Having decided to remember the old erotic quest “Rendezvous with a Stranger,” I could not even imagine how far the past would drag me. No, not in those years when, as a youngster, Cheezzy, the purple fluff on his cheeks, clicked with the mouse on the answers provided by the game, hoping to see the rounded, forbidden forms of girls. And in times of troubles, turbulence, called the nineties and two thousand.
Well, it’s going to be a long and possibly dangerous adventure. Take a magnifying glass in your hand, put on a yellow detective coat, a felt hat, take out notebooks to write. Hello everyone, Cheezzy purple beard is in touch, and let’s try to find out a little more about the events associated with the birth of the old erotic quest.
You can, of course, follow the path trodden by many publicists, picking up dubious information from everywhere, and mixing it in a copyright blender to your taste. Yes, only as far as it is legal in relation to the reader? As for me, here, at a minimum, actions of a stupid nature can be traced, aimed at stealing free time from a person. Therefore, I propose to follow the Stranger’s trail together and see where it leads us.
For those who are especially curious, under spoilers for almost every thesis demonstrated, I will leave sources. What if someone wants to check what is written or tries to take the hunt under their jurisdiction?. As they say, I’m ready to hand over my detective badge to a more experienced colleague.
Rum to order
The intoxicating subtle aroma of Stranger’s perfume, driving youngsters crazy, is barely caught in the suffocating stench of political games, lies and market economics. You’ll have to hold your nose and walk through the foggy past. After all, there, under the cover of history, the first informant is waiting for us – the well-known Russian company Russobit-M, which once published the Stranger we are looking for.
However, it’s worth starting from afar. From a non-governmental non-profit organization operating in our country for the benefit of domestic companies and entrepreneurs, bearing the proud name “Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation”. Without delving into bureaucracy, or into a dry statement of the letter of the Law, let’s say that this organization on paper acts as a kind of lifesaver for businessmen. It will help you contact government authorities, establish economic relations with foreign colleagues, contribute to the restoration of violated rights, and much, much more. So here it is.
The activities of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation are legislatively established by the Law of the Russian Federation dated 07.07.1993 N 5340-1 (ed. from 01.05.2022) “On chambers of commerce and industry in the Russian Federation”. (https://www.consultant.ru/document/cons_doc_LAW_2269/)
On September 17, 2002, under the high arches of the Chamber, an event was held at which rampant piracy in Russia and methods of combating it were discussed. Massive violation of copyright by dishonest domestic sellers prevented the country from getting involved in the global abyss of economic passions. In particular, the incredible growth of clandestine factories in the Moscow region producing counterfeit discs was announced. Moreover, all this was discussed with the direct participation of foreign colleagues. As a result of the event, the participants decided on measures to combat piracy and decided to create a Working Group on Combating Counterfeit Products on the basis of the Committee on Intellectual Property.
Publication on the holding of a “round table” on the topic: “Piracy in Russia. Problems of combating counterfeit products distributed on optical media".
On the new official website of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation:
On the old official website of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation: https://oldsite.tpprf.ru/ru/news/6345/
It would seem that this was an ordinary official event, of which there are a huge number every week, but it was this event that marked the beginning of a resonant trial. It all started on November 18, 2002. From the material of a fairly popular magazine of those times, “Computerra,” authored by journalist Dmitry Korovin, entitled “There should only be one left…”.
The article itself by Dmitry Korovin entitled “There must only be one left…”
Russian site with a collection of various incriminating evidence http://www.compromat.ru/page_13678.htm
That’s right. The title of the article is a reference to the fantasy action adventure film “Highlander”, an allusion to, under a possible combination of circumstances, a monopoly on the production of counterfeit goods. The author of the material, having conducted his own independent research, came to an ambiguous conclusion. To complete the picture, let me dilute his theses and judgments with an article by Mikhail Krushinsky “Flint of the 21st century” from the issue of the publication “Business for Everyone”, dated April 29, 2002.
