<s>
Hamurabi	B-Application
is	O
a	O
text-based	O
strategy	B-Application
video	I-Application
game	I-Application
of	O
land	O
and	O
resource	O
management	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
first	O
developed	O
under	O
the	O
name	O
King	O
of	O
Sumeria	O
or	O
The	B-Application
Sumer	I-Application
Game	I-Application
by	O
Doug	O
Dyment	O
in	O
1968	O
at	O
Digital	O
Equipment	O
Corporation	O
as	O
a	O
computer	O
game	O
for	O
fellow	O
employee	O
Richard	O
Merrill	O
's	O
newly	O
invented	O
FOCAL	B-Language
programming	I-Language
language	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Application
Sumer	I-Application
Game	I-Application
was	O
inspired	O
by	O
The	B-Application
Sumerian	I-Application
Game	I-Application
,	O
a	O
much	O
more	O
in-depth	O
text-based	O
economic	O
simulation	O
intended	O
for	O
children	O
,	O
developed	O
from	O
1964	O
to	O
1966	O
by	O
designer	O
and	O
elementary	O
school	O
teacher	O
Mabel	O
Addis	O
and	O
IBM	O
programmer	O
William	O
McKay	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Multiple	O
versions	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
were	O
created	O
for	O
the	O
FOCAL	B-Language
language	O
,	O
but	O
around	O
1971	O
David	O
H	O
.	O
Ahl	O
ported	O
it	O
to	O
DEC	O
BASIC	O
and	O
in	O
1973	O
published	O
it	O
in	O
101	B-Application
BASIC	I-Application
Computer	I-Application
Games	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
was	O
later	O
republished	O
in	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
form	O
in	O
1978	O
's	O
BASIC	B-Application
Computer	I-Application
Games	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
His	O
expanded	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
titled	O
Hamurabi	B-Application
,	O
quickly	O
became	O
the	O
more	O
prominent	O
version	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
popularity	O
of	O
both	O
the	O
book	O
and	O
the	O
programming	O
language	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Hamurabi	B-Application
influenced	O
many	O
later	O
strategy	O
and	O
simulation	O
games	O
and	O
is	O
also	O
an	O
antecedent	O
to	O
the	O
city-building	B-Application
genre	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Hamurabi	B-Application
is	O
a	O
text-based	O
strategy	B-Application
video	I-Application
game	I-Application
centered	O
on	O
resource	O
management	O
in	O
which	O
the	O
player	O
,	O
identified	O
in	O
the	O
text	O
as	O
the	O
ancient	O
Babylonian	O
king	O
Hammurabi	O
,	O
enters	O
numbers	O
in	O
response	O
to	O
questions	O
posed	O
by	O
the	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Each	O
round	O
begins	O
with	O
an	O
adviser	O
stating	O
"	O
Hamurabi	B-Application
:	O
I	O
beg	O
to	O
report	O
to	O
you	O
"	O
the	O
current	O
status	O
of	O
the	O
city	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
prior	O
year	O
's	O
harvest	O
and	O
change	O
in	O
population	O
,	O
followed	O
by	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
questions	O
as	O
to	O
how	O
many	O
bushels	O
of	O
grain	O
to	O
spend	O
on	O
land	O
,	O
seeds	O
,	O
and	O
feeding	O
the	O
people	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
end-game	O
appraisal	O
,	O
added	O
in	O
the	O
1973	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
compares	O
the	O
player	O
to	O
historical	O
rulers	O
—	O
such	O
as	O
"	O
Your	O
heavy-handed	O
performance	O
smacks	O
of	O
Nero	B-Application
and	O
Ivan	O
IV.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
,	O
The	B-Application
Sumerian	I-Application
Game	I-Application
(	O
1964	O
)	O
,	O
was	O
a	O
model	O
of	O
ancient	O
Sumerian	O
civilization	O
,	O
written	O
and	O
designed	O
by	O
elementary-school	O
teacher	O
Mabel	O
Addis	O
and	O
programmed	O
by	O
William	O
McKay	O
of	O
IBM	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
early	B-Application
mainframe	I-Application
game	I-Application
,	O
set	O
in	O
3500	O
B.C.	O
,	O
has	O
players	O
act	O
as	O
rulers	O
of	O
the	O
city	O
of	O
Lagash	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1968	O
,	O
Digital	O
Equipment	O
