How The Oregon Trail can unite America

[Zadoc]

In the United States, for some reason unbeknownst to all logic, the public school system only had Apple computer in schools during the 80’s and most of the 90’s. The government essentially kept the fledgling computer company on life support, long after it would’ve naturally succumb to the IBM compatible PC.

As a child in computer lab, after I had completed lesions that I thought were teaching me how to operate a computer, (little did I know that real computers don’t have clover buttons!), I did the same thing every day: boot up “The Oregon Trail.”

As a piece of educational software, “Oregon Trail” was in virtually every school in America that had a computer. Its gameplay promoted making choices, and was tied into an important piece of American history.

As something that was anything other than learning how to use a Mac or an Apple II, “Oregon Trail” was a welcome and entertaining aside from the conundrum of school work, even if only in orange and black graphics… And, after all, it is a video game.

As a result, virtually every American who went to a public school that had a computer lab has a shared experience. We all, at one time, made a choice to be the rich banker from Boston, or the poor farmer from Ohio. We named our party after our family and friends, or pets or favorite pop-culture icons. We cringed as a member of our party died, (unless we named them after someone who we didn’t like all that much, then maybe some of us got a laugh), and we all worried about how to cross rivers, and we all experienced relief when we had a good hunt, or finally made it to a fort to stock up on supplies. And we were all surprised to find ourselves suddenly flying down river, dodging logs to the game’s end.

Gamer or not, the odds are that most people who you interact with on a daily basis have played “The Oregon Trail.” So, next time you’re in a social situation where you don’t know what to say, just relate the conversation back an event in “The Oregon Trail,” and everyone will have a brief moment of nostalgia as they reach back to their childhood in their minds, and they’ll know exactly what you’re talking about.

[diskoboy]

The mere mention of Oregon Trail makes me all giddy.

You are not a true gamer if you haven't played Oregon Trail ;)

[MegaDrive20XX]

The mere mention of Oregon Trail makes me all giddy.

You are not a true gamer if you haven't played Oregon Trail ;)


Amen to that, during 4th grade we had that game running on Apple II's. I always picked the Banker from Boston. The kids were always the first to die however lol

[petewhitley]

I loved the semi-vulgar stuff kids would write on those gravestones.

[Nez]

I was allways the poor farmer, thank god for that game. My mom was a teacher and I had to stay after school until she was ready to go home. With out Oregon Trail I would have gone mad. That and number munchers.

[Push Upstairs]

"Ben Dover had died"

Oh the memories.

[Bloodreign]

Worse yet, this is something I encountered in Oregon Trail: Here lies Dick, with his big slimy nuts.

I recently downloaded that game again, just for old times sake, and the fact I hadn't played in over 15 years.

[Dreamporter]

Memories...memories...yes I went to a catholic school but still...during computer lab and the first 20 minutes of learning how to find the keys on the keyboard with the awesome glowing green typing tutorial....we would finally get to oregon trail...and I hunted..alot...my family never starved..usually the kids died from diseases and it all went downhill from there

[FantasiaWHT]

Good, good times. Although the TAG school I went to had an entire lab full of IBM's, so we had some pretty nice computers for the time (every classroom had an Apple II or 2 in it as well, but this was 87 or so

[Snapple]

Suzie has typhoid. Oh noes. :(

[exit]

The river is 50 ft deep, do you want to cross? HELL YEAH!

[Haoie]

Even here in NZ, I remember playing that. Good times.

[Overbite]

There is only one option when you come across a river

http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/5011/fordhk4.jpg

[cyberfluxor]

"Ben Dover had died"

Oh the memories.

I had a prealgebra teacher in middle school with that name, by the time the year was over the jokes ran out (wonder what the hell his parents thought about naming him, let alone what he went through growing up). There was also a star football player in high school, name was Mike Hunt.

As for semi-vulgar, that's an understatement from what I saw and remember placing as well. Couldn't go several seconds in the game without hitting some tomb either, people would park and kill themselves right in the beginning to have that first tombstone in the game.

