Software:Spycraft: The Great Game

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Short description: 1996 video game
Spycraft: The Great Game
Developer(s)Activision
Publisher(s)Activision
Director(s)Ken Berris (live action)
Producer(s)Andrew Goldman
Designer(s)Juan Carlos Coto
Larry Galka
Jeffrey Sullivan
Bruce Onder
Programmer(s)Tom DeSalvo
Artist(s)Gary Brunetti
Wyndham Chow
David Dalzell
Derek Friesenborg
J. Christopher Lopez
Writer(s)James Adams
Composer(s)Jeehun Hwang
Platform(s)MS-DOS, Windows 95, Mac OS
Release
Genre(s)Adventure
Mode(s)Single player

Spycraft: The Great Game is an adventure CD-ROM game published by Activision in 1996. It details the attempted assassination of the President of the United States and the CIA and SVR attempts to save him. Although the game was not approved by either organization, it tends to favour realism due to its coordination with former CIA director William Colby and former KGB Major-General Oleg Kalugin, who also appear in the game as themselves. The game also stars James Karen, Dennis Lipscomb, Joseph Ruskin, Tim De Zarn, Kirk B.R. Woller, Allan Kolman, Chase Masterson and Charles Napier in prominent roles.[2]

Plot

The player plays Thorn, a rookie CIA agent. During training, Thorn receives word that the Russian presidential candidate has been assassinated, and during a live-fire exercise, Thorn's instructor is killed. Thorn learns that a former CIA agent (codenamed "Harmonica") is behind both hits.

After travelling to Moscow, one of the team, Parker, winds up dead at the hands of Harmonica and the other, Lange, is missing. During Thorn's travels, Thorn meets an SVR agent named Yuri Gromchevsky. With his help, Thorn learns that a mercenary agency called "Procat" has been hired to kill the Russian presidential candidate and President Brooks at the signing of the END nuclear treaty. After researching Procat, Thorn heads to London to speak with John Blake, a former MI6 agent who killed the former leader of Procat. It appears that Procat is functioning under the leadership of a new man, codenamed "Mirage". Although he has no idea where Mirage is, Blake provides Thorn with a folder of intelligence on Procat. Names listed in the file include a former FBI agent codenamed "Grendel" (Kirk Woller) and other living and deceased members of Procat.

In Moscow, Thorn heads to an informant's house only to find Lange. Lange sold Parker out to Procat, leaving Thorn with no choice but to kill his former colleague. Thorn learns that there is a mole in the CIA and that a "nuclear pit" has been stolen by members of Procat and is being sold to a former CIA asset and current Punjabi gunrunner/terrorist named "Onyx". Thorn travels to Heidelberg and meets with Onyx, who reveals the pit is being exchanged at a factory that evening. Several options are given to the player: Thorn lets Onyx go, but he warns Grendel, who kills Thorn at the deal; Thorn goes in, guns blazing, killing Grendel and recovering the pit; or Thorn poses as Onyx, taking the pit without gunplay, but Onyx escapes.

After intercepting several transmissions between Mirage and the mole, Thorn heads to Tunisia to intercept them. However, they have clearly been tipped off; only Mirage is there. After killing Mirage's goons, Thorn learns that Mirage is none other than John Blake. Blake gets the jump on Thorn, but his gun jams and Blake is held at gunpoint by Thorn. The player is given the option to kill Blake or let him go. The DCI offers Thorn congratulations either way, noting that they will "take care of Blake".

In a helicopter, Thorn opens Blake's computer, which is rigged to explode. Thorn downloads a portion of the files, then tosses the computer from the helicopter. Thorn uses these files to send a message to the mole to root him out, requesting a meeting at a dacha in Crimea. Thorn's first priority, however, is the president. After returning to Moscow, Thorn hunts down Harmonica and just as he is about to kill the president, Thorn comes to the rescue and finishes Harmonica. The DCI congratulates Thorn but notes the mole is still a threat. Thorn heads off with Yuri to Crimea.

When they get to Crimea, it turns out that it is the retreat for the replacement candidate for the Russian presidency. He is sitting there with his campaign manager, and after Yuri accuses him of hiring Procat, it is revealed that his campaign manager actually did the job. By killing his predecessor, it allowed the candidate to run for presidency, and by killing the president of the United States, the Russians would keep their nuclear arsenal. As Yuri is about to arrest the manager, the mole arrives. It is none other than Thorn's boss, DDO Warhurst. Warhurst betrayed his country because he could not stand the fact that his superior was appointed by the President. Thorn's support officer, Jaimie Seaton, sends a burst of static through Warhurst's earpiece, briefly throwing his aim off and allowing Thorn to shoot Warhurst.

