Codemasters Founders Honored by Queen
Codemasters Founders Honored by Queen
June 18, 2008
The founders of UK developer Codemasters have been honored by Queen Elizabeth II.
As reported by the BBC, David and Richard Darling were named Commanders of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for their "services to the computer games industry".
The brothers founded the firm as teens in 1986 (see pic at left) and exited in 2007. Among Codemasters' best-known titles are the Colin McRae Rally and Sensible Soccer series, as well as Lord of the Rings Online. Rod Cousens, who now runs the company, praised the Darling brothers:
[They are] one of the video game industry's great British success stories... Their drive and passion for creating the best in interactive entertainment will always be part of the industry's heritage and this recognition is well deserved.
GP: Codemasters has a fascinating history. Their Wikipedia entry is definitely worth a read.
Thanks to: GP correspondent Colin "Jabrwock" McInnes.
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Posted 11/07/09 at 04:27pm
ZippyDSMlee: man I got alot of junk and dup files too >< god I need orginization...and no not the knee capping media mafia kind :P
ZippyDSMlee: man I got alot of junk and dup files too >< god I need orginization...and no not the knee capping media mafia kind :P
Posted 11/07/09 at 04:26pm
ZippyDSMlee: replaced :P
ZippyDSMlee: replaced :P
Posted 11/07/09 at 04:23pm
ZippyDSMlee: beemoh:hey its like 60GB porn,400GB anime 100GB games and crap I have took from all my DVDs, I hate waiting on dvds to install stuff..... oh and 40GB of my porn was in the found.000 folder...mostly corrupted.... least I got names of wut needs to be repa
ZippyDSMlee: beemoh:hey its like 60GB porn,400GB anime 100GB games and crap I have took from all my DVDs, I hate waiting on dvds to install stuff..... oh and 40GB of my porn was in the found.000 folder...mostly corrupted.... least I got names of wut needs to be repa
Posted 11/07/09 at 04:18pm
beemoh: @Zip: ...and you'd have to spend all that time re-downloading that porn?
beemoh: @Zip: ...and you'd have to spend all that time re-downloading that porn?
Posted 11/07/09 at 03:34pm
ZippyDSMlee: ggrrrrr......vista lost one of my hard drives and I had a heart attack thinking I lost 1TB of data....
ZippyDSMlee: ggrrrrr......vista lost one of my hard drives and I had a heart attack thinking I lost 1TB of data....
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:58am
JDKJ: Which could be explained by both (a) and (b).
JDKJ: Which could be explained by both (a) and (b).
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:56am
Austin_Lewis: JDKJ: You forgot C) the fact that, for some reason, every time he did something that would suggest he shouldn't be in the military, let alone an officer, higher ups ignored it or let it slide.
Austin_Lewis: JDKJ: You forgot C) the fact that, for some reason, every time he did something that would suggest he shouldn't be in the military, let alone an officer, higher ups ignored it or let it slide.
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:51am
JDKJ: Part of the problem is, I believe, that (a) the Army had a lot of time and money already invested in him and which they were unwilling to simply write-off and (b) an increasing need for the type of skills and services he provided.
JDKJ: Part of the problem is, I believe, that (a) the Army had a lot of time and money already invested in him and which they were unwilling to simply write-off and (b) an increasing need for the type of skills and services he provided.
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:48am
JDKJ: And that even if he was begging not to get cut loose, he was apparently a real good candidate for being cut loose, anyway.
JDKJ: And that even if he was begging not to get cut loose, he was apparently a real good candidate for being cut loose, anyway.
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:11am
JDKJ: @chada: And while Kennedy once noted that there's usually more than enough blame for everyone to get a slice, the possibility that the Army was unwilling to cut loose someone who was asking to get cut loose could be a factor.
JDKJ: @chada: And while Kennedy once noted that there's usually more than enough blame for everyone to get a slice, the possibility that the Army was unwilling to cut loose someone who was asking to get cut loose could be a factor.
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:07am
ZippyDSMlee: *noms on his feet*..nomnomnomnom*droooll* ...wuuutttttt uuu looking at?
ZippyDSMlee: *noms on his feet*..nomnomnomnom*droooll* ...wuuutttttt uuu looking at?
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:05am
JDKJ: I'm no psychologist, but I'm told that crazy people have a tendency to do crazy things.
JDKJ: I'm no psychologist, but I'm told that crazy people have a tendency to do crazy things.
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:03am
chadachada321: Whoops, was out of the convo for awhile. I do wonder what type of ammo he used etc, but the real issue is WHY he did it, not HOW
chadachada321: Whoops, was out of the convo for awhile. I do wonder what type of ammo he used etc, but the real issue is WHY he did it, not HOW
Posted 11/07/09 at 09:56am
JDKJ: But if it turns out that they actually did, they'll have Hell to pay.
JDKJ: But if it turns out that they actually did, they'll have Hell to pay.
