Software:The Battle of Olympus

From HandWiki
Short description: 1988 video game
The Battle of Olympus
NES cover art
Developer(s)Infinity
Radical Entertainment (Game Boy)
Publisher(s)
  • EU: Imagineer (Game Boy)
Designer(s)Yukio Horimoto
Programmer(s)Yukio Horimoto
Artist(s)Reiko Oshida
Writer(s)Reiko Oshida
Composer(s)Kazuo Sawa
Paul Wilkinson (Game Boy)
Platform(s)NES, Game Boy
ReleaseNES:
  • JP: March 28, 1988
  • NA: January 1990[1][2]
  • EU: September 26, 1991
Game Boy:
Genre(s)Action role-playing game
Mode(s)Single-player

The Battle of Olympus[lower-alpha 1] is a 1988 action role-playing video game for the Nintendo Entertainment System.[3] It was released in North America in 1990, and released in Europe in 1991. A port for the Game Boy was released.

Plot

The Battle of Olympus takes place in ancient Greece which is being terrorized by Hades, the dark ruler of the underworld.

Helene, the lover of Orpheus, is kidnapped by Hades. A top-down map of Greece shows various dungeons and ancient Greek city-states for the player to visit on their journey. Swords, shields, and crystals help to provide offensive power and defensive strength for the player. Three fragments of love are there to remind Orpheus of his affection for Helene. Hades rules his dominion in Tartarus, where his strongest minions live alongside him.

During his adventure, Orpheus needs to meet the Greek gods and gain their favor, starting with Zeus, the leader of the Olympian gods, who encourages the other gods to grant Orpheus powers. These powers are in the form of a weapon, a shield, and other special equipment, among them a harp, which summons Pegasus to carry Orpheus to far locations. As the game progresses, players are exposed to various forms of upgraded weaponry. The player starts off with a basic wooden club. The player later obtains items such as the Staff of Fennel (also known as a thyrsus, which is able to project a fireball), Nymph's Sword, and the Divine Sword (able to project a lightning bolt).

The game features encounters with mythological creatures such as the Taurus, Lamia, cyclops, centaur, Talos, Minotaur, Graeae, Cerberus, Stymphalian birds, Nemean lion, and also a Siren. Players must fight their way deep into the underworld, fight and defeat Hades, and save Helene. Several items depicted in the Greek mythology are acquired, such as the Harp of Apollo, the Sword of Hephaestus, the Staff of Prometheus, and the Sandals of Hermes.

Gameplay

Screenshot of the game

Primarily a sidescroller with some light platforming, the player is a hero with a sword and shield, while just a handful of secondary items come along later in the game, mostly for the purpose of advancement as the protagonist move to new areas. He can find upgrades to maximize health, protection, and speed. The biggest differences in combat from Zelda II are the lack of the downward stab in midair, and the lack of the sword beam at full health. However, The Battle of Olympus does have a sword later in the game that can shoot beams, but doing so damages the health bar if a certain item is not found first.

The Battle of Olympus is somewhat non-linear; there are also some optional side quests that can make the game easier in the long run, leading to a secret item or power-up from one of the gods.

The final battle brings to the Temple of Hades in fight with the ruler of the underworld in a two-stage event. The first is a blind fight against a shadow reflection, and then the final form is of Hades himself.

Development

The Battle of Olympus was developed by Infinity, and was the first game from the company.[4] The development team for the game was quite small, with only three members. Yukio Horimoto served as designer and programmer.[5] Kazuo Sawa was the composer, and Reiko Oshida, Horimoto's future wife, did story and graphics.[5]

Designer Hoshimoto drew inspiration from Software:Zelda II: The Adventure of Link for gameplay.[5][6] Similarities include a final confrontation with a shadow, similar character abilities, and the general appearance of the game.[7] It was one of several NES games inspired by Zelda II, which also include Moon Crystal.[7]

Release

It was published by Imagineer as "Olympus no Tatakai" and released in Japan on March 28, 1988.[3] In North America, it was published by Broderbund and released in January 1990.[8][2] In Europe, it was published by Nintendo and released in 1991.

The game was ported to the Game Boy by Canadian developer Radical Entertainment in 1993 and published by Imagineer for the European market only.[5]

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
Famitsu28/40[3]
Mean Machines79%[9]
Joypad88%[10]

Japanese game magazine Famitsu gave it a score of 28 out of 40.[3] Reviewers noted similarities between the game and to the earlier game, Software:Zelda II: The Adventure of Link.[3][11]

Notes

  1. ↑ Ai no Densetsu Olympus no Tatakai (愛の伝説 オリュンポスの戦い, "Legend of Love Battle of Olympus")[3]

References

  1. ↑ "Availability Update". Computer Entertainer 8 (10): 22. January 20, 1990. https://retrocdn.net/images/d/d9/ComputerEntertainer_US_Vol.8_10.pdf#page=22. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Pak Source". Nintendo Power (Nintendo of America): 17. March 1990. https://nparchive.wordpress.com/2015/08/26/nintendo-power-11/#jp-carousel-1548. Retrieved 2023-03-10. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 "愛の伝説 オリュンポスの戦い [ファミコン"]. Famitsu (Enterbrain, Inc.). https://www.famitsu.com/cominy/?a=page_h_title&title_id=19703. Retrieved 2018-07-30. 
  4. ↑ "コンピュータ・ゲーム・ソフトウェアの委託開発、移植、企画、制作 ソフトウェアの制作、販売". 2012-07-21. http://www.infinity-soft.co.jp/work2.html. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Parish, Jeremy (6 November 2015). "Legend of Love: The Making of The Battle of Olympus". Gamer Network. http://www.usgamer.net/articles/legend-of-love-the-making-of-the-battle-of-olympus. Retrieved 8 November 2015. 
  6. ↑ "Retrospective: The Battle of Olympus" (in en). Eurogamer.net. https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2010-09-19-retrospective-the-battle-of-olympus-article. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Hidden Gems: The Rest of the NES". 2016-03-05. http://www.1up.com/features/hidden-gems-rest-nes?pager.offset=1. 
  8. ↑ "Availability Update". Computer Entertainer 8 (10): 22. January 20, 1990. https://retrocdn.net/images/d/d9/ComputerEntertainer_US_Vol.8_10.pdf#page=22. 
  9. ↑ "Nintendo Review: Battle of Olympus". Mean Machines (12). September 1991. 
  10. ↑ "Nintendo Tests The Battle of Olympus" (in FR). Joypad (France) (1): 74–75. October 1991. 
  11. ↑ "I Can't Believe It's Not Zelda!". destructoid. https://www.destructoid.com/i-can-t-believe-it-s-not-zelda--215715.phtml. 
  • 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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