Software:Shadowgrounds: Survivor

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Short description: 2007 video game
Shadowgrounds: Survivor
Developer(s)Frozenbyte
Publisher(s)Frozenbyte
Meridian4
Linux Game Publishing (Linux)
Composer(s)Ari Pulkkinen
EngineStorm3D
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows, Linux, Mac OS X
ReleaseWindows
  • NA: November 14, 2007 (Steam)
  • NA: December 6, 2007 (Retail)
  • EU: January 24, 2008
  • UK: June 20, 2008
Linux
September 18, 2009
OS X
April 13, 2011
Genre(s)Top-down shooter
Mode(s)Single-player, Multiplayer

Shadowgrounds: Survivor is a top-down shooter game developed by Frozenbyte as the sequel to Shadowgrounds. It features three new playable characters, a new "Survival" mode, graphics enhanced from its predecessor, and an integrated physics engine.

Gameplay

Like Shadowgrounds, the game is a fast-paced top-down shooter. This time however, the game allows for three playable characters which can utilise an RPG-like upgrade system for both their weapons and character attributes. This is in contrast to the original game, where only weapon upgrades were handled in this manner. Most of the weapons from the previous game also make a return in Survivor, although many function slightly different and some new weapons have been added. In addition, in some levels the player can control Sentry guns and a Mech.

Compared to the previous game, the basic gameplay has also been tightened, with Survivor focusing more on gun-play than on side-quests. No PDA or computer screens are available for the player to read, and most missions simply require the player to "survive" and reach the ending rather than completing any specific tasks. Those that do usually feature critical plot points, though most of the games story comes in the form of level loading screen text read by each main character.

Also new to the game is the addition of the "Survival" mode. Instead of trying to complete specific missions or tasks, a player selects which character they wish to be and a map, based on some of the ones in the single player campaign, and battles aliens until their health runs out. The more kills you accomplish and the longer you survive affects your final score, which is kept in a score table. The goal is to beat yours and other's previous scores. "Survival" missions become available upon completing their counterpart levels in the single-player campaign.

Plot

Shadowgrounds: Survivor tells the story of three survivors who join forces with the last remaining human resistance in the colony of Ganymede in the heated battle against the ongoing alien onslaught. These are, in order of introduction, Luke "Marine" Giffords (voiced by Noah Lee Margetts) who is a soldier, Bruno "Napalm" Lastmann (voiced by Andrew Wincott) who works in pest control, and Isabel "Sniper" Larose (voiced by Laurence Bouvard) who is a scout. The game begins with Luke fighting his way back to the colony of New Atlantis, where he hopes he can find other survivors of the initial alien attack. While doing so, he receives a message from MacTiernan (voiced by Jay Simon), who is in charge of the defence of the colony. He asks all survivors to come and rescue him, so that he can find a way to fight back.

Meanwhile, Bruno is waging his own battle for survival, and trying to find his own path back to New Atlantis. Luke eventually finds MacTiernan and, with him in toe, commandeers a small ship which they hope to take back to the colony. However, the ship fails and crashes far from New Atlantis, forcing Luke to find his own way back on foot with the goal of finding help. MacTiernan, however, remains stuck inside the stricken vessel, but manages to get its communication system working again. From there, he continues to message Luke and the other survivors. By this point, Isabel, who was manning a guard post far outside of the colony, is trying to find her own way back.

A massive alien army, much larger than anything that has come before it, is approaching and Isabel is intent to warn New Atlantis before it is too late. She also comes into contact with MacTiernan, and following his instructions discovers some critical data while on her way back to the colony. She also takes control of an experimental Mech, which she uses to blast her way back to New Atlantis, where she is united with MacTiernan, Bruno, and Luke. From there, MacTiernan devises a plan to save the colony by utilizing its massive array of defence turrets. However, they lack the man power to operate them all manually, so the automated AI code that was previously retrieved by Isabel must be fed into them for this plan to work.

