Software:Austin Powers Pinball

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Short description: 2002 video game
Austin Powers Pinball
North American PlayStation cover art
Developer(s)Wildfire Studios
Publisher(s)Gotham Games
Platform(s)PlayStation, Windows
ReleasePlayStation
  • NA: October 25, 2002
  • EU: October 25, 2002
Windows
  • NA: January 29, 2003
Genre(s)Pinball
Mode(s)Single-player, Multiplayer

Austin Powers Pinball is a pinball-based video game released in 2002 and 2003 for PlayStation and Windows. The game is thematically based on the first two installments in the Austin Powers series of films. It features two playable pinball machines: one for the original movie, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, and one for the second movie, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me. The third film, Austin Powers in Goldmember, was released months before Pinball but is not featured.

Austin Powers Pinball is the fourth video game in the Austin Powers series, following the PC game Software:Austin Powers Operation: Trivia, Game Boy Color tie-ins Software:Austin Powers: Oh, Behave!, and Software:Austin Powers: Welcome to My Underground Lair!. It received mixed reviews upon release.

Gameplay

Dr. Evil has his sights set on defeating Austin once and for all, and the best way to end the threat this time is by racking up a few points on the old pinball table. Using the flippers will help the player destroy the fembots, escape the mutant sea bass, and more. If the player makes it to the Moonbase Showdown, they will take on the toughest enemies.

Development and release

On December 19, 2002, Global Star Software announced Austin Powers Pinball for a February 2003 release on PC.[1] Copies of this version, developed by Wildfire Studios, were shipped by January 30, 2003.[2]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
GameRankings(PC) 51%[3]
(PS) 43%[4]
Review scores
PublicationScore
GameZone4/10[5]
OPM (US)StarStar[6]
PC Gamer (US)46%[7]

The game was met with mixed reception. In a January 2003 review by Sam Kennedy of Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine, Kennedy stated that Austin Powers Pinball "does an adequate job of representing a real pinball machine" and called the controls "spot-on". He lamented that "what's really missing here is the humor of the films [...] Everything fits, but there's no wit or excitement. Even the music, though Austin Powers-ish, seems stale."[6] GameRankings gave it a score of 51% for the PC version,[3] and 43% for the PlayStation version.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Calvert, Justin (December 19, 2002). "Austin Powers Pinball Announced". https://www.gamespot.com/articles/austin-powers-pinball-announced/1100-2902139/. 
  2. ↑ Calvert, Justin (January 30, 2003). "Austin Powers Pinball Ships". https://www.gamespot.com/articles/austin-powers-pinball-ships/1100-2909854/. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Austin Powers Pinball for PC". GameRankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/pc/589351-austin-powers-pinball/index.html. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Austin Powers Pinball for PlayStation". GameRankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/ps/562781-austin-powers-pinball/index.html. 
  5. ↑ Code Cowboy (February 8, 2003). "Austin Powers Pinball - PC - Review". GameZone. http://www.gamezone.com/reviews/austin_powers_pinball_pc_review. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Kennedy, Sam (January 2003). "Austin Powers Pinball". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine (64): 139. https://archive.org/details/official-us-playstation-magazine-issue-64-january-2003_202201/page/139/mode/2up. 
  7. ↑ Saltzman, Marc (2003). "Austin Powers Pinball". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on March 15, 2006. https://web.archive.org/web/20060315143707/http://www.pcgamer.com/archives/2005/06/austin_powers_p.html. Retrieved March 15, 2015. 
  • 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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