The Oregon Trail (1992)

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The Oregon Trail

Oregon Trail, The - Deluxe - DOS - USA.jpg

MS-DOS - USA - 1st edition.

Developer MECC
Publisher MECC
Published 1992-??-??
Platforms DOS, Macintosh Classic, Windows, Windows 3
Genres Educational, Management simulator, Simulation
Themes Adventure, Historic, Western, Wilderness
Series Trail
Distribution Commercial

The Oregon Trail is an educational strategy video game developed and published by MECC, initially for the Macintosh Classic in 1992, then later ported to Windows 3, MS-DOS, and 32-bit Windows. This Trail game is the sixth release of The Oregon Trail, and, although the game play is based primarily on the "classic" Apple II game, this version has a significant upgrade to the graphics, audio and user interface. Because of this, it is often referred to as the "Enhanced" or "Deluxe" version.

In the game, you play the leader of a family in 1848 leaving from Independence, Missouri across the wild US frontier to settle in Willamette Valley, Oregon. You must manage your family's supplies, hunt for food, cross rivers, stave off disease, and avoid the many dangers that await you.

The original Macintosh classic released only supported monochrome graphics, but a color version was released later. The DOS port is labeled as v3.0 (a patch to v3.0.1 was also released). Dates for when the various ports were released range wildly on video game web sites from 1991-1997. A later Windows CD-ROM version was released which added digital music and speech for most written text.

Personal

Own?Yes. MS-DOS port on CD-ROM.
Won?Yes. Macintosh and Windows 3 ports, both as a banker.
FinishedMacintosh: 2019-07-07 / Windows 3: 2021-04-21.

I first played this version of The Oregon Trail to test out a Macintosh emulator I downloaded. I played it and beat it as a banker on my first try then did the same for the Windows 3 release a few years later.

Review

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4 5 5 5 5

Best Version: Windows CD-ROM

— This section contains spoilers! —

Good

  • All of the updates from the 1985 version were sorely needed. The graphics are much better and inline with other games of the day, the period music is nice (especially in the later CD-ROM version), but the overhauled user-interface was needed more than anything.
  • The game now keeps track of the status of individual party members and they heal after getting sick.
  • The minigames, though still boring, have much better controls.
  • The increase of being able to carry back 200 pounds of food instead of 100 cuts out a lot of boring hunting time.
  • The added voice acting of the CD-ROM version is decent and the digital music is very nice.

Bad

  • Despite calling itself an educational game, I didn't find the game very educational. The game certainly popularized the travel route, and lets people know that dysentery is a disease, but that's about it. The game never expects the player to answer questions about the trail, know about the flora and fauna, or demonstrate applied knowledge of any kind. The few places where you can read about the history of the trail aren't all that informative, and are entirely optional.
  • The pop-ups really start to get annoying through the Rockies. You start getting multiple every day with the same annoying tune.

Ugly

  • Despite all the added flash, the game is still boring. You're still just min-maxing, and watching a mostly static screen occasionally pop-up random events which are mostly outside of your control, and sometimes playing a dull minigame. That's the whole game.

Media

Box Art

Screenshots

Videos

Longplay - Apple II.
Longplay - MS-DOS.
Longplay - Windows CD-ROM Version.
Longplay with commentary - Macintosh Color.
Game play with commentary - Macintosh.

Play Online

Macintosh Classic, MS-DOS, Windows 3

Representation

Strong female character?FailThere are some women, but they're not major characters.
Bechdel test?FailNo women ever talk to each other.
Strong person of color character?FailThere are Indians, but they're not important to the story.
Queer character?FailThere are no queer characters.

Credits

Role Staff
Programmers Ethy Cannon, Mark Paquette, Tom Zemlin
Artists Dee Dee Daus, David Denninger, Sandra Forslund, Charolyn Kapplinger, Ed Madrid, Michael Tschimperle
Music and Sound Lon Koenig, Larry Phenow
DOS Port Only Greg S. Johnson, Wayne Studer, Elizabeth Wendland, Jeff White
Documentation John Hickman, Cheryl Blackford
Product Advocates Mary Eret, Brad Schrag
Product Package Steve Niemela, Scott Toney, Janet Wolnik
Voice Actor (Guide Book) Shari Zehm
Voices David Denninger, Erin Gallagher, Al Lathrop, Alan Nelson, Cherie Neima, Mark Paquette, Juan Placencia, Derek Phenow, Jean Sharp, Melanie Smith, Wayne Studer, Steve Taffee, Michael Tschimperle, Eileen Wilkie, John P. Wlazlo, David L. Wood
Singers Jan Delozier, Mark Durkin, Larry Phenow, Brad Schrag
Choir Rich Bergeron, Craig Copley, Beth Daniels, Dee Dee Daus, David Denninger, Charolyn Kapplinger, Julie Kmoch, Tom Naughton, Cherie Neima, Jean Sharp, Melanie Smith, Steven Splinter, Wayne Studer, Michael Tschimperle, David L. Wood, Shari Zehm
Testers Brian Anderson, Glen Anderson, Nursen Bilge, Ron Helwig, Josef Ling, Barry Mansur, Sue L. Minor, Rich Rainelli, Tim Vogt
Special Thanks Chuck Bilow, Craig Copley, Greg S. Johnson, Wayne Studer, Elizabeth Wendland
Mainframe Adapters R. Philip Bouchard, John Krenz, Bob Granvin, Roger Shimada, Steve Splinter, Charolyn Kapplinger, Shirley Keran, Bill Way, Timothy Anderson
Original Game By Don Rawitsch, Bill Heinemann, Paul Dillenberger

Links

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