An article from the Russian newspaper Kommersant dated April 25, 2002 entitled “10 tons of disks were sent for melting”: https://www.businessman.ru/doc/320245
Back in 1995, a certain Yuri Moskvin opened the company “21st Century”. Yes, in those heady times it was common to call companies firms. How cool, stylish, youthful. The organization made its way to the market in a not entirely legal way. She brought counterfeit CDs to our country from China, Singapore and Ukraine, and then sold them.
Of course, Yuri Moskvin was not the only one who practiced this method of earning money. The Russian market in those years was filled with pirated goods. There was no talk of any license. And the phrase “copyright” was considered something from the realm of science fiction.
The main office-warehouse, as they say now, was organized in Moscow on the territory of a closed defense enterprise. How did you manage to pull something like this off?? It’s hard to say, but such a trick allowed us to insert a whole bunch of bamboo into the wheels of justice. The point is that neither the police nor other government bodies could enter the territory of the defense enterprise to carry out operational activities without a special pass. Thus, in the shadows, hidden from the watchful gaze of the servants of the Law, the “21st century” began to spread its wings.
A summer later, 1998 hit Russia with all its might, bringing with it a severe economic crisis. Not everyone coped with it. But, as you understand, the “21st century” was able. And not only was he able to, but he became the undisputed leader in the counterfeit market, significantly reducing the cost of illegal discs. However, such popularity attracted the attention of law enforcement officers.
In 1999, the police, together with… Let’s make a short opus regarding the colleagues of law enforcement officers who took part in revealing the identity of the pirate. And so, the Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property "Russian Shield".
It was organized in 1997 by domestic gaming rights holders to combat rampant sellers of counterfeit goods. I won’t go too deep into the activities of the “Russian Shield”, because we will already be very far from our intended goal. However, it is worth mentioning that reviews on the Internet about the work of this organization are quite unflattering.
Officially, Russian Shield employees defended the copyright and related rights of companies that came under their protection, and also conducted raids on markets and other retail outlets alone or with police officers. For those who wish to become more closely acquainted with the Association, I will leave a few interesting links below. And so, let’s go back to 1999, to one of the warehouses of the 21st Century company, located on the territory of the Kvant Research Institute.
Links to information about the Russian Shield Association.
An article from the Russian newspaper Kommersant dated June 7, 2004 entitled “Ace of the Buk”: https://www.businessman.ru/doc/859735
An article from the Russian newspaper Kommersant dated July 19, 2005, entitled “The fight against piracy has taken to the streets”: https://www.businessman.ru/doc/591982
Article from the news publication Lenta.ru” dated December 2, 2005 under the title “Russian counterfeit, senseless and merciless”: https://lenta.ru/articles/2005/12/01/kontrafakt/
The official website of the St. Petersburg, let’s say, branch of the “Russian Shield” via Internet Archive: Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/20080413010930/http://rsnw.ru/about/
In a room of 20-25 square meters, police officers together with Russian Shield employees found over 12 tons of illegal discs. Damage to copyright holders was estimated at more than 620 million rubles. Of course, a criminal investigation followed and a logical trial of the organizer of the illegal business, Yuri Moskin.
In December 2001, the entrepreneur was found guilty of piracy and sentenced to two years in prison. Here the author of the article, Dmitry Korovin, claims that Moskvin is avoiding punishment because he is under amnesty. True, under what? It remains a mystery to me. Yes, there was an amnesty in 2001, but it concerned exclusively women and children. And the next one happened only in 2003. But, be that as it may, this does not particularly affect the story being told.
It would seem that the police caught up with you, seized a huge batch of goods, and by some miracle you yourself escaped punishment. It’s probably worth reconsidering, let’s say, your behavior? Maybe. Yes, but something like this is somehow not businessmanlike in hard times. Especially when the mechanism is running and cannot be stopped.
The thing is that during the economic crisis, in 1998, the 21st Century company opened the Russobit plant to produce illegal laser discs. Also during this period, presumably to control the main pirate – Yuri Moskvin, the people who provided money for the industrial enterprise appointed Oleg Gordiyko as head.
