Windows 95 Screensaver Maze Becomes Game

If you remember Windows 95, you might recall its 3D maze screensaver. Now you can step inside that maze as a nostalgic – if not exactly good – video game.

The screensaver simply involved a first-person view of walking around a randomly generated maze (encountering the occasional rat) until eventually finding a smiley face at which point the maze reset and was randomly regenerated. Believe it or not, this was passed off as an impressive display of technology.

Now a game development jam event has led to a game called Screensaver Subterfuge. There’s not actually much to the game, which involves actively controlling movement and looking for the smiley face, with the regenerated maze then forming a new level.

It’s really more a case of process than product: to give the game its authentic feel, the makers broke down the original files from the screensaver and used the various assets. They even took advantage of a variant mode in the screensaver that added a psychedelic look. Here you can shoot a wall to turn a section into the psychedelic version, making it easier to check where you’ve already explored.

The main additions to the media are some retro-futuristic voice clips and some background music from the 1996 demo game Hellbender.

[Via: Motherboard]


Geeks are Sexy needs YOUR help. Learn more about how YOU can support us here.