Software:Amazon Trail 3rd Edition

From HandWiki
Short description: 1998 video game
Amazon Trail 3rd Edition
Cover art
Developer(s)MECC
Publisher(s)The Learning Company
SeriesThe Oregon Trail
Platform(s)Windows, Macintosh
ReleaseSeptember 14, 1998[1]
Genre(s)Edutainment
Mode(s)Single-player

Amazon Trail 3rd Edition: Rainforest Adventures is a 1998 game based on the video game The Oregon Trail. It is not a true sequel to the franchise, but is rather largely the same game as Amazon Trail II, only with updated graphics and interfaces and fixing major bugs that caused problems in the second game. The game is published by The Learning Company.

Gameplay

Challenges of Teaching with Technology Across the Curriculum describes the gameplay as follows: "Journey into uncharted rainforests, where intrigue lurks everywhere in the Rainforest. Along the way, students travel back through time, meeting people from previous centuries who may or may not help them complete their adventures".[2]

The game aims to make ecology, geography, and critical thinking fun. The game includes "photo-realistic rain forest scenes".[3]

Development

The game was announced in May 1998.[4]

Critical reception

GiantMike gave the game a rating of 8/10 stars, commenting: "If you have children, or just enjoy edutainment games, Amazon Trail is perfect. Ever since the original Oregon Trail, this series has been immensely popular with school children. Every version since then has just gotten better and better, and this one is no exception".[5] macHOME wrote: "It's supposed to be an exotic journey through the luscious Amazon region. Yet somehow, the Learning Company's third iteration of its Amazon Trail program does more to squelch one's primal desire to explore than it does to encourage it".[6] Challenges of Teaching with Technology Across the Curriculum gave the game an evaluation score of 185 when analysing its suitability for social studies classrooms.[2] PC Magazine wrote "[players'] lives will depend upon implementing what they've learnt about botany, geography, habitats, and social science along the trail...Such is the premise behind Amazon Trail's immersive, enlightening, and altogether entertaining trek through science and nature".[7]

References

  1. ↑ "The Learning Company, Inc. Launches the Amazon Trail 3rd Edition: Rainforest Adventures". September 14, 1998. Archived from the original on December 3, 1998. https://web.archive.org/web/19981203031345/http://www.learningco.com:80/news/news98/980914.htm. Retrieved June 4, 2022. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Tomei, Lawrence A. (January 2003). Challenges of Teaching with Technology Across the Curriculum. Idea Group Inc (IGI). ISBN 9781591401179. https://books.google.com/books?id=0kqYpYjPtUAC&dq=%22Amazon+Trail+3rd+Edition%22&pg=PA146. 
  3. ↑ "PC Mag". google.com.au. 17 November 1998. https://books.google.com/books?id=-wfWdZQABlgC&dq=%22Amazon+Trail+3rd+Edition%22&pg=PA306. 
  4. ↑ "The Learning Company Announces The Amazon Trail 3rd Edition: Rainforest Adventures". May 28, 1998. Archived from the original on December 3, 1998. https://web.archive.org/web/19981203092530/http://www.learningco.com:80/news/news98/980528f.htm. Retrieved June 4, 2022. 
  5. ↑ "Amazon trail review". www.giantmike.com. http://www.giantmike.com/reviews/amazontrail.html. Retrieved 5 September 2016. 
  6. ↑ "macHOME". machome.com. Archived from the original on 30 October 2004. https://web.archive.org/web/20041030055531/http://www.machome.com/reviews/MacReviewZone.lasso?grr8=33951. 
  7. ↑ "PC Mag". google.com.au. 15 December 1998. https://books.google.com/books?id=z3zsxvtRSv4C&dq=%22Amazon+Trail+3rd+Edition%22&pg=RA1-PA322. 
  • 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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