Yuri restrains the manager and the candidate congratulates Thorn on a job well done. Yuri, however, seems intent on throwing the candidate in jail. Because the candidate is ahead in the polls and now supports the END treaty, it is Thorn's job to protect him. There are two final options presented to the player:

  1. Shoot Yuri. Thorn gets a medal back at home and a vacation in Fiji. The Russian elections go smoothly and the new candidate seems intent on forging a good relationship with the U.S.
  2. Do not shoot Yuri. Although this is easier on the player's conscience, Thorn is fired when he returns home for refusing to follow orders. Meanwhile, in Russia, chaos ensues and the old President declares martial law and seals himself off from the U.S.

If Thorn fails to recover the nuclear pit, the final scene is marred by a catastrophic nuclear explosion.

Gameplay

The PDA interface

The game's narrative follows a linear path, pausing between interstitial movie-like videos featuring various protagonists, at which point the player is required to solve puzzles and challenges. The linear path splits in the game's final scenes, providing two alternative endings.

Development

Spycraft was developed on a budget in excess of $3 million.[3] It was promoted in part by an official website with information and daily updates about the game's development and release schedule, which was highly unusual at the time.[4][5] Parts of the game were coded in HTML to enable it to update elements like news reports and character dossiers in real time via the internet.[5] The game's script was written by James Adams, a noted author of non-fiction books on espionage.[5] While Spycraft was still in development it was announced that there would be a home conversion for the Sega Saturn to be released in August 1996 but it was never released.[4][6] In mid-1996, Universal Pictures acquired the license to make a film based on Spycraft.[7] A DVD-ROM version was also announced at COMDEX 1996, becoming one of the first games to make use of the format.[8][9] GOG.com released an emulated version for modern Windows systems in 2012.[10]

In a 2024 documentary by Polygon, producer Ken Berris recalled an on-set incident where one of the extras hired for the full-motion video scenes recognized Kalugin–who was talking to Berris at the time–and confronted the former KGB general for the death of their father.[11]

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
CGSPStarStarStarStar[13]
CGWStarStarStarStarHalf star[14]
Edge8/10[15]
GameSpot7.1/10[16]
Next GenerationStarStarStarStar[18]
PC Gamer (US)89%[19]
PC PowerPlay9/10[22]
PC Zone91/100[20]
PC EntertainmentStarStarStarStar[23]
Award
PublicationAward
Codie awards"Best Adventure/Role-Playing Software Game" (finalist)[24][25]

The game shipped more than 140,000 units worldwide by June 1996.[26]

A Next Generation critic commented of the game, "It's linear. It's packed with FMV. And yet, amazingly, not only does it not suck, it's actually an extremely good game." He praised the well-crafted plot, excellent acting, challenging yet logical puzzles, and the realism invoked by the downloading of current news from the game's website. He found the linearity to be hardly noticeable while playing, and said the game overall is a rare instance of an interactive movie which is both challenging and genuinely enjoyable. He scored it four out of five stars.[18]

The editors of Macworld gave Spycraft their 1996 "Best Multimedia Game" award. Steven Levy of the magazine praised the game's "intricacy and playability", and argued that it is "better than a le Carre novel [at] conveying the dirty tricks and covert actions necessary to be a spook".[17] GameSpot's editors named it the "Best Interactive Movie" and "Best Game That No One Played" of 1996, and called it "an experience that is both intelligent and thrilling."[27]

Spycraft was a finalist for the Computer Game Developers Conference's 1996 "Best Script, Story or Interactive Writing" Spotlight Award,[28] but lost the prize to You Don't Know Jack XL.[29] It was also nominated for Computer Gaming World's "Adventure Game of the Year" and Computer Game Entertainment's "Best Adventure Game" awards,[30] both of which ultimately went to The Pandora Directive.[31][32] However, Spycraft won Computer Gaming World's "Readers' Choice" award in this category.[32]

In 2000, a Computer Games Strategy Plus retrospective summarized Spycraft as an "underrated spy-thriller [that] was one of the best real-world adventures."[33] In 2011, Adventure Gamers named it the 90th-best adventure game ever released.[34]