The process of manufacturing https://casinobetti.org/withdrawal/ and selling counterfeit discs is being streamlined. Money flows like a river. However, this turns out to be not enough. Wanting to come out of the shadows, becoming a legal copyright holder, in 2000 the pirates created the crystal law-abiding company “Russobit-M”, known to all of us.
Somewhere at this moment, Oleg Gordiyko, who was appointed head of the plant, plays his game. Let’s play solitaire. He is not only the head of an industrial enterprise, but also manages the National Agency for the Protection of the Interests of Copyright Holders, and also holds the post of Chairman of the Intellectual Property Committee in the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation. As if, being a pirate, he fights piracy.
Interestingly, departing from the story told by journalist Dmitry Korovin, on the official pages of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation, the hyperlink to the Committee itself does not work. And at present, as I understand it, its legal successor is a division with a similar name “Intellectual Property Council”. But this is just for information. No more. Let’s go back along the timeline.
A little later, Oleg Gordiyko, of course, will leave the founders of the Russobit plant. However, this will not prevent the Computerra journalist from suggesting a possible development of events in which the market will, in fact, be monopolized by the “21st century”. (Yes, by this time this company has already been divided into other companies, but for the convenience of the story we will ignore them. Otherwise we will be completely confused, so let it remain “21st century”). The scheme presented by the correspondent included a significant number of influential people. Of course, such an opus could not go unnoticed.
The editors of the Computerra magazine received a letter from Oleg Gordiyko and his colleagues, who demanded a refutation of the published article. The editors refused. After all, Dmitry Korovin took all the information from open sources, making exclusively his own conclusions. The answer then was Oleg Gordiyko’s appeal to the police.
The criminal case of libel against journalist Dmitry Korovin made its way straight through the jungle. He was suspended, closed, but still brought to trial. The correspondent was charged in 2003.
Material from the daily newspaper “City Notes” on the website of the journalistic agency “FreeLance Bureau” dated October 2, 2003, entitled “A fighter against piracy was accused of libel”: https://flb.ru/info/21486.html
Russian site with a collection of various incriminating evidence. Article from the Izvestia newspaper dated October 9, 2003, “Pirate Methods”: http://www.compromat.ru/page_24097.htm
Article from the Izvestia newspaper dated October 9, 2003, “Pirate Methods” via Internet Archive: Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/20031009124540/https://www.news.ru/conflict/article39230
In parallel with all the events, as well as criminal investigations and litigation, Russobit is becoming a regular in newspaper headlines. Factories owned by the company, according to articles of those years, are either closed or their licenses are suspended. Law enforcement officers discover illegal products on the premises of industrial enterprises, criminal cases are initiated.
American diplomat Alexander Vershbow appeals to the Russian leadership with an urgent request to finally deal with the insolent pirates. And at the end of 2003, the International Federation of Phonogram Producers demanded compensation from the Russian plant Russobit-Soft for damages in the amount of $1.5 million due to the production of counterfeit products. The Moscow Region Court, having considered the appeal of foreign businessmen, rejected their claim.
Material from the Vedomosti publication on the website of the journalistic agency FreeLance Bureau dated August 1, 2002, entitled “The military-industrial complex was accused of piracy”: https://flb.ru/infoprint/10356.html
Article from the Izvestia newspaper dated July 31, 2002 entitled “Laser Wars”: https://iz.ru/news/265134
An article from the Ural-Press-Inform news agency dated August 13, 2003, entitled “The Ministry of Press of the Russian Federation suspends licenses for the production of copies of audiovisual works and phonograms on optical media”: https://uralpress.ru/news/federaciya/minpechati-rf-priostonavlivaet-deystvie-licenziy-na-osushchestvlenie-deyatelnosti-po
Material from the Hi-Fi portal.ru” dated August 15, 2003, entitled “Fighters against pirates are the worst lawbreakers themselves”: https://www.hi-fi.ru/news/music/detail/borcy-s-piratami-sami-zlostnye-narushiteli-zakona/
Material from the daily newspaper “City Notes” on the website of the journalistic agency “FreeLance Bureau” dated October 2, 2003, entitled “Russobit-Soft was closed for piracy”: https://flb.ru/info/21486.html
Material from the project of the branding agency “Depot” – “Sostav.ru" dated December 18, 2003 under the title "Michael Jackson vs. Russobit": https://www.sostav.ru/news/2003/12/18/70-2/
Article by Lenta LLC.Ru" dated December 18, 2003, entitled "They demand $1.5 million from a Russian plant for producing pirated discs" via Internet Archive: Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/20040203082610/http://lenta.ru:80/economy/2003/12/18/russobit/
Material from the publication “CNews” dated December 19, 2003, entitled “Russobit-Soft was accused of piracy”: https://www.cnews.ru/news/line/russobitsoft_obvinili_v_piratstve
An article from the Russian newspaper Kommersant dated April 7, 2004 entitled “Pirates were deprived of treasure islands”: https://www.businessman.ru/doc/464318
Article from the online publication “KM.RU” dated April 7, 2004, entitled “Pirates have suffered another blow”: https://www.km.ru/tekhnologii/F4E6D2859EFA49938E20ADF7F22A6D4C
An article from the Russian newspaper Kommersant dated November 10, 2004 entitled “Pirates were caught by examination”: https://www.businessman.ru/doc/523448
An article from the magazine “Webplaneta” dated December 9, 2004 entitled “Media companies stumbled over Russobit-Soft”: http://www.webplanet.ru/news/lenta/2004/12/9/russobyte.html
Article by Lenta LLC.Ru” dated December 9, 2004, entitled “The Moscow Region Court rejected the claim of world record labels against the Russobit-Soft plant”: https://lenta.ru/news/2004/12/09/russobit/
Material from the “soundcoder” website dated December 11, 2004, entitled “The Moscow Region Court rejected the world record labels’ claim against the Russobit plant”: https://www.soundcoder.com/2004/12/
Article by Lenta LLC.Ru" dated March 08, 2005 under the title "Music industry and network anarchists": https://lenta.ru/articles/2005/03/07/mp3/
However, the most interesting for us among all this whirlwind is the interview of Oleg Gordiyko, which he gave to journalist Ilya Brezhnev. This was a kind of response to the claims of the accused correspondent Dmitry Korovin. True, it didn’t come out with much resonance, because finding the interview itself on the Internet is another task. Still doable.
Oleg Gordiyko explained the appearance of the allegedly revealing article by the conflict that arose between him and the American Ambassador Alexander Vershbow. The reason was a fundamental disagreement with the accusations made earlier by the diplomat.
But much more interesting (we are hunting for the Stranger here, and not just analyzing the historical vicissitudes of the domestic market) was the answer to Dmitry Korovin’s thesis regarding the production of pornography at the factory. Oleg Gordiyko fully assured that there was nothing like this in the dungeons of the industrial enterprise. Not produced. And what journalist Korovin mistook for pornography is actually an erotic quest “Adventure with a Stranger,” for which there is even permission from the Ministry of Health. I suppose there is no need for additional clarification here, because it is obvious: Oleg Gordiyko meant “Rendezvous” specifically.
Russian site with a collection of various incriminating evidence. Interview dated October 8, 2003 entitled “Response of the Chairman of the RF Chamber of Commerce and Industry Committee on Intellectual Property Oleg Gordiyko to the article “Pirate Methods””: http://www.compromat.ru/page_13709.htm
Material from the online publication “Pravda”.Ru” dated August 1, 2002, entitled “The American Ambassador Lobbies His Own and Blames Ours”: https://www.pravda.ru/economics/826097-amerikanskii_posol_lobbiruet_svoikh_i_obvinjaet_nashikh/
In August 2004, the court rendered its verdict in the libel case. Having considered the evidence provided, the government authority came to the conclusion that journalist Dmitry Korovin is innocent. Everything would be fine, but many media completely incorrectly interpreted the court decision.
The journalist’s innocence meant that he did not intend to deliberately slander Yuri Moskvin or Oleg Gordiyko with his material. And it did not automatically confirm the theses about piracy put forward in the article “There should only be one left…”. In the framework of the criminal case under consideration, this was simply not studied.
