Software:South Park Rally
| South Park Rally | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Tantalus Interactive |
| Publisher(s) | Acclaim Entertainment |
| Producer(s) | Stephen Handbury |
| Designer(s) | John Szoke |
| Artist(s) | Rohan Westbury |
| Composer(s) | Yannis Brown |
| Series | South Park |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo 64, Dreamcast |
| Release | PlayStationWindowsNintendo 64Dreamcast |
| Genre(s) | Kart racing |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
South Park Rally is a kart-style racing video game released in early 2000 based on the American animated sitcom South Park published by Acclaim Entertainment (near the end of the third season of the show) and released for the PlayStation, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo 64, and Dreamcast. Gameplay follows the player in a competitive racing championship set in the fictional town of South Park. Players are given the options for multiplayer, arcade, or championship modes, but only the championship unlocks extra features. Competition begins in South Park's 1st Rally, a circuit race around four checkpoints in the downtown area of South Park. Races get gradually more diverse, with more locations, racers, and elements added as the game progresses.
Following South Park (1998) and Software:South Park: Chef's Luv Shack (1999), the game's development was handled by Tantalus Interactive and includes characters, vehicles, locations, items and other features inspired by or featured on the series. It was developed simultaneously for all major consoles during the time of its release. Version differences include the number of unlockable characters and stages, with the Nintendo 64 version being on the low end of features due to hardware limitations.
South Park Rally received poor reviews from critics. Criticism derived from the differences between the two major home console ports, Nintendo 64 and PlayStation, as well as the general lack of innovation over other kart-style racers such as Mario Kart 64. South Park Rally would become the last South Park game by Acclaim Entertainment and the last home game in the franchise until Software:South Park: The Stick of Truth in 2014. Series creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone would go on to ridicule Acclaim's games based on their series in later years. The game was only developed in 7 months, causing it to get mostly mixed reviews.
Gameplay

Gameplay in South Park Rally is divided into three game modes: championship, arcade, and multiplayer. Up to 27 playable characters are available depending on which console version is played.[5]
- Championship: The main focus of the game, which has 14 different races (additional races in the Dreamcast version), all of which have to be done in order. This is the only mode where characters and tracks can be unlocked.
- Arcade: A practice mode allowing the player to choose any unlocked character on any unlocked track to race.
- Multiplayer: A race allowing two to four players to choose any unlocked characters on any unlocked track and race.
The game features a diverse set of objectives in races that encourage player interaction.[5] According to Acclaim Entertainment manager Thomas Bass, "Unlike other racing games where players avoid the other players in order to win, South Park Rally encourages interaction between players, which makes for some insane and wildly fun gameplay."[5] Original voice actors Matt Stone, Trey Parker, Mary Kay Bergman, and Isaac Hayes provided dialog for the game.[5]
Plot
The Mayor of South Park has decided to stage a rally series that will take place through the heart and outskirts of the town. Favorite characters from the popular television series are included and are able to make use of destructive automobiles, including police cars, mini Porsches, Big Gay Al buggies, wheat bags, jeeps and dozens of other vehicles.
Characters who appear in power-up form include Mr. Hankey, Saddam Hussein, the Underpants Gnomes, Frida, Sparky and Kitty.
Development
Development on the title – based on Tantalus' own concept – was done on three platforms simultaneously, and took seven months.[6] The game was developed by 20 people.[7] South Park Rally was the third video game based on the series, as Acclaim had also published the games South Park (1998) and Software:South Park: Chef's Luv Shack (1999).
