It was Benjamin Ward, one of David Ward’s six sons, who announced the death of his father on Monday on Twitter. Born in 1947, entrepreneur David Ward co-founded Ocean Software in 1983. Originally known as Spectrum Games, the Manchester company would go on to become an important name in the European video game scene and is still considered a pioneer in the professionalization of the video game industry. After having its ranges on microcomputers, Ocean Software installs its pretty chrome logo on the boxes of 8 and especially 16-bit consoles.
In addition to specializing in adaptations of Japanese arcade games on home machines (Terra Cresta, Chase HQ, Dual Dragon, Toki, Ninja Gaiden) and to produce its own games (including Mr Nutz by Ocean France), Ocean Software quickly became synonymous with a profusion of games based on film licenses, with a result as uneven as the introduction of the Retro Dash that Gamekult dedicated to the label in 2019. RoboCop, Batman, Rambo, Top Gun, Hook, Platoon, Total Recall, terminator, The Adams Family, Jurassic Park or WaterWorld : the cinema of the years 1985-1995 went through Ocean Software’s giant grinder. Losing momentum at the end of the 16-bit generation, the publisher continued on its way until 1996, when the French company Infrogrames bought the company for the sum of 100 million pounds sterling. In 1998, the Impossible mission Nintendo 64 is the latest title to be released under the Ocean Software label.
In 2004, David Ward and Jon Woods were inducted into the Hall of Fame by ELSPA, the former name of the association of British software publishers, for their contribution to the video game industry. “Many consider Ocean Software to be a pioneer who helped transform the UK video game industry into a truly multinational enterprise. Together, Ward and Woods coined much of the gaming industry’s terminology and pioneered many of its milestones, including the use of brands and franchises from traditional media and the processes of protection of intellectual property“, commented Roger Bennett, then Director General of ELSPA.
In addition to our Retro Dash show dedicated to Ocean Software, the MO5.COM association devoted a very nice portrait to the editor.