
An Oral History of ‘Snake’ on Nokia - andrelaszlo
https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/snake-nokia-6110-oral-history-taneli-armanto
======
contingencies
Strange there is no mention of
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nibbles_(video_game)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nibbles_\(video_game\))
(released 1991 and present on all MSDOS after 5 and early windows machines),
probably itself paying homage to [https://www.mobygames.com/game/rock-olas-
nibbler](https://www.mobygames.com/game/rock-olas-nibbler) * (1982).
MobyGames' list of earlier _Snake_ variants at
[https://www.mobygames.com/game-group/snake-
variants/offset,1...](https://www.mobygames.com/game-group/snake-
variants/offset,125/so,1d/) attributes oldest position to Taito's 1977 arcade
game _Hustle_ [https://www.arcade-
history.com/?n=hustle&page=detail&id=1950...](https://www.arcade-
history.com/?n=hustle&page=detail&id=19500) which also received a TI-99/4A
port
[https://www.videogamehouse.net/hustle.html](https://www.videogamehouse.net/hustle.html)
(1981).

~~~
mb_72
I remember copying the code out for a Snake variant from a Commodore 64
magazine in '83 or '84 - back in the days when they would publish source code
for things in each issue - and it made Snake a craze at my country Australia
Primary school where we had 8 '64s sharing a single networked floppy drive. It
also made me, the biggest nerd at the school, the cool guy... for a few days..

~~~
contingencies
Similar story at our school in Sydney ... mid 1990s we had a 2P (one keyboard)
multiplayer snake hacking contest. I implemented flamethrowers and mines in my
version, which enjoyed relative popularity.

------
Apocryphon
There oughta be an anthology of everyday fixtures. This essay can sit next to
an account of the Jazz design ([https://www.news-
leader.com/story/news/local/ozarks/2015/06/...](https://www.news-
leader.com/story/news/local/ozarks/2015/06/17/internet-looking-designed-cup-
springfield/28881969/)). Or, at least, the history of SkiFree.

~~~
NortySpock
I can think of two podcasts along these lines; "99 Percent Invisible" and
"20,000 Hertz"

------
acheron
I distinctly remember thinking in 2001 that being able to play Nibbles on a
cell phone was the apex of technology and it would be tough to get better than
that.

------
fit2rule
Want some fun? Play Breakout and Snake at the same time! :)

First, take the Breakout code from here:

[http://labs.phaser.io/edit.html?src=src\games\breakout\break...](http://labs.phaser.io/edit.html?src=src\\games\\breakout\\breakout.js)

And paste it into the Snake game here:

[http://labs.phaser.io/edit.html?src=src\games\snake\part7.js](http://labs.phaser.io/edit.html?src=src\\games\\snake\\part7.js)

I discovered this trick when I introduced a classroom full of kids to
PhaserIO, and happened to notice an 8-year old playing both games
simultaneously .. I asked him how, and he said "I just copied the game code
together" .. NEAT! :)

------
slantyyz
It still comes with the latest Nokia feature phones. I just bought a Nokia
3310 for my father, and it has a fancy color version of Snake built in.

~~~
app4soft
> _I just bought a Nokia 3310_

To be clear, you bought new Nokia 3310 (2017) by _HMD Global_ , not old-school
Nokia 3310 (2000) by _Nokia Oyj_ , right?

~~~
corndoge
They said it has a color screen

~~~
cnasc
It's possible that the game is in color but rendered on a monochrome screen

edit: I mean, it obviously isn't

------
app4soft
For me, _«Snake»_ is _2nd «Tetris»_.

But I much more impressed when got _Nokia 3230_ [0] with preinstalled _«Agent
V»_ [1,2] — AR mobile game which, think, is real predecessor of _«Pokémon
GO»_.

[0]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_3230](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_3230)

[1] [http://www.nicolasnova.net/pasta-and-
vinegar/2006/07/06/agen...](http://www.nicolasnova.net/pasta-and-
vinegar/2006/07/06/agent-v-on-nokia-3230)

[2]
[https://pikabu.ru/story/agent_v_4349670](https://pikabu.ru/story/agent_v_4349670)

~~~
n4r9
My friends and I got very into Ingress [0] back when they only had 8 levels.
Now that was literally a predecessor of Pokemon Go; I hear they used the
portal data from the former to choose pokemon locations in the latter. Ingress
seemed a lot more fun because you could be truly competitive, destroy other
players' constructions and gain territory in your home area. There was even a
running global count of how much territory each of the two factions had. That
said my Pokemon career began and ended with Yellow on the game boy.

[0]
[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ingress_(video_game)](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ingress_\(video_game\))

~~~
martin_a
Ingress was a hot thing while I was in university. We were roaming the streets
at night, equipped with smartphones and powerbanks and were looking out for
members of the other party, so we had enough time to build up solid links all
across the town. Great time!

------
egypturnash
How can someone confuse a Centipede clone (“Wiggle Worm”, an Apple 2 game
that’s the subject of the video embedded in the center of the article) with
Snake? I’m just gonna hope that’s a cut-and-paste error.

------
greggman2
Play one here

[https://www.google.com/search?q=snake+game](https://www.google.com/search?q=snake+game)

~~~
lucb1e
For those avoiding Google, this is an easter egg and not a suggestion to look
for websites with Snake on Google.

------
wil421
Love my Nokia Brick phones. I was so bored as a teenager I mastered snake and
was able to dodge anything on a Nokia or a TI-83.

------
wheybags
Would love to see a similar article about Space Impact. Was it the same guy?

------
aguzzi94
Good old memories