South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone had little to do with the development of South Park Rally (as well as the two other Acclaim releases),[8] although they did contribute a number of original lines of voice acting for it,[9] as they do most of the voices on the show.[10]
Marketing
South Park Rally's release was accompanied by television commercials, billboards, and print advertisements targeted at older audiences that carried sponsorships of both South Park and Comedy Central's The Man Show from December 1999 through January 2000.[5]
Reception
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South Park Rally received negative reviews on all platforms according to the review aggregation website GameRankings.[11][12][13][14] Greg Orlando of NextGen's March 2000 issue said of the Nintendo 64 version, "Someone shoehorned the South Park license onto a rather (pardon the pun) middle-of-the-road cart-racing game. Rent it if you must, but buy it only if Messrs. Stone and Parker really need to put down payments on solid-gold houses."[37] Six issues later, Jeff Lundrigan said that the Dreamcast version "would make an amusing rental for a party. Otherwise, steer clear."[36]
Mark Green of N64 Magazine gave the Nintendo 64 version 88%, saying that it "has innovation, excitement, and just about every South Park character ever, all rolled into one package."[42] Kevin "BIFF" Giacobbi of GameZone gave the PC version eight out of ten, saying that it was, "For those South Park fans... definitely a title worth adding to your collection."[43] Cam Shea of Hyper gave the PlayStation version 49%, saying, "As wacky as throwing Chef's Salty Chocolate Balls at someone may sound, it really isn't very exciting watching a blob of brown fired at a mess of pixels."[44] Lou Gubrious of GamePro said of the same PlayStation version, "Playing South Park Rally will probably cause pain in most gamers. The worst pain comes from knowing that this game wastes a potentially great concept because of flawed execution."[45][lower-alpha 3] The Freshman stated similarly that the Nintendo 64 version "just seems like a shameless attempt to tack South Park's name on a bad racing game to make it sell. With bland graphics, random and repetitive sound samples, and frustrating control, this game gets stomped easily by the much better kart-racers on N64. Unless you love everything with the South Park name, you'd be best advised to take the bypass and skip the town of South Park entirely."[46][lower-alpha 4]
AllGame gave the Nintendo 64 and PC versions each a score of three-and-a-half stars out of five, with Joe Ottoson saying of the former, "If you're a fan of the Mario Kart brand of racing games out there, South Park Rally puts up an entertaining race. South Park fans probably won't be disappointed either as the powerups and sound effects are all nicely twisted so that they mock all that is pure and good in a small town's holiday celebrations";[47] and Cal Nguyen saying of the latter, "While South Park Rally has its moments, most racing fans will probably be reluctant to get downright serious with this game, provided they can even muster passing the first race! However, South Park, go-kart and comedy fans will no doubt enjoy the humor and simple gameplay for what it is, 'mmm'kay?'"[48] However, Steve Bauman of Computer Games Strategy Plus gave the latter two stars out of five, calling it "a charmless little mess, a superficially fun-looking game with fun-killing gameplay."[49]
Over time, Parker and Stone have publicly criticized Acclaim and the quality of the games as well.[8]
Sales
The game sold more than 1 million copies on the Nintendo 64 alone.[7]
Notes
- ↑ In Electronic Gaming Monthly's review of the Nintendo 64 version, one critic gave it 2/10, another gave it 4/10, and the remaining two gave it each a score of 3/10.
- ↑ Three critics of GameFan gave the Nintendo 64 version each a score of 48, 41, and 55.
- ↑ GamePro gave the PlayStation version two 2.5/5 scores for graphics and control, 3.5/5 for sound, and 2/5 for overall fun factor.
- ↑ GamePro gave the Nintendo 64 version 3/5 for graphics, 3.5/5 for sound, 2.5/5 for control, and 2/5 for overall fun factor.
References
- ↑ "Get Drivin' With Your Bad Self With Acclaim's "South Park Rally" Racing Game". January 5, 2000. http://www.acclaim.com/company/pressReleases/product/SouthParkRallyShips.html.
- ↑ Frost, Will (January 24, 2000). "Dude, South Park Rally Is Now Available for the PC!". http://www.acclaim.com/archive/games/sprally.html.
- ↑ "Acclaim Confirms Video and PC Games Release Schedule Through Fiscal 2000". February 15, 2000. http://www.acclaim.com/company/pressReleases/corporate/AcclaimReleaseSchedule.html.
- ↑ Gentry, Perry (July 7, 2000). "This Week's New Releases". CNET. http://www.gamecenter.com/News/Item/0,3,0-4433,00.html.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 "Acclaim Debuts 'South Park Ralley' for PlayStation". Multimedia Publisher 11 (2): 3. February 2000. ISSN 1060-0302.
- ↑ "Product". http://www.tantalus.com.au/tantalus.php?show=product. "Based on an original concept by Tantalus, 'South Park Rally' was developed across three platforms simultaneously in the short cycle of seven months for a Christmas release."
