<s>
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
is	O
an	O
educational	O
strategy	B-Application
video	I-Application
game	I-Application
developed	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
the	O
Minnesota	O
Educational	O
Computing	O
Consortium	O
(	O
MECC	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
first	O
released	O
in	O
1985	O
for	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
,	O
with	O
later	O
ports	O
to	O
DOS	B-Device
in	O
1990	O
,	O
Mac	B-Application
OS	I-Application
in	O
1991	O
,	O
and	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
in	O
1993	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
created	O
as	O
a	O
re-imagining	O
of	O
the	O
popular	O
text-based	O
game	O
of	B-Application
the	I-Application
same	I-Application
name	I-Application
,	O
originally	O
created	O
in	O
1971	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
MECC	O
in	O
1975	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
the	O
player	O
assumes	O
the	O
role	O
of	O
a	O
wagon	O
leader	O
guiding	O
a	O
party	O
of	O
settlers	O
from	O
Independence	O
,	O
Missouri	O
,	O
to	O
Oregon	O
's	O
Willamette	O
Valley	O
via	O
a	O
covered	O
wagon	O
on	O
the	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
in	O
1848	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
intended	O
as	O
a	O
core	O
part	O
of	O
MECC	O
's	O
shift	O
from	O
games	O
and	O
software	O
on	O
mainframe	B-Architecture
computers	I-Architecture
accessed	O
by	O
remote	O
terminals	O
to	O
those	O
on	O
home	O
computers	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
MECC	O
's	O
first	O
game	O
intended	O
primarily	O
for	O
home	O
consumers	O
rather	O
than	O
for	O
schools	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
the	O
first	O
graphical	O
and	O
the	O
most	O
well	O
known	O
entry	O
in	O
the	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
series	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
MECC	O
's	O
flagship	O
product	O
from	O
release	O
until	O
the	O
company	O
was	O
bought	O
by	O
SoftKey	B-General_Concept
in	O
1995	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Games	O
in	O
the	O
series	O
have	O
since	O
been	O
released	O
in	O
many	O
editions	O
by	O
various	O
developers	O
and	O
publishers	O
,	O
many	O
titled	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
is	O
an	O
educational	O
strategy	B-Application
video	I-Application
game	I-Application
in	O
which	O
the	O
player	O
,	O
as	O
the	O
leader	O
of	O
a	O
wagon	O
train	O
,	O
controls	O
a	O
group	O
journeying	O
down	O
the	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
from	O
Independence	O
,	O
Missouri	O
,	O
to	O
Willamette	O
Valley	O
,	O
Oregon	O
,	O
in	O
1848	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1971	O
,	O
Don	O
Rawitsch	O
,	O
Bill	O
Heinemann	O
,	O
and	O
Paul	O
Dillenberger	O
developed	O
a	O
text-based	O
strategy	B-Application
video	I-Application
game	I-Application
titled	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
for	O
use	O
in	O
the	O
8th	O
grade	O
history	O
class	O
for	O
which	O
Rawitch	O
was	O
a	O
student	O
teacher	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
written	O
in	O
around	O
800	O
lines	O
of	O
HP	B-Language
Time-Shared	I-Language
BASIC	I-Language
for	O
the	O
Minneapolis	O
school	O
district	O
's	O
HP	B-Device
2100	I-Device
minicomputer	B-Architecture
,	O
to	O
which	O
schools	O
could	O
connect	O
via	O
a	O
teleprinter	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1974	O
,	O
the	O
Minnesota	O
Educational	O
Computing	O
Consortium	O
(	O
MECC	O
)	O
,	O
a	O
state-funded	O
organization	O
that	O
developed	O
educational	B-Application
software	I-Application
for	O
the	O
classroom	O
,	O
hired	O
Rawitsch	O
as	O
an	O
entry-level	O
liaison	O
for	O
local	O
community	O
colleges	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
MECC	O
had	O
a	O
mainframe	B-Architecture
system	O
to	O
which	O
schools	O
around	O
Minnesota	O
could	O
connect	O
,	O
and	O
Rawitsch	O
,	O
with	O
permission	O
from	O
Heinemann	O
and	O
Dillenberger	O
,	O
rewrote	O
and	O
expanded	O
