Software:Atmosfear: The Third Dimension

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Short description: 1995 video game
Atmosfear: The Third Dimension
Developer(s)A Couple 'A Cowboys
Publisher(s)EMG Publishing
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
Release1995
Genre(s)Strategy
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Atmosfear: The Third Dimension is a 1995 video game developed by A Couple 'A Cowboys and published by EMG Publishing. It is an interactive software version of the Atmosfear series of video board games, specifically Atmosfear: The Harbingers.

Gameplay

Gameplay screenshot

One to six players select a Harbinger, one fear from a list, and compete in an interactive contest set on a set of board games across eight areas, each reflecting one of the Harbingers. Players take turns rolling dice to move across the boards to locate keys to unlock doors that can guide them towards the Gatekeeper in the centre of the board. Players can also duel each other to steal their keys, or place a curse on them to reduce their movement. Duels consists of players depleting each other's power meters by using bonuses collected throughout gameplay. Each game has a time limit: if the players fail to reach the Gatekeeper in the time limit, all players lose.[1] If the player is successful in meeting the Gatekeeper, the Gatekeeper discloses one of eight fears; if that fear is the same chosen by the player at the start of the game, they lose.[2]

Development

The Third Dimension was developed by studio A Couple 'A Cowboys, created by Australian designers Brett Clements and Phillip Tanner. Clements and Tanner created and launched the video board game Nightmare in 1991. Development of a multimedia CD-ROM version was announced in a licensing partnership with Time Warner Interactive and Village Roadshow under various working titles including Atmosfear: Welcome to the Other Side and alongside development of Atmosfear: The Harbingers.[3][4][5] The game was also announced at E3 1995.[3][6] A version for the Philips CD-i was also planned.[4][7][8] Development took place over two years, with its design and animation produced in Australia, and some programming taking place in the United Kingdom.[5]

The game also came with a separate CD-Rom that contained the ambience used in The Harbingers. The intention being that this was to be played on a separate music player during the game, making it the only time any music used during any Atmosfear game saw an offcial soundtrack release.

Reviews

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
Hyper68%[1]
PC Player1/5[2]

Dan Toose of Hyper praised the game's grotesque visual presentation, but felt it was "let down by a lack of variety in sounds and gameplay", also remarking that the duel system was unfair.[1] PC Player enjoyed the game's sound effects, but felt the game contained "more punishments than rewards" due to the chance of losing the game due to the fear system, and the limited visibility on the game board.[2]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Toose, Dan (June 1996). "Atmosfear: The Third Dimension". Hyper (32): 66-7. https://archive.org/details/hyper-032/mode/2up?q=%22Atmosfear%22. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Atmosfear". PC Player: 72. June 1997. https://archive.org/details/PC-Player-German-Magazine-1997-06/mode/2up?q=%22Atmosfear%22. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Worley, Joyce (May 1995). "Gaming Prepares for E3". Electronic Games: 19. https://archive.org/details/electronic-games-1995-05/mode/2up?q=%22Atmosfear%22. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Singh, Rohan (June 1994). "A Nightmare With Atmosfear". Gamestar (1): 14-16. https://archive.org/details/gamestar-1-june-1994/page/2/mode/2up?q=%22Atmosfear%22. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Cowboys drink up 'Atmosphere'". 1 May 1995. https://variety.com/1995/scene/markets-festivals/cowboys-drink-up-atmosphere-99127392/. Retrieved 21 March 2026. 
  6. ↑ Honeywell, Steve. "E3 in Review". Computer Game Review and CD-ROM Entertainment: 106. https://archive.org/details/computer-game-review-and-cd-rom-entertainment-july-1995/page/n105/mode/2up?q=%22Atmosfear%22. 
  7. ↑ "Thumbelina Arrives on CDI". CDi Magazine UK (5): 5. May 1994. https://archive.org/details/cdi-uk-05/mode/2up?q=%22Atmosfear%22. 
  8. ↑ "The Fears Are On TWI". PC Games (11): 13. June 1995. https://archive.org/details/pcgames-11/page/n11/mode/2up?q=%22Atmosfear%22. 
  • 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 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]

On February 13, 2025, Freyholtz stepped down as the site lead to move onto new projects, leaving operations to Tracy Poff, a veteran coder on the site, and Atari staff.[18]

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. 
  18. ↑ "An update on MobyGames leadership". 2025-02-13. https://www.mobygames.com/forum/3/thread/269628/an-update-on-mobygames-leadership/#post-269628. 
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