Mean 18
Encyclopedia
Mean 18 is the name of a series of computer golf games
released by Accolade in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It is also the name of the first game in the series. In the early 1990s, the series was phased out by Accolade's Jack Nicklaus
series of golf games, which arrived in 1990. The game was designed by Rex Bradford with Graphics by George Karalias.
that allowed players to create their own courses.
Mean 18 featured the Augusta National and Pebble Beach
and St. Andrews
courses. It used the soon popular 3-click control system, whereby the first click starts the swing, the second sets the power, and the third sets draw or fade.
The game features Beginner and Expert difficulty options. The Expert mode has more pronounced draw and fade effects, making the timing of the third click more crucial. The player can also choose between regular and professional tees. For the regular mode, the tees are shorter and the computer automatically recommends the best club. Using the professional tees, the computer still recommends clubs, but not necessarily the best ones for the shot.
The course editor was also a big feature of the game, a first for many games of any genre of the day. With practice, it was very versatile and new courses could be traded freely. Many BBSs
hosted scores of courses created by other players.
DOS
operating system
in 1986
, it was quickly ported
to other popular home computer
platforms of the era. It was eventually ported to the Amiga
, Apple IIGS
, Atari 7800
and Atari ST
. Despite some of the other systems superior graphics abilities (notably, the Amiga, Atari ST and Apple IIGS), the graphics for all the games were similar to the DOS versions'.
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
released by Accolade in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It is also the name of the first game in the series. In the early 1990s, the series was phased out by Accolade's Jack Nicklaus
Jack Nicklaus
Jack William Nicklaus , nicknamed "The Golden Bear", is an American professional golfer. He won 18 career major championships on the PGA Tour over a span of 25 years and is widely regarded as one of the greatest professional golfers of all time. In addition to his 18 Majors, he was runner-up a...
series of golf games, which arrived in 1990. The game was designed by Rex Bradford with Graphics by George Karalias.
Description
Mean 18 had two major claims to fame: it was the first computer golf game to give the golfer's point-of-view of the course, and it was the first golf game to come with a course editorLevel editor
A level editor is a software tool used to design levels, maps, campaigns, etc and virtual worlds for a video game. In some cases the creator of a video game releases an official level editor for a game, but other times the community of fans step in to fill the void...
that allowed players to create their own courses.
Mean 18 featured the Augusta National and Pebble Beach
Pebble Beach Golf Links
Pebble Beach Golf Links is a golf course located in Pebble Beach, California, on the west coast of the United States.Pebble Beach is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful courses in the world. It hugs the rugged coastline and has wide open views of Carmel Bay, opening to the Pacific Ocean,...
and St. Andrews
The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews
The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews is one of the oldest and most prestigious golf clubs in the world . It is based in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland, and is regarded as the worldwide "Home of Golf"...
courses. It used the soon popular 3-click control system, whereby the first click starts the swing, the second sets the power, and the third sets draw or fade.
The game features Beginner and Expert difficulty options. The Expert mode has more pronounced draw and fade effects, making the timing of the third click more crucial. The player can also choose between regular and professional tees. For the regular mode, the tees are shorter and the computer automatically recommends the best club. Using the professional tees, the computer still recommends clubs, but not necessarily the best ones for the shot.
The course editor was also a big feature of the game, a first for many games of any genre of the day. With practice, it was very versatile and new courses could be traded freely. Many BBSs
Bulletin board system
A Bulletin Board System, or BBS, is a computer system running software that allows users to connect and log in to the system using a terminal program. Once logged in, a user can perform functions such as uploading and downloading software and data, reading news and bulletins, and exchanging...
hosted scores of courses created by other players.
Ports
Released first for the IBM PC'sIBM PC compatible
IBM PC compatible computers are those generally similar to the original IBM PC, XT, and AT. Such computers used to be referred to as PC clones, or IBM clones since they almost exactly duplicated all the significant features of the PC architecture, facilitated by various manufacturers' ability to...
DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
in 1986
1986 in video gaming
-Events:-Notable releases:*Namco releases Sky Kid Deluxe, Hopping Mappy, Toy Pop, The Return of Ishtar, which is the sequel to Tower of Druaga, Genpei Tōma Den, and Rolling Thunder....
, it was quickly ported
Porting
In computer science, porting is the process of adapting software so that an executable program can be created for a computing environment that is different from the one for which it was originally designed...
to other popular home computer
Home computer
Home computers were a class of microcomputers entering the market in 1977, and becoming increasingly common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single nontechnical user...
platforms of the era. It was eventually ported to the Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
, Apple IIGS
Apple IIGS
The Apple , the fifth and most powerful model in the Apple II series of personal computers produced by Apple Computer. The "GS" in the name stands for Graphics and Sound, referring to its enhanced graphics and sound capabilities, both of which greatly surpassed previous models of the line...
, Atari 7800
Atari 7800
The Atari 7800 ProSystem, or simply the Atari 7800, is a video game console re-released by Atari Corporation in January 1986. The original release had occurred two years earlier under Atari Inc. The 7800 had originally been designed to replace Atari Inc.'s Atari 5200 in 1984, but was temporarily...
and Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
. Despite some of the other systems superior graphics abilities (notably, the Amiga, Atari ST and Apple IIGS), the graphics for all the games were similar to the DOS versions'.