Software:Skool Daze

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Short description: 1984 video game
Skool Daze
Publisher(s)Microsphere
Designer(s)David Reidy
Helen Reidy
Keith Warrington
Platform(s)ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64
Release1984 (Spectrum)
1985 (C64)
Genre(s)Action-adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Skool Daze is an action-adventure game released by Microsphere in 1984 for the ZX Spectrum and ported to the Commodore 64 the following year. It was written by David Reidy (whose wife Helen was a school teacher at the time,[1][2]) with graphics designed by Keith Warrington. The game was commercially and critically successful, and praised for its original concept. It has since been regarded as one of the pioneers of the open world[3] sandbox game genre.

Gameplay

The game features the player as a schoolboy named Eric whose objective is to steal his report card out of the staff room safe by accomplishing various tasks around the school. The computer controls all the other characters in the game, including the headmaster, other teachers and other pupils.[4]

The four teachers are Mr Wacker (the headmaster), Mr Rockitt (the science teacher), Mr Withit (the geography teacher) and Mr Creak (the history master). Other than Eric, three of the pupils are named: Boy Wander (the tearaway), Angelface (the bully) and Einstein (the swot).[5] The player has the option of renaming the characters before the game begins.[6] There are also many unnamed, undistinguished pupils at the school.

If Eric is caught out of class or otherwise misbehaving, teacher characters pursue him and issue lines.[7] When 10,000 lines or more are accumulated, the game ends with Eric's expulsion.[8] However, Eric can also receive lines for things that are not his fault, such as lying or sitting on the floor when in fact he has been knocked down, or being nearest a teacher who has just been hit by a projectile fired by one of the other pupils. Part of the challenge in this game is to prevent other pupils from getting Eric into trouble.

Background

Helen Reidy had a background in teaching,[2] while David had fonder memories of activities between lessons and designed the game around this. The pupils were based on schoolboy characters he read about as a child, including Just William and The Beano's The Bash Street Kids. He later clarified that "each of the rooms would look like a frame in a comic".[1]

David Reidy considered himself to be more proficient as a programmer and engineer, and decided the game's graphics would benefit from a separate designer. He recruited a family friend, Keith Warrington,[2] who was studying graphic design. Warrington learned the rudiments of computer graphics from David, and drew the characters as line drawings on squared paper. From this, he blocked in the individual pixels to create an appropriate sprite, with tracing paper to design the individual animation frames for each character. He later obtained a Spectrum to assist with the design, but found using graph paper easier. Warrington based the teachers on ones that had taught him at school, and later said the geography teacher, Mr Withit, was based on "my all time favourite teacher".[1] He found the screen resolution limitations helpful, as it forced him to design cartoon-like characters, saying "you couldn't do a normal person because they would have all looked the same".[1] As with other Microsphere games, David designed the program on paper, which Helen typed into the computer.[2]

Self promotion

The character of Boy Wander would write on blackboards about previous Microsphere games such as Wheelie and Sky Ranger.

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
Crash93%[6]
CVG34/40[9]
Sinclair UserStarStarStarStarStarStarStarStar[7]
Your Sinclair8/10[10]
ZX Computing8/10[11]
Sinclair Programs75%[12]
Your SpectrumStarStarStar[13]
Award
PublicationAward
CrashCrash Smash

Skool Daze was a commercial success when first released, selling 50,000 copies despite very little marketing or promotion. Reidy later realised he could have made more money with an appropriate campaign, and regretted the loss of income due to software piracy, but was still happy that the game was profitable and covered costs.[1]

The ZX Spectrum version was one of the Spectrum games listed in 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die.[14]

In 1985, Zzap!64 reviewed the Commodore 64 version which they found to be graphically and sonically weak, but enjoyable to play due to the innovative gameplay. It was given an overall rating of 78%.[5]

The game has been recognised as being a pioneer of the sandbox game format, later used by Little Computer People and The Sims.[4]

Legacy

The game was followed by Back to Skool, which expanded the gameplay to include a neighbouring girls' school and a love interest (with the benefit of being able to reduce one's lines), along with stink bombs, mice, water pistols, frogs, sherry and a long-suffering caretaker.

An unofficial remake is Klass of '99, an IBM PC compatible edition of Skool Daze with updated graphics and various changes to the gameplay. Unofficial conversions of Skool Daze have been made on the Atari 8-bit computers,[15] Oric, and Amstrad CPC computers.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Skool Daze feature". Retrogamer magazine. August 6, 2010. http://pixelatron.com/blog/skool-daze-feature-retrogamer/. Retrieved 10 January 2013. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Little and Round, With No Sharp Edges". Crash (Newsfield) (25): 73–74. February 1986. http://crashonline.org.uk/25/msphere.htm. Retrieved 8 March 2024. 
  3. ↑ "Page 2 | Retrospective: Skool Daze and Back to Skool". 31 October 2010. https://www.eurogamer.net/retrospective-skool-daze-and-back-to-skool-article?page=2. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Fox, Matt (2013). The Video Games Guide: 1,000+ Arcade, Console and Computer Games, 1962-2012, 2d ed.. McFarland. pp. 262–263. ISBN 978-1-476-60067-3. https://books.google.com/books?id=LVc1QNGo_g0C&q=%22skool+daze%22+game&pg=PA262. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Skool Daze". Zzap64 (Newsfield): 37. http://www.zzap64.co.uk/cgi-bin/displaypage.pl?issue=009&page=037&magazine=zzap. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Skool Daze". Crash (10): 10–11. November 1984. http://www.worldofspectrum.org/showmag.cgi?mag=Crash/Issue11/Pages/Crash1100011.jpg. Retrieved 2 January 2015. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Skool Daze". Sinclair User (EMAP) (36): 35. March 1985. https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/page.php?issue_id=36&page=35. Retrieved 2024-03-08. 
  8. ↑ "Skool Daze (review)". Crash (Newsfield) (11). December 1984. https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/page.php?issue_id=978&page=10. Retrieved 8 March 2024. 
  9. ↑ "Archive - Magazine viewer". World of Spectrum. http://www.worldofspectrum.org/showmag.cgi?mag=C+VG/Issue041/Pages/CVG04100024.jpg. Retrieved 2012-04-23. 
  10. ↑ "Skool Daze". Ysrnry.co.uk. http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/skooldaze.htm. Retrieved 2012-04-23. 
  11. ↑ "Archive - Magazine viewer". World of Spectrum. http://www.worldofspectrum.org/showmag.cgi?mag=ZXComputing/Issue8506/Pages/ZXComputing850600033.jpg. Retrieved 2012-04-23. 
  12. ↑ "Archive - Magazine viewer". World of Spectrum. http://www.worldofspectrum.org/showmag.cgi?mag=SinclairPrograms/Issue8503/Pages/SinclairPrograms850300016.jpg. Retrieved 2012-04-23. 
  13. ↑ "Archive - Magazine viewer". World of Spectrum. http://www.worldofspectrum.org/showmag.cgi?mag=YourSpectrum/Issue12/Pages/YourSpectrum1200027.jpg. Retrieved 2012-04-23. 
  14. ↑ Tony Mott, ed (2010). 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die. Universe Publishing. pp. 1–990. ISBN 978-0-7893-2090-2. 
  15. ↑ [1], Atari 8-Bit Port, Official release announcement
  • 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. 
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