of Technology (NYIT). The four of us, Bart, Mark, Roy and I, were assigned
to come up with a project for one of our classes in Fall 1991 semester.
We bounced around a few ideas for some really boring projects. Then someone
came up with the idea to do a game. Everyone found it difficult to come up
with a concept. We wanted something entertaining and yet scientifically
intriguing. This was how Gravitron was born. A ship hurtling through
different solar systems filled with planets. Each planet having a dangerous
gravity well. Your mission is to navigate to your home base in one piece.
Sounds pretty generic but we had a limited amount of time to complete the
project. Real gravity calculations were taken from a physics book and scaled
to make the game playable. We tried to simulate the motion of the
ship and the effects of gravity as accurately as we could.
Bart was responsible for all of the mathematical calculations and he
designed all of the levels of the game. I was responsible for animation,
overall program coordination and quality control. Roy was responsible for
all aspects of user interface like screen buttons, level settings, and
keyboard control. And finally Mark was responsible for collision detection,
all of the ship and planet bitmaps, and title screen art work.
Another thing that really makes Gravitron v1.1 enjoyable for me is how it manages to stay interesting even after playing it multiple times. Many games feel repetitive after a while, but here, the experience still feels fresh because of the small details and different ways you can approach the gameplay. As you continue playing, you naturally start improving and understanding the mechanics better, which makes everything feel more rewarding. I also appreciate the balance the game maintains—it’s not too difficult, but it’s not too easy either. You can play it casually for a short break or spend longer sessions without getting bored. That flexibility is one of the biggest reasons why I keep coming back to Gravitron v1.1. Overall, it’s the kind of game that doesn’t just entertain you for a moment, but actually gives you a consistently enjoyable experience every time you play.
