Name: Bill Williams
Birth: 1960
Death: May 1998
Games Created or Co-created: Salmon Run, Alley Cat, Necromancer, Mind Walker, Sinbad and the Throne of the Falcon, Pioneer Plague, Knights of the Crystallion, Monopoly, Bart’s Nightmare
Other Works: Naked Before God: The Return of a Broken Disciple
Cause of Death: Cystic Fibrosis
After learning to program assembly language in college, Bill Williams coded his first game in 1982 called ‘Salmon Run’ on the Atari 800 his father gave to him. Without really thinking he would get it published, he sent the game to Atari’s 3rd party publishing arm, Atari Program Exchange (APX). To his surprise, Atari liked the game and published it! Thus started Bill William’s career as a game programmer.
“I had this awful fear that, unless I worked really hard, it would be impossible for me to produce anything but time-wasters. I demanded from every one of [my games] that, as much as possible, they be in some way drawing the person forward so they were acquiring something, they were growing somewhere, they weren’t just killing time.” -Bill Williams in an interview with Peter Olafson of Amazing Computing magazine 1998
His games were unique, innovative, and definitely not “time-wasters”. Always delivering more than what was expected of him, he churned out some great, stand-out games in the mid 80s. Mind Walker, Sinbad and the Throne of the Falcon, and Pioneer Plague really pushed the limits of the technology of the day. In fact, Pioneer Plague is noted to be one of the first, if not the first game for the Amiga to use all 4096 colors on animated objects. Imagine that!
During the days of 4-color CGA graphics from DOS PCs, Bill Williams was creating some rich, colorful masterpieces that no one had ever seen before. He was also developing amazing sound effects and original music in his games too. And with all the time he spent on those creative components, he still made the effort to interweave deep story lines and intelligent character dialogue as well.
“The action in the shoot ‘em up sections is incredibly frenetic, leaving you feeling quite drained after a long battle. Blasting fans should enjoy Pioneer Plague as it’s much more than a few pretty pictures.”
–Zzap! C64 Amiga magazine review of Pioneer Plague
Near the end of his career, Bill created Monopoly for the NES and a nearly complete Bart’s Nightmare for the Super Nintendo. By this time however, he was jaded. As excited as he was creating games for the new Amiga platform and PCs in the 80s, he felt just the opposite trying to work with all the “suits” in the more corporate environment that evolved in the video game industry. What his bosses would deem as okay on a game idea one day, would be rejected the next.
The environment became too corporate and oppressive, and Bart’s Nightmare (what he later phrased as “Bill’s Nightmare”) was handed to another programmer as he walked out the door. With the magic he once felt designing games now gone, he quit the game industry.
Bill went on to receive a master’s degree in theology, wrote a quasi-fictional autobiography titled: Naked Before God, then passed away shortly after it’s publication.
“When I die, it’s not going to be a tragedy, it’s going to be a release … It’s Bill finally being able to set down a weight that’s gotten very, very heavy.” -Bill Williams
Near the end of his life, he was still being asked by various people to work on video games. However, he always said ‘no’. He was quoted in an interview with Peter Olafson of Amazing Computing magazine saying, “My job these days is breathing”.
One’s priorities certainly change when surviving has to be positioned above all other goals. We miss you Bill.
What you may not know:
- Bill hid the message, “MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND KEEP YOU” within the code in his game Alley Cat
- Bill made only $600 on Alley Cat
Portfolio:Title: Salmon Run
Company: Atari
Year: 1982
Platform: Atari 800 XL
Title: Necromancer
Company: Synapse Software
Year: 1982
Platform: Atari 800
Title: Alley Cat (Originally started by John Harris)
Company: Synapse Software
Year: 1983
Platform: Atari 800 XL
Title: Mind Walker
Company: Synapse Software
Year: 1986
Platform: Amiga
Title: Sinbad and the Throne of the Falcon
Company: Cinemaware Corporation
Year: 1989
Platform: Amiga
Title: Pioneer Plague
Company: Cinemaware Corporation
Year: 1989
Platform: Amiga
Title: Knights of the Crystallion
Company: US Gold
Year: 1990
Platform: Amiga
Title: Monopoly
Company: Nintendo of America, Inc.
Year: 1991
Platform: Nintendo Entertainment Systemlic
Title: Bart’s Nightmare (92% completed by Bill Williams)
Company: Acclaim Entertainment, Inc.
Year: 1992
Platform: Super Nintendo
Other Media
Bill Williams photo courtesy of Amazing Computing MagazineIf you have know of any inaccuracies in this post, or have any more information to contribute, please contact me.
You Are Remembered Bill Williams
Sources:
http://www.mobygames.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Williams_(game_designer)http://www.electrondance.com/?p=2398
http://www.electrondance.com/?p=3103
5/29/2012 04:02:08 pm
Bill willams i really love your designs game design is not a simple work the different way of thinking is important.
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Tim Tennyson
12/4/2013 01:36:43 pm
A very talented man. I remember just watching the title screen to Alley Cat made me want to play. The music with the meow sound was awesome in the day. I wish I had half the talent Bill had when it came to programming.
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Piero
1/11/2014 11:03:06 pm
I really only came here because of Knights of the Crystallion, which I used to play a lot when I was young (when it first came out). Now I’m older I still play it from time to time and consider it one of the most remarkable computer games I’ve played. I wish I could have met Bill, what a wonderful guy to have given so much through the medium of the ‘humble’ game.
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Vera
2/18/2015 05:19:24 am
Me and my friend played Alley Cat in the 90’s. This game brought little agony, but much joy and entertainment – which is rare in PC games. Thank you, Bill Williams for non-violent yet dynamic games!!
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Rob
2/18/2015 06:15:37 am
So true! Great comment, and I agree with you. 🙂
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Glenn
2/28/2015 09:52:21 am
It’s hard to make authentic art from engineering. Bill did so through logics, visuals and audio. A rare combination marking rich talent. I come here to praise his IQ and attitude.
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nene
8/9/2015 12:36:04 pm
At those days i thought it was bill gates who made alley cat. Only when adult i search and i found the real and thegames that he created. Very sad to learn how a sickness let us without such a geniius.
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Chris Korf
11/7/2016 07:36:29 pm
Never forgotten Bill, I will think of you, you made so many games I – still – like
Why only the good people die?
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Peter Hoerber
2/16/2017 11:00:28 pm
Bill Williams was a GIANT talent. I lost myself for hours playing Necromancer as a kid. The payoff was so worth it, and the game was so far ahead of its time. There is no one out there like Bill in the programming ranks. A true American Original. RIP Bill, you were one of the best ever.
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יוסף
7/24/2017 04:17:40 pm
ALLEY CAT,my childhood.
thanks
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Dude
9/19/2017 08:04:54 am
Erratum: CGA had 4 colors, EGA had 16 colors.
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Paul Colaianni
4/27/2019 09:15:48 pm
Will correct, thank you so much!
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12/11/2020 11:25:26 pm
Thanks for taking the time to share this
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TheeChEese
12/2/2021 07:49:03 pm
R.I.P Mr. Bill
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Marcos Pereira
1/8/2023 12:28:26 am
Bill Williams… you will never be forgotten! His genius and works live in the minds and hearts of countless people around the world. AlleyCat was part of my youth! I will never forget!
May God bless you and keep you for all eternity!
Thank you very much!
Marcos Pereira
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil