Edu-Ware

Edu-Ware Services, Inc.

Company type	Private
Industry	Video games
Founded	1979
Defunct	1985
Headquarters	Agoura Hills, California
Key people	Sherwin Steffin (chairman) Steven Pederson (president)
Products	The Prisoner Terrorist
Number of employees	60
Parent	Management Science America (1983–1985)

Edu-Ware Services, Inc. was a publisher specializing in educational and entertainment software, established in 1979 by Sherwin Steffin and Steven Pederson. The company focused on creating adventure titles, role-playing games, and flight simulators tailored for the Apple II platform.

History

Sherwin Steffin and Steven Pederson first connected at UCLA. After Steffin’s layoff in 1979, they co-founded Edu-Ware to produce educational software for the Apple II computer. With academic credentials in experimental psychology and instructional technology, Steffin’s vision was to develop computer-assisted instruction that encouraged divergent thinking. While Steffin concentrated on educational applications, Pederson took charge of game development. Early releases included Perception and Compu-Read. The software retailer Rainbow Computing supplied Pederson with an Apple II, which enabled him to create the strategic game Terrorist alongside Compu-Spell, an educational title featuring Edu-Ware’s debut EWS graphics engine.

Growth followed with the addition of sales manager Mike Lieberman and developer David Mullich. Mullich transitioned from freelance work to full-time employment and designed the influential adventure game The Prisoner, which became Edu-Ware’s most recognized and commercially successful product. The firm relocated from Woodland Hills to offices in Canoga Park before moving to a larger space in Agoura Hills.

Significantly, Edu-Ware passed on publishing Ken Williams' Mystery House, a decision that led Williams to establish Sierra On-line, a major force in graphic adventure gaming.

Although The Prisoner initially ranked among top sellers, Edu-Ware’s primary income was derived from educational titles such as the Compu-Math series and the widely popular Algebra series, both of which provided learners with adaptable cognitive learning techniques.

By 1982, increasing marketing expenses and competition from companies like Davidson & Associates and Spinnaker Software compelled Edu-Ware to seek stronger leadership. In 1983, Management Science America (MSA), a leading independent software producer at the time, acquired Edu-Ware for $1.5 million plus future profit shares, aiming to expand into the educational software sector.

MSA subsequently merged Edu-Ware into its Peachtree Software division, which weakened Edu-Ware’s brand presence. In 1984, a peach-scented promotional flyer showcased 45 Edu-Ware titles repackaged indistinctly alongside accounting programs, including games such as Prisoner 2, further eroding brand distinction.

Following Steffin’s protests against this approach, he was dismissed in August 1984. He filed a lawsuit against MSA citing securities fraud and breach of contract, accusing the company of undermining Edu-Ware by withholding product releases and cutting advertising efforts.

MSA later announced plans to divest its retail microcomputer software division—including Peachtree Software, DesignWare, and Edu-Ware—after reporting combined losses totaling $2 million. In 1985, Encyclopædia Britannica acquired DesignWare and Edu-Ware; the Edu-Ware development group was disbanded while DesignWare took over product development and marketing responsibilities.

After the sale, Steffin established BrainPower with Lieberman; Pederson engaged in other business pursuits; Mullich and colleagues formed Electric Transit after acquiring two games still under development.

Among notable former employees were Guy Kawasaki, who served as Edu-Ware’s marketing director before becoming Apple's evangelist, and NASA official Wesley Huntress, known for developing Rendezvous: A Spaceflight Simulator.

Science of Learning

Edu-Ware's integration of formal educational theories was widely acknowledged, although some reviewers found its methods somewhat simplistic. For example, Compu-Math: Arithmetic Skills was criticized for its lack of engaging features, depending primarily on progressively harder exercises.

Interactive Fantasies

While Edu-Ware primarily focused on educational programs, their innovative Interactive Fantasies series set them apart in the industry. These games tackled intricate subjects such as the oil crisis (Windfall), television network management (Network), and international terrorism (Terrorist). Critics praised these titles for combining thoughtful gameplay with authentic scenarios, which became a notable strength for the company.

