COLLECTED WORKS ROBERTA WILLIAMS
Edge UK|April 2023
A legendary pioneer of the adventure genre reflects on a career that spans fairy stories, nursery rhymes and horror
EDWIN EVANS-THIRLWELL
COLLECTED WORKS ROBERTA WILLIAMS

During these times of crushing layoffs and waves of questionable new technologies such as AI art generation and crypto, it can be liberating to talk to developers who remember the game industry before it was, strictly speaking, an industry at all. Roberta Williams’ roots as a designer and writer predate the Internet and the home format computing boom; indeed, she was playing computer games before they ran on a screen. Her first inspiration was Will Crowther’s widely influential text- and paper-based Colossal Cave Adventure, released in 1976, which Williams accessed remotely using a teletype machine obtained by her husband Ken during some programming work for a children’s hospital.

The experience sparked a lifelong love affair with what would become the adventure genre, encompassing the King’s Quest series, partnerships with Disney and Jim Henson, and the founding of Sierra On-Line, a former giant in publishing whose portfolio once ranged from Leisure Suit Larry and Gabriel Knight to Space Quest and the first Half-Life. It hasn’t been all sunshine and roses, however: the Williamses and Sierra parted ways in acrimonious circumstances following the latter’s purchase by CUC International in the late ’90s. (CUC would go on to be convicted of financial fraud; Sierra lives on in the hands of Activision.) It was the start of a lengthy sabbatical for Williams, during which she travelled widely with her husband, published a novel, and worked as a consultant on a handful of games, including a Facebook title, Odd Manor, and a cancelled King’s Quest sequel from Telltale Games.

Esta historia es de la edición April 2023 de Edge UK.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

Esta historia es de la edición April 2023 de Edge UK.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

MÁS HISTORIAS DE EDGE UKVer todo
BONAPARTE: A MECHANIZED REVOLUTION
Edge UK

BONAPARTE: A MECHANIZED REVOLUTION

No sooner have we stepped into the boots of royal guard Bonaparte than we’re faced with a life-altering decision.

time-read
2 minutos  |
January 2025
TOWERS OF AGHASBA
Edge UK

TOWERS OF AGHASBA

Watch Towers Of Aghasba in action and it feels vast. Given your activities range from deepwater dives to climbing up cliffs or lumbering beasts, and from nurturing plants or building settlements to pinging arrows at the undead, it’s hard to get a bead on the game’s limits.

time-read
2 minutos  |
January 2025
THE STONE OF MADNESS
Edge UK

THE STONE OF MADNESS

The makers of Blasphemous return to religion and insanity

time-read
3 minutos  |
January 2025
Vampire Survivors
Edge UK

Vampire Survivors

As Vampire Survivors expanded through early access and then its two first DLCs, it gained arenas, characters and weapons, but the formula remained unchanged.

time-read
2 minutos  |
January 2025
Devil May Cry
Edge UK

Devil May Cry

The Resident Evil 4 that never was, and the Soulslike precursor we never saw coming

time-read
6 minutos  |
January 2025
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
Edge UK

Dragon Age: The Veilguard

With Dragon Age: The Veilguard, BioWare has made a deeply self-conscious game, visibly inspired by some of the best-loved ideas from Dragon Age and Mass Effect.

time-read
6 minutos  |
January 2025
SKATE STORY
Edge UK

SKATE STORY

Hades is a halfpipe

time-read
5 minutos  |
January 2025
SID MEIER'S CIVILIZATION VII
Edge UK

SID MEIER'S CIVILIZATION VII

Firaxis rethinks who makes history, and how it unfolds

time-read
5 minutos  |
January 2025
FINAL FANTASY VII: REBIRTH
Edge UK

FINAL FANTASY VII: REBIRTH

Remaking an iconic game was daunting enough then the developers faced the difficult second entry

time-read
9 minutos  |
January 2025
THUNDER LOTUS
Edge UK

THUNDER LOTUS

How Spirit farer's developer tripled in size without tearing itself apart

time-read
7 minutos  |
January 2025