Software:Cracking the Conspiracy

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Short description: 1998 video game
Cracking the Conspiracy
Cover art
Developer(s)Pixel Shop Inc.
Publisher(s)Pixel Shop Inc.
Designer(s)Brian & David Mennenoh
Programmer(s)David Mennenoh
Writer(s)David & Brian Mennenoh
EngineMacromedia Director[1]
Platform(s)Windows
Release1998
Genre(s)Adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Cracking the Conspiracy is a point-and-click adventure game released by Pixel Shop Inc. in 1998. The game focuses on science fiction and political secrets. A possible Macintosh version was planned, but never came to development due to lack of demand and Mac hardware.[2]

Plot

The player character called John is sent by a friend named Kelsey Hart to infiltrate Area 51 and uncover all secrets to expose to the world. John infiltrates the base via a uranium mine and goes undercover as a janitor.

Gameplay

The game interface consists of a single-screen room, inventory box for storing usable items, a description box for describing the current room and a health bar for showing the player's vitality status. Occasionally when the player comes across a puzzle, that single screen will take up the whole screen, obscuring the other menu boxes. The player must take caution to avoid hostile security forces and aliens within the base area.

Development

The Mennenoh brothers began working on the game in June 1996, aided by some friends and relatives throughout and finished by August 1998. The programming code used was Lingo with over 80,000 lines of code in the program.[1] The audio was recorded and edited with Sound Forge.[3]

Graphics

The 3D graphics were created using 3D Studio MAX R2. They started in Wireframe format. The modeling and rendering was done with Kinetix's 3D Studio MAX. Character animations were done with Character Studio. Image and Animation editing was done with Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Premiere respectively.[3] The 3D animation was implemented with Adobe Director.[4] The game had over 3,000 images and 358 videos using QuickTime.[5]

Reception

Reception
Review score
PublicationScore
Adventure GamersStarStarStarStar[6]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Cracking the Conspiracy - Making". 1998. http://www.crackconspiracy.com:80/making.htm. 
  2. ↑ "Cracking the Conspiracy - FAQs". 1998. http://www.crackconspiracy.com:80/new.htm. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Cracking the Conspiracy - Specifications". 1998. http://www.crackconspiracy.com:80/specs.htm. 
  4. ↑ "Dave Mennenoh - Biography". http://flylib.com/books/en/2.874.1.4/1/. 
  5. ↑ Micromania Tercera Epoca Issue 056. September 1999. p. 110. https://archive.org/stream/MicromanaTerceraEpocaSpanishIssue56/Micromanía%20Tercera%20Epoca%20%28Spanish%29%20Issue%2056#page/n109. Retrieved September 9, 2017. 
  6. ↑ Ray Ivey (May 19, 2002). "Cracking the Conspiracy Review". Adventure Gamers. https://adventuregamers.com/articles/view/17450. 
  • 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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