Wolfenstein ported to TI-83 / TI-84 calculators

Cellphones aren't allowed, or you got yours taken away, and don't even talk about Game Boys or PSPs on campus. Man, high school is such a bummer. Until they ported Wolfenstein to TI-83 and TI-84 calculators, that is. Just don't try and break one of these out when you're in world history or whatever, probably not the best idea, kid.

P.S. Yes, guys, that's a freaking Photoshop representation of the game, ok? Actual results may vary.

[Via The Raw Feed]

[Will @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Um, didn't you mean Wolfenstein not Doom?

But yeah, I wish my calculator had that on it! Lectures would be so much more enjoyable. :p

[Tea Vui Huang @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Haha, maybe the next thing is to have podcast on the calculators too! ala Podcast on mobile phones (http://www.geocities.com/tvhuangsg/mobcast/)

[Kevin @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

*yanks out his TI-83*

[mattm @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

It's Wolfenstein - not Doom!

[mattm @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

oops, already mentioned...

[Guy @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Yes, already mentioned, but no less important. I went out of my mind when I read that they'd ported Doom, Wolfenstein is much less interesting or impressive. Fix the article and read your source properly next time, guys...

[u07ch @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

its just the link is wrong its actually here http://www.ticalc.org/archives/files/fileinfo/238/23843.html

[Wanax @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Is it me or are these calculators way overpriced? It's been over 10 years since I had one in high school. 10 years of essentially the same technology, and they're still almost $100. Sure, they probably made some minor improvements, but come on... $100? No color screen, no fancy graphics chip. TI must be making a killing on these things.

[Sarah @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

the picture doesn't look right. I have a TI-83 calculator from HS and it is hard to believe you can play doom or wolfenstein on it... the shading isn't that detailed.

[TZK @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

This is very funny yet, excellent news.

Next thing you know, they will make an Intel box run Windows.

[tino @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Your right Texas Instrument is making a killing off these. Technology has obviously made the manufacturing process cheaper, but the retail price never dips below $100. Some colleges have started using Palms... I hope more join the bandwagon and screw TI.

[Tesla @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Sarah, Wow, I was blown away too seeing the engadget pic....and then I clicked the link. I forget how they make up the pictures for the posts. It's no where even close to that pic. It looks more like trying to play doom on an original gameboy, if that.

Wanax, don't forget the insane amount of math functions and calculations that are done in a TI-83. A GBA or PSP with the color screen and fancy graphics wouldn't hold a candle to the amount of mathematical functionality that is packed into one of those Texas Instruments tools.

[vb_master @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

That's a Photoshopped picture of Doom, the TI-84 (and TI-83, which I guessed they meant) would never be able to display that. Now if it was on a Palm, yes it would.

[Wanax @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Tesla,

I'm aware of the math functions. My point is that they're the same math functions used 10 years ago. Technology is supposed to get cheaper over time, not stay the same price.

[hafa @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

totally agree with Wanax, these graphing calculators are such a ripoff

[Question Answerer @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Although the supposed screenshot here is a fake, and it's Wolfenstein not Doom, this is still pretty impressive.

[jimktrains @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

#11: I agree. A ti8x (pref an 89) would make my life so much easier, but, alas, being a college kids I can't affor $100 for somethng that is only a luxery and not truely nessicary. I don't understand why the price can't come down on them.

#12: Read before you post (read #6)

That's cool. I loved programing those things; I could never quite get games to work the way I wanted...

[Jess @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Not only has this been done before, but it has been done BETTER and a couple of YEARS ago.

[Ward @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Oh, how many hours of class did my 89 and Tetris get me through?

[Craig @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Awww...that's cute.

Seriously, kids, just get a Palm device.

[Mandrake @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

"A GBA or PSP with the color screen and fancy graphics wouldn't hold a candle to the amount of mathematical functionality that is packed into one of those Texas Instruments tools."

I'm pretty sure this isn't true. Gaming devices pack quite a bit of processing power. And they're using plenty of similar math functions to render video, calculate the movement of objects on the screen, etc. I'm sure somebody could write a calculator app for the GBA or PSP that would work just as well as a TI device.

[lupinstel @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Hmmmmm...1 dead nazi/demon + 1 dead nazi/demon = 2 dead nazi/demons. What would I do with out my calculator?

[xerox @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

that engadget picture should be taken down and be replaced by an actual screenshot. It's very deceiving.

