Archer MacLean

Archer MacLean must have a mantlepiece the size of a half dozen hotel balconies. The amount of accolades this man has had bestowed upon him has made him something of a legend in gaming history. Truly, if Dropzone had been his sole success, he would have been remembered with great fondness whatever came next. His place in the Hall of Fame was assured.

But there was no laurel-resting going on at Casa MacLean. After the mid 80's success of Dropzone, we lucky gamers were presented with first International Karate, and then it's hugely popular follow-up, International Karate Plus. The original IK on the C64 won the Chicago CES Blue Ribbon Award for Best Sports Title in 1986 and was a number one in the USA. IK Plus surpassed this and went to number one around the world.

Even more success was to come in the early nineties with the arrival of Jimmy White's Snooker. Best Computer Simulation at the Emap Golden Joy-stick awards and Best Technical Merit at the 1992 Xmas IN-DIN awards in 1992, to add to Best Sports Game1992 at the spring ECTS in London. And of course there was the unmistakeable Archer Maclean’s Pool, which won a number of magazine awards and high ratings. The accolade which proved to be the cherry on the top of an already heavily-iced cake was the Programmer of the Year Award 1992-93 at the EMAP Golden Joy-stick awards.

Archer is still hard at work in the 21st century. Jimmy White's Cueball 2 features a sit-down version of Dropzone among it's myriad delights. His Awesome Developments team are working on titles for PC and PlayStation 2, including a driving game and a first-person shoot 'em up set in outer space. All you gameheads out there have a lot to be thankful for, so the Gilded Jetpack Award goes to Archer MacLean.

Software Highlights from Credited Titles

Archer MacLean's first video game work that SPOnG is aware of is the 1986 title, "International Karate" (C64) as Lead Programmer. Of the titles listing Archer within the credits , "Jimmy White's 2: Cueball" (PlayStation) and "Jimmy White's 2: Cueball" (Dreamcast) have been best selling titles.

Archer's most recent involvement was as Original Concept on the 2004 release "Archer Maclean's Pool Paradise" (PS2).

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