Software:3-D Dinosaur Adventure

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Short description: 1993 educational video game
3-D Dinosaur Adventure
Developer(s)Knowledge Adventure
Publisher(s)Knowledge Adventure
Platform(s)MS-DOS, Macintosh, Windows
ReleaseDecember 20, 1993: MS-DOS
June 18, 1996: Mac, Win 3.x
1997: Windows
Genre(s)Educational
Mode(s)Single-player

3-D Dinosaur Adventure is an educational video game by Knowledge Adventure released on CD-ROM for MS-DOS compatible operating systems in 1993. Versions for Macintosh and Windows 3.x were published in 1996. A 1997 re-release and an updated version for Macintosh and Microsoft Windows is titled 3-D Dinosaur Adventure: Anniversary Edition.

Gameplay

3-D Dinosaur Adventure is presented as a theme park, with areas for the player to explore, including an encyclopedia, a quiz, and a virtual museum. They offer insight into how dinosaurs lived and evolved. Additionally, activities teach players how to use fossil photo records and illustrations for visual recognition of dinosaurs.

The title comes packaged with 3D glasses and has special areas that make use of them.

There is also a Doom clone in which the player has to save the dinosaurs from the comet that is about to hit the Earth.

Development

As part of a co-publishing arrangement with Random House Inc. to develop multimedia titles on September 5, 1994, Random House also took over distribution-to-bookstores for current Knowledge Adventure titles such as 3-D Dinosaur Adventure.[1] On July 5, 1995, Random House Children's Books entered into an agreement where they would handle distribution of all Knowledge Adventure software titles in the U.K. and Ireland, given the right to repackage, reprice, and readjust wherever necessary for each target market.[2] The game was uploaded to the ZOOM-Platform.com website in 2014 alongside 3D Body Adventure, Space Adventure, and Undersea Adventure.[3]

Reception

The game was the third best selling Macintosh product in the week ending Oct 11, 1997.[4]

3-D Dinosaur Adventure was reviewed in the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Guide Book where it was praised for its "text, beautiful graphics, and amazing sound effects". Characterizing the program as one of "the programs to load on [an older child's computer] first", the authors warned that the programs were resource intensive, "tak[ing] nearly 10 megabytes of disc space [and requiring] a sound card to get the full effect".[5] Multimedia and Hypertext: The Internet and Beyond argued that the small Knowledge Adventure was able to produce a better game than Microsoft's Microsoft Dinosaurs.[6] The Educational Technology Handbook praised the game's animation sequences for bringing the experience to life in a way that students would remember.[7] PC Mag noted the high tech effects were limited,[8] though thought the title was a good reference tool.[9]

Retrospective reviews from the modern era have been more mixed. RetroJunk's 2009 review found the game to be innovative for its time.[10] Bustle's 2016 review, however, deemed the program little more than a glorified encyclopedia.[11]

Awards

  • 1994 – Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Award Platinum Award[5]
  • March 1994 – Electronic Entertainment Editors' Choice Awards: Best Edutainment Title (Honorable Mention)[12]
  • 1994's Best Overall Education Program by the Software Publishers Association as part of its Excellence in Software Awards Program.[13]
  • Top 100 CD-ROMs from PC Magazine 1994[9]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "K-Adventure gets backer. (Knowledge Adventure Inc. in deal with Random House Inc. to develop multimedia titles) (Mergers/Acquisitions/Alliances)". 5 September 1994. https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-15827676.html. 
  2. ↑ "Knowledge Adventure in Random House deal. – Free Online Library". https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Knowledge+Adventure+in+Random+House+deal.-a016980155. 
  3. ↑ "ZOOM Announces Exclusive Release of Knowledge Adventure Back-Catalog – Lightning Releases" (in en-US). Lightning Releases. 2014-11-25. http://lightningreleases.com/zoom-announces-exclusive-release-of-knowledge-adventure-back-catalog/. 
  4. ↑ "BESTSELLERS". 20 October 1997. https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-745098.html. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Oppenheim, Joanne and Stephanie (1993). The Best Toys, Books & Videos for Kids. Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Guide Book. 1 (1st ed.). New York: Harper Perennial. p. 273. ISBN 0-06-273196-3. 
  6. ↑ Nielsen, Jakob; NIELSEN, BIRGIT (30 April 1995). Multimedia and Hypertext: The Internet and Beyond. Morgan Kaufmann. ISBN 9780125184083. https://books.google.com/books?id=KgZXCCfP0rQC&q=%223-d+Dinosaur+Adventure%22&pg=PA355. Retrieved 16 September 2021. 
  7. ↑ Hackbarth, Steven (30 April 1996). The Educational Technology Handbook: A Comprehensive Guide: Process and Products for Learning. Educational Technology. p. 224. ISBN 9780877782926. https://archive.org/details/educationaltechn0000hack. "3-d Dinosaur Adventure." 
  8. ↑ (in en) PC Mags. Ziff Davis, Inc.. 1994-03-15. https://books.google.com/books?id=_7aEwukQQ0AC&q=%223-d+Dinosaur+Adventure%22&pg=PA452. Retrieved 2021-09-16. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "PC Mag". Ziff Davis, Inc.. 13 September 1994. https://books.google.com/books?id=WKaekAHjQ1EC&q=3D+Dinosaur+Adventure&pg=PA166. 
  10. ↑ "Knowledge Adventure Games – Retro Junk Article". https://www.retrojunk.com/article/show/2009/knowledge-adventure-games. 
  11. ↑ Peters, Lucia. "15 '90s Computer Games That Made Learning Fun" (in en). Bustle. https://www.bustle.com/articles/141260-15-90s-computer-games-that-made-learning-unbelievably-fun. 
  12. ↑ Staff (March 1994). "The First Electronic Entertainment Editors' Choice Awards". Electronic Entertainment 1 (3): 61–65. 
  13. ↑ [1][|permanent dead link|dead link}}]
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This lengthy approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
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