Software:Metaltech: Earthsiege

Short description: 1994 video game

Metaltech: Earthsiege
Developer(s)	Dynamix
Publisher(s)	Sierra On-Line
Producer(s)	Mark Crowe
Designer(s)	Mark Crowe David Selle
Programmer(s)	Paul Bowman
Artist(s)	Robert Caracol
Composer(s)	Timothy Steven Clarke Christopher Stevens
Platform(s)	DOS
Release	NA: October 25, 1994 EU/AU: 1994
Genre(s)	Simulation
Mode(s)	Single player

Metaltech: Earthsiege is a mecha-style simulation video game developed by Dynamix and released in 1994.

Players are placed in the cockpit of various massive bipedal war machines known as Herculans (Humaniform-Emulation Roboticized Combat Unit with Leg-Articulated Navigation) (or 'HERCs' for short). Set in the 25th or 26th century, Earthsiege is a technologically advanced setting with many futuristic weapons and vehicles.

Earthsiege is the first in a series of video games in the Metaltech universe, which contains Earthsiege 2 (1996) and Software:Metaltech: Battledrome (1994), as well as the strategy games Software:MissionForce: CyberStorm (1996) and Cyberstorm 2: Corporate Wars (1998), direct sequel mecha-simulation Starsiege (1999), and first-person shooters Software:Starsiege: Tribes (1998), Tribes 2 (2001), Software:Tribes: Aerial Assault (2002) Software:Tribes: Vengeance (2004) and Software:Tribes: Ascend (2012). In 2015, Earthsiege was released as freeware by Hi-Rez Studios.

Plot

On November 29, 2471, the race for true artificial intelligence ended when Sentinel Cybertronix activated Project: Prometheus. Prometheus was a prototype, the first cybernetic-hybrid machine, or Cybrid. The mass production of these Cybrids and their use for war, to the point of nuclear war devastated Earth's population. In the aftermath, the Cybrids turned against their human creators, forcing the humans into hiding. Twenty years later, the humans started their own resistance. Using hit-and-run tactics against the machines, the humans managed to survive and even capture Cybrid weapons and equipment.

Gameplay

Inside the cockpit of a Colossus

Gameplay in Earthsiege consists of piloting the mecha-style HERCs in combat against opposing HERCs. The HERC can be steered with a keyboard or joystick, though some controls are only found on the keyboard. The mouse can be used to interact with the various buttons in the cockpit. The whole game has at minimum of 5 campaigns of about 7 missions each. Success and failure of the missions might trigger secondary missions and campaigns to rectify previous failures, all in all resulting in 45 missions in 8 campaigns.

HERCs battle with various ranged and projectile weapons, including lasers, missiles, and autocannons. They offer rechargeable shields and armor plating for defense. When the shields are depleted, armor begins taking damage; when armor is low, internal components, weapons and even limbs can be destroyed. A HERC that has lost a leg is immediately incapacitated, leaving more salvage (in the form of scrap metal and weapons) for the player.

Outside of battle, the player manages their squad's HERCs and resources. The player selects the weapons mounted on each HERC, and can repair existing HERCs and weapons (as well as build new ones with scrap metal). Additionally, the player can bring up to three squad mates along on missions. Squad mates can be assigned HERCs before the mission begins, and during a mission they can be issued basic orders. As squad mates complete more missions, their skills and rank rise.

Expansion packs

In 1994, a speech pack was released for Earthsiege. It adds digitized speech for some characters. The CD-ROM version was released with this feature. In 1995, an expansion pack for Earthsiege was released featuring a full-motion video introduction. The expansion pits humanity against a second wave of Cybrid attackers 3 months after the end of the original game. The expansion pack featured new content such as new vehicles and weapons.

Reception

Reception
Review scores Publication Score CGW Next Generation

Computer Gaming World rated the game as "the best attempt yet at creating a futuristic simulation of giant armored combat", praising the graphics and animation. They did, however, pan the game's overly difficult missions, consequence-free mission failure, and a host of "tiny, but irritating, glitches and questionable design decisions."

Next Generation reviewed the PC version of the game, rating it four stars out of five, and stated "Without a doubt, the finest mech simulator available."

External links

• Tribes Universe - A website with a download link to the game
• 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. 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". This lengthy approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months. 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. A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.

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. 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. 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.

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount. This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign. 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). Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel, and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million. The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager. 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. This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue. Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.

See also

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