Unfortunately, the only place that this can be accomplished is the Defence Mainframe, which is already swarming with aliens. One of the survivors must fight his or her way to the mainframe with the use of the Mech, and feed in the data. The player gets to choose between Luke, Bruno and Isabel, as one of them completes the final mission, activating the turrets and defeating the forces of the advancing alien army.

Release

Frozenbyte announced a port of the game to Linux on March 13, 2008. The finished port, which was made by IGIOS and published by Linux Game Publishing, was released on September 18, 2009.

It was later released for a limited amount of time as part of a Humble Indie Bundle package. Towards the end of the bundle initiative, the Shadowgrounds and Shadowgrounds: Survivor source code (but not their graphics or level editor) was publicly released.[1] The source-code license prohibits commercial use and permits Frozenbyte to change the license terms at will.[2]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic79/100[3]
Review scores
PublicationScore
4Players78%[4]
Eurogamer7/10[5]
GameRevolutionB+[6]
GameZone7.7/10[7]
IGN7.6/10[8]
Jeuxvideo.com14/20[9]
PC Format90%[10]
PC Gamer (UK)79%[11]
PC Gamer (US)73%[12]
PC Zone77%[13]

Shadowgrounds: Survivor received "generally favorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[3]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Larabel, Michael (April 22, 2011). "Frozenbyte Open-Sources Shadowgrounds Games". Phoronix Media. Archived from the original on February 1, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230201071605/https://www.phoronix.com/news/OTM2NA. Retrieved November 15, 2024. 
  2. ↑ "Shadowgrounds and Shadowgrounds Survivor". Archived from the original on April 29, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110429101347/https://code.google.com/p/shadogrounds-and-shadowgrounds-survivor/. Retrieved May 14, 2022. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Shadowgrounds: Survivor". Fandom. Archived from the original on February 21, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240221131223/https://www.metacritic.com/game/shadowgrounds-survivor/. Retrieved November 15, 2024. 
  4. ↑ Schmädig, Benjamin (January 31, 2008). "Test: Shadowgrounds Survivor" (in de). 4Players GmbH. Archived from the original on October 26, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211026102528/https://www.4players.de/4players.php/dispbericht/PC-CDROM/Test/8795/7073/0/Shadowgrounds_Survivor.html. Retrieved November 15, 2024. 
  5. ↑ Whitehead, Dan (September 30, 2008). "PC Roundup". Gamer Network. Archived from the original on July 4, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220704232912/https://www.eurogamer.net/pc-roundup-7. Retrieved November 15, 2024. 
  6. ↑ Hunt, Geoffrey (January 22, 2008). "Shadowgrounds Survivor Review". CraveOnline. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150919083642/http://www.gamerevolution.com/review/shadowgrounds-survivor. Retrieved May 15, 2022. 
  7. ↑ David, Mike (December 3, 2007). "Shadowgrounds Survivor - PC - Review". Archived from the original on October 5, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20081005195654/http://pc.gamezone.com/gzreviews/r32752.htm. Retrieved May 15, 2022. 
  8. ↑ Onyett, Charles (January 29, 2008). "Shadowgrounds Survivor Review". Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on April 18, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230418235626/https://www.ign.com/articles/2008/01/30/shadowgrounds-survivor-review. Retrieved November 15, 2024. 
  9. ↑ CptObvious (January 28, 2008). "Test: Shadowgrounds Survivor" (in fr). Webedia. Archived from the original on May 13, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210513211918/https://www.jeuxvideo.com/articles/0000/00008602-shadowgrounds-survivor-test.htm. Retrieved November 15, 2024. 
  10. ↑ "Shadowgrounds: Survivor". PC Format (Future plc) (210): 113. February 2008. 
  11. ↑ "Shadowgrounds: Survivor". PC Gamer UK (Future plc): 82. February 2008. 
  12. ↑ "Shadowgrounds: Survivor". PC Gamer (Future US) 15 (4): 70. April 2008. 
  13. ↑ Zitron, Ed (February 2008). "Shadowgrounds Survivor". PC Zone (Future plc): 90. Archived from the original on January 28, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20080128073231/http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=180333. Retrieved May 15, 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 lengthy 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]

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. 
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