Halliday Journals

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The Anorak's Archives

Welcome to the Halliday Journals, a comprehensive collection of books, records, and memories detailing the life and work of OASIS creator James Halliday. These archives contain invaluable information for Easter egg hunters and those studying the history of the OASIS.

The collection includes personal journals, technical specifications, and media related to Halliday's favorite games, movies, and music from the 1980s. Studying these materials may provide clues to hidden easter eggs throughout the OASIS.

Anorak's Almanac
Anorak's Almanac
The History of Gregarious Games
GSS History
The 80s: A Retrospective
80s Retro
OASIS Technical Manual
OASIS Manual
Halliday: The Biography
Halliday Bio
"Three hidden keys open three secret gates..."
"The Copper Key awaits explorers in a tomb filled with horrors..."
"The Jade Key is in a place where blades slice and freeze the air..."
"And their tables shall be filled with fortune. These words are true and crystal..."
"To possess an extra life in the game, one must first find the Easter egg..."

Halliday Timeline

1972

Birth of James Halliday

Born in Middletown, Ohio, James Donovan Halliday showed an early interest in computers and video games.

1989

First Game Released

Halliday's first commercially successful game, "Anorak's Quest," is released by his new company, Gregarious Games.

????

Mystery Date

Halliday received his first computer as a Christmas gift. What year was it?

2012

OASIS Launch

Gregarious Simulation Systems launches the OASIS, revolutionizing gaming, business, and social interaction across the globe.

2040

Halliday's Death

James Halliday passes away, leaving behind his now-famous Easter egg contest for control of the OASIS and his fortune.

Anorak's Riddle

"What was the name of James Halliday's avatar in the OASIS?"

Games Referenced

James Halliday was an avid gamer, with a particular fondness for classics from the 1980s. His collection of games influenced many aspects of the OASIS.

Pac-Man Pac-Man (1980) Space Invaders Space Invaders (1978) Adventure Adventure (1979) Galaga Galaga (1981) Defender Defender (1981) Asteroids Asteroids (1979) Robotron Robotron: 2084 (1982) Donkey Kong Donkey Kong (1981) BurgerTime BurgerTime (1982) Pitfall Pitfall! (1982) Joust Joust (1982) Contra Contra (1986) Golden Axe Golden Axe (1989) Heavy Barrel Heavy Barrel (1987) Smash TV Smash TV (1990) Ikari Warriors Ikari Warriors (1986) Tron Tron: Deadly Discs (1982) Astrosmash Astrosmash (1981) Zork Zork (1980) Swordquest: Earthworld Swordquest: Earthworld (1982) Swordquest: Fireworld Swordquest: Fireworld (1983) Swordquest: Waterworld Swordquest: Waterworld (1984) Swordquest: Airworld Swordquest: Airworld (Unreleased) EverQuest EverQuest (1999) World of Warcraft World of Warcraft (2004) Gorf Gorf (1981) Time Pilot Time Pilot (1982) Vigilante Vigilante (1988) Crime Fighters Crime Fighters (1989) Akalabeth Akalabeth: World of Doom (1979) Zaxxon Zaxxon (1982) Street Fighter II Street Fighter II (1991) Quake Quake (1996) Dungeons of Daggorath Dungeons of Daggorath (1983) Centipede Centipede (1981) Ms. Pac-Man Ms. Pac-Man (1982) Combat Combat (1977) Kaboom! Kaboom! (1981) Star Raiders Star Raiders (1980) Star Wars Star Wars (1983) Empire Strikes Back Empire Strikes Back (1982) Starmaster Starmaster (1982) Yars' Revenge Yars' Revenge (1982) E.T. E.T. (1982) Raaka-Tu Raaka-Tu (1981) Bedlam Bedlam (1982) Pyramid 2000 Pyramid 2000 (1979) Madness and the Minotaur Madness and the Minotaur (1981) Dig Dug Dig Dug (1982) Shroud of the Avatar Shroud of the Avatar (2013) Battlezone Battlezone (1980) Tennis for Two Tennis for Two (1958) Spacewar! Spacewar! (1962) Colossal Cave Colossal Cave Adventure (1976) Final Fantasy Final Fantasy (1987) Black Tiger Black Tiger (1987) Q*Bert Q*Bert (1982) Tempest Tempest (1981)

Consoles Referenced

Halliday's collection included every gaming console ever made, from the earliest Magnavox Odyssey to the latest models of his era.

