Overboard!

Overboard!
Developer(s)	Psygnosis
Publisher(s)	Psygnosis
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows, PlayStation
Release	EU: October 1997 NA: 29 October 1997[1]
Genre(s)	Action
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Overboard! (Shipwreckers! in North America) is a top-down adventure game, released by Psygnosis for the PlayStation and Microsoft Windows in October 1997. It employs a light-hearted, all-ages piratical theme. A relatively low-key release for Psygnosis, the game was met with mixed reviews.

The player controls a pirate ship, shown to be crewed by three pirates in cutscenes. In gameplay, when the ship catches on fire the pirates jump overboard until the lifebar becomes empty.

The game is sometimes referred to as a strategy game,^[2] but it is primarily an adventure game. Overboard! also features a multiplayer mode for up to five players (requires the multitap adapter) in which the opponents compete to sink other players’ ships.^[2]

The game was showcased at E3 1997.^[3] The original soundtrack for the game was composed by Stuart Duffield.^[4]

Reception
Aggregate score Aggregator Score GameRankings 66% (PS)[5] Review scores Publication Score EGM 6.25/10 (PS)[6] GameSpot 6.4/10 (PC)[7] 6/10 (PS)[8] IGN 6/10 (PS)[9] Next Generation (PS)[10] The Sydney Morning Herald 4/5[11]

Overboard! received mixed reviews, with its release during a holiday season crowded with highly-rated big budget titles working against it. Next Generation stated that "Ultimately, Shipwreckers! is a fun, quirky title with occasional moments of brilliance. However, with so many other great games out right now, it falls a little short of the mark."^[10] Similarly, IGN concluded that "Shipwreckers! isn't a bad game. The control is solid and the graphics clean, if a bit dated. But with so many other great games out this holiday season (many of them from Psygnosis, actually) there's just no reason to blow $50 on this one."^[9]

On the more positive side, GamePro, while unimpressed by the graphics and sound, recommended the game based on the change of pace offered by its unique gameplay.^[12] Critics overwhelmingly praised the originality of the game's design,^{[6][8][9][10][12]} though Shawn Smith of Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) said it was similar to, and inferior to, the 1993 game The Lost Vikings,^[6] and GameSpot compared it unfavorably to Sid Meier's Pirates!. GameSpot nonetheless deemed it solid enough to be worth buying,^[7] though their separate review for the PlayStation version was negative, saying the lack of variety and depth in the gameplay makes it grow old over the course of the single-player campaign,^[8] a criticism shared by a number of reviewers.^{[6][8][9][10]} However, some reviewers said that the multiplayer mode is the game's strong point, turning it into an intense and addictive party game.^[6][7][10]

Though the graphics as a whole met a mixed response, most critics admitted to being impressed with the transparency effects on the water.^{[8][7][9][10][12]} Reviewers for both GamePro and EGM found the music annoying and run-of-the-mill,^[6][12] though like GamePro, Kraig Kujawa and Shawn Smith both recommended the game, with Kujawa calling it "a cute and original game whose simple play mechanics make it very appealing." Their co-reviewers Crispin Boyer and Kelly Rickards were less enthusiastic, saying that the multiplayer mode makes it worth getting but players should not expect enjoyment out of the single-player mode.^[6]

• 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.

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.

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]

• IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

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