Software:Entomorph: Plague of the Darkfall

From HandWiki
Short description: 1995 video game
Entomorph: Plague of the Darkfall
Developer(s)Cyberlore Studios
Publisher(s)Mindscape Inc.
Producer(s)Scott Cuthbertson
Designer(s)Jim DuBois
Herb Perez
Programmer(s)Ken Grey
Artist(s)Rob Caswell
Platform(s)Windows, Mac OS
Release10 September 1995[1]
Genre(s)Role-playing video game
Mode(s)Single-player

Entomorph: Plague of the Darkfall is a 1995 action-adventure role-playing video game by Strategic Simulations, Inc. It was re-released in 2013 on GOG.com.

Gameplay

Entomorph is a Top-Down action RPG. The character is controlled by mouse or keyboard with a full range of movement and basic attacks as well as magic spells. The game features an overworld style similar to older legend of zelda games like A link to the Past; i.e., the player moves to the edge of the screen to change areas.

Plot

After a mishap with a giant time controlling spider, Warwick must restart his journey to find and stop the origin of the giant insects that are attacking his home. After reanimating the corpse of the village shaman to summon the ancient guardian of his tribe, Warwick travels to Povros, Where an insidious plot is in full swing to slowly turn the islands inhabitants into giant insects to replace the original insects which all vanished over night decades ago.

Warwick will join the local resistance alongside his sister and fight his way inside the lairs of 3 types of giant insects. The giant bees, The giant Ants and the giant Spiders. Each nest contains a queen responsible for the production of the Nectar that is changing the islands populous. Tempted at each nest by the Undiluted Royal nectar, Warwick himself will slowly changing into a giant preying mantis with each victory.

Fully transformed, Warwick infiltrates the islands castle where he confronts the original source, The queen. Cursed and changed into a fleshy abomination by an ancient artifact. Warwick defeats the queen only for the artifact to latch onto to him instead. In a desperate flight he manages to make his way to the sarcophagus that housed the artifact and seals it again, Undoing the transformations its power has caused.

Publication history

It is the second video game based in the fictional universe World of Aden, the first being Software:World of Aden: Thunderscape. Though both games share the same setting, Entomorph is not a sequel to Thunderscape.

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
Next GenerationStarStarStar[4]
PC Format79%[3]
PC Gamer (US)81%[2]
Arcane7/10[5]
PC Zone78 out of 100[6]
Fusion4 out of 5[7]
Computer Game Review86/83/80[8]
PC EntertainmentStarStarStarStar[9]

Writing for PC Gamer US, Trent Ward called Entomorph "an attractive, innovative break from the usual RPG fare".[2] The reviewer for Next Generation called the game a "refreshing mixture" of mechanics and praised its graphics and music, but found fault with its control scheme and combat system.[4]

In Computer Gaming World, Scorpia wrote that the game "probably does not have enough of any one element to satisfy fans of a particular genre", but that it "does work fairly well with what it has".[10] The magazine included Entomorph in its holiday 1995 buyer's guide, where a writer noted that "the action and unique story will provide gamers with an interesting, and different, CRPG".[11]

Chris Anderson of PC Zone considered Entomorph to be an attempt to compete with Ultima VIII, and he found it unsuccessful in this regard, but summarized the game as "good and reasonably big, with a fairly engrossing storyline".[6] Fusion's Dave Harris called the game "a good beginner's RPG" and "an excellent adjunct" to Thunderscape.[7] In PC Format, Mark Ramshaw agreed with Anderson that the game fell short of Ultima VIII, particularly in its graphics, but also wrote: "That said, it's expansive, it's slick, the plot contains thrills, adventure and genuine humour, and the insect theme is a winner. Make no mistake, Entomorph really isn't half bad".[3]

Andy Butcher reviewed Entomorph: Plague of the Darkfall for Arcane magazine, rating it a 7 out of 10 overall.[5] Butcher comments that "Entomorph's a fun, engaging game that stresses puzzle-solving over endless combat, and the original (compared to most computer games, at least) story offers a lot more interest than yet another dungeon trek".[5]

In his book Dungeons and Desktops: The History of Computer Role-Playing Games (2008), the video game historian Matt Barton called Entomorph and its companion World of Aden: Thunderscape "well-crafted and highly playable games [that] attracted little interest from CRPG fans then or now".[12]

References

  1. ↑ "SSI: Press Releases: Entomania!!!". http://www.ssionline.com/cgi-bin/omixlink?709815180+insider/press_releases/pr_ento.html. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Ward, Trent (January 1996). "Entomorph". PC Gamer US. http://www.pcgamer.com:80/reviews/392.html. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Ramshaw, Mark (February 1996). "Entomorph: Plague of the Darkfall". PC Format (53): 71. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Staff (February 1996). "Entomorph". Next Generation (14): 171, 172. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Butcher, Andy (January 1996). "Games Reviews". Arcane (2): 72. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Anderson, Chris (January 1996). "Entomorph". PC Zone (34): 106. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Harris, Dave (January 1996). "Metamorphosis II". Fusion 1 (6): 124. 
  8. ↑ "Kafka's Lament". Computer Game Review. December 1995. http://www.nuke.com:80/cgr/reviews/1295/ento/ento.htm. 
  9. ↑ Klett, Steve (January 1996). "Entomorph: Plague of the Darkfall". PC Entertainment. http://www.pcgamesmag.com:80/games/Jan96/ento196.html. Retrieved 9 August 2019. 
  10. ↑ Scorpia (January 1996). "Insectocide". Computer Gaming World (138): 201, 203-205. 
  11. ↑ Schuytema, Paul C. (December 1995). "Santa's Little Software Helper; Entomorph". Computer Gaming World (137): 88. 
  12. ↑ Barton, Matt (22 February 2008). Dungeons and Desktops: The History of Computer Role-Playing Games. A K Peters. p. 279. ISBN 978-1568814117. 
  • 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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