Software:Portal Runner

From HandWiki
Short description: 2001 video game
Portal Runner
North American PlayStation 2 box art
Developer(s)The 3DO Company (PlayStation 2)
Handheld Games (Game Boy Color)
Publisher(s)The 3DO Company
Director(s)John Salera
Producer(s)Michael Mendheim
SeriesArmy Men
Platform(s)PlayStation 2, Game Boy Color
Release
  • NA: September 11, 2001
  • EU: October 19, 2001
Genre(s)Action-adventure, platform
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Portal Runner is a 2001 action-adventure platform game developed by The 3DO Company for PlayStation 2 and Handheld Games for Game Boy Color. Both versions were published by The 3DO Company, in the United States it was released in September 2001, and in Europe the following month. The game is a spin-off of the Army Men video game franchise, focusing on a conflict between characters Vikki Grimm and Brigitte Bleu.

Gameplay

Portal Runner is an action-adventure and platform game played from a third-person view.[1][2] The player controls Vikki Grimm, a character from the Army Men franchise.[3] The game also includes an optional first-person view for precision shooting with a bow and arrow, Vikki's primary weapon.[2] The player has the ability to control a new character, a lion named Leo in some levels, he is also mountable by Vikki and can be given commands such as "sit", "stay", and "attack".[4][5]

Plot

In this game, Vikki Grimm embarks on an adventure after receiving a mysterious package. Her quest takes her through various toy worlds, including a prehistoric jungle and a medieval castle. Along the way, she befriends a lion named Leo and rescues a wizard, Merlin. The villain, Brigitte Bleu, manipulates Vikki's boyfriend, Sarge, and plans to marry him using a love gun acquired from Martians in a Space World. Vikki and Leo thwart the wedding, stop an inter-dimensional attack, and return home. Brigitte ends up imprisoned, sharing a cell with General Plastro.

Development

Portal Runner is a spin-off game of Army Men video game series, starring Vikki Grimm, a character who had her debut in Software:Army Men: Sarge's Heroes (1999) and was introduced as the love interest for Sarge. The game was tentatively titled Vikki's Adventures, and was meant to be its own thing divorced from the Army Men militaristic origins. According to Michael Mendheim, they wanted to move in "completely different direction" and both the storyline and gameplay were unrelated to the larger franchise. The development team constructed three new alternate worlds consists of a dinosaur world, a life-size chess and a spaceship in order to take advantage of the improved Playstation 2 hardware. Some of the artistic influences on the art design included Vincent Van Gogh and Salvador Dali.[6]

The Playstation 2 version was developed and published by The 3DO Company and was designed for all-ages in mind.[4] Unlike the other Army Men games, Portal Runner is rated E for Everyone by the ESRB.[6] John Salera was the director on the game.[7] A new game engine was built for the game.[8] PlayWorks, a separate division at 3DO, created the animated cutscenes using the existing game assets.[7] The Game Boy Color version was developed by Handheld Games.[9]

Release

Video game magazine GamePro exclusively revealed the existence of the game, under the name of Vikki's Adventures, in their November 2000 issue of the magazine.[6]

3DO showed of Portal Runner alongside a number of other announced Playstation 2 titles, at a special held event at the FAO Schwarz in San Francisco, with former Playboy Playmate Heather Kozar dressed up as the lead character.[10] The game was featured on the cover of PSE2.[4] It was initially slated for a 2001 spring release.[8] Portal Runner was released in the North America on September 11, 2001, for the PlayStation 2 console and the Game Boy Color handheld.[11][9] It was published in Europe a month later on October 19, 2001.[12]

Reception and controversy

Reception
Aggregate scores
AggregatorScore
GameRankings(PS2) 57%[13]
(GBC) 50%[14]
Metacritic(PS2) 53/100[15]
Review scores
PublicationScore
AllGame2.5/5[16]
EGM3.83/10[17][lower-alpha 1]
Game Informer4/10[18]
GameRevolutionD[19]
GameSpot6.7/10[2]
GameSpy66%[20]
GameZone7.5/10[21]
IGN5.4/10[22]
Nintendo Power2.5/5[23][lower-alpha 2]
OPM (US)2/5[24]
X-Play4/5[25]