Corporation	O
(	O
DEC	O
)	O
employee	O
Richard	O
Merrill	O
invented	O
the	O
FOCAL	B-Language
programming	I-Language
language	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Fellow	O
employee	O
Doug	O
Dyment	O
heard	O
a	O
description	O
of	O
The	B-Application
Sumerian	I-Application
Game	I-Application
after	O
a	O
talk	O
at	O
the	O
University	O
of	O
Alberta	O
,	O
and	O
as	O
an	O
early	O
program	O
for	O
the	O
language	O
developed	O
King	O
of	O
Sumeria	O
,	O
programming	O
it	O
for	O
a	O
DEC	B-Device
PDP-8	I-Device
minicomputer	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
is	O
sometimes	O
erroneously	O
attributed	O
to	O
Merrill	O
in	O
1969	O
,	O
but	O
1969	O
and	O
1973	O
program	O
catalogs	O
by	O
the	O
Digital	O
Equipment	O
Computer	O
Users	O
Society	O
(	O
DECUS	O
)	O
list	O
Dyment	O
as	O
the	O
original	O
developer	O
,	O
though	O
they	O
also	O
renamed	O
it	O
to	O
The	B-Application
Sumer	I-Application
Game	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
originally	O
described	O
as	O
:	O
"	O
This	O
is	O
a	O
simulation	O
program/game	O
which	O
will	O
run	O
on	O
a	O
minimal	O
PDP-8	B-Device
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
final	O
game	O
was	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
Dyment	O
,	O
"	O
the	O
largest	O
piece	O
of	O
FOCAL-8	O
code	O
that	O
could	O
fit	O
in	O
a	O
4K	O
machine	O
:	O
there	O
was	O
literally	O
not	O
room	O
for	O
a	O
single	O
extra	O
character	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
the	O
game	O
uses	O
shortened	O
forms	O
for	O
much	O
of	O
the	O
text	O
,	O
including	O
spelling	O
the	O
player-controlled	O
ruler	O
,	O
changed	O
from	O
Luduga	O
to	O
the	O
Babylonian	O
king	O
Hammurabi	O
,	O
as	O
"	O
Hamurabi	B-Application
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Multiple	O
versions	O
of	O
The	B-Application
Sumer	I-Application
Game	I-Application
were	O
created	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
1973	O
DECUS	O
catalog	O
additionally	O
lists	O
a	O
French-language	O
version	O
by	O
Belgians	O
J	O
.	O
F	O
.	O
Champarnaud	O
and	O
F	O
.	O
H	O
.	O
Bostem	O
for	O
the	O
FOCAL-69	B-Language
version	O
of	O
the	O
language	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
1978	O
catalog	O
adds	O
Ruben	O
by	O
James	O
R	O
.	O
B	O
.	O
Howard	O
II	O
and	O
Jimmie	O
B	O
.	O
Fletcher	O
,	O
"	O
a	O
modification	O
of	O
the	O
'	O
King	O
of	O
Sumeria	O
 '	O
game	O
"	O
with	O
additional	O
features	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
French	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
however	O
,	O
despite	O
being	O
listed	O
as	O
"	O
Sumer	O
(	O
French	O
)	O
"	O
,	O
described	O
itself	O
not	O
as	O
a	O
translation	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
game	O
,	O
but	O
as	O
a	O
translation	O
of	O
"	O
Hamurabi	B-Application
(	O
The	B-Application
Sumer	I-Application
Game	I-Application
)	O
"	O
,	O
due	O
to	O
another	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
which	O
was	O
already	O
released	O
by	O
then	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1970	O
,	O
DEC	O
employee	O
David	O
H	O
.	O
Ahl	O
was	O
working	O
in	O
the	O
educational	O
sales	O
department	O
and	O
found	O
that	O
customers	O
outside	O
DEC	O
's	O
Boston-area	O
home	O
were	O
uninterested	O
in	O
using	O
FOCAL	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
hired	O
a	O
Brooklyn	O
programmer	O
to	O
write	O
a	O
version	O
of	O
BASIC	O
for	O
the	O
PDP-8	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Around	O
1971	O
,	O
he	O
ported	O
a	O
version	O
of	O
The	B-Application
Sumer	I-Application
Game	I-Application
to	O
BASIC	O
and	O
published	O
it	O
in	O
DEC	O
's	O
educational	O
newsletter	O
,	O
Edu	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
new	O
version	O
was	O
renamed	O
Hamurabi	B-Application
and	O
added	O
an	O
end-of-game	O
performance	O
appraisal	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Unlike	O
FOCAL	B-Language
,	O
BASIC	O
was	O
widely	O
available	O
on	O
many	O
platforms	O
and	O
the	O
new	O
