Software:Ghost Battle

From HandWiki
Short description: 1991 video game
Ghost Battle
Developer(s)Interactive Design[1]
Publisher(s)Thalion Software[1]
Programmer(s)Erwin Kloibhofer[1][2]
Artist(s)Henk Nieborg[1][2]
Composer(s)Jochen Hippel[1][3]
Platform(s)Amiga, Atari ST
Release
Genre(s)Action, platform
Mode(s)Single-player

Ghost Battle is a 1991 action-platform video game developed by Interactive Design and published by Thalion Software for the Amiga and ported later to the Atari ST.[4] After finishing Ghost Battle as freelancers, Austrian programmer Erwin Kloibhofer and Dutch graphic designer Henk Nieborg got an in-house job at Thalion. They went on to design another side-scrolling platform game, Lionheart (1993). It received a higher critical reception. Nieborg cited influences for Ghost Battle as Ghosts 'n Goblins, Green Beret, and various horror films.[5]

Gameplay

The game is a side-scrolling platformer that consists of five levels.[6] Three difficulty levels can be chosen at the beginning: easy, normal, hard. The player is a barbarian that has wandered into an evil forest and witnesses a princess being captured.[7] The barbarian can throw rocks and bombs at the enemies.[8] Additional weapons are available that are guarded by monsters.[6]

Reception

Reception
Review score
PublicationScore
The One77% (Amiga)[10]

Ghost Battle received generally average reviews from critics. Amiga Action recommended the game overall but didn't like the slow movement of the main character and the badly translated manual.[6] Amiga Format concluded: "It is not the best platform romp ever designed, but the evil puzzles, good pics and excitable soundtracks are far better than the box lets on."[3] Games-X compared the game to Horror Zombies from the Crypt (1990). Graphics and sound were praised, the gameplay was said to be uninteresting at first but getting better over time.[8] The One found the music to be the game's best feature. Graphics were described as nothing special, gameplay as "largely uninspired", and controls as "very finicky".[10]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Interactive Design (1991). Ghost Battle. Amiga. Thalion Software. Level/area: Title screen. "By Erwin Kloibhofer and Henk Nieborg, music by Jochen Hippel, produced by Interactive Design, (C) 1991 by Thalion" 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Games Reviews - Ghost Battle [Atari ST"]. Games-X (Europress) (16): 23. 8 August 1991. https://retrocdn.net/images/6/65/GamesX_UK_16.pdf#page=23. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Webb, Trenton (August 1991). "Screenplay - Ghost Battle". Amiga Format (Future plc) (25): 82-83. https://amr.abime.net/review_2185. 
  4. ↑ Interactive Design (1991). Ghost Battle. Atari ST. Thalion Software. Level/area: Title screen. "Converted to Atari by Michael Bittner" 
  5. ↑ "RVG Interviews: Henk Nieborg". at RVG. 7 June 2018. https://www.retrovideogamer.co.uk/rvg-interviews-henk-nieborg/. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "Reviews - Ghost Battle". Amiga Action (Europress) (23): 90. August 1991. https://archive.org/details/amigaaction23/page/n91/mode/2up. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Fuchser, Dirk (July 1991). "Barbarisch" (in German). Aktueller Software Markt (Tronic-Verlag) 6 (7/91): 60. https://retrocdn.net/images/a/ac/ASM_DE_1991-07.pdf#page=60. "Preis/Leistung: 4/12". 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Sharp, Brian (24 May 1991). "Games Reviews - Ghost Battle [Amiga"]. Games-X (Europress) (5): 18. https://retrocdn.net/images/c/c4/GamesX_UK_05.pdf#page=18. 
  9. ↑ Fuchser, Dirk (January 1992). "Konvertierungen - Ghost Battle" (in German). Aktueller Software Markt (Tronic-Verlag) 7 (1/92): 112. https://retrocdn.net/images/b/b1/ASM_DE_1992-01.pdf#page=112. "Gesamtnote: 5/12". 
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Presley, Paul (July 1991). "Review - Ghost Battle". The One (EMAP) (34): 64. https://archive.org/details/theone-magazine-34/page/n63/mode/2up. 
  • Short description: Video game database
MobyGames
Logo since March 2014
Screenshot
Frontpage as of April 2012
Type of site
Gaming
Available inEnglish
OwnerAtari SA
Websitemobygames.com
CommercialYes
RegistrationOptional
LaunchedJanuary 30, 1999; 26 years ago (1999-01-30)
Current statusOnline

MobyGames is a commercial website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes nearly 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] The site is supported by banner ads and a small number of people paying to become patrons.[2] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It is currently owned by Atari SA.

Content

The database began with games for IBM PC compatibles. After two years, consoles such as the PlayStation, were added. Older console systems were added later. Support for arcade video games was added in January 2014 and mainframe computer games in June 2017.[3]

Edits and submissions go through a leisurely verification process by volunteer "approvers". The approval process can range from immediate (minutes) to gradual (days or months).[4] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copyediting.[5]

Registered users can rate and review any video game. 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 subforum.

History

Logo used until March 11, 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999 by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, then joined by David Berk 18 months later, three friends since high school.[6] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience.

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[7] This was announced to the community post factum and a few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.

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).[8] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel.[9]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[10] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[11][12]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ "MobyGames Stats". https://www.mobygames.com/moby_stats. 
  2. ↑ "MobyGames Patrons". http://www.mobygames.com/info/patrons. 
  3. ↑ "New(ish!) on MobyGames – the Mainframe platform.". Blue Flame Labs. 18 June 2017. http://www.mobygames.com/forums/dga,2/dgb,3/dgm,237200/. 
  4. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  5. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/32856/Report_MobyGames_Acquired_By_GameFly_Media.php. 
  8. ↑ 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. 
  9. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/207882/Game_dev_database_MobyGames_getting_some_TLC_under_new_owner.php. 
  10. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  11. ↑ "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/. 
  12. ↑ "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/. 





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