Software:Delta V (video game)

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Delta V
Cover art by Dave Menehan
Developer(s)Bethesda Softworks
Publisher(s)Bethesda Softworks
Designer(s)V. J. Lakshman[1]
Platform(s)MS-DOS[2]
Release1994[3]
Genre(s)Racing
Mode(s)Single-player

Delta V (pronounced as Delta Vee)[4] is a first-person science fiction video game for MS-DOS, developed by Bethesda Softworks and released in 1994. It is a spiritual predecessor to XCar.

Gameplay

Each mission involved flying a virtual craft along a single predetermined path represented by a trench in virtual space. The trench and the space immediately around it was peppered with obstacles of various shapes and sizes, including helixes and narrow gates. Hitting an obstacle would send the craft back a small distance and take some hitpoints off the armor. Attempting to avoid obstacles by leaving the trench area, or by scraping the bottom of the trench also results in damage.

Various kinds of small enemy fighter and turret drones despatched in swarms by the target system's security would unleash the occasional stream of fire in the attempt to damage the craft's armor. These could be taken down for points. Also, automated security drones in later levels attempt to shoot down the craft, and must have their cannons disabled in order to proceed with the mission. Enemy bosses occasionally make an appearance, and must also be neutralized to proceed with the mission. Certain system targets on the banks of the trench can be hit in order to procure valuable data, energy or shield power by flying into them.

Missions goals include scouting, stealing enemy data and destroying major enemy craft. Mission targets are automatically indicated and locked onto on approach by the Artemis targeting device, and are usually described. Prior to each mission, the player may choose their primary and secondary weapons (other than standard energy-expensive homing torpedoes that come with the craft) from a virtual armory that is added to when research comes up with new weapons (helped along by aforementioned stolen data). Research also comes up with useful devices from time to time, such as one that converts energy to shields, and so on.

Character development is shallow, but the game does feature a few characters that repeat, such as a boss, trainee who the player must mentor, and enemies with grudges. Mission briefing and debriefing often contain important information. The briefing room comes with a feature to view and rotate mission targets and bosses in 3D.

Plot

Delta V, follows a cyberpunk theme, taking place in a future where mega-corporations hire hackers to acquire data, which has become the currency of that era. The player starts the game as a captured hacker who is conscripted by Black Sun, one of the mega-corporations, to join the ranks of their online operatives and risk his life piloting programs through cyberspace to steal rival corporations' data and defend Black Sun against invading hackers. The player's character brain-jacks into cyberspace and operates virtual vehicles and weaponry in a virtual environment to accomplish his mission, while avoiding getting his brain fried by the real effects of virtual damage.

Development

The game was originally scheduled to release in October 1993.[5]

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
Next Generation2/5[6]
PC Joker60%[7]
PC Games71%[8]
PC Player46%[9]
Power Play51%[10]
Pelit60%[11]

Next Generation reviewed the game, rating it two stars out of five, and stated that "It's just plain hard to move beyond the fact that for all its extras, Delta V is like playing the trench stage of the original Star Wars arcade game over and over again."[6]

The game was named Best of Show at the Consumer Electronics Show in 1993[12][13]


References

  1. ↑ "Direct From Last Vegas EG Picks up the hits!". March 1994. p. 28. https://archive.org/details/Electronic-Games-1994-03/page/n27/mode/2up. Retrieved July 12, 2021. 
  2. ↑ Bassave, Roy (October 18, 1994). "Delta-V flies players into the Net". p. 22. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/85237743/delta-v/. Retrieved September 13, 2021. 
  3. ↑ Goldberg, Harold (June 13, 2021). "'Starfield': Todd Howard discusses Bethesda's new space-based RPG". The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2021/06/13/starfield-bethesda/. Retrieved July 9, 2021. 
  4. ↑ Lim Choon Kiat (July 25, 1994). "Firepower on Delta V". https://books.google.com/books?id=OtxOAAAAIBAJ&dq=delta+v+bethesda&pg=PA36&article_id=3804,2247035. Retrieved July 19, 2021. 
  5. ↑ "Delta V" (in fr). July 1993. p. 64. https://archive.org/details/joystick040/page/n63/mode/2up. Retrieved July 12, 2021. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Finals". Next Generation (Imagine Media) (1): 94. January 1995. 
  7. ↑ "Delta V" (in de). November 1994. https://www.kultboy.com/index.php?site=t&id=5041. Retrieved September 13, 2021. 
  8. ↑ Harald Wagner (December 1994). "Delta V Review" (in de). https://archive.org/details/pcgamesmagazine-1994-12/page/n113/mode/2up. Retrieved September 13, 2021. 
  9. ↑ "Delta V" (in de). November 1994. https://www.kultboy.com/index.php?site=t&id=16108. Retrieved September 13, 2021. 
  10. ↑ "Delta-V" (in de). December 1994. https://www.kultboy.com/index.php?site=t&id=6422. Retrieved September 13, 2021. 
  11. ↑ Nnirvi (July 1994). "Delta-V" (in fi). https://www.pelit.fi/artikkelit/delta-v/. Retrieved September 13, 2021. 
  12. ↑ Snider, Rick (March 10, 1994). "Putting Future in play:Games as door to new worlds Virtual Reality is Newton in a box to founder of software firm". The Washington Times: p. C12. https://archive.org/details/document-the-washington-times-archives-3. Retrieved January 3, 2024. 
  13. ↑ "Delta V". Archived from the original on June 5, 1997. https://web.archive.org/web/19970605103611/http://www.bethsoft.com/html/delta.html. Retrieved July 16, 2023. 
  • 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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