the	O
game	O
using	O
historical	O
data	O
for	O
the	O
MECC	O
's	O
time-sharing	O
system	O
,	O
releasing	O
it	O
in	O
1975	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
1975	O
mainframe	B-Architecture
game	O
was	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
software	O
in	O
the	O
system	O
for	O
Minnesota	O
schools	O
for	O
five	O
years	O
,	O
with	O
thousands	O
of	O
players	O
monthly	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1978	O
,	O
MECC	O
began	O
to	O
move	O
away	O
from	O
centralized	O
mainframe	B-Architecture
games	O
and	O
software	O
and	O
towards	O
distributing	O
programs	O
for	O
microcomputers	B-Architecture
;	O
it	O
also	O
began	O
encouraging	O
schools	O
to	O
adopt	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
microcomputer	B-Architecture
,	O
purchasing	O
large	O
amounts	O
at	O
a	O
discount	O
and	O
reselling	O
them	O
to	O
schools	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
MECC	O
began	O
converting	O
several	O
of	O
their	O
products	O
to	O
run	O
on	O
microcomputers	B-Architecture
,	O
and	O
John	O
Cook	O
adapted	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
for	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
;	O
though	O
the	O
text-based	O
gameplay	O
remained	O
largely	O
the	O
same	O
,	O
he	O
added	O
a	O
display	O
of	O
the	O
player	O
's	O
position	O
along	O
the	O
trail	O
on	O
a	O
map	O
between	O
rounds	O
,	O
and	O
added	O
graphics	O
to	O
the	O
hunting	O
minigame	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
version	O
for	O
the	O
Atari	B-Device
8-bit	I-Device
family	I-Device
,	O
again	O
titled	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
,	O
was	O
released	O
in	O
1982	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
version	O
was	O
included	O
under	O
the	O
name	O
Oregon	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
MECC	O
's	O
Elementary	O
series	O
,	O
distributed	O
to	O
Minnesota	O
schools	O
for	O
free	O
and	O
for	O
profit	O
to	O
schools	O
outside	O
of	O
the	O
state	O
,	O
on	O
Elementary	O
Volume	O
6	O
in	O
1980	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
version	O
was	O
ported	O
to	O
the	O
Commodore	O
64	O
in	O
1984	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
a	O
collection	O
like	O
Elementary	O
Volume	O
6	O
titled	O
Expeditions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
the	O
mid-1980s	O
,	O
MECC	O
was	O
selling	O
their	O
educational	B-Application
software	I-Application
to	O
schools	O
around	O
the	O
country	O
,	O
and	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
was	O
their	O
most	O
popular	O
product	O
by	O
far	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
1984	O
,	O
the	O
educational	O
game	O
market	O
had	O
shifted	O
from	O
one	O
in	O
which	O
programs	O
were	O
almost	O
invariably	O
mainframe	B-Architecture
computer	I-Architecture
games	O
created	O
by	O
amateur	O
programmers	O
like	O
Rawitsch	O
to	O
a	O
commercial	O
market	O
containing	O
numerous	O
companies	O
selling	O
educational	O
games	O
for	O
home	O
computers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
titles	O
had	O
proven	O
successful	O
,	O
and	O
MECC	O
decided	O
to	O
create	O
modern	O
updates	O
to	O
their	O
three	O
most	O
popular	O
titles	O
of	O
the	O
1970s	O
:	O
Lemonade	B-Application
Stand	I-Application
,	O
Odell	B-Application
Lake	I-Application
,	O
and	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
All	O
three	O
games	O
had	O
received	O
ports	O
to	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
by	O
1980	O
,	O
but	O
had	O
not	O
been	O
changed	O
substantially	O
and	O
did	O
not	O
compete	O
graphically	O
with	O
contemporary	O
titles	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Development	O
of	O
a	O
new	O
version	O
of	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
began	O
in	O
October	O
1984	O
,	O
with	O
R	O
.	O
Philip	O
Bouchard	O
as	O
the	O
lead	O
designer	O
and	O
team	O
lead	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bouchard	O
was	O
instructed	O
to	O
design	O
an	O
entirely	O
new	O
game	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