Posted 11/07/09 at 09:45am
JDKJ: And I'd tend to rule out the possibilty of FN Herstal supplying restricted ammunition to someone merely because they're ordering it from a military base.
JDKJ: And I'd tend to rule out the possibilty of FN Herstal supplying restricted ammunition to someone merely because they're ordering it from a military base.
Posted 11/07/09 at 09:37am
JDKJ: I know you don't leave your gated community and get around much in dark alleys, so you may be surprised to learn that there's this thing called "the black market" where, if you've got enough money, ain't too much of anything which can't be bought.
JDKJ: I know you don't leave your gated community and get around much in dark alleys, so you may be surprised to learn that there's this thing called "the black market" where, if you've got enough money, ain't too much of anything which can't be bought.
Posted 11/07/09 at 09:36am
Austin_Lewis: Or, maybe he or someone else at the base ordered the SS190 from FN Herstal.
Austin_Lewis: Or, maybe he or someone else at the base ordered the SS190 from FN Herstal.
Posted 11/07/09 at 09:32am
Austin_Lewis: the hands of private owners. They run about 300 dollars minimum for a box of 50, and boxes of AP 5.7 are extremely scarce, mainly residing in the hands of Class III stores or individuals who for one reason or another got a demo box of it.
Austin_Lewis: the hands of private owners. They run about 300 dollars minimum for a box of 50, and boxes of AP 5.7 are extremely scarce, mainly residing in the hands of Class III stores or individuals who for one reason or another got a demo box of it.
Posted 11/07/09 at 09:30am
Austin_Lewis: There are other firearms that fire the 5.7. However, I too would like to know where he got the ammo and what kind was used. Maybe Hasan, planning not to live through this, went out and bought one the boxes of SS190 that are floating around in
Austin_Lewis: There are other firearms that fire the 5.7. However, I too would like to know where he got the ammo and what kind was used. Maybe Hasan, planning not to live through this, went out and bought one the boxes of SS190 that are floating around in
Posted 11/07/09 at 08:44am
JDKJ: And it isn't yet clear what type of ammunition Hasan used. It's strange that he purchased a gun but didn't purchase ammunition for it at the same place and time. Especially because the calibre required is peculiar to the actual gun.
JDKJ: And it isn't yet clear what type of ammunition Hasan used. It's strange that he purchased a gun but didn't purchase ammunition for it at the same place and time. Especially because the calibre required is peculiar to the actual gun.
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Comments
I thought that the CBE designation was for non-British citizens only. Still, good job on their part.
Just curious, do you get anything for being knighted? A sword, perhaps?
Well you'd at least get the right to say "That's SIR to the likes of you, lowly peon!"
If nothing else, these guys are one of the reasons england was so highly respected back in the 8bit era
It's worth noting that Lord of the Rings Online is a Codemasters title in the same sense that Oblivion is an Ubisoft title--publication only, not development. LotRO is published by Codemasters in the UK, but it was developed by Turbine. In the US, it was published by Midway.
This is good news in a line of good news. First Grid has gotten good reviews and now this... Things are looking up for CodeMasters.
It's all about Micro-Machines and Dizzy tbh.
Not to mention Fruit Machine Simulator ;)
Pro BMX simulator was the best game they ever made. Well that or Operation Flashpoint, slightly different target audience...
Is this the subthread for the tape deck wrinklies, then? Let us show our respect for the Codies with a three and a half minute BWOOWEEOOOeeeeee fanfare.
Or sing the ZX Spectrum loading song...
NyeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeDIP!
Nyeeeeeee...Diddleiddleiddleiddle!
Hmm.. When I think of 2 brothers working for Codemasters I immediately think of the Oliver Twins who wrote all the Dizzy games back in the day. Have to say I'm never heard of this pair.
Dennis:
Further to my thoughts on this, Sensible Soccer was written by Sensible Software, which to my recollection did Wizball, Wizkid, Cannon fodder and other such games on the Amiga. The front two for those games were Jon Hare and Chris something-or-other. These games were out ages before the company got sold, so probably not really fair to claim it as a Codemaster's title.
Goes to show if you can make bad games for 10+ eyars you will be knighted...i guess they still hand out darkknight awards....
I is fuzzy brained mew
http://zippydsmlee.wordpress.com/
(in need of a bad overhaul)
OMG! I love that picture! It's been ages since I've seen a Commodore 64.
-Loudspeaker
"Volume helps to get a point across but sharp teeth are better."
When I first saw the headline I thought that it was talking about the band Queen.
But I guess this is pretty okay too.
What a coincidence! I just recently managed to get a copy of one of the Dizzy games. Neat.
Dude, I thought they broke up years ago.
Oh. The Queen.
My hats go off to those two. They have made some of the best simulators I have ever played and one of them is OFP which is the best military game next to ArmA: Armed Assault I have ever played.
Rockstar Ate My Hamster, Micro Machines, and Cosmic Spacehead