Software:Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Trainer

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Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Trainer
Developer(s)Lerner Research
Publisher(s)Electronic Arts
Designer(s)Ned Lerner
Platform(s)Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Commodore 64, DOS, Macintosh, MSX, ZX Spectrum
Release1987
Genre(s)Flight simulator
Mode(s)Single-player

Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Trainer is an aircraft simulation computer game published by Electronic Arts in 1987. It was originally released as Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Simulator. Due to a legal dispute with Microsoft over the term "Flight Simulator", the game was pulled from shelves and renamed. Many copies of the original version were sold prior to this. Chuck Yeager served as technical consultant for the game, where his likeness and voice were prominently used.

The game allows a player to "test pilot" 14 different airplanes, including the Bell X-1, which Yeager had piloted to become the first man to exceed Mach 1.

The game is embellished by Yeager's laconic commentary: When the user crashes one plane, Yeager remarks "You sure bought the farm on that one", or other asides.

Yeager discussing the game's development with designer Ned Lerner.
Amstrad CPC version on 3" floppy disk

Aircraft

Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Trainer includes 11 real aircraft and three experimental aircraft designed by the developers. The fictional experimental aircraft were named after people who worked on the game.[1]

Real aircraft
Experimental aircraft
  • Grace Industries XPG-12 Samurai
  • Hilleman Ltd. XRH4 MadDog
  • Lerner Aeronautics XNL-16 Instigator

Reception

The game was a big hit for EA, selling 100,000 copies by December 1987.[2][3] In May 1988, it was awarded a "Platinum" certification from the Software Publishers Association for sales above 250,000 units.[4][5] Game reviewers Hartley and Patricia Lesser complimented the game in their "The Role of Computers" column in Dragon #126 (1987), giving PC/MS-DOS version of the game 4 out of 5 stars.[6] The Lessers reviewed the Macintosh version of the game in 1988 in Dragon #140 in "The Role of Computers" column, giving that version 4 stars as well.[7] Compute! criticized the blocky graphics and sound, but noted that the simple graphics resulted in a high frame rate. It concluded that Chuck Yeager differed from other games in simulating flying high-performance experimental aircraft.[8] Computer Gaming World reviewed the game and stated that Yeager has been a top gun performer for the San Mateo–based software company, also noting that the game went SPA "Gold" quickest of any Electronic Arts title (in a little over three months of sales).[9]

In a 1994 survey of wargames Computer Gaming World gave the title one-plus stars out of five.[10]

Legacy

This game was followed in 1989 by Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Trainer 2.0 and in 1991 by Chuck Yeager's Air Combat.

References

  1. ↑ Jermaine, John (January 1998). "Ned Lerner and Chuck Yeager: Taking Computer Flight to New Heights". Commodore Magazine 9 (1): 69. 
  2. ↑ Campbell, Colin (14 July 2015). "How EA lost its soul, chapter 8". Vox Media. http://www.polygon.com/a/how-ea-lost-its-soul/chapter-8. 
  3. ↑ "Yeager Leads Video Games Resurgence". Press-Courier. December 13, 1987. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=P8RdAAAAIBAJ&pg=6327,2360145. 
  4. ↑ Petska-Juliussen, Karen; Juliussen, Egil (1990). The Computer Industry Almanac 1990. New York: Brady. pp. 3.10–11. ISBN 978-0-13-154122-1. https://archive.org/details/computerindustry00kare/page/n265/mode/2up. 
  5. ↑ Staff (November 1989). "Chart-Busters; SPA Platinum". Game Players (5): 112. https://archive.org/details/Game_Players_Issue_05_November_1989/page/n115. 
  6. ↑ Lesser, Hartley; Lesser, Patricia (October 1987). "The Role of Computers". Dragon (126): 82–88. 
  7. ↑ Lesser, Hartley; Lesser, Patricia; Lesser, Kirk (December 1988). "The Role of Computers". Dragon (140): 74–79. 
  8. ↑ Bobo, Ervin (December 1987). "Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Trainer". Compute!: pp. 44. https://archive.org/stream/1987-12-compute-magazine/Compute_Issue_091_1987_Dec#page/n45/mode/2up. 
  9. ↑ Wilson, David M. (February 1988). "Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Trainer". Computer Gaming World 1 (44): 34. 
  10. ↑ Brooks, M. Evan (January 1994). "War In Our Time / A Survey Of Wargames From 1950-2000". Computer Gaming World: 194–212. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1994&pub=2&id=114. 
  • 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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