concept	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
Oregon	B-Application
Trail	I-Application
,	O
intended	O
for	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
and	O
as	O
MECC	O
's	O
first	O
game	O
with	O
home	O
consumers	O
as	O
the	O
primary	O
market	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
target	O
release	O
date	O
of	O
autumn	O
1985	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
also	O
added	O
music	O
to	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
based	O
on	O
melodies	O
popular	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
of	O
the	O
actual	O
Oregon	B-Application
trail	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
team	O
was	O
concerned	O
that	O
their	O
design	O
was	O
not	O
going	O
to	O
be	O
possible	O
using	O
the	O
Applesoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
programming	I-Language
language	I-Language
on	O
an	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
like	O
the	O
rest	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
as	O
it	O
would	O
not	O
be	O
fast	O
enough	O
;	O
most	O
other	O
action	O
games	O
or	O
sequences	O
created	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
used	O
assembly	B-Language
language	I-Language
for	O
this	O
reason	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
he	O
did	O
so	O
,	O
the	O
team	O
discovered	O
that	O
the	O
original	O
design	O
,	O
which	O
called	O
for	O
eighteen	O
different	O
animals	O
,	O
was	O
too	O
large	O
for	O
the	O
memory	O
space	O
on	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
,	O
and	O
it	O
was	O
cut	O
down	O
to	O
six	O
animals	O
with	O
less	O
complex	O
animations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Late	O
in	O
the	O
project	O
,	O
his	O
supervisor	O
agreed	O
to	O
reinstate	O
the	O
minigame	O
,	O
but	O
only	O
if	O
it	O
could	O
be	O
done	O
simply	O
and	O
in	O
Applesoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
,	O
unlike	O
the	O
hunting	O
minigame	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
of	O
his	O
ideas	O
for	O
this	O
goal	O
had	O
to	O
be	O
cut	O
from	O
the	O
game	O
due	O
to	O
both	O
the	O
limitations	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
budget	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
size	O
available	O
for	O
the	O
game	O
on	O
a	O
5¼-inch	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
team	O
accomplished	O
all	O
of	O
the	O
goals	O
they	O
set	O
out	O
to	O
do	O
,	O
and	O
although	O
the	O
project	O
ran	O
over	O
the	O
original	O
budget	O
and	O
timeline	O
—	O
as	O
Bouchard	O
had	O
originally	O
estimated	O
they	O
would	O
be	O
complete	O
by	O
March	O
but	O
they	O
instead	O
finished	O
in	O
July	O
—	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
was	O
published	O
in	O
autumn	O
1985	O
as	O
planned	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
initial	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
release	O
in	O
1985	O
,	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
was	O
ported	O
by	O
MECC	O
to	O
several	O
other	O
platforms	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
DOS	B-Device
version	O
for	O
IBM	O
PC	O
compatible	O
computers	O
was	O
released	O
in	O
1990	O
,	O
with	O
slightly	O
modified	O
graphics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
followed	O
by	O
a	O
version	O
published	O
for	O
the	O
Macintosh	O
Mac	B-Protocol
OS	I-Protocol
6	I-Protocol
in	O
1991	O
and	O
DOS	B-Device
in	O
1992	O
;	O
both	O
releases	O
had	O
altered	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
interface	O
to	O
be	O
controlled	O
with	O
a	O
mouse	O
instead	O
of	O
a	O
keyboard	O
and	O
added	O
simple	O
sound	O
effects	O
and	O
eight	O
different	O
profession	O
options	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
graphics	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
were	O
also	O
overhauled	O
,	O
though	O
the	O
Macintosh	O
version	O
was	O
monochrome	O
black	O
and	O
white	O
and	O
the	O
new	O
DOS	B-Device
version	O
had	O
support	O
for	O
256-color	O
