Who are the Computer Game fanatics behind Futurama?

[on:]

Just started noticing that there are a LOT of references to popular computer games in Futurama. In "The Series Has landed" there are a lot of mickey take arcade machines (Mortal Ko-operation, Non Gender Specific Pac Person), you could also argue that the crocodiles in the same episode could represent the crocs in the old Atari game, Pitfall.

One more, in "How Hermes Requisitioned his Groove Back" - the eyeball/brain monsters from "Doom" make an appearance (Fry bumps into one and it wakes up and says "Don't tell my boss you found me asleep!"

Poonaniman

[Reply #1 on:]

Two of the robots in Fear of a bot planet are from the old arcade-game Berserk. The "intruder-alert!intruder-alert"-sample is from Berzerk too.

[Reply #2 on:]

The "eyeball/brain-monster" is not from Doom. It's a "Beholder" from Dungeons & Dragons. :P

[Reply #3 on:]

It could be a "Gazer" from Ultima too. 

[Reply #4 on:]

But, youre right. Its a beholder.
Here's a pic for reference

<IMG SRC="http://www.wizards.com/3e/images/3E_Beholder_Sketch.jpg" border=0>

I think the problem is that many game-programmers (John Carmack, Richard Garriot) probably played Dungeons&Dragons, and thats why the cacodemon and the gazer appear in those games.
Then again, it could probably be said that the creators of Dungeons&Dragons drew inspiration from writers like Tolkien, Lovecraft and mythology while designing creatures for d&d.

[Reply #5 on:]

Actually now you come to mention it, there's one of those suckers in that old Amiga/PC/Atari ST game "Dungeon Master!"

Popular design that old "Floating Brain Eyeball big mouth" creature...

Poonaniman

[Reply #6 on:]

Speaking of Dungeon Master, that's what the professor had on his T-Shirt when he was a "greasy teenager" (A Clone Of My Own).

R Hawks
Futurama Fan Art

[Reply #7 on:]

<IMG SRC="http://futuramafanart2.homestead.com/files/DungeonMaster.gif" border=0>

[Reply #8 on:]

I can't say I'm 100% certain about this, but the credit for the beholder cannot go to either Ultima or D&D.

As with what I would think are a large proportion of monsters in those games, the beholder is a piece of ancient mythology. 

And I don't think it is incredibly nerdy to include spoofs of a few games when they are in an arcade

[Reply #9 on:]

(In best Farnsworth voice...)

The whaaah? Why does my foot hurt!


Poonaniman

[Reply #10 on:]

... with all those game references, shmaybe sooner or later there will be a Dopefish around? 

Carsten

[Reply #11 on:]

Or a BFG. mmm...

[Reply #12 on:]

I don't think this has been mentioned yet, but Nibbler's name could be from an old arcade game too. Rock-Ola MFG Corps NIBBLER from about 1982 or something.

[Reply #13 on:]

I think this is an old thread (bumping an old topic...ooh...not good for my first post!) But I just have to clear this up: The Beholder WAS invented by Gary Gygax for "dungeons and dragons" almost thirty years ago. The gazers from ultima, and all similar looking creatures are "inspired by" his beholder and I know absolutely for certain that there is -nothing- in actual mythology even remotely similar. Believe me, I've spent my entire life being a monster geek. I would know if there were any ancient legends of giant floating eyeball creatures. Totally identical monsters actually appear in games entirely *because* the creators think the critter is mythological and "up for grabs" when it really is an original trademarked character. TSR (the game's publishers) have in fact sued a few other games for using them, but it's become so common that they no longer care. (Note that despite semi-common belief, 30 years is not long enough for something to become "public domain". It's actually 60 years)

 As for the origins of the one in futurama, it is absolutely the original D&D version. Matt Groening was a a huge D&D player in college and has referenced it in the simpsons and life in hell numerous times. The beholder's every last detail in that episode, right down to the pattern of its scales, is straight from the first edition "monster manual" (which I own, even though I'm not a D&D player! Shows what a nut I am for monsters)

 There was another AD&D monster in an episode as well, which was also dead-on accurate and appeared only as one of the pets in the veterinarian's waiting room in the episode (forget the title...gah) where bender flushes nibbler. It was a "Rust Monster", a metal eating cricket/armadillo like creature, and was even drawn in the same exact pose as its old monster manual illustration.