The PlayStation 2 version received "mixed" reviews according to video game review aggregator Metacritic.[15] The Game Boy Color version received its earliest review from Nintendo Power, which gave it a score of two-and-a-half stars out of five.[23]

The PS2 version gained notoriety when it was panned by GamePro, which was the first to review the game, saying that it "looks like a late-generation PlayStation title rather than a second-generation PS2 effort."[26][lower-alpha 3] Trip Hawkins, then-president of 3DO and publisher of Portal Runner, sent an angry email to John Rousseau, who was president of GamePro. The email was published on the internet in its entirety. In the email, Hawkins told Rousseau that his customers were the advertisers, not the readers, and implied that the reviews should be written to keep the advertisers happy. Hawkins wrote: "...there is something wrong with (the reviewer), not with Portal Runner. If you disagree with me, you do so at your own peril.... I should mention in passing that 3DO has been one of your largest advertisers. Effective immediately, we are going to have to cut that back."[27][28]

Notes

  1. ↑ Three critics of Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the PlayStation 2 version each a score of 3/10, 5/10, and 3.5/10.
  2. ↑ Five critics of Nintendo Power gave the Game Boy Color version each a score of 1.5/5, 3/5, 2/5, 4/5 and 3/5.
  3. ↑ GamePro gave the PlayStation 2 version three 2.5/5 scores for graphics, sound, and control, and 2/5 for fun factor.

References

  1. ↑ GIPreviev 2001, p. 81.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Lopez 2001.
  3. ↑ the Snake 2000, pp. 56–56.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Winding 2001, pp. 45–46.
  5. ↑ Select Games 2001, p. 64.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 the Snake 2000, pp. 56–57.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Tyson 2001.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 2001 Spring release 2001.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Harris 2001.
  10. ↑ OPMAnnouncement 2001, p. 64.
  11. ↑ PR Shipping 2001.
  12. ↑ UK Release 2001.
  13. ↑ GameRankings PS2 2001.
  14. ↑ GameRankings GBC 2001.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Metacritic PS2 2001.
  16. ↑ Thompson 2001.
  17. ↑ Boyer, Kim & Kujawa 2001, p. 210.
  18. ↑ Helgeson 2001.
  19. ↑ Dodson 2001.
  20. ↑ Alupului 2001.
  21. ↑ Parrotta 2001.
  22. ↑ Zdyrko 2001.
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 NP Review 2001, p. 119.
  24. ↑ Rybicki 2001, p. 160.
  25. ↑ D'Aprile 2001.
  26. ↑ Iron Monkey 2001, p. 124.
  27. ↑ Trip letter 2005.
  28. ↑ Stuart 2005.

Sources

  • the Snake, Jake (November 2000). "From the Foxhole to the Rabbit Hole". GamePro (Oakland, California: IDG) (146). 
  • "3DO'S New Babe". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine (San Francisco, California: Ziff Davis Media) (40). January 2001. 
  • "Select Games - Portal Runner". Tips & Tricks (Beverly Hills, California: Larry Flynt Publications) (71). January 2001. 
  • "Portal Runner - Escaping the toy box". Game Informer (Minneapolis: Sunrise Publications) 9 (93). January 2001. 
  • Winding, Dave (October 2001). "Cover Story - Portal Runner". PSE2 (Foster City, California: Dimension Publishing) 2 (1). 
  • 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. 
  • No URL found. Please specify a URL here or add one to Wikidata.



  • 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. 
  • No URL found. Please specify a URL here or add one to Wikidata.





Retrieved from "https://handwiki.org/wiki/index.php?title=Software:Portal_Runner&oldid=4627531"