Software:Down in Flames (video game)

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Down in Flames
Developer(s)Dan Verssen Games
Publisher(s)Battlefront.com
Designer(s)Dan Verssen (designer),
Brian Marrs (programmer),
Oleg Pomoshnikov (main model maker)
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
Release
  • WW: 28 September 2005
Eastern Front
  • NA: October 2006
Genre(s)Turn-based strategy
Mode(s)Single player, multiplayer
1 - 4 players

Down in Flames is a computer video game for Microsoft Windows, developed by American studio Dan Verssen Games and published by Battlefront.com in 2005. Closely based on a card-driven tabletop game of the same name, Down in Flames is a turn-based simulation of dogfights between World War II fighter planes. Some parts of the game also involve escorting and intercepting bombers.

The game features aircraft of Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States . An expansion pack, Eastern Front, was released in 2006, adding Polish and Soviet planes.[1]

Gameplay

Down in Flames is closely based on a dedicated deck card game of the same name, first released in 1993 by GMT Games.[2] It is a turn-based simulation of dogfights between World War II fighter planes.[3][4] Such battles are combined into campaigns. In a single dogfight, each player controls either one or two pairs of fighters, with each pair consisting of a leader and a wingman.[5]

At the start of each battle, the players are dealt a hand of cards.[4] Each card represents a certain action, such as an offensive or defensive maneuver, machine gun burst or altitude change.[4][5] Both sides play chosen cards in a turn-based manner responding to enemy's maneuvers, until one side is defeated.[3] The game uses an "Action/Reaction system"[3][4] with "action" cards used to initiate maneuvers, while "reaction" cards are used to cancel and react to enemy's moves.[6] Some cards are both actions and reactions.

Apart from dogfights, one side also attempts to attack targets on the ground (such as troops, naval units or factories)[7] while the other side defends them.[7] Some missions also include escorting or intercepting bombers, however the bomber planes itself are not controlled by the player.[4]

The game features aircraft of Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States . Each fighter is described by four ratings: performance (number of maneuvers its pilot can have at any one time), horsepower (number of new maneuvers the aircraft gains each turn), bursts (how much firepower the plane has) and airframe (how much damage the plane can take before being shot down).[3] Pilots gain experience with each dogfight (however, they may be "permanently killed" in online multiplayer mode)[8] and eventually new planes can be unlocked.[5] During the game, the player may buy extra cards and abilities – a feature not found in the original card game.[4]

Expansion pack

An expansion pack, titled Down in Flames: Eastern Front, was released in 2006. It adds Polish and Soviet planes to the game, as well as three new planes for each of the countries previously featured in the game. The expansion also adds new campaigns, pilot skills and the option to create custom missions.[9]

Development

Development started in 2002, when Dan Verssen - creator of the original tabletop version of Down in Flames – met Brian Marrs, a professional programmer who created a self-made computer rendition of the game.[10] Verssen thought it had "commercial possibilities"[10] and in November 2002, together with Marrs started working on "polishing" the game.[10]

In the spring of 2003, Verssen and Marrs tried to find a publisher on E3, an annual trade show for computer and video games.[10] When none of the companies displayed interest, Verssen decided to look for a publisher on the Internet, and came in contact with Battlefront.com, which after additional work on the game, eventually published Down in Flames in 2005.[10]

Campaigns

Following campaigns are included in the game.[7]

  • Dunkirk – Dunkirk evacuation (1940)
  • Battle of Britain – The Battle of Britain (1940)
  • Singapore – The Battle of Singapore (1941–1942)
  • Midway – The Battle of Midway (1942)
  • Solomon Islands – Solomon Islands campaign (1942–1943)
  • Daylight 1944 – Allied bombings of the Third Reich (1944)

Additional campaigns, available as free of charge downloadable content:[7]

