If you grew up in the '80s, chances are you've heard of the cartoon Jem. Even if you didn't, the quirky series about the adventures of a wholesome all-female rock band with magical holographic technology and technicolor hair has become a cult favorite. Its memorable 65-episode run inspired its share of musical careers, complicated love triangles and daring hairdos.
See also: 11 Facebook Games You're Embarrassed to Admit You Play
We caught up with Jem creator Christy Marx, who also wrote episodes of the original G.I. Joe cartoon, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. Marx currently works at Zynga, and her latest project is CastleVille Legends, an adventure/strategy game that involves freeing a fantasy realm from a Dark Wizard (whose name isn't Techrat). The game launched on iOS in September and became available on Android a few days ago.
Mashable: How long have you been doing games?
Christy Marx: I started at the end of 1988 when I went to work for Sierra On-Line [later Sierra Entertainment] doing adventure games for them.
Wow, that's before games were, you know, "Games."
My first game, Conquest of Camelot, was a parser-based game. We had 16 colors to work with, some of them dithered. We had EGA graphics. You think about how those games looked and you compare to CastleVille Legends and the graphics on an iPad — it's frigging awesome.
How did you hook up with Zynga?
I had a friend who worked here who said, "You've gotta come to Zynga." I thought at the time, looking at Facebook games, that there wasn't much in the way of story or narrative to be had there, but she convinced me otherwise. I started working for Zynga almost three years ago.
What's the gist of CastleVille Legends?
You come to these legendary lands, and you drive back the gloom and you discover there are these heroes that are trapped in crystals. The first one you free is Magnus the Wizard and he becomes your adviser. He tells you the story about how the gloom covers the land, and you need to push back the gloom, you need to free these various heroes, and you need to build a new kingdom.

Each hero has his or her own particular quest line. there's also an over-arching meta-quest story that deals with the Dark Wizard who cast the spell of gloom and apparently disappeared.
So what happened to the Dark Wizard?
That's a mystery that's going to keep driving this game for quite a while.
Speaking of character closure, do you have in your mind what happened to Jem and the characters from that show?
I certainly know what I would like to do with the characters, but we're up against the fact that I don't control the characters (Hasbro owns the rights). If I were to bring [Jem] back today, I would certainly like to update it, and bring some of the technology forward, since I think everyone would have a hard time buying into holograms doing what they did in the show.
Well, we bought into Transformers ...
That's a different kind of technology.
What would be a realistic depiction for Jem and the Holograms for 2013?
Let's face it: Any kind of technology of this sort — whether you call it holograms or nanotechnology — it's still basically magic. You come up with the excuse to have them be able to transform their images, and you want it to at least seem plausible. With fiction, it's not so much about trying to make it real as trying to have verisimilitude. it has to feel real.
I always felt Rio was kind of a boob for not seeing that Jem and Jerrica were the same person.
At some point, you can't keep Rio on the hook forever, so at some point there has to be a reveal. and Jerrica has to finally own up for what she did.
Have you ever put a Jem Easter Egg in a game?
I don't think I have, but World of Warcraft did. A fan told me about it — there's a Darkmoon Faire that happens for a week every month, and it turns out there are these three little girls running around the Darkmoon Faire named Jerrica, Shana and Aja. So somebody ad Blizzard [Entertainment] was a Jem fan.
I take it to mean from you not telling me what happened to all the characters from Jem that you're holding out hope that one day the show will be revived, and you'll get a chance to tell that story.
You're exactly right. I have been talking to people, and it hasn't gone anywhere yet, but I'd certainly love to see it happen.
What's your feel of on the simmering fan interest?
I hear from fans quite a lot. It's astounding to me how many people who were really into the show, inspired by it and even went into a career in music because of it. There's still a lot of interest out there, and a lot of them are introducing their kids to the show. The music may be aged, the fashion may be aged, the technology may be aged, but there's something about the power of story that you can convey that can really last.

Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.
BONUS: 10 Best Indie Games on Android
Very few adventure games capture the serene feeling of exploration, but Superbrothers manages to turn the quest into an audiovisual extravaganza that applies unique sounds to every single action.
Set in the mythical world of Scythia, the gameplay centers around a young monk completing a mysterious “woeful quest.” The mechanics rely on clever taps along the screen, and the setting varies depending on what time of day the adventure takes place. It’s a game that can’t be rushed -- you won't find a lot of explosions or high-octane action, so it’s not for thrill junkies. But it’s a great investment for someone who just appreciates great gaming development and a bit of odd humor along the way.
Price: $4.99
Stressful, fast-paced and highly enjoyable, SuperHexagon is a true puzzle player’s game. If you’re looking for one of the biggest challenges in the mobile gaming world, this one’s for you.
The gameplay is relatively simple: Maneuver tiny, triangle-shaped speck from continually closing hexagons -- each one has a way out, but they come faster and faster as time goes on. With a pretty sweet musical theme and minimalistic graphics that really show how difficult this game becomes, your friends will be impressed if you manage to master it.
