Software:Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising

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Short description: 2001 video game


Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising
Developer(s)Rage Software
Publisher(s)Rage Software
Interplay Entertainment (NA)
Director(s)David Percival
Programmer(s)Tim Austin
Artist(s)John Court
Writer(s)Warren Ellis
Composer(s)John O’Dowd
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
Release
Genre(s)Strategy game
Mode(s)Single player

Hostile Waters, released as Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising in America, is a hybrid vehicle and strategy game developed and published by Rage Software for Microsoft Windows. It was inspired by Carrier Command (Realtime Games, 1988). It has won several awards and one unofficial award from Rock Paper Shotgun as a "lost classic" or "The best game you've never played".[3]

Plot

Hostile Waters takes place in a Utopian future where war has been abolished. In the year 2012, a revolutionary war takes place between the corrupt and power-hungry politicians, leaders and businessmen (described as the "Old Guard") and the people. The Old Guard were defeated, with only a few of their leaders escaping. By 2032, the world has been rebuilt as a utopia, with the help of nano-technological assemblers, which are used in "creation engines" to create matter from energy and waste, for free. The newly united world is governed from a capital city known as Central.

Missile attacks are suddenly launched against major cities all over the world from an unknown location. This is eventually discovered to be an island chain in the South Pacific Ocean. A response to the missile attacks was a special forces team sent in to investigate the area for preliminary investigations. The Ministry of Intelligence (MinIntel) loses contact with it shortly thereafter. The world government authorises a reactivation of the Antaeus program, a series of warships able to create any weapon of their choosing using their on-board nano-technological creation engine. Two of these were left on the seabed in the case of an emergency, capable of being re-activated and refloating itself. On board are a series of "soulcatcher" chips, a classified 1990s military program researched into for the storage of human brain functions on a silicon chip. The soulcatcher technology was used to store the minds of every crew member ever assigned to an Antaeus vessel.

It is soon discovered that one of the cruisers does not respond to the awakening signal. The other cruiser, however, is refloated and re-activated, with heavy damage to vital ship components. A course is plotted for a nearby disused wet-dock.

As the Antaeus progresses from the wet-dock, unusual biological life-forms are discovered amongst the enemy bases on the islands. The identity of the aggressor firing the missiles is confirmed as the leftovers of the old, pre-Central forces, known as the Cabal. Outnumbering Central's army a thousand to one, they are fighting with thousands of troops and weapons that they hid away when it was apparent that the war was lost. The Antaeus is deployed into the chicane to stop the Cabal's operations there. It's later discovered that along with their superior numbers, they have also biologically engineered a species of organic machines, designed in the popular likeness of extraterrestrials, which they intend to use to create the fear of an alien invasion, to facilitate their taking over the world and the removal of the public use of creation engines.

The Cabal later lose control of the species, which eventually turns on its masters, destroying them. The species starts spreading, modifying the planetary climate and geographical features in an attempt to exterminate humanity and make the planet more hospitable to itself. Having exterminated its creators, the species resolves to cleanse humanity as a whole from the planet using a massive 'disassembler cannon', only to be stopped by the Antaeus. The species subsequently attempts to flee into the cosmos and colonise the surrounding planets and stars, by launching a massive number of 'culture stones' (information devices that also double as creation engines) into space from an enormous, artificially-grown organic "island", the final staging point. Central's only option is to bind the Antaeus' creation engine and the disassembler cannon stolen from the aliens together to create a makeshift bomb, and detonate it at the central "column" containing the culture stones. The plan succeeds, and the Antaeus is sacrificed to save the world.

The final cinematic show the organic disassembler cannon and the Antaeus' creation engine moving closer together and fusing, creating something new. A post-credits scene also shows that two of the species' culture stones have managed to get into space.

Gameplay

Each Mission takes place on and or near a fortified enemy island containing various forms of anti-air and ground defence, with scattered unit-production complexes powered by oil-derricks and fuel containers (which are dependent on the oil-derricks) that the player can destroy to keep the enemy from replacing destroyed forces.

Vehicles are built on the Antaeus and, if desired, land vehicles can be delivered to a location by the air-lifting "magpie". Units are created by providing Antaeus with a number of resources which are obtained at the beginning of the level and debris which are taken from destroyed enemy units and structures. Transport helicopters such as the "Pegasus" can fly to an object and airlift it to the ship-board recycling system with little resources required. The carrier can analyse objects it disassembles at the rear of the Antaeus cruiser, and several of the game's vehicles and items are unlocked by "sampling" them in this fashion.

