Software:Torin's Passage

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Torin's Passage
Developer(s)Sierra On-Line
Publisher(s)Sierra On-Line
Producer(s)Mark Seibert
Designer(s)Al Lowe
Programmer(s)Rob Kenny
Artist(s)Jim Murphy
Bruce Sharp
Writer(s)Al Lowe
Composer(s)Michel Legrand
Al Lowe
Mark Seibert
Platform(s)MS-DOS, Windows 3.x, Windows 95, Mac
ReleaseOctober 31, 1995
Genre(s)Graphic adventure
Mode(s)Single player

Torin's Passage is a point-and-click adventure game developed and published by Sierra On-Line in 1995. The game was designed by Al Lowe, author of the Leisure Suit Larry series.

Gameplay

Starting area of the game

The player interacts with Torin and the in-game environments using a point-and-click interface. Placing the cursor over certain "hot spots" in the environment allows him to move around, examine things and pick up items. There is also an inventory system used to access the items Torin collects during the course of the game. The player can switch to Torin's pet Boogle as well, although he is mainly used to morph into various items. The items he can morph into replace the items in Torin's inventory. Any item can be viewed as a 3-D model by using the item viewer.

The game has a variety of puzzles, from puzzles involving item collection to sliding puzzles. Points are given after solving puzzles. A hint system is included as an in-game feature, and the player can ask for hints after certain time intervals, at the cost of game points. The specific time interval can be set as an in-game option. The hint system can also be turned off entirely.[1]

Plot

The protagonist of the game is Torin, the son of a farming family on the planet of Strata. An evil sorceress named Lycentia (voiced by Christine McMerdo Wallis) captures his family with a magic spell and he embarks on a quest to find her and free his parents.

Torin travels to the "lands below" to worlds beneath the surface of the nested planet, through colossal crystal columns called phenocrysts. These phenocrysts transfer life-giving sunlight—and people—to the lower worlds with erresdy powder. He is aided by a purple dog-like creature called Boogle, who is able to change himself into a variety of shapes.[2] As Torin travels downward, scenes of both his and Lycentia's pasts reveal their true relation as well as Torin learning about his true identity and the true cause for his journey.

Cast

  • Michael Shapiro - Torin, Boogle
  • Frank Corrado - Pecand
  • Christine Wallis - Lycentia

Development

Torin's Passage was designed to be suitable for children, which surprised many of the fans of its designer, who was known for making rather "adult" games. In an interview Al Lowe stated: "I think many people misunderstood Torin's Passage, however. It was designed for a parent to share with a child, because I wanted a game that Megan (my then 11-year-old daughter) and I could play together."[3] Al Lowe states on his official website that he wrote Torin's Passage in 1994 after seeing the film Mrs. Doubtfire with his daughter. He states that while watching the film, he realized that the audience was laughing in two different pitches: "high little giggles when the kids laughed at the slapstick parts of the film, and deep knowing guffaws when the adults caught something that they knew the kids wouldn't get." Lowe thought, "Why isn't there a computer game that my 9-year-old daughter and I could play that works like that?"[4] Lowe's daughter would take a small role in the development of the game, designing the maze puzzle seen late in the game.[5] The game was intended to be the first in a series of five games but no sequels were made due to market conditions and the departure of Sierra's founder Ken Williams. The second game would have been about Torin marrying Princess Leenah and becoming the king of the Lands Above, the third one would have involved a rebellion against Torin's rule, the fourth game would have centered on Torin's sons fighting for their right to be the heir, and the fifth installment would have focused on Torin's death and his heir assuming the throne.[6]

The game's developers included a variety of easter eggs in the game. Some of the more obvious ones occur near the end of the game. Several characters make cameo appearances at the same time, including Darth Vader, Yoda and Taylor from the original Planet of the Apes film. Hotaru Tomoe, also known as "Sailor Saturn" from Sailor Moon, also makes an appearance. While the other characters were placed in there by the game's background artists, Hotaru was placed in the game by Bryan Wilkinson, an art tech working on the game. There are also various references made to Torin's Passage in a subsequent Al Lowe release, Leisure Suit Larry.[7] The final version also contains some unused content.[8] Some members of the development team who worked on Torin's Passage went on to work for notable companies. Lead animator Jim Murphy went on to work for Pixar and lead background artist Bruce Sharp went on to work for Microsoft.[4][9]