Atari 2600 Atari 2600 (1977) Apple IIe Apple IIe (1983) Commodore 64 Commodore 64 (1982) Atari 800XL Atari 800XL (1983) TRS-80 Color Computer 2 TRS-80 Color Computer 2 (1983) Intellivision Intellivision (1979) TRS-80 Color Computer TRS-80 Color Computer (1980) Apple II Apple II (1977) PDP-1 PDP-1 (1959) Altair 8800 Altair 8800 (1974) IMSAI 8080 IMSAI 8080 (1975) Apple I Apple I (1976) Commodore PET Commodore PET (1977) Atari 400 Atari 400 (1979) Atari 800 Atari 800 (1979) ColecoVision ColecoVision (1982) TI-99/4A TI-99/4A (1979) Sinclair ZX80 Sinclair ZX80 (1980) Nintendo Nintendo Consoles (1983 - Present) Sega Sega Consoles (1983 - 1998) MAC MAC Computers (1984 - Present) PlayStation PlayStation Consoles (1994 - Present) Xbox Xbox Consoles (2001 - Present) TRS-80 TRS-80 (1977)

Movies Referenced

James Halliday was known to have watched the same movies hundreds of times, studying every detail. His favorites heavily influenced the design of the OASIS.

WarGames WarGames (1983) Blade Runner Blade Runner (1982) Monty Python and the Holy Grail Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) Ladyhawke Ladyhawke (1985) The Goonies The Goonies (1985) Back to the Future Back to the Future (1985) Ghostbusters Ghostbusters (1984) Zapruder Film Zapruder Film (1963) Heathers Heathers (1988) The Last Starfighter The Last Starfighter (1984) Terminator 2 Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) Sixteen Candles Sixteen Candles (1984) Pretty in Pink Pretty in Pink (1986) Some Kind of Wonderful Some Kind of Wonderful (1987) The Breakfast Club The Breakfast Club (1985) Weird Science Weird Science (1985) Ferris Bueller's Day Off Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986) Ewoks: Battle for Endor Ewoks: Battle for Endor (1985) Caravan of Courage Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure (1984) Airplane! Airplane! (1980) Howard the Duck Howard the Duck (1986) Krull Krull (1983) Highlander II Highlander II: The Quickening (1991) Superman Superman: The Movie (1978) Legend Legend (1985) Return of the Jedi Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (1983) Fantastic Voyage Fantastic Voyage (1966) The Matrix The Matrix (1999) Indiana Jones: Last Crusade Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) Back to the Future Part II Back to the Future Part II (1989) Back to the Future Part III Back to the Future Part III (1990) Real Genius Real Genius (1985) Better Off Dead Better Off Dead (1985) Revenge of the Nerds Revenge of the Nerds (1984) A New Hope Star Wars: A New Hope (1977) The Empire Strikes Back Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) The Phantom Menace Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (1999) Attack of the Clones Star Wars: Attack of the Clones (2002) Revenge of the Sith Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith (2003) LOTR: Fellowship The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) LOTR: Two Towers The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) LOTR: Return of the King The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) The Matrix Reloaded The Matrix Reloaded (2003) The Matrix Revolutions The Matrix Revolutions (2003) Mad Max Mad Max (1979) Mad Max 2 Mad Max 2 (1981) Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985) Raiders of the Lost Ark Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) Temple of Doom Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) Crystal Skull Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) Something Completely Different And Now for Something Completely Different (1971) Monty Python's Life of Brian Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979) Monty Python Live Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl (1982) Monty Python's Meaning of Life Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (1983) Star Trek: The Motion Picture Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) Star Trek II Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982) Star Trek III Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984) Star Trek IV Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986) Star Trek V Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989) Star Trek VI Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991) Star Trek Generations Star Trek Generations (1994) Star Trek: First Contact Star Trek: First Contact (1996) Star Trek: Insurrection Star Trek: Insurrection (1998) Star Trek: Nemesis Star Trek: Nemesis (2002) Hawk the Slayer Hawk the Slayer (1980) The Beastmaster The Beastmaster (1982) Excalibur Excalibur (1981) Highlander Highlander (1986) Rain Man Rain Man (1988) Footloose Footloose (1984) Tron Tron (1982) Conan the Barbarian Conan the Barbarian (1982) 2010 2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984) 2001 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) Risky Business Risky Business (1983) The Dark Crystal The Dark Crystal (1982) Phantasm Phantasm (1979)

Music Referenced

Halliday's musical tastes defined an era. His personal collection contained thousands of vinyl records, cassette tapes, and CDs from the 1980s.

