President of the United States in the game. Interestingly enough, Schwarzenegger did go on to be the governor of California. So the programmer of this game must have known that Arnold was into politics. Very interesting.