Price: $2.99
For a less-intense puzzle game that still stretches your brain and motor skills, Gyro is one of the best out there. And -- best of all -- it comes for the low, low price of free.
Like SuperHexagon, Gyro is all about manipulating a single source to solve puzzles. This time, the player controls a color wheel as corresponding dots enter the playing field at random angles. Simply direct the drop to the matching side of the wheel, and you’re in business. Beautiful and easy to play, this game will satisfy the casual gamer yet still give hardcore puzzle nerds a head-scratching good time.
Price: FREE
One of the best-selling indie games of all time, World of Goo manages to stay at the forefront of the gaming world because of its heart. It’s really easy to get sucked helping teeny globs of goo, escaping to find their own home -- so easy, in fact, that it will most likely gobble up hours of your time.
If you’re unfamiliar with World of Goo, the object of each level is to use these little globs to create structures sturdy enough to withstand their own weight and efficient enough to send a certain amount of leftover materials to freedom. The further the game progresses, the more kinds of goo will be at your disposal. Add a heartfelt narrative to the deep gameplay and challenging puzzles, and your heart will melt into goo, too.
Price: $4.99
Scientists have joined together to form the League of Evil, and it’s up to a superhero to jump, double-jump and wall-kick to give those dudes the what-for.
A retro homage to the platforming basics developed by Mega Man and Metroid, League of Evil is a (much less eye-gougingly difficult) kindred spirit to another popular indie game, Super Meat Boy. The game requires reflexes of steel and precision landing abilities, but it’s goofy enough to keep from getting frustrated. It’s a classic platformer with a new twist and a sure-fire hit for anyone who loves 8-bit gaming.
Price: $0.99
There’s a lot to be said for a game that offers a bit of relaxation. The zen-like concentration that overcomes a player during Quell Reflect is enticing -- even when you’re caught on one of multitudes of puzzles, you can't help but feel calm and cool.
Quell Reflect is the sequel to Quell, and both share the same mechanics: Flick a raindrop around an enclosed area, avoid hazards and collect all of the glowing spheres. The gameplay becomes more complex, adding multiple raindrops, colors, switches and infinite barriers. The result is an enjoyable puzzle game that feels like a little mini-vacation, and much more satisfying than a zen garden.
Price: $0.99
You’ve been living under a rock if you’ve never played the DOS classic Oregon Trail. Yoking oxen, fording rivers, trading with natives and dying of dysentery to reach a new settlement at the height of frontierism is oddly satisfying. But not as much as running from the zombie apocalypse.
As its pun-filled name alludes, Organ Trail takes the classic settlement game and turns it on its head. Instead of a wagon, you’re riding in a station wagon. No rivers to cross, but plenty of hoards of zombies to shoot your way through. The director’s cut of the game also includes car upgrades that carry over from game to game, an in-depth hunting scenario and loads of side jobs to keep the gameplay fresh. Good luck -- you’ll need it.
Price: $2.99
Anyone who has bagged groceries in his life knows it’s difficult to shove objects of assorted shapes, sizes and durability into a rigid paper bag. A mobile game that involves an essential (and inane) job function like grocery bagging can’t possibly be any fun. Yet, it is.
Bag It! is all about configuring little anthropomorphized grocery items (a highfalutin, mustachioed carton of eggs with a monocle!) in a reasonable order that prevents any item from breaking. Players get extra bonuses for pairing certain items together, such as stacking groups of 'French' bread or pairing up the brawny milk with his beloved orange juice, and there are tons of levels to challenge preservation skills.
And if the puzzle part isn’t doing it for you, then try the “Rampage” level, which challenges players to destroy as many grocery items as possible.
Price: $1.99
Word nerds and Boggle geeks: If you haven’t picked up SpellTower yet, you’re missing out on one of the best word puzzle games that has ever existed. Challenging, dynamic and addictive, this game will test anyone’s vocabulary and spelling skills.
The core objective to Spelltower is to create the largest words possible on a Tetris-style wall of letters, until none remain. Words have the ability to blow up all of the letters around, so placement is key to getting the best words out of each scenario (and the most points possible). For those who like to live on the edge, there are timed and competitive play modes that will accelerate your word-building skills to hyperspeed.
Price: $1.99
Veritable badass Sam “Serious” Stone is an icon in the indie gaming world, a first-person shooter as cool as Duke Nukem, who hops through time with his chain guns, bombs and shotguns to bring justice to the world. But what is it like to actually kill such an unkillable guy?
In Serious Sam: Kamikaze Attack, players step into the shoes of the wildly infamous enemy of Serious Sam, Beheaded Kamikaze. A programmable grunt borne out of an executed soldier with deadly bombs for hands, these villains are known for running directly at Sam -- and that’s the gameplay in this Android runner. Jump and kick Sam’s weapons back at him, and there’s a chance you may slow him down enough to blow him right up. Gory and goofy, this casual game is as nonsensical as it is downright funny.
Price: $0.99
Images: Flickr, ktempest; Zynga