# Spectrum HoloByte

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**Spectrum HoloByte, Inc.** was an American video game developer and publisher. The company, founded in 1983, was known for its [simulation games](/source/Simulation_video_game), notably the *[Falcon](/source/Falcon_(series))* series of combat flight simulators, and for publishing the first version of *[Tetris](/source/Tetris)* outside the Soviet Union (in 1988 for [MS-DOS](/source/MS-DOS)). Spectrum HoloByte published games for various home computers and [video game consoles](/source/Video_game_console).

## History

Spectrum HoloByte was founded in 1983 in [Boulder, Colorado](/source/Boulder,_Colorado), by Jeff Sauter, Phil Adam and Mike Franklin.

In 1987 Spectrum HoloByte merged with another game developer, Nexa Corporation, forming a common holding company, Sphere, Inc., and prompting the company's move from Colorado to California. Nexa founder [Gilman Louie](/source/Gilman_Louie) served as chairman of the combined company.

In 1992, Spectrum HoloByte received an investment from [Kleiner Perkins](/source/Kleiner_Perkins), which let the company repurchase shares formerly owned by [Robert Maxwell](/source/Robert_Maxwell)'s companies, ending its ties to their bankruptcies.[2] In December 1993, Sphere, Inc. merged with [MicroProse](/source/MicroProse) to form MicroProse Inc.[3] For the following years, games from both companies were published under their respective brands, but in 1996 all titles were consolidated under the MicroProse brand.[4]

[Hasbro Interactive](/source/Hasbro_Interactive) acquired the merged company in 1998, and what had been Spectrum HoloByte ceased to exist when the development studio in [Alameda, California](/source/Alameda,_California), was closed in 1999.[5]

