Software:The Legend of Alon D'ar

From HandWiki
The Legend of Alon D'ar
Developer(s)Stormfront Studios
Publisher(s)Ubi Soft
Writer(s)Christy Marx
EngineStormfront Studios
Platform(s)PlayStation 2
Release
  • NA: December 4, 2001
Genre(s)Action role-playing game
Mode(s)Single-player, Multiplayer

The Legend of Alon D'ar is an action role-playing game developed by Stormfront Studios and published by Ubisoft for PlayStation 2 in 2001.

Gameplay

The game plays somewhat like the Final Fantasy series' Active Time Battle, with the player having to wait certain time for their turn. What makes this system different from ATB is that actions take different amounts of time based on the weapon or ability used, for example an axe will need more time than a dagger to attack. Different weapons can be improved by spending experience points as save stones to level up traits unique to that class of weapon, such as speed, damage and block. New traits must be bought with gold at certain save stones. Each trait can be leveled up 6 times and once all traits are maxed out, one extra level is unlocked to make that weapon more devastating.

Weapons, items, and spells must be equipped to a character in order to be used in (and in the case of items and certain spells outside) of battle, ten slots in total. Each character also has a unique ability that is always equipped to the bottom of the list. There are also 4 armor and accessory slots for each character. The game features a vast world to explore; there are several towns and a variety of monsters to combat. The game also features multi-player experience after unlocking the second character in the story.

There are several types of spells like Water, Earth, Sound etc. that are stored in Orbs. These Orbs can be leveled up to unlock more spells or make the unlocked ones more powerful. As with weapons, the player can spend points to unlock new spells for each element or to upgrade existing spells. Spells are always cast automatically but can leave a character vulnerable to attack.

Plot

The plot revolves around the main character Jarik. At the start of the game, his village is attacked and his home burned to the ground. The attacking force appears to be an army of Dagani, but Jarik alone realizes that they are actually shapeshifters taking the form of Dagani so they may incite a war between them and the humans. After a strange vision, an odd mark is burned into his hand, which the village elder identifies as a mystic sigil. Jarik sets out to discover the origin of this symbol and prevent war from destroying his homeland. In his travels he strikes up an uneasy partnership with the mistrusting Dagani Tahir and after helping Tahir set the soul of his brother to rest, the two eventually grow to a deep trust. Soon after Jarik is visited by the spirits of heroes past and learns that the mystic sigil gives him the power to transform into the terrifying Juggernaut. They continue the fight to the Kemerarr Highlands where they meet the outcast Tylonee and her dragon guardian Yi. Tylonee agrees to join the party in the hopes of vanquishing a great evil so she can be forgiven for her crimes and return to her homeland. The final member of the crew is Sundeep, a mage and a member of the lizard-like Sarojin. The team saves him from a dark cave where he was held captive, as Sarojin become weaker the longer they don't bask in sunlight. Freeing him allows the team to use his ability to teleport to previous areas.

Critical reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic43/100[1]
Review scores
PublicationScore
Game Informer5/10[2]
GameSpot3.5/10[3]
GameSpy35%[4]
GameZone4.5/10[5]
IGN4.3/10[6]
Next GenerationStarStar[7]
OPM (US)StarHalf star[8]

The game received "generally unfavorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[1] Jeff Lundrigan of Next Generation said, "Few things are more tedious than a 'sprawling RPG' without any real wit, style, or engaging characters. But Alon D'ar is just such a beast."[7]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "The Legend of Alon D'ar for PlayStation 2 Reviews". CBS Interactive. https://www.metacritic.com/game/the-legend-of-alon-dar/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation-2. 
  2. ↑ Kato, Matthew (March 2002). "The Legend of Alon D'ar". Game Informer (FuncoLand) (107): 79. http://www.gameinformer.com/Games/Review/200203/R03.0801.1201.36983.htm?CS_pid=280291. Retrieved June 18, 2020. 
  3. ↑ Villoria, Gerald (December 19, 2001). "[The Legend of Alon D'ar Review"]. CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/legend-of-alon-dar-review/1900-2833881/. 
  4. ↑ Tutterrow, Barak (December 23, 2001). "The Legend of Alon D'ar". IGN Entertainment. http://www.planetps2.com/features/reviews/2001/legendofalondar/. 
  5. ↑ The Badger (December 21, 2001). "Legend of Alon D'Ar [sic Review"]. http://ps2.gamezone.com/gzreviews/r17603.htm. 
  6. ↑ Zdyrko, David (December 20, 2001). "The Legend of Alon D'ar". Ziff Davis. https://www.ign.com/articles/2001/12/21/the-legend-of-alon-dar. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Lundrigan, Jeff (December 2001). "The Legend of Alon D'ar". Next Generation (Imagine Media) (84): 108. https://archive.org/details/NextGen84Dec2001/page/n109/mode/2up. Retrieved June 18, 2020. 
  8. ↑ "The Legend of Alon D'ar". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine (Ziff Davis) (54): 108. March 2002. 
  • 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

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]

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. ↑ 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. 
  18. ↑ "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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