Oregon Trail 1990 version
It was a fun strategy game that brings you back to the 1840s life style. There were a lot of things that I didn’t familiar with like the geography and lifestyle of those in the 1840s. As a result, I made some bad decisions along the trip. That’s the same with the option of the game, which I assumed that it was the same thing in every stage. It turned out it was not the case. For example, I assumed there would be an option for the hunting along the way, but it only had two hunting stages. I made a bad decision on that as a result my crews were hungry.
I personally think that this version is thorough than the later version. I felt engaged in the game because I was the one who made all the decision. Even though the interface was in lower resolution and few interactions, I still found the game interesting.
Oregon Trail Deluxe 1992 versio
I felt different for later version because of the small screen and wordy. It was the same game with different interface design and yet I didn’t really engage in the game. It felt like there were more instruction to read and follow unlike the first version. It focused more on a dialogue than the game itself.
Conclusion
The reason why I think it was the most played game its time because of the storytelling plus interaction and UI design. It was an indeed a strategy game that engage the player in taking control of the situation not the other way round. Controlling is a power psychology aspect that empower the gamer.