 

[Reply #14 on:]

Welcome to PEEL, Scythemantis. Enjoy it here.

Originally posted by Scythemantis:
 As for the origins of the one in futurama, it is absolutely the original D&D version. Matt Groening was a a huge D&D player in college and has referenced it in the simpsons and life in hell numerous times.
   

Don't know if you're American or European, so I'll put this in spoilers.

Show spoiler

In fact the entire team behind Futurama are D&D fanatics. In the audio commentaries they joke about how they play D&D games, espicially Matt, David and the writers are obsesed with it. Even John DiMaggio (former cool guy) was in on it.

About the beholder in HHRHGB they say:

Some writer: "Very much Dungeons & Dragons."
John: "A beholder."
David: "Like it, but not legally like it."

[Reply #15 on:]

Hah! That's great. 

Only barely still on-topic but there was also an H.P. Lovecraft character on the show. In "A bicyclops built for two", one of the alien wives is a member of the Great Race of Yith:

[Reply #16 on:]

   

Originally posted by Scythemantis:
Only barely still on-topic but there was also an H.P. Lovecraft character on the show. In "A bicyclops built for two", one of the alien wives is a member of the Great Race of Yith

It's true!  I haven't seen that episode, but I checked some screen captures, and that's definitely one of the Great Race.  Check it out:

www.gotfuturama.com/Multimedia/FrameGrabs/2ACV09/Grabs/pic00629.jpg
 www.gotfuturama.com/Multimedia/FrameGrabs/2ACV09/Grabs/pic00620.jpg

They appeared in Lovecraft's story "The Shadow Out of Time."  I haven't seen any other references to Lovecraft in Futurama.  Someone said that the octopus in "Leela's Homeworld" looks like Cthulhu, but I think it's just an octopus.  Futurama never did an episode about awakening elder gods, did it?  That would have been neat.

I don't know how to get this back on the subject of video games, though one time Leela mentions Tetris.

[Reply #17 on:]

I know this is obvious, but one of the stories on AOI2 was completely dedicated to video games, even Nintendu....   

[Reply #18 on:]

The Donkey Kong references and Mario's 2 frame walking animation in that bit was hilarious, as well as Pac-Man and the PE team exiting through a warp pipe. Notice that the pipe is blue, the colour that pipes can be warped through in Super Mario World. Probably unintentional, though.

[Reply #19 on:]

In AOI2, I love the fact that pacman can't walk without saying "waga waga waga" !

[Reply #20 on:]

one of the best sequences ever to be shown, is that Video Game in "[2ACV09] A Bicyclops Built For Two". I laughed my ass off! Back then, Fry was still portrayed as a real looser, until... "Well golly gee, you mighty spacemen of the future have to show me how it works" :lol:

still, i don't exactly know which game it represents... perhaps Sonic the hedgehog?

[Reply #21 on:]

It's a mix, I think.

we've got Sonic moments with the rolling and platforms, we see Donkey Kong, and the rest is just a parody on generic FPS.

[Reply #22 on:]

Hmm, I thought the rolling about in "Bicyclops Built for Two" resembled Metroid.  Ah well, I haven't seen that episode for awhile.

Heh, I can't wait to see AOI II this week on Cartoon Network... the whole video game part seems hilarious.

[Reply #23 on:]

No specific game was being parodied...everything that they did was common in platform and shooter games in general.

I for one couldn't believe they actually used "all your base are belong to us" in the what-if video game world story. I mean, sheesh. Immortalized in one of the best shows ever made.