Software:Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday

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Short description: 1990 video game
Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday
Developer(s)Strategic Simulations
Publisher(s)Strategic Simulations
Electronic Arts (Genesis)
Director(s)Graeme Bayless
Bret Berry
Producer(s)Victor Penman
Artist(s)Tom Wahl
Composer(s)Tom Wahl
SeriesBuck Rogers
Gold Box
Platform(s)Amiga, MS-DOS, Commodore 64, Genesis
Release1990: Amiga, C64, MS-DOS
Genesis
Genre(s)Tactical role-playing
Mode(s)Single-player

Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday is a role-playing video game set in the Buck Rogers XXVC universe. It was published in 1990 by Strategic Simulations for MS-DOS, Commodore 64, and Amiga. A Sega Genesis version was released in 1991. Software:Buck Rogers: Matrix Cubed is the 1992 sequel.

Plot

The game centers around a longstanding war between the Earth-based New Earth Organization (NEO), and the Mars-based Russo-American Mercantile (RAM). The militaristic and dictatorial RAM, backed by a powerful army of genetically engineered soldiers, has been laying siege to Earth for years. NEO, effectively an organized resistance movement, is forced to operate out of secret bases on the surface of Earth and in orbit in its uphill battle for human freedom.

A new party joins the ranks of a desperate NEO. After an introductory briefing, the NEO facility is attacked by RAM rocketships and troop transports. The party successfully locates and activates the anti-aircraft defenses of the NEO base, foiling the RAM attack. Now considered valuable NEO operatives, the party is summoned to NEO's headquarters called Salvation III. For their first mission as a discrete unit, the party is assigned a small shuttlepod and instructed to sweep the nearby area. During the patrol, a derelict and abandoned spacecraft is discovered and the party investigates. The presence of a parasitic infection has killed the crew and infected the party members. Also the place is infested with genetically engineered monsters called Gennies. The sole survivor of the ship's original crew, an artificial intelligence (or DP, digital personality) agent named Scot.DOS living in the ship's computers. After getting cured of the parasite, the party rids the gennie infestation and is able to save the ship which they use as their own called Maelstrom Rider and they return to base.

The party is given some leads pointing them towards the Ceres asteroid in the asteroid belt that encompasses the inner solar system planets featured in the game. A RAM base on the asteroid is awaiting the arrival of the pirate "Talon", who has been sent to rescue the staff from the base due to a series of experimental gennies that have escaped and overrun the base. The team can bluff their way in and claim to have been sent on Talons behalf. In the depths of the base the team discovers that the scientists were attempting to replicate the ECG's first encountered upon the Maelstrom Rider, in addition to working on an unusually powerful laser. After their mission on Ceres, the party's ship is unavoidably crippled, boarded, and captured by space pirates. The party meets another prisoner, Buck Rogers, and manage to overthrow their captors. Buck returns with the party to Salvation and assists them in their escape.

Following this, the player is sent on a mission to Mars itself, to infiltrate the RAM base, Gradivus Mons. On Mars, the player meets the Desert Runners. Prior to the meeting, the player becomes aware of an impending RAM attack on the natives' city, but is unable to earn their trust before the attack begins. After repelling the attack, the party earns the trust and respect of the Desert Runners, and their leader, Tuskon, helps the party infiltrate Gradivus Mons and destroy the Doomsday Laser prototype along with the entire base. Clues uncovered on Mars then lead the team to Venus where RAM has constructed another base and convinced the local population of Lowlanders, to construct components for a super weapon. The player finds that the Lowlander village has been destroyed by RAM troops and only a few Lowlanders survive who assist the team in infiltrating the base and halting further attacks on the Lowlander population.

Ultimately, the party discovers RAM, along with the corrupt Mercurian government, is building its ultimate weapon, the eponymous Doomsday Laser, in orbit of the planet Mercury with aspirations of destroying Earth entirely. After managing to land on Mariposa Three, an orbital city near Mercury, the party makes its way through a military complex and fights through a series of increasingly difficult battles. Finally finding themselves at the command center for the Doomsday Laser itself, the members of the party successfully destroy the weapon and manage to escape the massive explosion. The defeat severely damages RAM's ability to make war with Earth. NEO is, for the moment, victorious.

Gameplay

At the beginning of the game the player creates a party of six characters from a choice of five classes (Rocketjock, Warrior, Medic, Rogue, and Engineer) and six races (Human, Desert Runner, Tinker, Venusian, Martian, and Mercurian).

The game has five view modes:

  • Solar System View: The map shows the positions on the inner planets and major asteroids from an "overhead" perspective. The player's spaceship can be moved around in relation to the planets. Ship-to-ship combat is started from this view.
  • Overworld view: This is another overhead view, where the player can move the party around on the surface of a planet. Land combat can be started from this view.
  • Adventuring view: This is a 3D view that shows the party's environment form their perspective. Land combat can be started from this view.
  • Land combat: This is an overhead isometric view of the area that the party is in. Individual characters, NPCs, and enemies are displayed in scale.
  • Ship-to-Ship combat: The player sees the enemy space ship. Controls are limited to menus at the bottom of the screen.