[Imaperson @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

ive had this on my ti83 plus SE for awhile, not much to the game but its good enough to kill off boredom for awhile

[WaterBreath @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

The shots at the link in #6 still look like Wolf3D to me, not Doom. But anyway...

Supposedly TI makes (and has for a long time) just enough money on each calculator they sell to cover their cost on it. At least that's the story I heard from my math teachers 6 years ago when I was in high school. The bread and butter of TI is not their calculators, it's ASICs and things of that sort. The calculator line was supposedly started as a sort of "community service" type of thing, since the company was doing so well.

At any rate, whether that's true or not, remember that if the price of their calculators is holding steady at a constant amount over time, that means the actual value is slowly decreasing, due to inflation. (And that does appear to be the case, as the price of a TI-89 right now, for example is exactly the same as what I paid for mine when I was in high school.) Also remember that the devices are _not_ in fact exactly the same as they have always been. Each new revision adds more mathematical functionality. But not just that, they're getting slimmer and lighter, the screen resolutions are getting better, the user interfaces are getting better, and the graphing capability is getting better. And that's just the stuff that's visible at a glance.

[Cleon @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

#11, the hardware inside a TI-83 or 84 is actually much closer to the original Gameboy (the one with the green and black screen). All TI's graphing calculators except the 89 and 92 use a Z80 processor, which has been around for over 2 decades - prior applications include the Sega Game Gear (1990), Nintendo Gameboy (1989), Sega Master System (1985), and Radio Shack's TRS-80 (1977). The Gameboy Advance actually includes a Z80 as the audio co-processor, as well as for emulation of old Gameboy games. Considering the GBA has a color screen, an extra ARM processor, built-in speakers, and still sells for around $70, TI's calculators are definitely overpriced and underpowered.

[VVV @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

I messed 2 calculators with this crap game but anyways they belonged to the school so, they didn't even check when I hand them back

[VVV @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

BTW it doesn't look like that at all, it is pure crap.

[Kevin @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Okaaay.

You guys had the time to fake something in photoshop, but not enough to actually read the link?

[MacsAre1 @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

What, is engadget trying to be like Slashdot now and post old news? The linked game, Wolfenstein 3d, is dated Mar 25 2003! Even if it were really Doom like it says, it's still old. Oh, and for a TI-89 game (don't know about TI-84) that looks a lot closer to the screenshot, look at http://www.ticalc.org/archives/files/fileinfo/251/25178.html That game is only a year old ;-)

[Ryan Block @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

MacsAre1

Before bothering your peers with frequently asked questions, why not check the FAQ? (http://announcements.engadget.com/entry/4115667355611978/)
Specifically question 3.

Best,
Ryan

[MacsAre1 @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

sorry, Ryan, didn't realize there was an engadget FAQ

[Ryan Block @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Yeah, it's directly to the right of the comments. Thanks!
Best, Ryan

[Andrej Favia @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Example of "Whoaa... they did that?" type of person right here (oh, and H.S. was not a bummer, it was the best educational environment for me). At least if you're gonna complain about expensive calculators (TI-89 0wnz everything else and has been 0wn1ng for 6 years) for watching videos in black and white, turn the contrast down to save on all those horrifically overpriced batteries. (no, just kidding)

[Reid Bode @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Ok, I have both games (Doom and Wolfenstein) on my calculator. They've been there for a year.
This is very old news.
(They're still good games though, and the Wolfenstein one is better then the Doom).

[Tom @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Doom? Where the hell is the TI-Porn plus?

[Trejkaz @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

Wow. First Doom and now Wolfenstein. This is a busy week. :-)

[Madskillz @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

I am kinda amazed at the coverage that wolfenstein has gotten. Dont get me wrong, I am glad that a calc game actually is being recognized. But as a coder myself for the 83,83+,84+, and the SE models of the calc, I just dont get why other games havent been recognized. I code alittle bit for the PSP, in fact I am just getting into that, and by far I think coding in assembly for the calcs is harder.

Incase any of you wanna see some more great games to come visit www.maxcoderz.com, www.unitedti.org, or www.revsoft.tk

Thanks for finally letting a calc game get the attention we/they deserve.

-Travis (Madskillz)

[Jeff @ Dec 19th 2005 1:02AM]

guys, how do i get games form my computer to my calc?

i really wanna know!