The game has a number of vehicles that are progressively unlocked as the missions progress. Vehicles contain a number of slots for equipment and a selection of different types of weapons to use in the vehicle. A variety of vehicle equipment combinations can be designed.

Vehicles have an individual damage multiplier such that different vehicles with the same weapon will do different damage. In addition to this, each soul-chip personality specializes in one unit along with specific equipment, which, if equipped will gain them a bonus in efficiency.

Development

The game was developed by 12 people.[4]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic80/100[5]
Review scores
PublicationScore
CGWStarStarStarStar[6]
Edge8/10[7]
Game Informer8/10[9]
GameRevolutionB+[10]
GameSpot8.5/10[11]
GameSpy79%[12]
IGN8.7/10[13]
Next GenerationStarStarStarStar[14]
PC Gamer (US)80%[15]

The game received "favourable" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[5] Carla Harker of NextGen said, "You'll feel like a real battlefield general when you take to the field in Antaeus Rising."[14] Jake The Snake of GamePro said, "If the usual game categories leave you unscathed, get bloodied in these Hostile Waters."[16][lower-alpha 1]

Notes

  1. ↑ GamePro gave the game 4.5/5 for graphics, and three 4/5 scores for sound, control, and fun factor.

References

  1. ↑ "Interplay's Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising Ships to Retail!". 12 June 2001. http://www.prnewswire.com/micro/IPLY. 
  2. ↑ Schofield, Jack (2001-02-22). "Games watch" (in en-GB). The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2001/feb/22/shopping.onlinesupplement. 
  3. ↑ Gillen, Kieron (7 December 2007). "Making Of: Hostile Waters". Gamer Network. https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/making-of-hostile-waters. 
  4. ↑ Harris, Tricia (27 April 2000). "Rage Software: Julian Widdows". GameSpy Industries. http://www.3dactionplanet.com/features/interviews/widdows/index2.shtml. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising". Metacritic. https://www.metacritic.com/game/hostile-waters-antaeus-rising/. 
  6. ↑ Price, Tom (October 2001). "These Waters Run Deep (Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising Review)". Computer Gaming World (207): 94. https://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_207.pdf. Retrieved 25 January 2024. 
  7. ↑ Edge staff (March 2001). "Hostile Waters". Edge (95): 79. https://retrocdn.net/images/2/2d/Edge_UK_095.pdf. Retrieved 25 January 2024. 
  8. ↑ Hudak, Chris (10 July 2001). "Hostile Waters: Anateus Rising". Greedy Productions Ltd.. http://www.elecplay.com/review.html?article=7969&full=1. 
  9. ↑ Brogger, Kristian (September 2001). "Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising". Game Informer (FuncoLand) (101). http://www.gameinformer.com/Games/Review/200109/R03.0805.1708.41127.htm. Retrieved 28 April 2022. 
  10. ↑ Villines, C. Joshua (August 2001). "Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising Review". CraveOnline. https://www.gamerevolution.com/review/33236-hostile-waters-antaeus-rising-review. 
  11. ↑ Todd, Brett (18 June 2001). "Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising Review [date mislabeled as "May 17, 2006""]. Fandom. https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/hostile-waters-antaeus-rising-review/1900-2776518/. 
  12. ↑ Hiles, Bill (1 July 2001). "Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising". GameSpy Industries. http://www.gamespy.com/reviews/june01/hostilewaters/. 
  13. ↑ Adams, Dan (26 June 2001). "Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising". https://www.ign.com/articles/2001/06/26/hostile-waters-antaeus-rising. 
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Harker, Carla (September 2001). "Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising". NextGen (Imagine Media) (81): 88. https://archive.org/details/NextGen81Sep2001/page/n89/mode/2up. Retrieved 28 April 2022. 
  15. ↑ "Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising". PC Gamer (Imagine Media) 8 (9). September 2001. 
  16. ↑ Jake The Snake (September 2001). "Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising". GamePro (IDG) (156): 52. https://retrocdn.net/images/0/0d/GamePro_US_156.pdf. Retrieved 25 January 2024. 
  • 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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