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Cohrane, Nathan (July 25, 2000). "Tantalus and a Driving Ambition". p. 45. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/98885842/the-age/.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Question answered by Matt Stone. In: "News, October 2001". October 2001. https://www.southparkstudios.com/news/2001/oct.
- ↑ "South Park Rally". http://www.acclaim.com/games/southpark/sprally/index.html.
- ↑ Heffernan, Virginia (April 28, 2004). "Critic's Notebook; What? Morals in 'South Park'?". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/28/arts/critic-s-notebook-what-morals-in-south-park.html.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 "South Park Rally for Dreamcast". CBS Interactive. https://www.gamerankings.com/dreamcast/258827-south-park-rally/index.html.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 "South Park Rally for Nintendo 64". CBS Interactive. https://www.gamerankings.com/n64/198713-south-park-rally/index.html.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 "South Park Rally for PC". CBS Interactive. https://www.gamerankings.com/pc/193831-south-park-rally/index.html.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 "South Park Rally for PlayStation". CBS Interactive. https://www.gamerankings.com/ps/198714-south-park-rally/index.html.
- ↑ Steinberg, Scott (July 20, 2000). "South Park Rally (DC) [Incomplete"]. CNET. http://www.gamecenter.com/Dreamcast/Reviews/Southparkr/.
- ↑ Gaudiosi, Peyton (February 23, 2000). "South Park Rally (N64)". CNET. http://gamecenter.com/Consoles/Nintendo/Sparkrally/.
- ↑ Williamson, Colin (February 8, 2000). "South Park Rally (PC)". CNET. http://www.gamecenter.com/Reviews/Item/0,6,0-3717,00.html.
- ↑ Price, Tom (April 2000). "South Park Rally". Computer Gaming World (Ziff Davis) (189): 94. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_189.pdf. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ↑ EGM staff (September 2000). "South Park Rally". Electronic Gaming Monthly (Ziff Davis) (134): 157. https://archive.org/details/electronic-gaming-monthly-issue-134-september-2000/page/156/mode/2up.
- ↑ Ricciardi, John; Johnston, Chris; Hsu, Dan; Hager, Dean (March 2000). "South Park Rally (N64)". Electronic Gaming Monthly (Ziff Davis) (128): 143. https://www.nintendo64ever.com/scans/mags/Scan-Magazine-1737-143.jpg. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ↑ Reiner, Andrew (April 2000). "South Park Rally – Nintendo 64". Game Informer (FuncoLand) (84). https://www.gameinformer.com/reviews/review_detail.cfm?ITEM_ID=4959. Retrieved November 21, 2013.
- ↑ McNamara, Andy (March 2000). "South Park Rally - PlayStation". Game Informer (FuncoLand) (83). https://www.gameinformer.com/reviews/review_detail.cfm?ITEM_ID=4643. Retrieved November 21, 2013.
- ↑ Mylonas, Eric "ECM"; Ngo, George "Eggo"; Weitzner, Jason "Fury" (May 2000). "South Park Rally (N64)". GameFan (Shinno Media) 8 (5): 14. https://archive.org/details/Gamefan_Vol_8_Issue_05/page/n15/mode/2up. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ↑ "REVIEW for South Park Rally (PS)". GameFan (Shinno Media). January 6, 2000.
- ↑ G-Wok (August 2000). "South Park Rally Review (DC)". CraveOnline. https://www.gamerevolution.com/review/32289-south-park-rally-review.
- ↑ Gabe (February 2000). "South Park Rally – PC Review". CraveOnline. https://www.gamerevolution.com/review/33012-south-park-rally-review-2.
- ↑ MacDonald, Ryan (July 7, 2000). "South Park Rally Review (DC)". CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/south-park-rally-review/1900-2600320/.
- ↑ MacDonald, Ryan (March 1, 2000). "South Park Rally Review (N64)". CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/south-park-rally-review/1900-2545248/.
- ↑ Kasavin, Greg (January 31, 2000). "South Park Rally Review (PC)". CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/south-park-rally-review/1900-2533148/.