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Halliday's Playlist
  • 01. The Oasis
  • 02. Hello, I'm James Halliday
  • 03. Why Can't We Go Backwards!
  • 04. An Orb Meeting
  • 05. Real World Consequences
  • 06. Sorrento Makes An Offer
  • 07. Welcome To The Rebellion
  • 08. High 5 Assembles
  • 09. Orb Of Osuvox
  • 10. Sorrento Punked
  • 11. Wade's Broadcast
  • 12. Arty On The 'Inside'
  • 13. Looking For A Truck
  • 14. She Never Left
  • 15. Last Chance
  • 16. Get Me Out Of This
  • 17. Hold On To Something
  • 18. This Is Wrong
  • 19. What Are You!
  • 20. There's Something I Need To Do
  • 21. Main Title
  • 22. End Credits
Rush Rush: 2112 Devo Devo Van Halen Van Halen: 1984 The Police The Police Duran Duran Duran Duran Tears for Fears Tears for Fears Oingo Boingo Oingo Boingo - Dead Man's Party (1985) Duran Duran - The Wild Boys Duran Duran - The Wild Boys (1984) Billy Idol Billy Idol - Dancing With Myself (1981) Engelbert Humperdinck Engelbert Humperdinck The Alan Parsons Project The Alan Parsons Project The Beatles The Beatles Journey Journey R.E.M R.E.M The Clash The Clash They Might be Giants They Might be Giants Bon Jovi Bon Jovi Def Leppard Def Leppard Pink Floyd Pink Floyd Midnight Oil Midnight Oil - Beds are Burning (1987) Van Halen - Dance The Night Away Van Halen - Dance The Night Away (1973) Howard Jones Howard Jones - Like to Get to Know You Well (1984) The Alan Parsons Project - Mammagamma The Alan Parsons Project - Mammagamma (1982) Zackary Sanders Zackary Sanders - Verb: That's What's Happening (1973) John Williams John Williams - The Throne Room (1977) John Mellencamp John Mellencamp - Small Town (1985) Basil Poledouris Basil Poledouris Richard Strauss Richard Strauss - Also Sprach Zarathustra (1896) Talking Heads Talking Heads - Burning Down the House (1983) The Beepers The Beepers - Video Fever (1983) Men Without Hats Men Without Hats - The Safety Dance (1982) New Order New Order - Blue Monday (1983) Duran Duran - Union of the Snake Duran Duran - Union of the Snake (1983) Billy Idol - Rebel Yell Billy Idol - Rebel Yell (1983) Cyndi Lauper Cyndi Lauper - Time After Time (1983) L.A. Style L.A. Style - James Brown is Dead (1991) Blondie Blondie - Atomic (1979) Wham! Wham! - Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go (1984) The Plimsouls - A Million Miles Away The Plimsouls - A Million Miles Away (1983) The Plimsouls - Everywhere at Once The Plimsouls - Everywhere at Once (1983) John Waite John Waite - Change (1982) They Might be Giants - Don't Let's Start They Might be Giants - Don't Let's Start (1985) Falco Falco - Rock Me Amadeus (1985) Peter Gabriel Peter Gabriel - In Your Eyes (1986) Pat Benatar - Invincible Pat Benatar - Invincible (1985) Devo - Girl U Want Devo - Girl U Want (1980) The Outfield The Outfield - Your Love (1985) Def Leppard - Pour Some Sugar on Me Def Leppard - Pour Some Sugar on Me (1987) Bryan Adams Bryan Adams - Kids Wanna Rock (1984) Buckner & Garcia Buckner & Garcia - Pac-Man Fever (1982) Rush - The Temple of Syrinx Rush - The Temple of Syrinx / Discovery (1976) Survivor Survivor - Eye of the Tiger (1982) Bob Dorough Bob Dorough - Three is a Magic Number (1973) Pat Benatar Pat Benatar AC/DC AC/DC - Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (1976) Rush - Subdivisions Rush - Subdivisions (1982)

Anime and Tokusatsu

Halliday's fascination with Japanese animation and special effects shows influenced many of the OASIS's most popular worlds.

