1982 · Magnavox · Simulation

Type & Tell!

Type & Tell! lets the player type in a word or a message and then have the words spoken back to them by utilizing the Odyssey 2's voice module.

Released: 31 December 1982
Platforms: Magnavox Odyssey 2 Odyssey Odyssey 2 / Videopac G7000
Genres: Simulation
Developers: Magnavox
Publishers: Magnavox
Perspective: Auditory
Themes: Educational

About

Type and Tell! is a speech synthesis program released in 1982 for the Magnavox Odyssey². It was designed by Robert Cheezum for North American Philips and released exclusively in North America as a launch title for the Odyssey²'s voice synthesis module, "The Voice of Odyssey²". Users can enter a short phrase which the voice module will attempt to read. Critics thought it was too simple to hold anyone's attention for long but were entertained by getting the voice module to say a wide variety of things.

›Story

Type & Tell! lets the player type in a word or a message and then have the words spoken back to them by utilizing the Odyssey 2's voice module.

The instruction manual suggests the following games that can be played:

Garble! - Players take turns typing in one letter at a time, The idea is to form sentences by just using the sounds the individual letters make.

Sound Waves! - Players type in random letters trying to create sounds that sound like something that could be heard in real life.

Super Star! - Players can use the sounds or dialogue the game makes in their own home movie or radio show.

War of Words! - This game requires at least two players. Player take turns typing in words until a sentence is created by one of the players adding a period. Players then take turns inserting words into the sentence, while trying to keep it grammatically correct.

The first player to extend the sentence exactly to the end of the available typing space is the winner. If a player extends the sentence beyond the end of that available space, they lose.

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

Type & Tell! is a program which allows the player to enter a short text message using the keyboard. When the enter key is press, "The Voice of Odyssey²" attempts to render the players message into speech. The message can be a maximum length of 72 letters.

The manual also suggests four games that one or more players might try with the base program. "Garble" has players attempt to create sentences using the names of letters, "Sound Waves" has players create sounds using repeated letters, "Super Star!" has players use Type & Tell! to generate sound effects for a home movie, and "War of Words!"

Reception

Alan R. Bechtold of The Logical Gamer thought it was "a beautiful idea" but added "you want to type messages to yourself. Buy a nice tape recorder, and the playback will be more true-to-life." Mike Wilson liked it as an introduction to the Voice module but thought it wasn't a very good learning aid due to the poor reading quality.

The Video Game Update thought it could be an interesting educational tool but doubted that the suggested games in the manual would hold anyone's attention for long. Electronic Fun with Computers & Games said 'after ten minutes of hearing your video game say things to you that would make a longshoreman blush, you might begin to realize the incredible educational possibilities of this "game."' Michael Blanchet, a syndicated newspaper columnist, found getting a correct pronunciation of his name to be a fun challenge. He thought the best entertainment value came in attempting to create sound effects, such as inputting a series of "Q"s to produce a chugging train sound.