## Games

Title Year and platform Developer Publisher GATO 1984 (MS-DOS, Mac) 1985 (Apple II, C64) 1986 (Atari ST) 1987 (Atari 8-bit) Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte Atari Corporation (Atari 8-bit) Orbiter 1986 (MS-DOS, MacOS) 1988 (Atari ST) Spectrum HoloByte Sphere, Inc. (Atari ST) Spectrum HoloByte Intrigue! 1986 (Apple II, C64) Kinemation Spectrum HoloByte Lunar Explorer: A Space Flight Simulator 1986 (Apple II, DOS) Spectrum HoloByte Electric Transit Solitaire Royale 1987 (MS-DOS, Mac) 1988 (Amiga) 1989 (Apple IIGS), MS-DOS, Mac, MSX, PC-88, PC-98, Sharp X1 Software Resources International Spectrum HoloByte Falcon 1987 (MS-DOS, Mac) 1988 (Atari ST) 1989 (Amiga) 1991 (CDTV) Sphere, Inc. Spectrum HoloByte Dondra: A New Beginning 1987 (Apple II) 1988 (Apple IIGS) 1989 (MS-DOS) Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte Electronic Arts (MS-DOS) PT-109 1987 (MS-DOS, Mac) Digital Illusions Spectrum HoloByte Zig Zag 1987 (C64) Zig Zag Software Spectrum HoloByte Tetris 1988 (Amiga, Apple II, Apple IIGS, MS-DOS, Mac) 1989 (Atari ST) Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte Soko-Ban 1988 (MS-DOS) 1988 (Apple II, C64) ASCII, Thinking Rabbit Spectrum HoloByte Falcon A.T. 1988 (MS-DOS) Sphere, Inc. Spectrum HoloByte Vette! 1989 (MS-DOS) 1991 (MacOS) Sphere, Inc. Spectrum HoloByte Falcon Operation: Counterstrike 1989 (Amiga, Atari ST) Rowan Software Spectrum HoloByte Tank: The M1A1 Abrams Battle Tank Simulation 1989 (MS-DOS) Sphere, Inc. Spectrum HoloByte Welltris 1989 (MS-DOS) 1990 (MaS, Amiga, Atari ST) Doka, Sphere, Inc. Spectrum HoloByte Infogrames (Amiga, Atari ST) Faces...tris III 1990 (MS-DOS, Mac) 1991 (Amiga) Sphere, Inc. Spectrum HoloByte Stunt Driver 1990 (MS-DOS) Sphere, Inc. Spectrum HoloByte Flight of the Intruder 1990 (MS-DOS) 1991 (Amiga, Atari ST) Rowan Software Spectrum Holobyte (Amiga, Atari ST) Spectrum Holobyte Mirrorsoft (Amiga, Atari ST) Falcon Operation: Firefight 1990 (Amiga, Atari ST) Rowan Software Sphere, Inc. Spectrum HoloByte Super Tetris 1991 (MS-DOS, Windows 3.x) 1992 (Amiga, Mac) Sphere, Inc. Spectrum HoloByte Falcon 3.0 1991 (MS-DOS) 1992 (TG-16) Sphere, Inc. Spectrum HoloByte (TG-16) Spectrum HoloByte Turbo Technologies (TG-16) Falcon MC (Macintosh Color) 1992 (Mac) Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte Crisis in the Kremlin 1992 (MS-DOS) Barbu Corporation, Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte Wordtris 1991 (MS-DOS) 1992 (Game Boy, SNES) 1993 (Mac) Spectrum HoloByte Armenica (MS-DOS) Spectrum HoloByte Sphere, Inc. (Game Boy) Nintendo (SNES) Falcon 3.0: Operation: Fighting Tiger 1992 (MS-DOS) Sphere, Inc. Spectrum HoloByte Tetris Classic 1992 (MS-DOS, Windows 3.x) Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte Iron Helix 1993 (Mac, Windows 3.x) 1994 (Sega CD) Drew Pictures Spectrum HoloByte Tetris Gold 1993 (MS-DOS, Mac, Windows 3.x) Sphere, Inc. Spectrum HoloByte Hornet: Naval Strike Fighter 1993 (MS-DOS) Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte National Lampoon's Chess Maniac 5 Billion and 1 1993 (MS-DOS) Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte TinHead 1993 (Genesis) MicroProse Ballistic Soldiers of Fortune 1993 (Genesis, SNES) The Bitmap Brothers Spectrum HoloByte MiG-29: Deadly Adversary of Falcon 3.0 1993 (MS-DOS) Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte Tornado 1993 (MS-DOS) Digital Integration Spectrum HoloByte Gazillionaire 1994 (Windows 3.x) LavaMind Spectrum HoloByte Out of the Sun 1994 (MaS) Domark Eidos Interactive Formula One 1994 (MS-DOS) Lankhor Domark Star Trek: The Next Generation - Futures Past 1994 (Genesis, SNES) Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte Sega (Genesis) BreakThru! 1994 (SNES, Windows 3.x) 1995 (GB) Zoo Corporation Spectrum HoloByte Falcon Gold 1994 (MS-DOS) Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte Fields of Glory 1994 (MS-DOS) MicroProse Spectrum HoloByte WildSnake 1994 (Game Boy, SNES) Bullet-Proof Software (GB) J.S.C. Gamos (SNES) Spectrum HoloByte Lords of Midnight 1995 (MS-DOS) Maelstrom Games Domark ClockWerx 1995 (Mac, Windows) Callisto Corporation Spectrum HoloByte Reflux: Issue.01 - "The Becoming" 1995 (Mac, Windows 3.x) Inverse Ink Inverse Ink Reflux: Issue.02 - "The Threshold" 1995 (Windows 3.x) Inverse Ink Inverse Ink Star Trek: The Next Generation – A Final Unity 1995 (MS-DOS, Mac) Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte Qwirks 1995 (Mac, Windows, Windows 3.x) Big Bang Software Spectrum HoloByte Perfect Partner Bridge 1995 (Mac, Windows 3.x) Positronic Software Spectrum HoloByte Absolute Zero 1995 (MS-DOS, Mac) Domark Domark Knight Moves 1995 (Windows) Kinesoft Spectrum HoloByte Curse of Dragor 1995 (Mac) Banshee Software Domark Top Gun: Fire at Will! 1996 (MS-DOS, Mac, PlayStation, Windows) Spectrum HoloByte Spectrum HoloByte MacSoft (Mac)

## References

1. ["Microprose Inc/DE - '10-K' for 3/31/97"](https://www.secinfo.com/dRqWm.8wVa.htm?Find=spectrum+holobyte). *SEC Info*

1. ["Spectrum HoloByte Buy-Back Launches Next Generation"](http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1992&pub=2&id=101). *Computer Gaming World*. December 1992. p. 116. Retrieved 5 July 2014.

1. "Spectrum + MicroProse = MicroProse Inc.". *[GamePro](/source/GamePro)*. No. 56. [IDG](/source/International_Data_Group). March 1994. p. 186.

1. "Stop Press: The Name Game". *[Next Generation](/source/Next_Generation_(magazine))*. No. 19. [Imagine Media](/source/Imagine_Media). July 1996. p. 17.

1. Freudenheim, Milt (8 December 1999). ["Hasbro to Cut 20% of Its Jobs and Take $97 Million Charge"](https://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/08/business/hasbro-to-cut-20-of-its-jobs-and-take-97-million-charge.html). *The New York Times*. Retrieved 11 January 2014.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Spectrum HoloByte](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spectrum_HoloByte) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spectrum_HoloByte?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.