Ultraman Ultraman (1966-1967) Mobile Suit Gundam Mobile Suit Gundam (1979-1980) Cowboy Bebop Cowboy Bebop (1998-2000) Brave Raideen Brave Raideen (1975-1976) Neon Genesis Evangelion Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995-1996) Supaidāman Supaidāman (1978-1979) Voltron Voltron: Defender of the Universe (1984-1985) Star Blazers Star Blazers (Space Battleship Yamato) (1979-1985) G-Force G-Force: Guardians of Space (Science Ninja Team Gatchaman) (1986) Giant Robo Giant Robo (1967-1968) Gamera Gamera, the Giant Monster (1965) Godzilla Godzilla (1954) Android Kikaider Android Kikaider (1972-1973) Mazinger Z Mazinger Z (1972-1974) Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974) The Space Giants The Space Giants (Maguma Taishi) (1966) Robotech Robotech (1985) Speed Racer Speed Racer (Mach GoGoGo!) (1967-1968) Spectreman Spectreman (1971-1972)

TV Show References

Television shows from the 70s and 80s were among Halliday's most treasured influences, with entire planets in the OASIS dedicated to some series.

Family Ties Family Ties (1982-1989) WWF WWF (Hulk Hogan vs Andre The Giant) Dungeons & Dragons Dungeons & Dragons (1983-1985) Jeopardy! Jeopardy! (1964-Present) Silver Spoons Silver Spoons (1982-1987) Spaced Spaced (1999-2001) Max Headroom Max Headroom (1987-1988) Monty Python's Flying Circus Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969-1974) Monty Python's Fliegender Zirkus Monty Python's Fliegender Zirkus (1972) Firefly Firefly (2002-2003) Buck Rogers Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979-1981) The Transformers The Transformers (1984-1987) Challenge of The GoBots Challenge of The GoBots (1984-1985) Whiz Kids Whiz Kids (1983-1984) The Smurfs The Smurfs (1981-1989) The Muppet Show The Muppet Show (1974-1981) Square Pegs Square Pegs (1982-1983) Simon & Simon Simon & Simon (1981-1989) Electra Woman and Dyna Girl Electra Woman and Dyna Girl (1976) The Secrets of Isis The Secrets of Isis (1975-1976) Wonder Woman Wonder Woman (1975-1979) Schoolhouse Rock! Schoolhouse Rock! (1973-2009) Knight Rider Knight Rider (1982-1986) The Simpsons The Simpsons (1989-Present) The Addams Family The Addams Family (1964-1966) The Greatest American Hero The Greatest American Hero (1981-1983) Airwolf Airwolf (1984-1986) The A-Team The A-Team (1983-1987) Misfits of Science Misfits of Science (1985-1986) Land of the Lost Land of the Lost (1974-1977) He-Man He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (1983-1985) She-Ra She-Ra: Princess of Power (1985-1987) G.I. Joe G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (1983-1986) Thundarr the Barbarian Thundarr the Barbarian (1980-1981) H.R. Pufnstuf H.R. Pufnstuf (1969-1970) Cosmos Cosmos: A Personal Voyage (1980-1981) Captain Kangaroo Captain Kangaroo (1955-1984) Riptide Riptide (1984-1986) Star Trek Star Trek: The Original Series (1966-1969) Star Trek: The Animated Series Star Trek: The Animated Series (1973-1974) Star Trek: The Next Generation Star Trek: The Next Generation (1984-1994) Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993-1999) Star Trek: Voyager Star Trek: Voyager (1995-2001) Star Trek: Enterprise Star Trek: Enterprise (2001-2005) The Twilight Zone The Twilight Zone Doctor Who Doctor Who

Literature References

Books shaped Halliday's imagination and worldview. His library contained thousands of volumes, from science fiction classics to epic fantasy series.

Neuromancer Neuromancer Snow Crash Snow Crash Lord of the Rings Lord of the Rings Hitchhiker's Guide Hitchhiker's Guide Dune Dune Dungeons & Dragons D&D Manuals