Archive of the magazine "Computerra". Article dated August 24, 2004 entitled “Innocent!": https://old.computerra.ru/205573/
An article from the Russian newspaper Kommersant dated August 17, 2004 entitled “Arguments and Counterfeits”: https://www.businessman.ru/doc/498191
Material from the information portal “SecurityLab”.ru" dated August 16, 2003 under the title "Dmitry Korovin from Computerra was acquitted: https://www.securitylab.ru/news/214199.php
Then our paths diverge a little. The Russobit company is moving forward, unaware of the upcoming ups, downs and, ultimately, oblivion, called a merger. We, clinging to the words of Oleg Gordiyko, will continue the hunt for the Stranger.
As the Internet Archive: Wayback Machine allows us to determine, from December 31, 2001 to this day, on the official website of Russobit-M there is an announcement of the first part of the game we are interested in. And, yes. No one writes such announcements anymore.
Let’s take a breathy look at the rough diamond of gaming journalism of those years, let’s take a break from all these serious, historical nuances. Let’s relax before further difficult searches.
Official website "Russobit-M". Announcement of the game “Rendezvous with a Stranger”: https://www.russobit-m.ru/rus/games/randevu/
Official website "Russobit-M". Announcement of the game “Rendezvous with a Stranger”. Internet Archive: Wayback Machine. December 31, 2001: https://web.archive.org/web/20011231035928/http://www.russobit-m.ru/rus/games/randevu/index.shtml
Nowadays you won’t find such a detailed, step-by-step announcement of a game anymore. What can I say?? Many text passages of quests from modern gamers are more stingy with information. And here? Hey Roku, add a couple more screenshots and you can safely release it freely on the Internet under the banner of “retro review”.
But I was especially pleased with several points of the so-called uniqueness of the presented game. The great, I’m not afraid of this word, the most ingenious plot of the quest was written by a screenwriter-psychologist of the Phone Sex service. In addition, as I understand it, the same person later supervised the voice actors. However! It turns out that only creative people work in Phone Sex. Apparently, you should send your questionnaire to them too. Maybe they’ll take it.
Shy Akella
The website of the Russobit-M company will helpfully direct us to the once lively page of the developer of the erotic quest “Rendezvous with a Stranger” – “ExE-Soft”. Or, as it calls itself, "Experience Entertainment Software". Well, let’s resort to black magic again and use the services of the “Internet Archive: Wayback Machine”.
Let’s go to the official website of "ExE-Soft", but let’s not look at the Stranger, because it’s too early. And for the very first project of the developers called “Erotic Toys”.
Here, a moment’s attention. Although in this article we are talking exclusively about old games, about quests approved by the Ministry of Health, let me still make a small remark. Just in case.
Those under 18 years of age are not allowed to enter via the links provided below: Official website of “ExE-Soft”. Announcement of the game “Erotic Toys”. Internet Archive: Wayback Machine. July 17, 2002: https://web.archive.org/web/20020717160320/http://www.exe-soft.ru:80/russian/exesoft.htm
Alternative link to material from the World Ar websitet": http://www.world-art.ru/games/games.php?id=9898
It was released in 1997 under the brand name known to us “Akella”. Even a hyperlink to the official website of the gaming company is worth. But let’s not rush. First, let’s look at the collection itself. After all, it was he, one might say, who became the progenitor of the wanted Stranger. In addition, according to the ExE-Soft website, the game was so in demand that after some time they created a second project “New Erotic Toys”.
Oh, in our age of advanced Internet, it can be so problematic to find something unpopular that has remained on the margins of history. Forgotten events, pictures, games, and the like are erased under the veil of more successful competitors. And, unfortunately, there is no escape from this.
I don’t know by what miracle, but I still managed to get a copy of “Erotic Toys”. Thanks to the two people who gave it away. I am extremely grateful to you, and at the same time I am afraid of you. For I doubt that you, too, like me, are hunting for the Stranger. Br-rr-r-r.
