Software:Treasure Mountain!

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Treasure Mountain!
Developer(s)The Learning Company
Publisher(s)The Learning Company
Platform(s)DOS, Windows, Macintosh
Release
Genre(s)Educational, adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Treasure Mountain! is an educational video game published by The Learning Company in 1990[1] for DOS, Windows and Macintosh. It teaches children aged five to nine reading, basic math, and logic skills.[1] Treasure Mountain is the third installment of the Super Seekers series.

Synopsis

Setting

Treasure Mountain! as well as the other "Treasure" games in the Super Seekers games, take place in a magical realm called Treasureland. The game takes place on a mountain called "Treasure Mountain". Treasure MathStorm!, a later release, takes place on the same mountain.

Plot

As the game opens, the Master of Mischief, a common antagonist of The Learning Company's Super Seekers games, steals the kingdom's crown and hides all of the castle's treasures. The player takes on the role of the Super Seeker once again, whose job is to find the treasures and remove the Master of Mischief from the throne.

Gameplay

The objective of Treasure Mountain! is to find the hidden treasures and return them to the chest in the castle at the top of the mountain.[2]

The mountain consists of three levels. Players cannot climb higher until they have found the key to unlock the next level. To find the key, players must get clues about its location by answering elves' riddles. When players use a net to capture an elf carrying a scroll and answer the riddle correctly, they will receive a clue consisting of a number, shape, or description about where the key to the next level is hidden, as well as any magical coins the elf is carrying.[3]

In the background, there are several groups of objects that have characteristics that can be matched to the clues. Players may search behind these objects by dropping a magic coin. If the objects match all three clues, the key to the next level will appear. If the objects match only two out of the three clues, one of the stolen treasures will be revealed.

After players find the key on each of the three levels of the mountain, they can enter the castle. At this point, players must climb up a maze of ladders, avoiding the Master of Mischief. When players reach the top, they deposit all treasures found into the castle's treasure chest and are given a prize - one of the treasures discovered during the game - as a reward for completing the three stages. This prize is kept on display in the clubhouse, showing how many times players have ascended the mountain. From this point, players may exit the clubhouse and start again from the bottom of the mountain.[3]

When a certain number of treasures have been deposited into the castle's treasure chest, players will go up a star rank. At higher ranks, the game becomes more difficult, as there will be more treasures to find, harder riddles to answer, and elves that steal magical coins by using elf dust.

Development

Treasure series

Treasure Mountain! is the first of four games in The Learning Company's "Treasure" series along with Treasure Cove!, Treasure MathStorm!, and Treasure Galaxy!. The "Treasure" series is a subgroup of the company's Super Seekers games. All the games in this series are math and reading comprehension oriented educational adventure games aimed at younger children. Games in the treasure series all have the same three stage gameplay format where a special object, whose location can be deduced by answering questions, is needed to reach the next stage.[1]

Music

In lieu of original musical scores, Treasure Mountain! employs a number of classical pieces as background music. The music heard in the game's introduction is Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach's "Solfeggietto".[4] The theme heard in the outdoor levels is a combination of two of Beethoven's contredanses,[4] WoO 14: No.1 and WoO 14: No.3.[nb 1] The theme heard in caves comes from the first movement of J. S. Bach's Keyboard Concerto no. 1 in D minor.[5] Level Three features the Gigue from J. S. Bach's English Suite No. 4 in F major, BWV 809.

Later versions

In 1994, a version with enhanced sound and graphics was released on CD-ROM.[1] In 1997 an updated version of the game was released on CD-ROM (version 2.0 Mac/2.01 Win) with even better graphics.

Treasure Mountain! was later released in a software bundle package with both Treasure Cove! and Treasure Galaxy! under the name Treasure Trio!. This was one of the first software bundle packages ever sold.[6]

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
AllGameStarStarStarStarHalf star[2]
Abandonia3.0 out of 5[1]
Award
PublicationAward
Home of the UnderdogsTop Dog Award[7]

Treasure Mountain! has received mediocre to positive reviews. Computer Gaming World gave the game four out of five stars, calling it "an easy-to-play, visually appealing, non-violent arcade-style game for beginners" with some reading ability.[8] Lisa Savignano of Allgame gave the game 4.5 stars out of 5 stating that "Treasure Mountain may be somewhat repetitive, but each level will impel the kids to go onward until they finally get all 300 treasures and win the game...the game can be played over and over again".[2] Users at Home of the Underdogs gave Treasure Mountain! the Top Dog Award, an award given to games "(they) feel are severely underrated...to distinguish truly great underdogs from the pack".[9] They gave it a thumbs up, claiming that "children will be captivated by the game's vibrant graphics...They will spend many hours solving puzzles, doing math problems, and looking for hidden treasures-- sharpening their math skills without even realizing it".[7]

Abandonia users gave more mediocre reviews, but said that "collecting toys and getting to the next level can be somewhat addicting".[1]

Notes

  1. ↑ Found by comparing music from gameplay with Beethoven's contredanses

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 guesst. "Super Solvers Treasure Mountain!". "Abandonia. http://www.abandonia.com/en/games/1010/Super+Solvers+-+Treasure+Mountain.html. Retrieved 2011-03-20. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Savignano, Lisa. "Treasure Mountain! Review". Allgame. http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=17768&tab=review. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Super Solvers: Treasure Mountain!". MobyGames. http://www.mobygames.com/game/super-solvers-treasure-mountain. Retrieved 2011-03-20. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 NCF. "On The Music Of Video Games". Kickass Classical Forums. http://forums.kickassclassical.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=665. Retrieved 2011-08-25. 
  5. ↑ "Classical Music You Never Knew You Knew!". Gaia Online. http://www.gaiaonline.com/forum/classical-jazz-blues/classical-music-you-never-knew-you-knew-updated/t.11618824/. Retrieved 2011-03-20. 
  6. ↑ "SoftKey International Makes The Learning Company's 'Super Solvers Super Learning Collection!' and 'Treasure Trio!' Premium Bundles Available to All Retailers". PR Newswire. 1996-09-04. http://www.thefreelibrary.com/SoftKey+International+Makes+The+Learning+Company%27s+%27Super+Solvers...-a018638405. Retrieved 2011-03-27. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Underdogs. "Super Solvers: Treasure Mountain". Home of the Underdogs. http://www.homeoftheunderdogs.net/game.php?name=Super%20Solvers:%20Treasure%20Mountain. Retrieved 2011-03-22. 
  8. ↑ Ackelson, Caitlin (June 1991). "Kaptivating Komputer Games Katch Kids' Imaginations". Computer Gaming World: 82. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1991&pub=2&id=83. Retrieved 17 November 2013. 
  9. ↑ "Home of the Underdogs FAQ". Home of the Underdogs. http://www.homeoftheunderdogs.net/faq.php#b6. Retrieved 2011-03-27. 
  • 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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