ZARZA We are Zarza, the prestigious firm behind major projects in information technology.
Listen "ANTIC Interview 70 - Jon Freeman, Freefall Associates"
Episode Synopsis
Jon Freeman
Jon Freeman was co-founder of the computer game publisher Automated Simulations, which became EPYX. At Automated Simulations, he co-created Starfleet Orion and Gateway to Apshai. Then he and his wife Anne Westfall started the game development company FreeFall Associates, where they created Tax Dodge, Archon, Archon II, and Murder on the Zinderneuf.
This interview took place April 21, 2015.
Teaser quotes:
“That six months, I read two books in six months, and we went to one movie. The rest of the time we we just working on the game. That’s all we did. It was very, you know, intense.”
“You know, I could just basically flip that switch every VBI and have the computer play itself. That turned out to be one of the absolutely huge selling points of [Archon]. Stores could put it in the window, get it started, and let it run.”
Links:
Free Fall Games web site
Free Fall Associates chapter in Halcyon Days
Tax Dodge
1984 article about Free Fall
Jon Freeman was co-founder of the computer game publisher Automated Simulations, which became EPYX. At Automated Simulations, he co-created Starfleet Orion and Gateway to Apshai. Then he and his wife Anne Westfall started the game development company FreeFall Associates, where they created Tax Dodge, Archon, Archon II, and Murder on the Zinderneuf.
This interview took place April 21, 2015.
Teaser quotes:
“That six months, I read two books in six months, and we went to one movie. The rest of the time we we just working on the game. That’s all we did. It was very, you know, intense.”
“You know, I could just basically flip that switch every VBI and have the computer play itself. That turned out to be one of the absolutely huge selling points of [Archon]. Stores could put it in the window, get it started, and let it run.”
Links:
Free Fall Games web site
Free Fall Associates chapter in Halcyon Days
Tax Dodge
1984 article about Free Fall
More episodes of the podcast ANTIC The Atari 8-bit Podcast
ANTIC Episode 122 - Atypical Kay
28/10/2025
ANTIC Episode 121 - Dongle Disaster
24/09/2025
ANTIC Episode 120 - AI Non Grata
28/08/2025
ANTIC Episode 119 - Special Guest Joe Decuir
30/07/2025
ANTIC Episode 118 - Trigger Warning
30/06/2025
ANTIC Episode 117 - A Kiss on the Forehead
07/06/2025
ANTIC Episode 116 - AI-Generated Nonsense
30/04/2025
In God we trust