However, it was rash to rejoice. Before getting acquainted with the collection, I spent an exciting couple of hours trying to run it on a modern computer. I can only boast that we have come to a compromise. I looked at all the photos, videos, read the rules of the game, studied the contents of the folders, and kept my laptop. Its far from virgin contents completely refused to participate in the event called “Erotic Toys”. Well I can understand. But this does not negate the achievement of the intended goal.
In fact, “Erotic Toys” are two strip card games (I’m the only one who laughs at “Blackjack”, nicknamed the familiar “Point”?) and a couple of so-called video quests. Harbingers of "Rendezvous with a Stranger". Why harbingers? This is because the video quests in “Erotic Toys” are, in fact, in their form a stripped-down version of “Rendezvous”. A little less locations, a little less girls, a little less dialogue. And that’s it. No more differences.
Much more interesting than single-button gameplay is the information provided by the developers. The Akella company together with LSD Film Studio presents… You notice how pieces of a disparate mosaic emerge from the past one after another? So, in this case, firstly, “ExE-Soft” does not appear in the picture, and secondly, what kind of studio is this??
There is not much information about a company with prohibited substances in its name. However, by placing your hands to the sides for balance, it is possible to walk along the taut information thread of assumptions (I emphasize, assumptions).
Through a painstaking search, you can read that the “Studio” was mainly involved in the production and distribution of films. The company even once had a website, but “Internet Archive: Wayback Machine”, unfortunately, is not able to help here. The organization completed its activities in 2008, and the first mark in the archival calendar dates back to 2012. At that time, the site was already owned by another company.
The liquidation of LSD Film Studio did not become a collapse for the business leader. Later, other companies in the field of television and radio broadcasting, as well as one fund, will open under his name. But this has nothing to do with the Stranger anymore.
Here let’s make a small digression. Russian company Akella. Many words have been said about her, plenty has been written. On the Internet with an abundance of different interviews with Dmitry Arkhipov (company co-founder). Information is indeed an intercontinental carriage. However, all of her is as if chosen. Stories about the conflict in the team and the appearance of “Fargus”, the birth of the unsurpassed “Corsairs”, and showdowns with the Chechens over programmers, opuses about piracy.
If you get acquainted with the birth of Akella, you can find a trivial stingy: 1993 – the company was organized, in 1995 – Corsairs came out. Also, periodically, Dmitry Arkhipov casually mentions the creation of encyclopedias. At the same time, it is practically impossible to come across information about Akella’s production of erotic content or interaction with developers from ExE-Soft.
Moreover, in the center of speculation about the deliberate covering of all traces, with a huge bang, a link to the company’s official website falls. What’s wrong with him? Why such an accent?? Well, how can I say it??
If we follow the path of mindlessly distorting information from proven popular sources for some reason, we will see, one might say, the polished, verified, sterile official website of Akella. He began acting, according to the Internet Archive: Wayback Machine, in 2007. However, let’s take a closer look at the next screenshot from the collection “Erotic Toys”.
Series "Sex College". Films with erotic content. And at the very bottom there is another link to the official Akella website. If anyone decides to visit it, I strongly recommend wearing at least shoe covers. After all, a real unbridled company from the early 90s is waiting for us there, ready to squeeze profit from everywhere. Advertising of an army store, types of beer, sale of erotic content, including encyclopedias mentioned by Dmitry Arkhipov. There, on the website, you can also find a page of the collection “Erotic Toys” from the developers “ExE-Soft”.
Here, a moment’s attention. Although in this article we are talking exclusively about old games, about quests approved by the Ministry of Health, let me still make a small remark. Just in case.
Those under 18 years of age are not allowed to enter via the links provided below: Old official Akella website. Internet Archive: Wayback Machine. 03 July 1997 year: https://web.archive.org/web/19970703020014/http://www.Akella.com/
Don’t consider me a snob, of course, but this suggests a possible shameful silence. And you can understand. 2007 there, 2008 – “Akella” rushes like a locomotive through the computers of Russian players. Moreover, children’s gamers too. And now the company has absolutely no need for a shadow about some kind of erotic content produced ten years ago. It’s better to talk about Chechens and talk about piracy.