Software:The X-Fools

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The X-Fools
Macintosh Cover art
Developer(s)Parroty Interactive
Publisher(s)Palladium Interactive
Director(s)Steven Horowitz
Producer(s)Stacey Rubin
Programmer(s)WayForward
Writer(s)
  • Tony Camin
  • Ian Deitchman
  • J. P. Manoux
  • Kristin Rusk
  • Brian Posehn
  • Patton Oswalt
Composer(s)Chronic Music
Platform(s)Windows, Macintosh
ReleaseOctober 1, 1997[1]
Genre(s)Action
Mode(s)Single-player

The X-Fools: The Spoof Is Out There is an interactive comedic 1997 video game developed by Parroty Interactive. It is a parody of supernatural television series The X-Files, which ran from 1993 to 2018. Released on the Mac and PC, it was the company's third game after Myst parody Pyst, and Star Warped which lampooned Star Wars, and would be followed by Microshaft Winblows 98, a parody of Microsoft Windows 98.[2] The game was distributed throughout North America by Mindscape.[3]

Plot and gameplay

The game centres around two ex-FBI agents and skeptics named Mully and Scudder (parodies of X-Files protagonists Scully and Mulder) who encourage the player to undergo training as a new recruit. As such, the player is "subjected to a deprogramming regimen" according to Business Wire , which consists of a series of games, quizzes, and skits.[3] The gameplay experience is essentially a series of minigames thematically linked to the television show The X-Files. For instance, Conspiracy Computer sees the protagonists analyse popular conspiracies, and Run, Agent, Run! sees the player evade aliens and villains from The X-Files.[4] Kill Screen described the style of the game as "distractionware" and an "interactive MAD Magazine."[5]

Development

Palladium's vice president of marketing, Rob Halligan, explained that the success of Pyst paved the way for The X-Fools,[6] and noted that the game was being released at a time rife with interest in the supernatural: the news was buzzing with the 50th anniversary of the Roswell incident, the Mars Pathfinder mission, and the impending premiere of the fifth season of The X-Files.[3] Artist Tom Richmond, who had an ongoing professional relationship with Parroty Interactive, provided some of the game's illustrations.[7] Michael Donovan did voice work for the game.[8]

Release and promotion

The game's official website went live on September 16, 1997, and allowed players to access additional content, while providing a free demo for those yet to purchase the title.[9] The website held a "Conspiracy Quest Contest" from October 31, 1997 to July 17, 1998[10] where players solved riddles relating to the concurrently airing fifth season of The X-Files,[11] with prizes (a digital camera, 2,000 acre real estate plot on Mars, and a Palladium Gift Pack) being awarded to multiple winners.[12] It also allowed players to send "X-cards",[13] and offered players the opportunity send in X-Files questions for the developers to include in the title's trivia minigame entitled Trust No One.[14] Game modules from The X-Fools were added as bonus features on the Special Edition of Pyst in October 1997.[6] The X-Fools uses Shockwave as its game engine.[15]

The game received mixed reviews from critics upon release; Positive reviews from MacHome's Tamara Stafford and Roy Bassave of The Seattle Times suggested fans of the original series would enjoy The X-Fools.[16][4] Detractors included PC Gamer's Richard Cobbett, who negatively compared the game to Parroty's previous title Microshaft Winblows 98 (1998);[2] and Wojciech Kotas of The Mac Gamer's Ledge, which found The X-Files' self-referential humor better than the "lukewarm," limited, and uninspired parody of the game.[17] In 2011, The Sydney Morning Herald ranked the game 79th on its Re-Play: 100 worst games ever list, writing that it "couldn't be unfunnier".[18]

References

  1. ↑ Staff (October 1, 1997). "X-Files Spoof on CD-ROM". http://www.pcgamer.com/news/news-1997-09-29.html. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Cobbett, Richard (February 5, 2011). "Saturday Crapshoot: Microshaft Winblows 98" (in en). PC Gamer. http://www.pcgamer.com/saturday-crapshoot-microshaft-winblows-98/. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Naify, Robert (October 1, 1997). "Newest Parody – The X-Fools – Takes Comical Look At Little Green Men And Government Cover-ups.". https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Newest+Parody+--+The+X-Fools+--+Takes+Comical+Look+At+Little+Green...-a019801945. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Bassave, Roy (November 9, 1997). "CD-Rom – The X-Fools". http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=19971109&slug=2571389. 
  5. ↑ Kotzer, Zack (December 16, 2015). "A few things I learned from the late-90s game about nerds, Star Warped" (in en-US). Kill Screen. https://killscreen.com/articles/a-few-things-i-learned-from-the-late-90s-game-about-nerds-star-warped/. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Naify, Robert (October 21, 1997). "Parroty Interactive Launches PYST Special Edition; New Special Edition of PYST Includes a Module of Driven, a Sneak Peak Parody of the Eagerly Anticipated Riven – Sequel to MYST.". https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Parroty+Interactive+Launches+PYST+Special+Edition;+New+Special...-a019903274. 
  7. ↑ Richmond, Tom (October 27, 2016). "Illustration Throwback Thursday- Star Warped!". http://www.tomrichmond.com/2016/10/27/illustration-throwback-thursday-star-warped/. 
  8. ↑ Donovan, Michael (2000). "Main Page". http://adamrulz.com/botsmaster/genesix.html. 
  9. ↑ (in en) Spy. Sussex Publishers, LLC. March 1998. https://books.google.com/books?id=24tXv1nFv40C&dq=%22The+X-Fools%22&pg=PA39. 
  10. ↑ "Conspiracy Quest Official Rules". June 29, 1998. http://www.xfools.com/XFOOLS/ConspiracyQuest/contestlegal.html. 
  11. ↑ "Conspiracy Quest". June 29, 1998. http://www.xfools.com/XFOOLS/ConspiracyQuest/conspiracyquest.html. 
  12. ↑ "Conspiracy Quest Winners". March 4, 2000. http://www.xfools.com/XFOOLS/ConspiracyQuest/conspiracyquest.html. 
  13. ↑ "X Cards". March 1, 2000. http://www.xfools.com/XFOOLS/XCards/xcards.html. 
  14. ↑ "Trust No One". November 16, 1999. http://www.xfools.com/XFOOLS/TrustNoOne/submit.html. 
  15. ↑ "X-Fools Abduct This". 29 February 2000. http://www.xfools.com/XFOOLS/AbductThis/abductthis.html. 
  16. ↑ Stafford, Tamara (January 1998). "The X-Fools". http://database.machome.com/action.lasso?-database=reviews&-layout=search&-response=%2Freviews%2Fdetail.html&-recid=33450&-search. 
  17. ↑ Kotas, Wojciech (December 2, 1997). "X-Fools Review". http://macledge.com/Reviews/xfools/xfools.html. 
  18. ↑ "Re-Play: 100 worst games ever" (in en-US). The Sydney Morning Herald. March 17, 2011. http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/games/blog/screenplay/replay-100-worst-games-ever-20110317-1byon.html. 
  • 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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