Software:SimPark

From HandWiki
Short description: 1996 video game
SimPark
Developer(s)Maxis
Publisher(s)Maxis
Designer(s)Roxana Wolosenko
Claire Curtin
Programmer(s)Ed Nanale
Artist(s)Bonnie Borucki
Sharon Barr
Composer(s)Jerry Martin
SeriesSim
Platform(s)Windows 3.x, Windows 95, Macintosh [citation needed]
Release1996
Genre(s)Simulation, Education
Mode(s)Single-player

SimPark is a 1996 video game by Maxis. The object of the game is to cultivate and manage a successful park. Similar to SimTown, it is targeted more towards children than the average player. SimPark attempts to show the importance of ecological balance. It could well be considered a 'lite' version of SimIsle.

Overview

SimPark was a simple game designed for a younger audience. It is not possible to lose the game by getting fired or running out of money.[1]

Gameplay

SimPark screenshot

Players have to quickly learn how doing (or not doing) various things will affect how their park grows. For instance, if certain flower types are not planted, the park will not attract bees. If the bees are not flying around the park, then pollination will not occur, which is an important aspect of keeping the park growing. On top of properly managing the plant and animal population, players are also required to identify the park's plants and animals.

Players often receive in-game email, such as their boss telling them to make the park more diverse, or their virtual mother telling about life back at home (e.g.: "I baked you a cake..." etc.) Occasionally, the Boss's pet frog Rizzo will make an appearance on the screen to give the player advice, or nag about the way they are handling things.

The park can experience disasters, including:

  • Garbage Dump: The Garbage Dump is just a big pile of rubbish. As soon as it is made, rats start to emerge from it and inhabit your park. The only ways to get rid of the garbage dump are to put water on it or to place many garbage-eating animals, such as rats and black bears, around the garbage dump.
  • Fire
  • Kudzu: Kudzu plants begin to overgrown the park.
  • Alien invasion: The Alien Invasion consists of flat, pink-and-blue creatures that litter the park grounds and sometimes float on the water. If the map is clicked to get a zoomed-out map view, the pattern the Aliens form may be in the shape of letters. One example of this is a message which reads: "Surrender, Dorothy". This is a parody of the movie The Wizard of Oz. The only way to get rid of aliens, aside from using cheat codes, is to bulldoze them with the "Bulldozer" tool.

The option of using a microphone feature allows you to click on park-goers and listen to what they have to say. Some of the more memorable quotes include, "My socks don't match," "I didn't brush my teeth this morning," "Eddie! Oh Eddie! Where are you?" and "My favourite book is Wind in the Willows."

It takes about four minutes of real time for a year of time to elapse in the game.[1] The game shows the seasons with the changing color of the leaves.[2]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Carlton, Flint (February 6, 1997). "Feed the animals in SimPark or suffer the consequences". The Newark Advocate (Newark, Ohio): p. 15. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/26526215/the_newark_advocate/. 
  2. ↑ Rushkoff, Douglas (September 29, 1996). "The battle for your child's brain". Daily News (New York, New York): p. 14. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/26526505/daily_news/. 
  • 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 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. 
  • No URL found. Please specify a URL here or add one to Wikidata.

Template:Atari



Warning: Default sort key "Simpark" overrides earlier default sort key "Mobygames".



Retrieved from "https://handwiki.org/wiki/index.php?title=Software:SimPark&oldid=699464"