Software:Psychic World

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Short description: 1988 video game
Psychic World
European Master System cover art
Developer(s)Hertz Company
Sanritsu (Master System, Game Gear)
Publisher(s)Sega
Designer(s)Tsunetomo Sugawara
Programmer(s)Yuji Kobayashi
Tōru Hosaka
Takahiro Yoshida
Artist(s)Tsuneyoshi Sugawara
Isamu Kurosawa
Yoshiharu Kotaki
Composer(s)Kenji Yamazaki
Yuko Yamazaki
Platform(s)MSX2, Master System, Game Gear
ReleasePsycho World
Psychic World
Master System
Game Gear
  • JP: 2 February 1991
  • WW: 1991
Genre(s)Action
Mode(s)Single-player

Psychic World (サイキック・ワールド) is an action platform video game co-developed by Hertz and Sanritsu and published by Sega. Originally released in Japan for the MSX2 as Psycho World (サイコ・ワールド) in 1988, it was later released as Psychic World on the Master System exclusively in Europe and Game Gear worldwide in 1991.

Gameplay

Psychic World is a platform game wherein the player's character Lucía runs from one stage to the other using her "ESP Booster" to blast monstrous enemies while obtaining item power-ups through them or by jumping on various ledges and platforms. The Booster has a gauge of how often certain items and abilities can be used, but that, as with her health, can be replenished by power-ups. All her weapons are upgradeable by merely picking up the same item for that particular weapon and new weapons are obtained through mini-bosses and end-level bosses. The player has to use Lucia's psionic weapons strategically in levels using different elements to their advantage: in the ice stage, rocks being doused by falling water can be frozen and used as a stable platform for Lucía to jump on by blasting the rock with the ice shot, while the sonic wave weapon can destroy certain foreground objects blocking her path.

Plot

Taking place at a remote laboratory in the year 19XX, a three-staff research team consisting of Dr. Knavik and his assistants the TWIN sisters Cecile and Lucia is studying the exploration and usage of ESP. One day while Lucia was getting ready for work, an explosion burst from the lab. By the time Lucia got there, Dr. Knavik was all right, but Cecile had disappeared. Dr. Knavik explains that part of his experiments involved running tests on a variety of monsters, but eventually the subjects rebelled and took Cecile with them. As Lucia follows the monster's track, Dr. Knavik gives her the ESP Booster, a device he created that will enable the user to wield psychic powers.

Reception

Reception
Review score
PublicationScore
Famitsu5/10, 5/10, 6/10, 3/10 (GG)[2]

Psychic World for the Master System was given mixed but mostly positive reviews 70% by RAZE,[3] and 69% by Video Games.[4] The Game Gear version received a score of 83% from Joystick.[5]

References

  1. ↑ "Game Reviews: Psychic World". Games-X (Europress) (7): 19. 7 June 1991. https://archive.org/details/games-x-uk/GamesX_UK_07/page/n18/mode/1up. Retrieved 5 July 2023. 
  2. ↑ Famibo, Tofuya; Mizuno, Tenchō; Morishita, Moriko; Taco X (February 22, 1991). "新作ゲームクロスレビュー" (in Japanese). Weekly Famitsu (ASCII Corporation) (123): 19. 
  3. ↑ "RAZE - Issue 10 (1991-08)(Newsfield Publishing)(GB)". August 1991. https://archive.org/stream/RAZE_Issue_10_1991-08_Newsfield_Publishing_GB#page/n45/mode/1up. 
  4. ↑ "Kultpower Archiv: Komplettscan Videogames 2/1991". Kultpower.de. http://www.kultpower.de/archiv/heft_videogames_1991-02_seite82. 
  5. ↑ "Le site des anciennes revues informatiques". www.abandonware-magazines.org. http://www.abandonware-magazines.org/affiche_mag.php?mag=30&num=666&album=oui. 
  • 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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