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
CGWStarStarStar[11]
Next GenerationStarStarStarStar[12]
PC Gamer (US)79%[10]
PC PowerPlay5/10[13]
PC MagazineStarStarStarStar[14]
PC GamesA−[15]

According to Al Lowe, Torin's Passage was commercially successful, with sales above 200,000 units by early 1999.[16] However, he noted that the game and Freddy Pharkas "had a reputation as failures at Sierra". The four sequels Al Lowe had hoped to create for Torin's Passage were subsequently never made.[17]

Reviews for the game were generally positive. A reviewer for Next Generation opined "Al Lowe has tried his hand at something other than the naughty Leisure Suit Larry series and surprisingly enough he's not only crafted an entertaining family-oriented adventure, but one full of depth and character." He praised the story, graphics, and humor, though he criticized that the puzzles are difficult enough that, when played with the whole family as intended , children would be left out when leaving the puzzle-solving to their parents.[12] GameSpot's Jeffrey Adam Young lauded the game as an adventure for players of all ages, although he agreed that younger children and novice adventure game players might find some puzzles too difficult. Young also noted that although the game is child-friendly, some of Lowe's characteristic toilet humour remains in the narrative.[18]

Some reviews were less positive. David Wildgoose of PC PowerPlay described the game as a "bog-standard Sierra adventure" with a "sickeningly sentimental" plot, "slick and sterile" graphics, "awkward, incongruous and often downright silly puzzles", and "absolutely no sense of humour whatsoever".[13] Claire Wood from Adventure Gamers called the game "a promising fairy tale that just never breaks through the wall of mediocrity."[1]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Wood, Claire (27 March 2003). "Adventure Gamers: Torin's Passage review". http://www.adventuregamers.com/article/id,221. 
  2. ↑ "Torin's Passage at GameBoomers". http://www.gameboomers.com/reviews/Tt/Torinsbysyd.htm. 
  3. ↑ "verbosity - Leisure Time with Al Lowe". http://verbosity.wiw.org/issue7/allowe.html. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Torin's Passage at Al Lowe's Humor Site". http://www.allowe.com/Torin/index.htm. 
  5. ↑ "Game Trivia for Torin's Passage". MobyGames. http://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/torins-passage/trivia. 
  6. ↑ Lowe, Al. "Torin Graphics". allowe.com. http://www.allowe.com/Torin/graphics.htm. 
  7. ↑ "Torin's Passage Unofficial site: Easter Eggs". http://www25.brinkster.com/akril/Torin/EasterEggs.html. 
  8. ↑ "Torin's Passage Unofficial site: Mysteries". http://www25.brinkster.com/akril/Torin/Mysteries.html. 
  9. ↑ "Game Credits for Torin's Passage". MobyGames. http://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/torins-passage/credits. 
  10. ↑ Wolf, Michael (April 1996). "Torin's Passage". PC Gamer US. http://www.pcgamer.com:80/reviews/1081.html. 
  11. ↑ Ardai, Charles (February 1996). "Kings Quest VIII?". Computer Gaming World (139): 130, 131. 
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Torin's Passage". Next Generation (Imagine Media) (15): 95. March 1996. 
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Wildgoose, David (May 1996). "Torin's Passage". PC PowerPlay (1): 64. https://archive.org/details/PCPowerplay-001-1996-05. 
  14. ↑ Ryan, Michael E. (March 12, 1996). "The Many Paths Toward Adventure; Torin's Passage". PC Magazine. http://www.zdnet.com/pcmag/issues/1505/pcm00091.htm. 
  15. ↑ Brenesal, Barry (April 1996). "Torin's Passage". PC Games. http://www.pcgamesmag.com:80/games/Apr96/torin496.html. 
  16. ↑ Asher, Mark (March 10, 1999). "Game Spin: R.I.P. Leisure Suit Larry". CNET Gamecenter. http://www.gamecenter.com:80/News/Item/0,3,0-2559,00.html. 
  17. ↑ King, Tom (June 30, 1999). "Tom Interviews Al Lowe". Larry Channel. http://larry.adventuregamer.com/allinterview.html. 
  18. ↑ Young, Jeffrey Adam (May 1, 1996). "Torin's Passage review". GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com/pc/adventure/torinspassage/review.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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