Utopia
Platform: Intellivision
Region: USA
Media: Cartridge
Controller: INTV
Genre: Strategy
Gametype: Licensed
Release Year: 1981
Developer: Mattel Electronics
Publisher: Mattel Electronics
Players: 1 or 2 VS
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Utopia is a game played by two players on two continents. Players must build their island nation by building farms, housing, schools, hospitals, and factories and making other improvements while also competing against another player. Players are able to sabotage the other player as well, but they must also handle maintaining a fleet of PT boats to protect their fishing fleet, building forts to prevent rebellion, and dealing with the occasional hurricane.

The game is played in real time. Each player moves a box shaped cursor around the screen to perform construction and moving of boats.

CATALOG DESCRIPTION:

You and your opponent each have an island to rule. Points are accumulated based on the welfare of your island people. You can choose to be a benevolent ruler or an aggressive dictator. Your people need food, housing, and industry for clothing and other essentials. What you cannot manage are natural disasters. A single hurricane could wipe out your crops, sink your fishing fleet, destroy all the homes and factories you've built. Rebels may automatically appear should the welfare of the people drop. They could attack. Classic dilemmas in a game that is sure to become an absorbing classic in its own right.

One or two can play, either competitively or cooperatively. 
Colorful computer graphics and special sound effects. 
Computer measures your people's well being through a sophisticated scoring system that weighs ALL island conditions. 


PRODUCTION HISTORY:

In college, Don Daglow had been a fan of mainframe computer simulation games, so it was only natural that he would try a simulation game for the Intellivision. His result, Utopia, was hailed by reviewers for its originality: it wasn't another arcade rip-off, and it wasn't just a video version of an existing game or sport. It was even educational without being boring. 

Although Marketing didn't put much of a push behind the game (they preferred graphically splashier, no-brainer games like Star Strike), the reviews (Playboy Magazine put it in their "Video Game Hall of Fame") and word of mouth pushed sales to a respectable 250,000.

Today, Utopia is one of the best-remembered Intellivision game, with some people referring to it as Civilization 0.5, a reference to Sid Meier's later breakthrough computer simulation game.

An Aquarius version was also released.
 
http://www.mobygames.com/game/intellivision/utopia-
http://www.intellivisiongames.com/bluesky/games/credits/strategy.html#utopia
