Synapse Software Corporation (also known as SynSoft) was an American computer game development and publishing company active during the early-1980s. A video game developer is a software developer (a business or an individual) that creates computer or video games. ... The 1980s decade refers to the years from 1980 to 1989, inclusive. ...

They developed primarily for the Atari 400 and 800 computers, and (later on) the Commodore 64. Atari built a series of 8-bit home computers based on the MOS Technology 6502 CPU, starting in 1979. ... For the hip hop group, see Commodore 64 (band). ...

They released many highly-regarded arcade games including Fort Apocalypse, Drelbs, Blue Max, Alley Cat (download) and Shamus. Moggy or moggie (plural moggies) in Commonwealth English is an affectionate term for a domestic cat, but is also used as alternate name for a mongrel or mixed-breed cat whose ancestry and pedigree are unknown or only partially known. ... Shamus is a computer game written by William Mataga for the Atari and Commodore 64 8-bit computer systems in the 1980s. ...

Many of Synapse's games made their way to the UK as part of the initial wave of U.S. Gold-distributed imports; some were also converted to run on the more popular UK home computers, such as the Sinclair ZX Spectrum. U.S. Gold was a British computer and video game publisher and developer from the early 1980s through the mid-1990s, producing numerous titles on a variety of 8-bit, 16-bit and 32-bit platforms. ... TRS-80 Color Computer II The home computer is a consumer-friendly word for the second generation of microcomputers (the technical term that was previously used), entering the market in 1977 and becoming common during the 1980s. ... The Sinclair ZX Spectrum was a home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research. ...

Although it is for their success with arcade-style games that they will be primarily remembered, they latterly branched out into other areas of software. Some time before their demise, Synapse had started work on text adventures (or as they called them, "Electronic Novels".) They were also developing a series of applications including SynTrend and SynCalc. Zork, an early work of interactive fiction, running on a modern interpreter Interactive fiction, often abbreviated IF, describes software containing simulated environments in which players use text commands to control characters. ... Application software is a loosely defined subclass of computer software that employs the capabilities of a computer directly to a task that the user wishes to perform. ...

Downfall

Synapse later got into financial difficulty. According to Steve Hales [1], they had taken a calculated risk in developing the aforementioned series of applications, and had entered into a collaboration with Atari Corp. When Jack Tramiel purchased Atari Corp. from Warner Communications, he refused to pay for the 40,000 units of software that had been shipped, even though (as the new owner of Atari) the contract should have been binding upon him. For the concept Atari (当たり) in the board game of Go, see Atari (go term). ... Jack Tramiel (born 1928) is a businessman, famous for founding Commodore International, manufacturer of the Commodore 64 and Commodore Amiga home computers. ... Warner Communications, formerly Kinney National Company, was the parent company for Warner Bros. ...

Having been thrown into a cash crisis, Synapse was purchased by Brøderbund Software in late 1984. Although the intention had been to keep Synapse going, the market had changed, and they were unable to make money from the electronic novels. Approximately one year after the takeover, Brøderbund closed Synapse down. Broderbund was a maker of computer games and educational software. ... 1984 (MCMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• Scans and information on Synapse's Atari products
• Interviews with Synapse developer Steve Hales and co-founder Ihor Wolosenko
• "Eight new Synapse games" - Archive reviews and information on takeover at atarimagazines.com
• Moby Games' list of Synapse Software products