Software:Putt-Putt Goes to the Moon

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Short description: 1993 video game
Putt-Putt Goes to the Moon
Rereleased Windows / Macintosh cover art featuring Putt-Putt and Pep (both foreground) and Rover (background)
Developer(s)Humongous Entertainment
Publisher(s)Humongous Entertainment[lower-alpha 1]
Director(s)Ron Gilbert
Designer(s)
  • Laurie Rose Bauman
  • Annie Fox
  • Ron Gilbert
  • Shelley Day
Writer(s)
  • Laurie Rose Bauman
  • Annie Fox
Composer(s)George Sanger
SeriesPutt-Putt
EngineSCUMM
Platform(s)MS-DOS, 3DO, Macintosh, Windows, Linux
Release
Genre(s)Adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Putt-Putt Goes To The Moon is a 1993 video game and the second installment in the Putt-Putt series developed and published by Humongous Entertainment. It is also the last game in the series to use pixel art graphics. The game was followed by Putt-Putt Saves the Zoo in 1995.[2]

Plot

Putt-Putt and Pep are invited by a scientist named Mr. Firebird to visit his Fireworks Factory. At the factory, Pep chases a butterfly, only to cause a firecracker to emerge and launch Putt-Putt into outer space. Putt-Putt lands on the Moon, where he begins searching for a way to return home.

As Putt-Putt explores the Moon, he falls off an unstable bridge but is rescued by a lunar rover called Rover, who was left stranded on the Moon by astronauts. Rover then takes Putt-Putt to a nearby city called Moon City, where a rocket is on sale. The owners of the rocket give Putt-Putt a blueprint that shows all of the parts that are needed to fix it. Putt-Putt then sets out to collect these parts with Rover's help. After buying and fixing the rocket, Putt-Putt and Rover return to Earth, where Putt-Putt reunites with his friends and introduces them to Rover.

Gameplay

Putt-Putt Goes to the Moon uses the same mechanics as its predecessor including Putt-Putt's glove box inventory window, Car Horn, Radio and Accelerator.

Release

The 3DO version of the game was shown at the Winter Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas around early January 1994.[3] Copies of the game came packaged with an activity book containing Math and English exercises plus a Putt-Putt pen.[4]

Reception

Reception
Awards
PublicationAward
Choosing Children's Software1999 Best Picks for the Holidays Award[5]
Anders CD-ROM Guide1997 Medallion Award[5]
Parents' Choice1994 Honor Award[5]
Home PCTop 100 Products[5]
Multimedia WorldBest Children's Title[5]
The National Parenting CenterSeal of Approval[5]
MacUserFour Mouse Award[5]
CD-ROM WorldThe CD-ROM 100 Best[5]
CES1994 Innovations Showcase Award Winner[5]

In April 1994, Computer Gaming World said that the game "offers a classic adventure experience for children (and adults)".[6]

The combined sales of Putt-Putt Goes to the Moon, Putt-Putt Joins the Parade and Putt Putt Saves the Zoo surpassed one million units by June 1997.[7]

References

  1. The Steam release was co-published by Tommo and Night Dive Studios.
  • 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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