A Note from the Developers and Graphic Artists-July 10th, 2008

A Note from the Developers and Graphic Artists

July 10th, 2008

We want to thank everyone for their great feedback on our new Fourth of July Fireworks game. We began developing this game shortly after we started this project. During the development of the game we reviewed numerous fireworks games dating back to the turn of the century. We also wanted to place our fireworks game at historical points in history that are the basis for our present day Fireworks displays. While some of you have already noticed much of this, we thought we would share some of the behind the scenes research and development that went into the making of our Fourth of July Fireworks game.

Firework games have historically tended to break down into three primary categories. The first category required the player to select a firework just as it was set to explode. A second category required the player to select the firework by color or type just at the moment of explosion. The third category was the coordinated firework game which used a combination of both the first and second. There were also a number of somewhat related games which were more focused on rockets and bombardment, but which followed this general scheme of play.

After reviewing all of these fireworks games, we decided that the most interesting was a coordinated approach. However, we wanted to add the ability to explode the firework as it ascended and not just at
the moment of apex. This gives each player a greater range of strategies when deciding how to play a game. The play of the game was also defined to some extent by our selection of the 1812 Overture for our music, as we wanted the number of fireworks to coordinate with the music. We also wanted the beginning
levels to match the beginning of the musical piece and then build as did the music at each level. We also selected our scenes to be reminiscent of the period involved. For instance, in the lobby for the game we find the verdure of a native forest much as you would have found in upstate New York in the year 1776.

Many do not realize that New York was a dense forest of native trees at this time and impassible except on foot or by using the natural rivers and streams. As the scenes progress in our fireworks game you will notice the transition to the depiction of the Battle at Baltimore during the war of 1812. At this time Ft. McHenry was under attack from 19 British ships, some with notable names such as the HMS Terror, the HMS Devastation, the HMS Erebus, the HMS Volcano and the HMS Meteor. It was on the fateful night of September 13th, 1814 that Francis Scott Key watched the bombardment of Ft. McHenry by these British vessels and wondered if on the following morning the United States flag would still be flying over Ft. McHenry. Indeed in the end, it was the American flag that that still flew, and Key wrote the words to the Star Spangled Banner, which became our national anthem.

For those who had the opportunity to participate in our Fourth of July Quest, you will remember that the flag which flew over Ft. McHenry was 30 ft by 42 ft in size and was made by a mother and her young daughter, Caroline, who was only 13 years old at the time. In addition, Caroline's grandmother had also made flags for our new country during the revolutionary war. We end the game with a view from a castle in honor of Tchaikovsky who wrote our musical selection. The 1812 Overture was originally written to inspire a love of Freedom in his native Russia, but has since become a standard to celebrate Freedom and Firework displays everywhere. Again, we thank all of you who have told us about how much you enjoy our new Fourth of July fireworks game, and we hope our introduction in the game, the scenes and the music will inspire players to consider the history which this game represents and learn more about the times and
the men and women that made freedom today possible.

Your Development Team
Virtual Family Kingdom

PS. For those who enjoy a bit of historical detail, you might notice the American and British flags during one of the depictions of the Battle of Baltimore in the game. :-)