Software:Gunship!

From HandWiki
Gunship!
Developer(s)MicroProse
Publisher(s)Hasbro Interactive
Platform(s)Windows
Release
Genre(s)Combat flight simulation
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Gunship! is a video game developed by MicroProse and published by Hasbro Interactive for Windows in 2000. It's the third game in the Gunship series following Gunship (1986) and Gunship 2000 (1991). Hasbro announced in late 1999 that it would discontinue the development of military simulations. Gunship! was the last game in that genre from MicroProse.[2]

Gameplay

Gunship! is a game in which the player can pilot three helicopters: Boeing AH-64 Apache (also the British variant AgustaWestland Apache), Eurocopter Tiger, and Mil Mi-28.[3]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
GameRankings67%[4]
Review scores
PublicationScore
CGSPStarStarHalf star[6]
CGWStarStarHalf star[7]
GameSpot5.7/10[9]
GameSpy90%[10]
IGN8/10[11]
PC Gamer (US)44%[2]
PC PowerPlay89%[12]
PC Zone49%[13]

The game received average reviews. CNET Gamecenter's Andy Mahood stated, "Although it has its graphical high points and can actually be quite entertaining at times, Gunship never really succeeds. We can only hope--if there is any justice--that if an update of Choplifter is ever released, it will play more like a sim."[5] Computer Games Strategy Plus' Brett Berger said, "while Gunship! is a splended graphical achievement, it isn’t as fun to play as its ancestors: Gunship and Gunship 2000. A patch or add-on could do a lot to remedy some of the problems but with Microprose’s support record as of late, that's wishful thinking at best."[6] Computer Gaming World's Jeff Lackey said: "It's a shame that Gunship! is plagued with broken commands and bad design choices, because underneath it all beats the heart of a potentially-fun arcade chopper sim. The battlefield action is fast and furious, with a war going on around you as artillery support is called in, ground units clash, armor pops smoke to hide, and so on. And the terrain is really beautiful. But unless the game is patched to fix some of its more grievous issues, it's impossible to recommend Gunship! to anyone."[7] Shaun Conlin of The Electric Playground said of the game, "Potentially: A real fine helicopter game. Actually: A frickin' nightmare."[8] GameSpot's Bruce Geryk said: "Despite its intermittent bugs, Gunship! isn't a bad game if you just want to fly (to use the term loosely) around and cause explosions."[9] GameSpy's Doug Farmer summarized: "With Gunship! Microprose has once once again pushed the envelope on combat attack helicopter simulators. By combining realistic fun with hard core real time strategy they've created an experience that's bound to appeal to nearly every flight sim fan out there."[10] IGN's Rich Rouse said: "Gunship! is pretty much everything we hoped it would be. There's enough action in this box to make it more than worth the buy for any sim enthusiast who's been looking for the right copter to fly."[11] However, PC Gamer's Stephen Poole called it "a buggy, spiritless game that earns the distinction of disappointing both hardcore simmers and casual gamers."[2] PC PowerPlay's Des McNicholas stated, "Microprose has stressed the fact that the aim has been to simulate the entire battlefield experience, rather than just the view from the pilot's seat. It's been an admirable success, and there's no doubt that Gunship! offers the best cooperative (pilot/gunner) gaming I've seen so far."[12] PC Zone's Paul Presley called it "A terrible end to the [Gunship] series."[13]

The game was nominated for the "Most Disappointing Game of the Year" award at GameSpot's Best and Worst of 2000 Awards, which went to Star Wars.[14]

References

  1. ↑ Ho, Jennifer (April 4, 2000). "Gunship! Goes Gold". Fandom. https://www.gamespot.com/articles/gunship-goes-gold/1100-2542105/. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Poole, Stephen (July 2000). "Gunship". PC Gamer (Imagine Media) 7 (7): 99. http://www.pcgamer.com/archives/2005/07/gunship.html. Retrieved October 22, 2023. 
  3. ↑ Blevins, Tal (February 15, 2000). "Gunship! (Preview)". Ziff Davis. https://www.ign.com/articles/2000/02/16/gunship-2. 
  4. ↑ "Gunship! for PC". CBS Interactive. https://www.gamerankings.com/pc/250539-gunship/index.html. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Mahood, Andy (April 25, 2000). "Gunship". CNET. http://www.gamecenter.com/Reviews/Item/0%2C6%2C0-4040%2C00.html. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Berger, Brett (June 2, 2000). "Gunship!". Strategy Plus, Inc.. http://www.cdmag.com/articles/028/061/gunship2_review.html. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Lackey, Jeff (August 2000). "Banal Beauty (Gunship! Review)". Computer Gaming World (Ziff Davis) (193): 104–5. https://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_193.pdf. Retrieved October 22, 2023. 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Conlin, Shaun (July 4, 2000). "Gunship". Greedy Productions Ltd.. http://www.elecplay.com/reviews_article.php?article=2691. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Geryk, Bruce (April 19, 2000). "Gunship! Review". Fandom. https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/gunship-review/1900-2558759/. 
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Farmer, Doug (April 19, 2000). "Gunship". GameSpy Industries. http://www.gamespy.com/legacy/reviews/gunship_a.shtm. 
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Rouse, Rich (May 1, 2000). "Gunship!". Ziff Davis. https://www.ign.com/articles/2000/05/02/gunship. 
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 McNicholas, Des (July 2000). "Gunship!". PC PowerPlay (50): 78–79. https://archive.org/details/PCPowerplay-050-2000-07/page/n77/mode/2up. Retrieved October 22, 2023. 
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Presley, Paul (June 2000). "Gunship!". PC Zone (Dennis Publishing) (90): 72–73. https://archive.org/details/PC_Zone_Issue_090_2000-06_Dennis_Publishing_GB/page/n71/mode/2up. Retrieved October 22, 2023. 
  14. ↑ GameSpot staff (January 5, 2001). "Best and Worst of 2000 (Most Disappointing Game, Nominees)". Ziff Davis. http://www.zdnet.com/gamespot/features/pc/bestof_2000/p4_01.html. 
  • 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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