Break Out

"Around the world, millions of people hijack cars in Grand Theft Auto, role play fantastical heroes in World of WarCraft, and crush candy on phones as small as wallets yet nearly as powerful as desktop computers. Long before video games became a multi-billion-dollar industry, a small group of hackers created the Apple II, a PC that contained less memory than the average size of a Microsoft Word document and turned heads by outputting graphics in color. Some users tapped its resources to design productivity software. Others devised some of the most influential games of all time. From the perils along the Oregon Trail and the exploits of Carmen Sandiego to the shadowy dungeons of Wizardry and Prince of Persia s trap-filled labyrinth, Break Out recounts the making of some of the Apple II s most iconic games, illustrates how they informed the games we play today, and tells the stories of the pioneers who made them."--Page 4 of cover.