Software:A Fork in the Tale

From HandWiki
Short description: 1997 video game
A Fork in the Tale
Developer(s)AnyRiver Entertainment[1]
Publisher(s)Electronic Arts[1]
Designer(s)Rob Lay
Platform(s)Windows
Release
Genre(s)Adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

A Fork in the Tale is a full motion video (FMV) comedic adventure game developed by AnyRiver Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts on February 26, 1997. The game features voice-overs by comedian Rob Schneider. Because of the large number of video sequences, the game was originally released on five CDs.

Plot and gameplay

The protagonist (voiced by Schneider) finds himself transported to the land of Eseveron. Playing from a first-person perspective, the player must click on icons overlaid atop video clips with specific timing to proceed, all in an effort to figure out what is happening and how to escape. Failing to choose an action before the end of a clip is considered a choice of inaction.[2] Schneider's voice-over work was added late in development to replace earlier placeholder voice work.[3]

Development

The game was in development for three and a half years with a budget of $2 million. It would be the only game released by AnyRiver Entertainment, with its low sales leading to the shuttering of the company within months of release, its assets being sold to Total Entertainment Network.[4] The rights for a later DVD release with higher-quality video were acquired by Digital Leisure, but never came to fruition.[5] The game was scheduled to be released in May 1997.[6]

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
GameRevolution3.5/5[7]
GameSpot3.7/10[8]
Next GenerationStar[3]
PC PowerPlay58%[2]
PC Gamer34%[9]

PC Gamer US called A Fork in the Tale "a dismal flop, uniformly panned by critics and avoided by gamers, who bought less than 1,000 copies."[4]

A Next Generation critic complained about the small amount of interactivity and said Rob Schneider's vocal delivery was mediocre.[3] Charles Ardai of Computer Gaming World also criticized the limited interactivity and Schneider's performance, but focused most of his commentary on the repetitiveness of the video clips. He summarized, "At its best, it's reasonably funny; at its worst, the comedy is abysmal. But since the gameplay involves going through the same FMV scenes over and over and over, even the best comedy in the world couldn't stave off a creeping sense that you have been damned to some sort of Sisyphean penance."[10] Game Revolution thought the game was short and easy, yet fun.[7] In contrast, Rebecca Anderson of GameSpot considered the plot interesting but the gameplay frustratingly difficult, saying that the game demands the player to make decisions on a split-second's notice, and sends the player back too far after failures.[8]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "News". 1997-02-27. http://www.ogr.com/news.html. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Wildgoose, David (June 1997). "Reviews: A Fork in the Tale". PC PowerPlay (Next Publishing) (13): 56. https://archive.org/details/PCPowerplay-013-1997-06/page/n55. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Finals: A Fork in the Tale". Next Generation (Imagine Media) (30): 124. June 1997. https://archive.org/details/NextGeneration30Jun1997/page/n125/mode/2up. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "TEN to Absorb AnyRiver?". July 7, 1997. http://www.pcgamer.com/news/news070797.html. 
  5. ↑ "E3 Expo/Digital Leisure acquires "A Fork in the Tale" rights for DVD-ROM and DVD-Video". May 29, 1998. Archived from the original on December 2, 1998. https://web.archive.org/web/19981202013555/http://www.digitalleisure.com:80/pr980529.html. Retrieved May 25, 2022. 
  6. ↑ "Next Generation Online has had the opportunity to meet with Any River Entertainment. We discussed their two latest projects, A Fork in the Tale and Flying Saucer". December 12, 1996. Archived from the original on June 6, 1997. https://web.archive.org/web/19970606035950/http://www.next-generation.com:80/specials/121396.chtml. Retrieved September 19, 2025. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "A Fork in the Tale Review". June 5, 2004. Archived from the original on October 3, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121003183254/http://www.gamerevolution.com/review/a-fork-in-the-tale. 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Anderson, Rebecca (March 13, 1997). "A Fork in the Tale Review". https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/a-fork-in-the-tale-review/1900-2537843/. Retrieved 29 September 2018. 
  9. ↑ Whitta, Gary (May 1997). "A Fork in the Tale". Archived from the original on November 17, 1999. https://web.archive.org/web/19991117132414/http://www.pcgamer.com/reviews/1229.html. Retrieved July 5, 2025. 
  10. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named CGW
  • Official website (archived)
  • 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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