Software:The 3-D Battles of WorldRunner

Short description: 1987 video game

The 3-D Battles of WorldRunner
North American cover art
Developer(s)	Square
Publisher(s)	JP: Disc Original Group (Square) NA: Acclaim Entertainment
Director(s)	Hironobu Sakaguchi
Programmer(s)	Nasir Gebelli
Artist(s)	Kazuko Shibuya
Composer(s)	Nobuo Uematsu
Platform(s)	Family Computer Disk System, Nintendo Entertainment System
Release	Famicom Disk System JP: March 12, 1987 NES NA: September 1987
Genre(s)	Rail shooter, platform
Mode(s)	Single-player

The 3-D Battles of WorldRunner (shortened to 3-D WorldRunner on the North American box art), originally released in Japan as , is a 1987 third-person rail shooter platform video game developed and published by Square for the Family Computer Disk System. It was later ported to cartridge format and published by Acclaim for the Nintendo Entertainment System.

For its time, the game was technically advanced; the game's three-dimensional scrolling effect is very similar to the linescroll effects used by Pole Position and many racing games of the day as well as the forward-scrolling effect of Sega's 1985 third-person rail shooter Space Harrier. 3-D WorldRunner was an early forward-scrolling pseudo-3D third-person platform-action game where players were free to move in any forward-scrolling direction and had to leap over obstacles and chasms. It was also one of the first stereoscopic 3-D games. WorldRunner was designed by Hironobu Sakaguchi and Nasir Gebelli, with music composed by Nobuo Uematsu. All were later core members of the team behind the Final Fantasy role-playing video game series.

Gameplay

WorldRunner battles Menacing Meanies in the first world.

WorldRunner features many sprite-based elements that are typical of a forward-scrolling rail shooter game, where the player focuses on destroying or dodging onscreen enemies against a scrolling background. 3-D WorldRunner incorporates a distinct third-person view, where the camera angle is positioned behind the main character.

As Jack, players make their way through eight worlds, battling hostile alien creatures such as blob monsters and leaping over bottomless canyons. Each world is divided into different quadrants, and the player must pass through each quadrant before the time counter on the bottom of the game screen reaches zero. In each quadrant, the player can find pillar-like columns that house power-ups, objects that are beneficial or add extra abilities to the game character such as temporary invincibility or laser missiles. At the end of each world's last quadrant is a serpentine creature which must be defeated to advance. A status bar at the bottom of the screen displays the player's score, the time counter, the world number, the world quadrant, the number of bonus stars (items that increase the player's score count) collected by the player, and the number of lives remaining.

Because the game is set against a constantly scrolling screen, Jack's movement cannot be stopped, but the player can speed up or slow down Jack's pace. The player is also allowed a degree of limited horizontal movement. When fighting Serpentbeasts at the end of each world, the player is capable of moving Jack freely in all directions. Jack's basic actions consist of jumping, used to dodge canyons and enemies, and firing collectible missiles of various types to destroy enemies.

In this screenshot, the "3D mode" has been activated.
3D red cyan glasses are recommended to view this image correctly.

Part of the appeal and selling point of WorldRunner was its "3D mode". It was the first of three games by Square to feature such an option. To enter or exit 3D mode, players would press the select button. When the 3D mode is enabled, the game uses computer image processing techniques to combine images from two slightly different viewpoints into a single image in a process known as anaglyph 3D. While North American copies of the game included a pair of 3D glasses for players to view the effect, such glasses were sold separately from Japanese copies.

Plot

Players assume the role of Jack the WorldRunner, a wild "space cowboy" on a mission to save various planets overrun by serpentine beasts. The game takes place in Solar System #517, which is being overrun by a race of aliens known as Serpentbeasts, who are led by the evil Grax. As WorldRunner, the player must battle through eight planets to find and destroy Grax with fireballs.

Development

In a 1999 interview with NextGeneration magazine, Sakaguchi admitted that he "liked Space Harrier", but said that his main reason for the development of the game was that Square owner Masafumi Miyamoto wanted to demonstrate Nasir Gebelli's 3D programming techniques for which he had been hired.

Reception

At the time of release, Cashbox magazine praised the game's visual effects and the variety of enemies and obstacles.

In retrospective reviews, the game had a mixed reception. Game Informer praises the surrealistic landscape and behind the character running capability, but noted that they were not capable of seeing the 3D effect even with the 3D glasses on. Retro Gamer criticized for being a seeming ripoff of Sega's Space Harrier, noting that even the bosses of both games look similar. They did applaud the soundtrack and the bright visuals, comparing the color palette to Fantasy Zone. Vito Gesualdi of Destructoid named it among the "five most notorious videogame ripoffs of all time" in 2013.

Commercially, the game was met with modest success, selling roughly 500,000 copies worldwide. The sales of this game title and other titles from Square at this time were not enough for Square to stay in business, and the company's fortunes only turned around with the release of the first Final Fantasy.

Legacy

JJ: Tobidase Daisakusen Part II (ジェイ ジェイ, Jei Jei) is a Japan-only follow-up to the game released on December 7, 1987, developed by the same team who did the original, but as a regular cart instead of for the Disk System. JJ was one of the few games to utilize the Famicom 3D System, and was Square's last work before the inception of the popular Final Fantasy franchise.

JJ moves at a much faster pace with increased difficulty, plus a more "sinister" art style and use of color. The soundtrack was again composed by Nobuo Uematsu, and each track was made to match the respective track from the first game.

See also

• Space Harrier 3-D

External links

• とびだせ大作戦 | SQUARE ENIX
• ジェイ ジェイ | SQUARE ENIX
• 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. 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". This approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months. 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. A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.

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. 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. 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.

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount. This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign. 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). Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel, and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million. The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager. 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. This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue. Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.

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.

See also

• IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions