Jesper Juul (the Royal Danish Academy)

Too Much Fun: The European History of the North American Commodore 64 Computer

The Commodore 64 (C64) is officially the best-selling desktop computer model of all time, according to The Guinness Book of World Records. It was also, from 1985 to 1993, the platform for which most video games were made. Yet it is strangely forgotten in many "serious" game and computer histories. In his new book Too Much Fun: The Five Lives of the Commodore 64 Computer (MIT Press), Jesper Juul argues that the C64 was popular for the same reason that it is sometimes erased in history - due to its sound, color, and games. The talk shows that early home computers were faced with the problem that nobody knew what they were for - except for games, which was considered an unworthy use of technology.

In this talk, integrating North American and European video game histories, Jesper Juul will show the C64's varied history, as it was reimagined many times, from serious computer for BASIC programming, to game computer, to demoscene computer, to now a comforting retro device. He will show the C64's influence on game history (action-adventure games from Monty on the Run to Turrican, open-world games like Elite, Sims, SimCity, and Grand Theft Auto), tell personal stories of piracy and the demoscene in German magazines and Northern Europe, and finally argue that the C64 demonstrates that we do not always need to upgrade our electronic devices.

Bio:

Jesper Juul is a video game theorist and occasional developer. He works at the Royal Danish Academy in Copenhagen, but has previously taught at MIT and New York University. He coedits the MIT Press Playful Thinking series. His previous books include Half-Real, The Art of Failure, and Handmade Pixels. His first computer was a Commodore 64, on which he wrote games and demos.