Matthew Smith (born 1966) is a British
video game programmer
A game programmer is a software engineer, programmer, or computer scientist who primarily develops codebases for video games or related software, such as game development tools. Game programming has many specialized disciplines, all of which fall ...
. He created the games ''
Manic Miner
''Manic Miner'' is a platform game written for the ZX Spectrum by Matthew Smith (games programmer), Matthew Smith. It was published by Bug-Byte in 1983, then later the same year by Software Projects. The first game in the ''Miner Willy'' series ...
'' and ''
Jet Set Willy
''Jet Set Willy'' is a platform video game written by Matthew Smith for the ZX Spectrum home computer. It was published in 1984 by Software Projects and ported to most home computers of the time.
The game is a sequel to '' Manic Miner'' pub ...
'' for the
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer developed and marketed by Sinclair Research. One of the most influential computers ever made and one of the all-time bestselling British computers, over five million units were sold. ...
, released in 1983 and 1984 respectively. Smith left the games industry in 1988 and later moved to the Netherlands. He has since returned to the UK and has worked on some games as well as appearing at conventions and in documentaries.
Early life
Smith was born in
Penge
Penge () is a suburb of South East Greater London, London, England, now in the London Borough of Bromley, west of Bromley, north east of Croydon and south east of Charing Cross.
Etymology
The name ''Penge'' is first attested in charter of ...
. His family moved to
Wallasey
Wallasey () is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. It is at the mouth of the River Mersey, on the north-eastern corner of the Wirral Peninsula. It lies within the Historic counties of England, historic county bou ...
when he was seven years old.
Programming career
1980s
He started out
programming when he received a
TRS-80
The TRS-80 Micro Computer System (TRS-80, later renamed the Model I to distinguish it from successors) is a desktop microcomputer developed by American company Tandy Corporation and sold through their Radio Shack stores. Launched in 1977, it is ...
for Christmas in 1979.
His first commercial game was a ''
Galaxian
is a 1979 fixed shooter video game developed and published by Namco for arcades. The player assumes control of the Galaxip starfighter in its mission to protect Earth from waves of aliens. Gameplay involves destroying each formation of alien ...
'' clone for the TRS-80 called ''Delta Tau One''.
He then went on to produce ''Monster Muncher'' on the
VIC-20
The VIC-20 (known as the VC-20 in Germany and the VIC-1001 in Japan) is an 8-bit entry level home computer that was sold by Commodore International, Commodore Business Machines. The VIC-20 was announced in 1980, roughly three years after Commod ...
. Smith has said that he wrote Monster Muncher in 3 hours.
He obtained a ZX Spectrum on loan from
Bug-Byte Software Ltd. in return for a freelance contract for three games.
The first of these was ''
Styx
In Greek mythology, Styx (; ; lit. "Shuddering"), also called the River Styx, is a goddess and one of the rivers of the Greek Underworld. Her parents were the Titans Oceanus and Tethys, and she was the wife of the Titan Pallas and the moth ...
'' in 1983 for which Matthew received £3,000.
He wrote ''
Manic Miner
''Manic Miner'' is a platform game written for the ZX Spectrum by Matthew Smith (games programmer), Matthew Smith. It was published by Bug-Byte in 1983, then later the same year by Software Projects. The first game in the ''Miner Willy'' series ...
'' in eight weeks using a Model III Tandy.
It was the first ZX Spectrum title with in-game music. The sequel, ''
Jet Set Willy
''Jet Set Willy'' is a platform video game written by Matthew Smith for the ZX Spectrum home computer. It was published in 1984 by Software Projects and ported to most home computers of the time.
The game is a sequel to '' Manic Miner'' pub ...
'', took considerably longer to write.
''Manic Miner'' and ''Jet Set Willy'' were both commercial successes. Smith has stated that ''Manic Miner'' was the most enjoyable game to make for him whereas ''Jet Set Willy'' was 'seven shades of hell'.
After the creation of ''Jet Set Willy'' he started work on ''The Mega Tree'' (commonly known as Willy Meets The Taxman), for publication by his company
Software Projects
Software Projects was a computer game development company which was started by ''Manic Miner'' developer Matthew Smith (games programmer), Matthew Smith, Alan Maton and Colin Roach. After leaving Bug-Byte as a freelance developer, Smith was abl ...
. Unlike his previous two hits ''The Mega Tree'' was not developed for the ZX Spectrum but the
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in ...
. The project failed to gain traction and was cancelled three months into development. The development disks containing some of the graphics from the unreleased game were eventually auctioned for charity in 2004.
In 1987 adverts began appearing in games magazines for a new game ''
Attack of the Mutant Zombie Flesh Eating Chickens From Mars
''Star Paws'' is an action video game released by Software Projects for the Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, and ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer developed and marketed by Sinclair Research. One of the ...
'' said to have been programmed by Smith, and due for release by Software Projects. It is reported that Smith was unhappy with the finished product and it was never released.
Departure
Smith closed Software Projects in 1988 without completing any more programs. He lived in a
Dutch
Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
** Dutch people as an ethnic group ()
** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship ()
** Dutch language ()
* In specific terms, i ...
commune from around 1995 but was deported from the Netherlands in October 1997 and returned to Britain, saying that he had failed to keep his residency papers in order.
In the late 1990s, he said he was "surprised and flattered"
at the amount of attention and speculation he had attracted on the Internet.
Return to games
In 1999 Smith returned to the UK
video game industry
The video game industry is the tertiary industry, tertiary and quaternary industry, quaternary sectors of the entertainment industry that specialize in the video game development, development, marketing, distribution (marketing), distribution, ...
by taking a job at
Dewsbury
Dewsbury is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Calder, West Yorkshire, River Calder and on an arm of the Calder and Hebble Navigation waterway. It is to the west of Wakefield, ...
-based
computer game developer
A video game developer is a software developer specializing in video game development – the process and related disciplines of creating video games. A game developer can range from one person who undertakes all tasks to a large business with em ...
Runecraft.
In 2000, he appeared on a British television documentary programme called ''
Thumb Candy
The thumb is the first digit of the hand, next to the index finger. When a person is standing in the medical anatomical position (where the palm is facing to the front), the thumb is the outermost digit. The Medical Latin English noun for thum ...
'' about the history of video games in which, in a brief interview, he discussed ''Manic Miner'' and his 1980's career. He has also attended and given talks at
retrogaming
Retro gaming, also known as classic gaming and old school gaming, is the playing and collection of computer game, personal computers, video game console, consoles, and video games from earlier decades. Usually, retro gaming is based upon syste ...
conventions during this decade.
In 2013, Smith was working on producing a new game with
Elite Systems
Elite Systems is a British video game developer and publisher established in 1984 as Richard Wilcox Software. It is known for producing home computer conversions of popular arcade games. Elite also published compilations of games on the Hit-Pak ...
, who have republished his original games on mobile platforms.
References
External links
Where is Matthew Smith?*
*
ttp://www.80snostalgia.com/matthew-smith-interview/ Matthew Smith 2009 interview after Videogame Nation exhibition at Manchester Urbis on 19 JulyShort Matthew Smith interview August 1999
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Matthew
1966 births
British computer programmers
British video game designers
Video game programmers
Living people
People from Surrey