[Jorpho]

Don't forget to purchase a "You Have Died of Dysentery" T-Shirt! (http://www.bustedtees.com/shirt/dysentery)

[ALAKA]

i just stumbled across this. an oregon trail quiz.

http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz/quiz2418121bafa68.html

[exit]

You scored: 5 / 10
Total points: 50
The average score for this quiz: 8 / 10

Much like the game, I winged it and hoped to die of a snake bite.

[smork]

Never played it, though a child of the 80s. My junior high had TRS-80s -- networked, no less!!!! High school had all IBM clones. Rarely used an Apple (had a Commodore at home) unless I was at a friend's house.

My school district must have been contrarian.

[XYXZYZ]

The best part of that game was the hunting scene. It was the closest to Nintendo you could get at school.

[Kroogah]

We revived this game in 9th grade computer lab. I brought in a bunch of CDRs with emulators, including an Apple II emulator.

Using our sophisticated 9th grade wits, we simply named all the characters after religious icons.

"Buddha has dysentery." ;_;

[AFGiant]

Went to a private school in the 90s. I think one classroom had an Apple of some kind, and I dunno what our teeny tiny computer lab used. HOWEVER, the first home PC my dad purchased when I was in like 2nd or 3rd grade had Oregon Trail! Yay for Gateway!
And I spent just as much time playing it as the rest of you =P
You scored: 10 / 10
Total points: 100
The average score for this quiz: 7 / 10

Told ya ^_^

[FantasiaWHT]

I had a prealgebra teacher in middle school with that name, by the time the year was over the jokes ran out (wonder what the hell his parents thought about naming him, let alone what he went through growing up). There was also a star football player in high school, name was Mike Hunt.


Why does this seem to occur with alarming frequency among middle school math teachers? Mine was "Richard Weik," which, of course, showed up in official lists as Weik, Dick.

[kainemaxwell]

Nicely put. I remember playing the Trail admit a green and black screen back in school on the old Apples. I rediscovered the joys of hunting and playing the Trail when my school upgraded to IBMs and I could play it in full color.

[Overbite]

I had a prealgebra teacher in middle school with that name, by the time the year was over the jokes ran out (wonder what the hell his parents thought about naming him, let alone what he went through growing up). There was also a star football player in high school, name was Mike Hunt.

As for semi-vulgar, that's an understatement from what I saw and remember placing as well. Couldn't go several seconds in the game without hitting some tomb either, people would park and kill themselves right in the beginning to have that first tombstone in the game.


back in high school i had a substitute teacher named Dick Sweatt

[Buns34]

Who remembers Odell Lake? That game was just as fun. LOL

[Jorpho]

Odell Lake was rather nicely done, but it didn't really seem to amount to much: if you're a big fish, eat the little fish, and if you're a little fish, eat the bugs and plant life.

I once played a more primitive version in which all the fish looked the same. That was rather more challenging.

[youruglyclone]

You scored: 5 / 10
Total points: 50
The average score for this quiz: 8 / 10

Much like the game, I winged it and hoped to die of a snake bite.

8/10

but the average is a 7/10

simply because I misread 1 question and just didn't know the other one.

forever a b-student.

[Cryomancer]

My school was too poor to afford the apples or this game, as i literally have never encountered it.

Of course, my school also made a big point of informing us that 3.5 inch floppies were "HARD DISKS".

[ROBOTNIK666]

They still have those old mid-90s Power Macs in modern schools these days, although most of them just have the Amazon Trail and some math games (e.g. Number Munchers and Troggle Trouble Math*). It's still fun though.

*If anyone had that in their school, do you remember how fun it was? The class was amazed when I was able to beat the game.)

[samael64]

9/10 I'm quite surprised.

[Damaniel]

10/10! I played that game *way* too much in grade school... ;)

[Blackcrow]

Ah yes I remember that game when I moved to a new school. I used to love the hunting and I was always the dirt poor farmer. :)

I still play it when I goto my friends place, before we take off. Nice way to kill about 15 mins.