Simon (game)

Simon

Simon is a fun electronic game that tests your memory. It was invented by Ralph H. Baer and Howard J. Morrison when they worked for a toy design company called Marvin Glass and Associates. Lenny Cope helped create the game's software.

The game makes a series of tones and lights, and players must repeat the sequence exactly. As players get better, the sequences get longer and harder. If a player makes a mistake or runs out of time, the game ends.

The original Simon game was made and sold by Milton Bradley, and later by Hasbro after they bought the company. Charles Kapps, a computer science teacher at Temple University, helped write the game's code. Simon was first shown in 1978 at Studio 54 in New York City and quickly became very popular. It is remembered as a symbol of the 1970s and 1980s and is still enjoyed by people of all ages today.

History

Ralph H. Baer and Howard J. Morrison saw a game called Touch Me at a show in 1976. They thought they could make a better version. They used a special chip from Texas Instruments to build their first model, with help from programmer Lenny Cope. The game, originally called Follow Me, used tones inspired by a bugle. When they showed it to the Milton Bradley Company, they renamed it Simon. It went on sale in 1978 for $24.95, which would be about $123 today. It quickly became a popular toy that Christmas shopping season.

Over the years, many new versions of Simon have been created. In 2000, Simon Squared added extra buttons. In 2004, Simon Stix used drumsticks to play. Later versions like Simon Trickster added different game modes and fun sounds. In 2011, Simon Flash used small cubes. In 2013, Simon Swipe featured a steering wheel shape. Each new version made the game more exciting and challenging in new ways.

Gameplay

The classic version of Simon has four colored buttons. Each button makes a special tone when pressed or lit up by the game. To play, the game shows a sequence of lights. The player must press the buttons in the same order. As the game continues, the sequences get longer and harder.

Simon is inspired by a simple children's game called Simon Says. Over the years, Simon has had many versions. Some versions have more buttons, smaller sizes, or different ways to play. Some versions let two players compete. Others have special rules like repeating the sequence backwards.

Clones

Because Simon became a popular game, many other companies made similar versions. Atari made a handheld game called Touch Me in 1978. It had colorful buttons and musical tones, just like Simon.

Other games that copied Simon's idea include:

• Nintendo's Flagman, part of the Game & Watch series
• Monkey See, Monkey Do, with oval-shaped buttons
• Tiger Electronics Copy Cat from 1979, later sold by Sears as Follow Me
• Castle Toy's Einstein from 1979
• Genius, made in Brazil in the 1980s
• Space Echo by an unknown company
• A DIY version from Makezine
• R2-D2 Ditto Droid, a Star Wars version from Tiger Electronics in 1997
• VTech's Wizard
• A sidequest in Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! for the SNES and Game Boy Advance
• Soviet Elektronika IE-01 Ivolga
• Oddworld games with sound-based puzzles

The same memory game idea appeared in many other handheld games too, like Tiger Electronics' Brain Warp and Brain Shift, Mego Corporation's Fabulous Fred, and Parker Brothers' Merlin.

Audio

Some versions of the Simon game make sounds when you hold down a button. Others play a sound for a short time. There are fun sound themes, like animals such as cats, dogs, pigs, and cows, or sounds like a xylophone, football, or space effects. In some versions, you can turn the sound off. This makes the game harder because you must watch the lights to follow the sequence.

Reception

Games magazine chose Simon for their "Top 100 Games of 1980". They liked it because it was "the first electronic 'follow the leader' game". The game uses music and lights to make patterns that players copy.

Reviews

The game was liked by many players. It was featured in the magazine Games in issue number 8.