Software:Gunmetal (video game)

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Gunmetal
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Developer(s)Mad Genius Software
Publisher(s)Mad Genius Software
Tri Synergy
Designer(s)Mike Jackson
EngineCustom
Platform(s)DOS, Windows
Release
Genre(s)Action-adventure, first-person shooter
Mode(s)Single player, multiplayer

Gunmetal is a first-person shooter video game for the PC. It was developed and distributed by Mad Genius Software in 1998.

Plot

The game takes place 300 years in the future. The world is completely controlled by corporations, and the concept of nation is unknown.

The player takes on the role of a newly hired security guard for the Nataka Corporation, a multi-planet organization patterned loosely after mid-20th century Conglomerates such as Siemens A.G., Sara Lee, or General Electric.

The game starts with the outpost suddenly being attacked by enemy forces from Network 53, a branch of the Argus Industrial Corporation and a long-standing ally. Later, the Argus Corporation starts creating a destructive virus, the Keller virus.

The Keller virus quickly assumes control of all other Remote-Piloted Vehicles (RPV's) and many other electronics nearby. As the player was not in the Headquarters while the infection attacked, they are not affected. Following this, a war against the Keller virus takes place. A sole remaining technician named Pamela Lang helps the player travel to wherever their assistance is needed.

After completing some missions, the player is sent to destroy the Keller core, which is inside the Argus base, in which the player finds the Keller core Protection program. After defeating it, the player goes inside the dead body of the Protection program and destroys the Keller core. Upon beating this final level, the player is awarded "Employee of the Month" and is given a video taped congratulation from the President of Nataka.

Gameplay

Gunmetal has 26 published levels including two secret levels, along with four deathmatch-specific levels, and one easter egg minigame. An additional deathmatch level was added in a later patch release.

Between each level, the player is told a bit about the challenges in the upcoming level through mission briefing. They can then choose to visit an upgrade area where they can buy, sell, and trade weapons, ammo, and vehicle types to use in the mission. A limited amount of credits are given at the start of the game, but by salvaging destroyed enemy RPVs or earning "good employee" bonuses, the player can eventually afford a wide range of weaponry.

The easter egg consists of a side-scrolling minigame called "Gandhi Kong," done in the style of Donkey Kong and starring Mahatma Gandhi.

Game engine

Gunmetal's game engine was developed by Mad Genius Software. It was not, as many people at the time suspected, a Doom clone. It includes realistic lighting, spotlights, direct sunlight, and partial reflectivity (for reflections in pools and other details). At the time, very few video games had all of these features. It also featured original digital music.

Gunmetal supports the full range of multiplayer options available in 1998. As many as eight players can play over a LAN or the Internet at once, and a split-screen 2-player mode is available for local and online play.

Development

The game was showcased at E3 1997.[2]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
GameRankings63%[3]
Review scores
PublicationScore
GameSpot6.4/10[4]
PC Gamer (UK)71%[6]

The game received mixed reviews according to the review aggregation website GameRankings.

References

  1. ↑ Gentry, Perry (August 28, 1998). "Weekend Releases". CNET. http://www.gamecenter.com/News/Item/0,3,0-2055,00.html. 
  2. ↑ Lee, Helen (June 16, 1997). "Mad Genius To Show GunMetal". Archived from the original on February 20, 1999. https://web.archive.org/web/19990220043618/http://headline.gamespot.com/news/97_06/16_gun/index.html. Retrieved July 27, 2022. 
  3. ↑ "Gunmetal for PC". CBS Interactive. https://www.gamerankings.com/pc/197511-gunmetal/index.html. 
  4. ↑ Ryan, Michael E. (October 29, 1998). "Gunmetal Review [date mislabeled as "May 1, 2000""]. CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/gunmetal-review/1900-2537330/. 
  5. ↑ Saltzman, Marc (December 1998). "Gunmetal". PC Accelerator (Imagine Media) (4): 104. https://archive.org/details/PCXL04Dec1998/page/n103/mode/2up. Retrieved April 16, 2021. 
  6. ↑ "Gunmetal". PC Gamer UK (Future Publishing). 1998. 
  • 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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