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Alumni Notes
 Those
who perceive computer gaming as merely a vile diversion haven't
yet witnessed the creations of Dave Kaemmer '85. As the co-founder
and chief technical officer of Papyrus Software, Kaemmer has
authored or co-authored a game series credited with popularizing
an entirely new genre of PC entertainment: the uncompromisingly
realistic simulation. Few in the industry can rival his knowledge
of the subject--auto racing--combined with his level of skill
on a networked computer.
The result: a series of auto-racing titles that extend
the genre. Attempts to master "Grand Prix Legends" is
like reading a Who's Who of the 1960s Grand Prix circuit. Grand
Prix Legends, or "GPL," as enthusiasts call it, remains
popular years after its release, especially in Europe. Fans say,
too, that Kaemmer's "NASCAR Racing 2002" has some of the
best multi-user networking capabilities of any game available, allowing
seamless online racing against drivers from as far away as Europe
and Australia.
Kaemmer's interest in computing and math began
early. He arrived at Oberlin in 1981 on his second personal
computer, an Osborne. By the time the College began offering
classes in computer science, he had already written a compiler
for the Scheme language. After graduating, he moved to Boston
and became a full-fledged game developer at an educational software
company.
In 1987, Kaemmer and his partner created Papyrus,
where their first project was "Indianapolis 500: The Simulation."
As technical director of the company, Kaemmer is involved in
most parts of the technology, though his specialty is designing
the elaborate car physics used in the games.
-Dan Beale '85
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