VGA	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
differentiate	O
the	O
new	O
DOS	B-Device
version	O
from	O
the	O
1990	O
version	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
titled	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
Deluxe	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
final	O
port	O
for	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
under	O
the	O
original	O
title	O
was	O
released	O
in	O
1993	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2018	O
,	O
a	O
variant	O
of	O
the	O
DOS	B-Device
version	O
of	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
was	O
released	O
as	O
a	O
physical	O
handheld	O
game	O
by	O
Basic	O
Fun	O
,	O
initially	O
as	O
a	O
Target	O
exclusive	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
was	O
extremely	O
successful	O
,	O
and	O
,	O
along	O
with	O
successive	O
iterations	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
which	O
are	O
often	O
considered	O
different	O
versions	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
instead	O
of	O
different	O
games	O
,	O
it	O
sold	O
over	O
65	O
million	O
copies	O
by	O
2011	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
multiple	O
versions	O
of	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
are	O
often	O
combined	O
when	O
discussing	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
legacy	O
,	O
though	O
the	O
1985	O
release	O
is	O
considered	O
the	O
main	O
version	O
;	O
Colin	O
Campbell	O
of	O
Polygon	O
,	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
has	O
described	O
it	O
collectively	O
as	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
successful	O
games	O
of	O
all	O
time	O
and	O
a	O
cultural	O
icon	O
,	O
but	O
said	O
that	O
the	O
1985	O
version	O
"	O
is	O
the	O
one	O
most	O
people	O
recall	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
has	O
been	O
described	O
in	O
Serious	B-Application
Games	I-Application
and	O
Edutainment	O
Applications	O
as	O
"	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
famous	O
ancestors	O
"	O
of	O
the	O
serious	B-Application
game	I-Application
subgenre	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
was	O
a	O
hallmark	O
in	O
American	O
elementary	O
schools	O
in	O
the	O
1980s	O
and	O
1990s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Smithsonian	O
magazine	O
observed	O
in	O
2016	O
that	O
"	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
is	O
still	O
a	O
cultural	O
landmark	O
for	O
any	O
school	O
kid	O
who	O
came	O
of	O
age	O
in	O
the	O
1980s	O
or	O
after	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2016	O
,	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
,	O
viewed	O
collectively	O
as	O
multiple	O
versions	O
of	O
the	O
same	O
game	O
from	O
1971	O
on	O
,	O
was	O
inducted	O
into	O
the	O
World	O
Video	O
Game	O
Hall	O
of	O
Fame	O
by	O
The	O
Strong	O
and	O
the	O
International	O
Center	O
for	O
the	O
History	O
of	O
Electronic	O
Games	O
,	O
the	O
first	O
educational	O
game	O
and	O
the	O
only	O
one	O
until	O
Where	B-Device
in	I-Device
the	I-Device
World	I-Device
Is	I-Device
Carmen	I-Device
Sandiego	I-Device
?	I-Device
</s>
<s>
Several	O
further	O
games	O
have	O
been	O
released	O
in	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
series	O
,	O
many	O
under	O
the	O
title	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
,	O
beginning	O
with	O
Oregon	B-Application
Trail	I-Application
II	I-Application
in	O
1995	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
spinoffs	O
such	O
as	O
The	B-Application
Yukon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
and	O
The	B-Application
Amazon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
few	O
of	O
these	O
were	O
published	O
by	O
SoftKey	B-General_Concept
,	O
which	O
purchased	O
MECC	O
in	O
1995	O
,	O
with	O
later	O
titles	O
developed	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
numerous	O
other	O
companies	O
;	O
The	B-Application
Oregon	I-Application
Trail	I-Application
4th	I-Application
Edition	I-Application
(	O
1999	O
)	O
was	O
the	O
final	O
game	O
developed	O
by	O
MECC	O
.	O
</s>