References

  1. ↑ "Online Gaming Review". 1997-02-27. http://www.ogr.com/news/news0396.html. 
  2. ↑ "Spycraft: The Great Game (Video Game 1996)". https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0240921/reference. 
  3. ↑ Sengstack, Jeff (June 24, 1996). "Activision: Reorganized, Redefined and on the Rebound". NewMedia. http://www.newmedia.com:80/NewMedia/96/09/screens/Activision_Rebound.html. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Spycraft". Sega Saturn Magazine (Emap International Limited) (5): p. 13. March 1996. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Spycraft: The Great Game". Next Generation (Imagine Media) (14): 103. February 1996. 
  6. ↑ "Spycraft - The Great Game Saturn preview". Mean Machines Sega (EMAP) (42): 44–45. April 1996. https://archive.org/details/mean-machines-sega-magazine-42/page/n43/mode/2up. Retrieved 8 August 2022. 
  7. ↑ "Inside Scoop". GamePro (IDG) (96): 20. September 1996. 
  8. ↑ Staff (December 2, 1996). "Activision to Release two DVD-ROM Titles". http://www.pcgamer.com/news/news-1996-12-02.html. 
  9. ↑ The Whizz (September 1997). "DVD: No Escape". GamePro (IDG) (108): 26. 
  10. ↑ "Release: Spycraft: The Great Game, page 1 (forum)". CD Projekt. October 2, 2012. https://www.gog.com/forum/general_archive/release_spycraft_the_great_game/page1. Retrieved August 8, 2022. 
  11. ↑ "The Great Game: The Making of Spycraft | Full Polygon Documentary". 2024-10-10. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFYBsnVfT-w. 
  12. ↑ Gehrs, Scott (May 1996). "Reviews; Spycraft: The Great Game". Computer Game Review. http://www.nuke.com/cgr/reviews/9605/spycraft/spycraft.htm. 
  13. ↑ Bauman, Steve (1996). "Spycraft". Computer Games Strategy Plus. http://www.cdmag.com:80/articles/004/194/spycraft_review.html. 
  14. ↑ Clarkson, Mark (July 1996). "I, Spy". Computer Gaming World (144): 116, 118. 
  15. ↑ "Spycraft". Edge (32): 74. May 1996. https://segaretro.org/index.php?title=File:Edge_UK_032.pdf&page=74. Retrieved July 11, 2021. 
  16. ↑ Hudak, Chris (May 1, 1996). "Spycraft: The Great Game Review". Archived from the original on June 29, 2003. https://web.archive.org/web/20030629103352/https://www.gamespot.com/pc/adventure/spycraftthegreatgame/review.html. Retrieved July 11, 2021. 
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Levy, Steven (January 1997). "1997 Macintosh Game Hall of Fame". Macworld. http://www.macworld.com:80/1997/01/features/3158.html. 
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Spycraft: The Great Game". Next Generation (Imagine Media) (19): 87. July 1996. 
  19. ↑ McDonald, T. Liam (June 1996). "Spycraft: The Great Game". PC Gamer US. http://www.pcgamer.com:80/reviews/984.html. 
  20. ↑ Brooker, Charlie (May 1996). "Spycraft: The Great Game". PC Zone (38): 84–85. https://archive.org/details/PCZONE038/page/n101/mode/2up?q=. Retrieved July 11, 2021. 
  21. ↑ Mooney, Shane (July 1996). "Deep-Thinking Puzzlers for the Adventurous Gamer; Spycraft: The Great Game". PC Magazine 13 (15): 458, 460. 
  22. ↑ Lawrence, Jere (May 1996). "Spycraft: The Great Game". PC PowerPlay (1): 54–55. https://archive.org/details/PCPowerplay-001-1996-05. 
  23. ↑ Mooney, Shane (May 1996). "Spycraft: The Great Game". PC Entertainment. http://www.pcgamesmag.com:80/games/May96/spycraft596.html. 
  24. ↑ "99 Companies Compete for Software Industry's Highest Honors" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: Software Publishers Association. December 4, 1996. Archived from the original on February 10, 1998.
  25. ↑ "SPA Hands Out Coveted Codie Awards To Best Software Products of the Year" (Press release). San Diego: Software Publishers Association. March 3, 1997. Archived from the original on February 10, 1998.
  26. ↑ "Universal gets Colby Spycraft' game". June 5, 1996. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/90817209/the-san-francisco-examiner/. Retrieved August 17, 2021. 
  27. ↑ Staff. "GameSpot 1996 Best & Worst Awards". GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com:80/features/bestworst96/toc.html. 
  28. ↑ Staff (April 15, 1997). "And the Nominees Are...". Next Generation. http://www.next-generation.com:80/news/041597e.chtml. 
  29. ↑ "Spotlight Awards Winners Announced for Best Computer Games of 1996" (Press release). Santa Clara, California: Game Developers Conference. April 28, 1997. Archived from the original on July 3, 2011.
  30. ↑ Staff (April 1997). "Best of the Bunch; Finalists Named for CGW Premier Awards". Computer Gaming World (153): 28, 32. 
  31. ↑ Staff (July 1997). "The Computer Game Entertainment Awards 1996". Computer Game Entertainment (1): 54–58. 
  32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 Staff (May 1997). "The Computer Gaming World 1997 Premier Awards". Computer Gaming World (154): 68–70, 72, 74, 76, 78, 80. 
  33. ↑ Bauman, Steve (January 29, 2000). "10 Essential Graphic Adventures". Computer Games Strategy Plus. http://www.cdmag.com:80/articles/025/186/adventure_feature.html. 
  34. ↑ AG Staff (December 30, 2011). "Top 100 All-Time Adventure Games". Adventure Gamers. http://www.adventuregamers.com/articles/view/18643. 
  • Spycraft: The Great Game on IMDb
  • 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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