Published titles

Year	Title	Genres	Platforms	Developer	Notes
1979	Compu-Read	Drill and practice	Apple II	Edu-Ware	Originally developed by Steffin; remained one of Edu-Ware’s bestselling products alongside its 1981 high-resolution update, Compu-Read 3.0.
1979	Edu-Pak I	Educational software collection	Apple II	Edu-Ware	Contained Compu-Read, Perception, and Statistics.
1979	E.S.P.	Personal development	Apple II	Edu-Ware
1979	Metri-Vert	Analytical tool	Apple II	Edu-Ware
1979	Party-Pak	Entertainment software compilation	Apple II	Edu-Ware	Featured E.S.P, Subliminal, and Zintar.
1979	Perception	Puzzle game	Apple II	Edu-Ware	Debut product; reissued in high-resolution as Perception 3.0 in 1982.
1979	Rescue	Strategy game	Apple II	Edu-Ware
1979	Rescue/War	Strategy game collection	Apple II	Edu-Ware	Included both Rescue and War.
1979	Statistics	Analytical software	Apple II	Edu-Ware	Upgraded with high-resolution graphics in 1982 as Statistics 3.0.
1979	Space I	Role-playing game	Apple II	Edu-Ware	Initial concept secured funding; replaced by Empire I: World Builders in 1981 due to legal complications.
1979	Space II	Role-playing expansion pack	Apple II	David Mullich
1979	Story Teller	Word game	Apple II	Edu-Ware
1979	Subliminal	Word game	Apple II	Edu-Ware
1979	Text File Editor	Analytical software	Apple II	Edu-Ware
1979	Unisolve	Analytical software	Apple II	Edu-Ware	Reissued in high resolution in 1982 as part of the Statistics series.
1979	War	Strategy game	Apple II	Edu-Ware
1979	Zintar	Drinking game	Apple II	Edu-Ware	Marketed as banned by Rainbow Computing.
1980	Compu-Math: Arithmetic Skills	Tutorial	Apple II	Edu-Ware
1980	Compu-Math: Decimals	Tutorial	Apple II, Atari 8-bit	Edu-Ware	High-resolution remake launched in 1982 as Decimals.
1980	Compu-Math: Fractions	Tutorial	Apple II, Atari 8-bit	Edu-Ware	The inaugural Compu-Math title; updated with hi-res graphics in 1981.
1980	Compu-Spell	Drill and practice	Apple II	Edu-Ware	First program to utilize the EWS high-resolution graphics engine.
1980	Network	Business simulation game	Apple II	David Mullich
1980	The Prisoner	Adventure game	Apple II	Edu-Ware	Edu-Ware’s most recognized and top-selling title until the Algebra series; later reissued in hi-res as Prisoner 2.
1980	Terrorist	Strategy game	Apple II	Edu-Ware	The initial release in the Interactive Fantasies lineup.
1980	Windfall: An Oil Crisis Simulation	Business simulation game	Apple II	David Mullich
1981	Algebra 1	Tutorial	Apple II, MS-DOS, Commodore 64	Edu-Ware	The first installment in the Algebra series; remains the company’s best-selling product overall.
1981	Counting Bee	Tutorial'	Apple II'	John Conrad'	Later rebranded as Introduction to Counting in 1983.

Year	Title	Genres	Platforms	Developer	Notes

  ... [List continues similarly with focus on key titles and developers] ...

Year	Title	Genres	Platforms	Developer	Notes
Compu-Read 3.0 |Drill and practice |Apple II, Atari 8-bit, Commodore 64, MS-DOS	High-resolution update of original; combined sales with original made it one of the company’s longest-lasting bestsellers.
Empire I: World Builders |Role-playing video game |Apple II	The company’s first title featuring hi-res graphics; replaced 'Space'.
Spelling Bee with Reading Primer |Tutorial |Apple II	Repackaged as 'Spelling and Reading Primer' in 1982.
Algebra 2 |Tutorial |Apple II, MS-DOS
Algebra 3 |Tutorial |Apple II, MS-DOS
Algebra 4 |Tutorial |Apple II, MS-DOS
Decimals |Tutorial |Apple II, MS-DOS	High-resolution remake of 'Compu-Math: Decimals'.
Fractions |Tutorial |Apple II, MS-DOS	Hi-res version of 'Compu-Math: Fractions'.
Empire II: Interstellar Sharks |Role-playing video game |Apple II
Perception 3.0 |Puzzle video game |Apple II	High-resolution remake of 'Perception'.
Prisoner 2 |Adventure game |Apple II, Atari 8-bit, MS-DOS	Hi-res update of 'The Prisoner'.
PSAT Word Attack Skills |Tutorial	Judith S. Priven, Ed.M.

External links

• Comprehensive list of Edu-Ware Services, Inc. titles on IMDb