Software:Revenge of the 'Gator

From HandWiki
Revenge of the 'Gator
North American cover art
Developer(s)HAL Laboratory
Publisher(s)
Composer(s)Hiroaki Suga
Platform(s)Game Boy
ReleaseGame Boy
  • JP: October 18, 1989
  • NA/EU: March 1990
Nintendo 3DS
  • JP: January 9, 2013
  • EU: September 5, 2013
  • NA: October 17, 2013
Genre(s)Pinball
Mode(s)Single-player
2 players alternating

Revenge of the 'Gator,[lower-alpha 1] known in Europe as Pinball: Revenge of the 'Gator, is an alligator-themed pinball video game developed and published by HAL Laboratory. It was released for the original Game Boy in 1989/1990. The objective of the game is to score as many points as possible without having the player's pinball eaten by the gator.

Gameplay

The player launches the ball from the Shooter Lane and with the flippers that he uses to hit the ball around screen hitting targets and rolling through lanes to score points. There are four modes of play in Revenge of the 'Gator; Gator 1Player, Gator 2Player, Match Play A, Match Play B.

Gator 1Player/Gator 2Player

These two modes are the same game; the difference is that in Gator 2Player, Player 1 and Player 2 alternate turns by sharing one Game Boy. The objective of these modes is to gain a high score and have the player's name added to the "Top 5" score screen when his game is over. There are eight playing areas total; four Primary Screens, three Bonus Stages and one Gator Screen.

Screen A is the top of the Pinball game. The player's objective is to hit the fish on the upper left and right rollover where they pop out and become Gator Bait for the gator in the cage. Once the gator is fattened up it will break out of the cage where the player will have a chance to hit it for an extra ball. It is in this screen where if the player gets his ball into the upper right slot he will warp to Bonus Stage 3.

Screen B is the area below Screen A. Here there are a bunch of blocks in front of a door and a slot. Knocking out all the block on the left side will take the player to Bonus Stage 2, while the right side will open the door to Screen A. If the player rolls over three gators to full size, he will gain side savers and the saver post.

Screen C is the opening area from where the player launches his pinball. If he manages to light all four hearts, the player activates the side savers and the side posts. If the player hits the left three targets, he opens the door to Screen B. Rolling the ball around the Loop Lane to the right activates the Slot Machine.

Screen D is the bottom of the Pinball game. Here the player has seven gators that give him bonuses. Gators 1, 2 and 3 open and close their mouths; if the player hits the ball the into their mouths, they will send to three locations in the game. Gators 4, 5, 6 and 7 offer the player two bonuses in the screen. It is also in this screen where the player launches his ball to Screen C. Should the player miss the balls with his flipper, the ball will go out of the game and into the Gator Screen.

Gator Screen is where the player's ball falls down to end his turn. It is an animation of the player's ball falling into the mouth of a gator where his belly is flattened and the player is taken to the score screen before starting his next turn.

In Bonus Stage 1, the player must knock out all the blocks to make the gator fall. If you hit the gator you get 10,000 points.

In Bonus Stage 2, the player must break five eggs to hatch baby gators then hit the baby gators for 30,000 points.

In Bonus Stage 3, the player must hit each small gator head that pops out of the hole in order to make the big gator head pop out for 50,000 points.

Match Play A/Match Play B

This is the two player mode of Revenge of the 'Gator. Match Play A is for beginners and Match Play B is for experts. Both players can see each other's side of the screen. Both players knock the ball back and forth until one of them gets the past the flippers. Hitting your opponents targets will reduce the opponent's points. The first player to reduce his opponents points to zero and hits the 'Gator and Crossbones' wins the game.

There are three gators for each player, rolling over them will make them appear, grow large, then disappear. If the player can get all three gators to be large at the same time he will get side savers and the saver post.

Items are scattered throughout the match which affects play. Which player is affected is determined by the direction of the ball.

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
CVG93%[1]
EGM6/6/7/6[2]

Revenge of the 'Gator received generally positive reception from video game critics.

Reviewing the 3DS version, Damien McFerran of Nintendo Life gave the game 7 out of 10 , and summarized: "Revenge of the 'Gator may lack the refinements showcased by modern pinball games, but that doesn't mean it should be ignored if you're a fan of the genre. The simplistic nature of the tables means you can give high-score chasing your full, undivided attention without being waylaid by distractions, and the ball physics are respectable enough to ensure you don't lose any games through anything but your own fault. HAL's effort may have been improved upon in recent years, but it's still an appealing and addictive pinball outing."[4]

Legacy

Revenge of the Gator was re-released (with Match Play disabled) for the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console on January 9, 2013, in Japan, September 5, 2013, in Europe and on October 17, 2013, in North America.

A ROM hack, Revenge of the 'Gator Gold, was released in 2023. It adds colors to the game, removes slowdown, allows high scores to be saved between sessions, and fixes various bugs.[5]

Notes

  1. ↑ Known in Japan as Pinball: 66 Hiki no Wani Daikoushin (Japanese: ピンボール　66匹のワニ大行進, Hepburn: Pinbōru 66-biki no Wani Daikōshin; lit. Pinball: The Great 66-Alligator Parade)

References

  1. ↑ Leadbetter, Richard (June 1991). "Bytesize". Computer and Video Games (114): 72. https://archive.org/details/computervideogames114/page/n71/mode/2up. 
  2. ↑ "Electronic Gaming Review Guide". Electronic Gaming Monthly (6): 18. January 1990. 
  3. ↑ "Revenge of the 'Gator". Mean Machines (7): 53. April 1991. https://archive.org/details/Mean_Machines_Issue_07_1991-04_EMAP_Images_GB/page/n51/mode/2up. 
  4. ↑ McFerran, Damien (17 September 2013). "Pinball: Revenge of the 'Gator Review (3DS eShop / GB)". Hookshot Media. https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/3ds-eshop/pinball_revenge_of_the_gator_gameboy. 
  5. ↑ McFerran, Damien (1 February 2023). "Game Boy Classic Revenge Of The 'Gator Gets A Huge Fan-Made Overhaul". Hookshot Media. https://www.timeextension.com/news/2023/02/game-boy-classic-revenge-of-the-gator-gets-a-huge-fan-made-overhaul. 
  • 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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