In Pursuit of Greed

In Pursuit of Greed (also known as "Assassinators") is a science fiction-themed first-person shooter (FPS) video game released in 1995 on DOS , developed by Mind Shear Software and published by Softdisk.[2]

In Pursuit of Greed
CD Cover art
Developer(s)Mind Shear Software
Publisher(s)Softdisk
WizardWorks
Memorex Software
Designer(s)Jeremy Stanton, Chris Tallent
Programmer(s)Robert W. Morgan III[1]
Writer(s)Jeremy Stanton
Composer(s)Andrew Sega
EngineRaven Engine (Doom pre-alpha)
Platform(s)DOS
Release1995
Genre(s)Shooter game
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Release

After Mind Shear Software's release of Ironseed in 1994, Softdisk Publishing reached out to them with the suggestion that they take advantage of the pre-alpha Doom code that Softdisk had access to in order to create a shooter, in the hopes of capitalizing on the popularity of Doom. (This was Id's Raven engine, licensed to Raven Software for their 1993 game ShadowCaster.) Mind Shear agreed enthusiastically, expecting that they would be working on a nearly complete Doom engine. Only after contracts were signed and development was underway did they discover just how buggy and incomplete the codebase was. Problems with lag, jerky animation, and slow rendering plagued the project right up until a significantly delayed release.

The game was re-released under the name Assassinators by Memorex Software in 1998.

After years of non-availability, the game and its source code were released as non-commercial freeware by the programmer around 2014.[3]

Reception

Reception of the game by press and gamers was mostly unimpressed to negative.[4][5][6] However, some game aspects like curved surfaces, the "rear mirror" mechanic, and the colorful protagonists were positively mentioned.[7] Also the soundtrack, done by Andrew Sega, was positively noted. The game was not the hoped for commercial success due to the technical problems with the unfinished engine and the competing high-profile title Duke Nukem 3D, released shortly before Greed, which lead all to a cool reception from the press and the public alike.

The game was reviewed with 59/100 in the PC Gamer August 1996 issue, stating "The Doom frenzy breeds another strange offspring, where mercenary cows, lizards, and cyborgs kill for sport. It's all pretty forgettable.".[4]

  • Home of the Underdogs gave it a 7/10 saying "All in all, if you have enough patience to slog through the first few levels, you will find an interesting and above-average game lurking behind the tedious beginning. It is by no means a classic, but it's worth a look."[5]
  • Old PC Gaming gave In Pursuit of Greed 2.5 stars calling it "not a particularly irredeemable game, just somewhat formulaic and woefully outdated"[6]

References
  1. Ironseed on redshadowsoftware.com
  2. Greed: Gut Feelings, Growth, and History Wiley & Sons by A. F. Robertson "In Pursuit of Greed is a kickin' new multiplayer 3D-game from Softdisk."
  3. Greed on redshadowsoftware.com "These sources are provided for educational and historical purposes. No assets or code may be used in any way commercially. Personal and educational use only." (2014)
  4. PC Gamer 1996-08 by T. Liam Mcdonald "The Ultimate Preview of the Year's Hottest Games: the 50 most anticipated games in the coming year" (August 1996)
  5. In Pursuit of Greed on Home of the Underdogs
  6. in pursuit of greed review on Old PC Gaming (October 26, 2016)
  7. The Technology Behind ID's Games on slashdot.com by Sean Clifford "Softdisk tried to produce a couple of games, one called Greed (later In Pursuit of Greed) which was basically a 3D Doom-clone shooter. There was some neat technology (e.g. curved surfaces), but the art was...uh, well weak. The gameplay was decent, but there were some bugs to stomp and the ship date slipped...and slipped...and slipped. It was released, but didn't live up to the hype. The game was torn to shreds in the reviews." (August 13, 2002)
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