  • Bomber Command 1941 – overview of bombing and oceanic operations by the British and German air forces and navies (1941)
  • Battle for Greece – Operation Marita (1941)
  • Invasion of Crete – The Battle of Crete (1941)
  • Malta – The Siege of Malta (1941)
  • Flying Tigers – Campaign following the history of the 1st American Volunteer Group (1941–1942)
  • Leyte Gulf – The Battle of Leyte Gulf (1944)

Expansion pack

Following campaigns are featured in the expansion pack.[11]

  • Strange War – Soviet-Japanese Border Wars (1939)
  • Gdansk Bay – The Battle of the Danzig Bay (1939)
  • Last Defence – Final phase of the September Campaign (1939)
  • Red Tide First Strike – Soviet bombing of Stettin and Berlin (1941)
  • Leningrad 1942 – Siege of Leningrad, with advantage on the German side (1942)
  • Leningrad 1943 – German-Soviet battle with both sides having similar power (1943)
  • Leningrad 1944 – Third Leningrad campaign in the game, with Soviet advantage (1944)
  • D-Day – Allied landing in Normandy (1944)
  • The Rock – The Battle of Okinawa (1945)
  • Iwo – The Battle of Iwo Jima (1945)
  • August Storm – Soviet invasion of Manchuria (1945)
  • Invasion Japan – Operation Downfall, a hypotethical Allied invasion of Japan (1945)
  • Invasion USA – A fictional conflict fought on American soil between the US and Germany, with German planes operating from Nazi-occupied Florida[11] (1945)

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic75/100[12]
Review scores
PublicationScore
CGWStarStarStarStarHalf star[8]
GameSpyStarStarStarStar[4]

Down in Flames received "generally favorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[12] The Gamers' Temple described the game as "Magic: The Gathering for the wargamer"[5] and concluded that it will "appeal to wargamers looking for a quick playing, light strategy game".[5] Computer Gaming World said that "Down in Flames emphasizes ease of play over hard realism" and is "Easy to play, tough to tear yourself away from."[8] GameSpy described the game as "wickedly addictive,"[4] but complained on the lack of Soviet planes in the base version.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Dubin, Jayson (2012-05-04). "Eastern Front Expansion for Down in Flames" (in en-US). https://www.gamezone.com/news/eastern_front_expansion_for_down_in_flames/. 
  2. ↑ "Review: Down in Flames: WWII – Aces High (DVG) and comparison with DiF (GMT)" (in en). 2010-11-03. https://wargamecenter.wordpress.com/2010/11/03/review-dif-aces-high-dvg-dif-gmt/. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "Down in Flames Overview". Battlefront.com. http://www.battlefront.com/products/dif/index.html. Retrieved December 27, 2009. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 Osborne, Scott (October 4, 2005). "GameSpy: Down in Flames". GameSpy. http://pc.gamespy.com/pc/down-in-flames/655849p1.html. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 "Down in Flames Review". The Gamers' Temple. October 12, 2005. https://www.gamerstemple.com/game-reviews/pc/754/down-in-flames-review. Retrieved September 21, 2017. 
  6. ↑ Parrino, Scott (July 14, 2004). "Dan Verssen". Wargamer. http://www.wargamer.com/articles/dan-verssen/. Retrieved September 21, 2017. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "DiF Campaign Overview". Battlefront.com. http://www.battlefront.com/products/dif/campaign.html. 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Geryk, Bruce (December 2005). "Down in Flames". Computer Gaming World (257): 82. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_257.pdf. Retrieved September 21, 2017. 
  9. ↑ "Eastern Front Overview". Battlefront.com. http://www.battlefront.com/products/eastern_front/overview.html. 
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 Verssen, Dan. "DiF Designer Notes". Battlefront.com. http://www.battlefront.com/products/dif/designer.html. 
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Eastern Front Campaigns". Battlefront.com. http://www.battlefront.com/products/eastern_front/campaigns.html. 
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Down in Flames for PC Reviews". Metacritic. https://www.metacritic.com/game/down-in-flames/critic-reviews/?platform=pc. Retrieved September 21, 2017. 

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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