Ports

Most versions of the game display the Adventuring view from the point of view of the party (i.e. the display is first-person), and have a simple text menu for spaceports.

The Sega Genesis version of the game shows the Adventuring view as an isometric view of the area indicating the characters behind the party leader (i.e. the display is third-person), and uses the Adventuring view in spaceports. Most of the text is replaced by icons.

The available races and classes are also more limited on the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis version. The player may only select from Human, Desert Runner, and Tinker as races, and may select only Warrior, Rocketjock, Medic, or Rogue as a character class. There are also significantly fewer skills and equipment types available to players as compared to the PC version. In addition to this there is a reduced selection of weapons and ammunition is no longer required for weapons.

Release

Strategic Simulations started up a trivia contest on the Computer Gaming World magazine, consisting of 3 questions about the game. The reader had to answer the questions and send the answers along with some preference details to Strategic Simulations. The first 20 winners won a copy of the game (in their choice of computer format), a board game version of the video game from TSR, a comic module and a T-shirt (in their specified size).[3]

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
MegaTech91%[4]
Mean Machines91%[5]

SSI sold 51,528 copies of Countdown to Doomsday.[6] At the time, Brian Walker of Strategy Plus wrote that the game "sold like there was no tomorrow", despite receiving "some pretty indifferent reviews".[7]

Scorpia of Computer Gaming World in 1991 called the story "very satisfying" and the game "fun to play". She concluded that Buck Rogers was "good, light adventuring and a nice change of pace from the fantasy line".[8] In 1993, she called it "a surprisingly enjoyable little game" and "a quick-playing game, but fun nonetheless".[9] In 1991, Dragon gave the game 4 out of 5 stars.[10]

Strategy Plus's Theo Clarke found Countdown to Doomsday's engine and mechanics dated, noting that its graphics, limited on-screen text and statistics-heavy gameplay were "far behind" the advances of Ultima VI and other games. He argued that its literal interpretation of AD&D mechanics was "sluggish and artificial", and hoped that the game would spawn a Buck Rogers module for tabletop gaming, so that players could "enjoy the inventive plot without the intrusion of the obstructive computer mechanism".[11]

MegaTech magazine praised the absorbing gameplay. Mega placed the game at #39 in their Top Mega Drive Games of All Time.[12]

Jim Trunzo reviewed Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday in White Wolf #24 (Dec./Jan., 1990), rating it a 5 out of 5 and stated that "Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday is a complete translation of TSR's Buck Rogers in the Twenty-fifth Century roleplaying game. Nothing has been lost in the process. The graphic enhancements, the ease of play, and the variety of action make Buck Rogers a truly enjoyable experience. Join Buck and the NEO in the fight for interplanetary freedom and help the forces of liberation throw off the yoke of the infamous RAM."[13]

References

  1. ↑ "The Release Schedule". Computer Trade Weekly (Opportunity Publishing) (383): 19. 20 April 1992. https://retrocdn.net/images/c/c9/CTW_UK_383.pdf. Retrieved 25 February 2025. 
  2. ↑ "Genesis Pro Review: Buck Rogers Countdown to Doomsday". GamePro (IDG) (30): 68. January 1992. https://archive.org/details/game-pro-issue-30-january-1992/page/n74/mode/1up. 
  3. ↑ "Countdown to Doomsday Contest". Computer Gaming World (Ziff Davis) (76): 96. November 1990. https://archive.org/stream/Computer_Gaming_World_Issue_76#page/n95. 
  4. ↑ MegaTech rating, EMAP, issue 5, page 78, May 1992
  5. ↑ "Megadrive Review – Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday". http://www.outofprintarchive.com/articles/reviews/MegaDrive/BuckRogersCTD-MeanMachines18-3.html. Retrieved 11 July 2014. 
  6. ↑ Maher, Jimmy. "Opening the Gold Box, Part 5: All That Glitters is Not Gold". http://www.filfre.net/2017/03/opening-the-gold-box-part-5-all-that-glitters-is-not-gold/. 
  7. ↑ Walker, Brian (January 1991). "1990: A Walkthru". Strategy Plus (4): 29, 32. 
  8. ↑ Scorpia (January 1991). "Buck Rogers Continues". Computer Gaming World (78): 72. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1991&pub=2&id=78. Retrieved 17 November 2013. 
  9. ↑ Scorpia (October 1993). "Scorpia's Magic Scroll Of Games". Computer Gaming World: 34–50. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1993&pub=2&id=111. Retrieved 25 March 2016. 
  10. ↑ Lesser, Hartley; Lesser, Patricia; Lesser, Kirk (July 1991). "The Role of Computers". Dragon (171): 57–64. 
  11. ↑ Clarke, Theo (December 1990). "Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday". Strategy Plus (3): 20. 
  12. ↑ "Top Mega Drive Games of All Time". Mega (Future Publishing) (1): 76. October 1992. 
  13. ↑ Trunzo, Jim (December 1990 – January 1991). "The Silicon Dungeon". White Wolf Magazine (24): 56-57. https://imgur.com/a/vdTkAMl. 
  • 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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