- ↑ MacDonald, Ryan (January 13, 2000). "South Park Rally Review (PS)". CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/south-park-rally-review/1900-2545248/.
- ↑ Mad Carl (July 24, 2000). "South Park Rally". IGN Entertainment. http://www.planetdreamcast.com/games/reviews/southparkrally/.
- ↑ Dunham, Jeremy (July 6, 2000). "South Park Rally Review (DC)". Ziff Davis. https://www.ign.com/articles/2000/07/06/south-park-rally-review.
- ↑ Boulding, Aaron (March 2, 2000). "South Park Rally (N64)". Ziff Davis. https://www.ign.com/articles/2000/03/02/south-park-rally-2.
- ↑ Lopez, Vincent (February 10, 2000). "South Park Rally (PC)". Ziff Davis. https://www.ign.com/articles/2000/02/11/south-park-rally-3.
- ↑ Nix, Marc (January 7, 2000). "South Park Rally (PS)". Ziff Davis. https://www.ign.com/articles/2000/01/07/south-park-rally-5.
- ↑ 36.0 36.1 Lundrigan, Jeff (September 2000). "South Park Rally (DC)". NextGen (Imagine Media) (69): 104. https://archive.org/details/NextGen69Sep2000/page/n107/mode/2up. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ↑ 37.0 37.1 Orlando, Greg (March 2000). "South Park Rally (N64)". NextGen (Imagine Media) (63): 89. https://archive.org/details/NextGen63Mar2000/page/n89/mode/2up. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ↑ "South Park Rally". Nintendo Power (Nintendo of America) 130: 122. March 2000. https://archive.org/details/nintendo-power-issue-130-march-2000/page/n131/mode/2up.
- ↑ MacDonald, Mark (February 2000). "South Park Rally". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine (Ziff Davis) 3 (5): 93. https://archive.org/details/Official_U.S._Playstation_Magazine_Issue_29_February_2000/page/n91/mode/2up. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ↑ Osborn, Chuck (April 2000). "South Park Rally". PC Accelerator (Imagine Media) (20): 82. https://archive.org/details/PCXL20Apr2000/page/n85/mode/2up. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ↑ Williams, Jeremy (April 2000). "South Park Rally". PC Gamer (Imagine Media) 7 (4): 107. https://archive.org/details/PCGamer_April_2000/page/32/mode/2up. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ↑ Green, Mark (February 2000). "South Park Rally". N64 Magazine (Future Publishing) (38): 54–58. https://archive.org/details/n64magazineukcollection/N64%20Magazine%2038%20-%20February%202000%20(UK)%20(preliminary%20version)/page/n53/mode/2up.
- ↑ Giacobbi, Kevin "BIFF" (February 6, 2000). "South Park Rally (PC)". https://www.gamezone.com/gzreviews/r13256.htm.
- ↑ Shea, Cam (March 2000). "South Park Rally (PS)". Hyper (Next Media Pty Ltd) (77): 77. https://archive.org/details/hyper-077/page/76/mode/2up. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ↑ Lou Gubrious (March 2000). "South Park Rally Review for PlayStation on GamePro.com". GamePro (IDG Entertainment) (138). http://gamepro.com/sony/psx/games/reviews/4300.shtml. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ↑ The Freshman (March 16, 2000). "South Park Rally Review for N64 on GamePro.com". GamePro (IDG Entertainment). http://gamepro.com/nintendo/n64/games/reviews/5004.shtml. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ↑ Ottoson, Joe. "South Park Rally (N64) – Review". All Media Network. http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=19975&tab=review.
- ↑ Nguyen, Cal. "South Park Rally (PC) – Review". All Media Network. http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=20904&tab=review.
- ↑ Bauman, Steve (February 15, 2000). "South Park Rally". Strategy Plus, Inc.. http://www.cdmag.com/articles/026/068/southp_review.html.
External links
- 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

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
- ↑ 1.0 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/.
- ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/.
- ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1.
- ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
- ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/.
- ↑ 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.
- ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media.
- ↑ 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.
- ↑ 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.
- ↑ "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.
- ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games.
- ↑ "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/.
- ↑ "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/.
- ↑ 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/.
- ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/.
- ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames.
- ↑ "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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