Name: Rick Dyer
Birth:
Death:

Occupation/Title:
Game developer, President and Chief Executive Officer of Virtual Image Productions

Biography:
As a young child growing up in California, Rick displayed a love for invention. His first successful creation was a cuckoo clock which said the time, and told various famous quotes. As he got older, he created a device which attached to his car, and asked people by name which radio station they would like to listen to. As a young adult, he attended California Polytechnic University. While studying he became the first non-degree engineer to work at Hughes Electronics creating prototype horses for a racing game. Upon graduating he was immediately offered a job at Mattel and was set to work on popular hand-held consoles and Intellivision. Down the line, Rick moved to Coleco working on hand-held versions of Pac-Man, Defender and Donkey-Kong. In time, he decided to start up his own company, Advanced Microcomputer Systems. It was here where he developed the famed technology of using Laserdiscs for gaming. Rick approached animator Don Bluth hoping to team up and create a game utilizing the new technology. The idea of Dragon's Lair is born and released in 1983, grossing more than $48 million dollars, and earning a spot at the Smithsonian (only 1 of 3 games displayed at the museum). With the Dragon's Lair team, Rick creates Space Ace and Thayer's Quest, which also used Laserdisc technology. In 1991, he created Sega's Time Traveler, the first holographic video game again utilizing the Laserdisc technology and a parabolic mirror. Rick continues inventing and eventually starts working on Shadoan, an idea he had come up with in 1979. Shadoan had a budget of $3 million dollars, and took 300 animators working for 9 months to finally be completed. The game was released for Windows 95 in 1996. Rick's games continue to impress and be loved, as they have been repackaged and released multiple times on different platforms. You can now buy them on DVD and DVD ROM.

Education/Training:
California Polytechnic University (Pomona, California)

Career Outline:
* Hughes Electronics
* Mattel
* Coleco
* Advanced MicroComputer Systems
* Sega
* Virtual Image Productions
* TIG Publishing LLC

Impact on Gaming:
Rick heavily influenced gaming. He created a new type of technology, recreating the way games were played and thought about. He also created the first holographic game.

Personality:
Motivated, hard working, inventive, creative

Gameography:
* Dragon's Lair (1983)
* Space Ace (1984)
* Thayer's Quest (1984)
* Time Traveler (1991)

Bibliographic References:
Dragon's Lair Project 1998-2007
http://www.dragons-lair-project.com/community/related/creators/rick.asp

AllGame
http://www.allgame.com/person.php?id=3332
The Dot Eaters
http://www.thedoteaters.com/p2_stage6.php

Contributors To This Listing: Danielle Brown