version	O
was	O
soon	O
found	O
on	O
many	O
of	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1973	O
he	O
re-published	O
the	O
game	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
collection	O
in	O
101	B-Application
BASIC	I-Application
Computer	I-Application
Games	I-Application
,	O
which	O
became	O
a	O
best-seller	O
with	O
over	O
10,000	O
copies	O
sold	O
,	O
more	O
than	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
computers	O
in	O
the	O
world	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1975	O
the	O
Altair	B-Architecture
8800	I-Architecture
was	O
released	O
,	O
and	O
soon	O
after	O
,	O
Altair	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
microcomputer	B-Architecture
revolution	O
followed	O
,	O
and	O
BASIC	O
was	O
the	O
standard	O
language	O
on	O
these	O
machines	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ahl	O
re-published	O
his	O
book	O
once	O
again	O
,	O
this	O
time	O
under	O
the	O
title	O
BASIC	B-Application
Computer	I-Application
Games	I-Application
,	O
which	O
became	O
the	O
best	O
selling	O
computer	O
book	O
of	O
all	O
time	O
,	O
with	O
well	O
over	O
a	O
million	O
copies	O
sold	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
popularity	O
of	O
both	O
the	O
book	O
and	O
the	O
programming	O
language	O
itself	O
meant	O
that	O
Ahl	O
's	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
became	O
the	O
more	O
widely	O
known	O
version	O
over	O
the	O
relatively	O
obscure	O
original	O
,	O
as	O
evidenced	O
by	O
the	O
1973	O
French	O
FOCAL	B-Language
version	O
considering	O
"	O
Hamurabi	B-Application
"	O
to	O
be	O
the	O
more	O
prominent	O
name	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
BASIC	B-Application
Computer	I-Application
Games	I-Application
noted	O
that	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
a	O
modification	O
of	O
a	O
game	O
"	O
written	O
in	O
FOCAL	B-Language
at	O
DEC	O
"	O
,	O
but	O
listed	O
the	O
author	O
as	O
"	O
unknown	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
1978	O
edition	O
of	O
the	O
book	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
the	O
first	O
million-selling	O
computer	O
book	O
,	O
noted	O
that	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
name	O
was	O
intended	O
to	O
be	O
"	O
Hammurabi	O
"	O
,	O
but	O
not	O
only	O
was	O
one	O
"	O
m	O
"	O
dropped	O
in	O
the	O
file	O
name	O
to	O
fit	O
in	O
an	O
eight-character	O
limit	O
,	O
but	O
Ahl	O
consistently	O
misspelled	O
the	O
name	O
inside	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
following	O
Dyment	O
's	O
spelling	O
,	O
leading	O
to	O
the	O
generally	O
accepted	O
name	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
be	O
Hamurabi	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
to	O
the	O
multiple	O
versions	O
of	O
Hamurabi	B-Application
,	O
several	O
simulation	O
games	O
have	O
been	O
created	O
as	O
expansions	O
of	O
the	O
core	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
include	O
Kingdom	O
(	O
1974	O
)	O
by	O
Lee	O
Schneider	O
and	O
Todd	O
Voros	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
then	O
expanded	O
to	O
Dukedom	B-Application
(	O
1976	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
derivations	O
include	O
King	O
(	O
1978	O
)	O
by	O
James	O
A	O
.	O
Storer	O
,	O
and	O
Santa	B-Application
Paravia	I-Application
en	I-Application
Fiumaccio	I-Application
(	O
1978	O
)	O
by	O
George	O
Blank	O
;	O
Santa	O
Paravia	O
added	O
the	O
concept	O
of	O
city	O
building	O
management	O
to	O
the	O
basic	O
structure	O
of	O
Hamurabi	B-Application
,	O
making	O
it	O
an	O
antecedent	O
to	O
the	O
city-building	B-Application
genre	I-Application
as	O
well	O
as	O
an	O
early	O
strategy	B-Application
game	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Hamurabi	B-Application
inspired	O
more	O
complicated	O
economic	O
simulation	O
games	O
;	O
M.U.L.E.	B-Application
</s>
<s>
(	O
1983	O
)	O
and	O
Anacreon	B-Application
(	O
1987	O
)	O
are	O
two	O
games	O
that	O
critics	O
mentioned	O
as	O
being	O
similar	O
to	O
Hamurabi	B-Application
.	O
</s>
