The story · 1982—1984
Apple’s First and Only Game
In 1982, Apple engineer Steve Capps created Alice while working on the Lisa project. Inspired by Lewis Carroll, he turned a chessboard into a surreal game of movement and survival. Capps later ported Alice to a Macintosh prototype in just two days. Impressed by the result, Steve Jobs recognized Capps’s talent and invited him to join Apple’s Macintosh team.
With Jobs backing the project, Apple released the game in 1984 under the name Through the Looking Glass. Its book-shaped packaging gave the release the premium presentation Jobs had promised, making it one of Apple’s most distinctive early products.
The original disk also included Dali Clock, a morphing clock screensaver, and Amazing, a maze generator and game. Both programs are preserved in the original disk image and can be launched on this virtual Macintosh.
Read Andy Hertzfeld’s recollectionsAlice on the Lisa
Capps creates Alice, then brings it to a Macintosh prototype in just two days.
The Macintosh team
After completing his Lisa work, Capps joins the Mac team at Jobs’s urging.
Apple takes the lead
Jobs insists that Apple publish the game and promises deluxe packaging.
Through the Looking Glass
The game is released under its new name, packaged like an old-fashioned book.