Conan (2007 video game)

Short description: 2007 action-adventure game

Conan

Cover art

Developer(s)| Nihilistic Software
Publisher(s)| THQ
Director(s)| Robert Huebner
Designer(s)| Steve Thoms
Artist(s)| Yujin Kiem
Composer(s)| Mike Reagan
Platform(s)|

* PlayStation 3
* Xbox 360

Release|

* EU: September 28, 2007
* AU: October 11, 2007
* NA: October 23, 2007

Genre(s)| Action-adventure, hack and slash
Mode(s)| Single-player

Conan is a 2007 action-adventure game developed by Nihilistic Software and published by THQ for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Players take control of the titular hero, Conan the Barbarian, from Robert E. Howard's fantasy literature.

In Conan, the hero is on a quest to recover his lost armor and defeat an evil wizard. Conan can fight with sword and shield, two-handed weapons, or a weapon in each hand. Starting with several basic attacks, the barbarian gains experience points by killing enemies. By exchanging these points for additional attacks, players improve the hero's fighting abilities. Magic powers complement Conan's arsenal, including the abilities to turn enemies into stone and conjure firestorms. The game also features context-sensitive action sequences in which players press a sequence of buttons displayed on the screen to complete actions such as killing powerful enemies and interacting with the environment.

Critics enjoyed Conan's combat system and gory kills, but said the game failed to match the experience offered in God of War. Reactions varied on the game's depiction of the Conan universe; several critics praised the emulation of Frank Frazetta's famous artwork, but others found the game's graphics drab and of low resolution. Regarding the audio, Golden Globe-winning actor Ron Perlman was both praised and criticized for his voice work as Conan. Composer Mike Reagan received acclaim for the game's music and later gave live performances of the game's soundtrack at Video Games Live shows. Despite the average reviews and commercial success of the Conan franchise, Conan sold poorly and was a financial loss for THQ.

## Contents

* 1 Gameplay
* 2 Plot and setting
* 2.1 Characters
* 2.2 Story
* 3 Development
* 3.1 Visual style
* 3.2 Music
* 4 Reception
* 4.1 Comparisons to God of War
* 4.2 Sales
* 4.3 Mature content
* 5 References
* 6 External links
* 7 Features
* 8 History
* 9 See also
* 10 References
* 11 External links

## Gameplay

Players control Conan the Barbarian from a third-person perspective while attempting to advance through the series of levels that subdivide the game. The gameplay is the same for each level: Conan moves from area to area, fighting groups of enemies until he reaches the end. At the end of certain levels, the barbarian has to fight a more powerful opponent called a boss. Defeating a boss involves a two-stage process: Conan has to inflict heavy damage on the creature and thus trigger an interactive button-pressing sequence that players have to complete to kill the boss. Several cycles of this process are required to defeat most bosses.[1] Besides combat, button-pressing sequences are also used to interact with the environment, such as knocking down obstacles to create passageways, or as parts of platforming sequences in which Conan climbs walls and jumps from ledge to ledge.[2] Players can save their progress by using special stones that are placed throughout the game.

A button to initiate a counterattack is shown on pressing the block button at the correct moment.

Conan starts each level with his default one-handed sword, and can pick up shields and other weapons to switch between three styles of attack: fighting with a one-handed weapon, a two-handed weapon, or a weapon in each hand. Each style features several attacks with names like "Cimmerian Charge" and "Black River Rage". The barbarian can change or stop his attacks at any time,[2] creating many options in combat. When Conan lands a sequence of successive hits on his enemies, he activates his Song of Death, which increases the damage of his attacks for a short time. For defense, Conan can roll under enemy attacks or block them. If the player presses the block button just when an enemy is about to hit the barbarian, an image of a controller button appears on the screen. Pressing the button shown will make Conan execute a gory counterattack, which instantly kills the enemy. Other methods to kill enemies include grabbing and throwing them against other objects, such as spikes and other enemies, or over cliffs.[3]

In addition to physical assaults, Conan can use magic powers to damage enemies. Gaining these powers in later stages of the game, the barbarian can turn opponents into stone, call down fire from the heavens, and summon flocks of ravens to do his bidding.[4] These magical attacks can quickly end fights,[1] but their use is limited by the number of magic points Conan has.[4] When an enemy is killed, colored runes—each one conferring its own special advantage—are released and gathered by the barbarian. Red runes act as experience points, which are exchanged for advanced attacks. Green and blue runes restore Conan's health and magic points, respectively. The barbarian can also obtain runes by breaking containers and freeing maidens from captivity.[5]

## Plot and setting

In Conan, the hero is on a quest to recover his lost armor and defeat an evil wizard. The game takes place in the world of Hyboria, a creation of Robert E. Howard for his stories about Conan the Barbarian. Conan's developer, Nihilistic Software, chose several Hyborian locations, such as Kush, Stygia, and the Barachan Isles, to establish a link to the literary world.[6] Hyboria was designed to be a fantasy version of Earth around 10,000 BC, and its civilizations were based on those from the Stone to Iron Ages. Nihilistic portrayed the plains of Kush, a fictional Africa, as savannahs with villages of straw huts. Stygia was illustrated as a land filled with structures resembling Egyptian tombs and the Barachan Isles as lushly jungled islands.[7]

### Characters

Conan is the protagonist in many of Howard's stories: a franchise has been built around the character, and Frank Frazetta's paintings have further elevated the barbarian's profile in pop culture.[3][8] Howard presented his barbarian hero as a strong, shrewd, barbaric, and ambitious man in a primitive world of magic. His stories are simple and portray Conan overcoming a series of obstacles to defeat the antagonists with his physical prowess.[9] Nihilistic originally intended to stay faithful to the literature,[10] but the writers strayed from the canon by showing the barbarian as willing to use magic. The literary Conan abhors magic, but Nihilistic reasoned that, in order to restore his armor to its original non-magical state, he is willing to use the magic it has been cursed with.[11]

The developers did, however, stay true to the physical depictions of the barbarian. Reflecting how fights are described in the stories, players can kill foes in the goriest manner—dismembering and disemboweling them.[2] Nihilistic wanted to show that the brutal killings are considered natural by Conan and not executed out of a thirst for blood.[6] The inspiration for Conan's moves came from several sources, but mostly from Frazetta's artwork. The animators took several of Conan's poses straight from the paintings and modeled his movements after those of the characters in the feature animation Tarzan and the action films Troy and Ong Bak.[2][12] The names of several fighting techniques such as "Gwahlur's Leap", "Bel's Gambit", and "Camel Punch" were also based on names and events from the Conan stories and films.[2][3] To garner extra publicity, the publisher THQ hired Golden Globe-winning actor Ron Perlman to provide the voice for Conan.[13]

Typical Conan stories by Howard featured leading females who were occasionally damsels in distress. However, they were also strong and fearless women who would rescue the hero at crucial moments.[14] Nihilistic cast the game's leading female character, A'kanna, in this mold;[10] the warrior queen and Conan aid each other in several parts of the game. By contrast, there are topless, chained-up women scattered across the game's levels. However, these are in the game only because of the developer's belief that nudity was integral to a Conan story.[15] Showing their breasts and acting in a burlesque manner,[4] these damsels-in-distress reward players with red runes when rescued.[16][17]

### Story

Howard's short story, "Queen of the Black Coast", served as the inspiration for the game's plot.[6] In the short story, Conan has a brief romance with Bêlit, a pirate queen. Near the end of the story a demonic creature kills Bêlit and Conan seeks revenge. The creature, however, is stronger than Conan, overpowers him, and is about to kill him when Bêlit's spirit startles it and inspires Conan to kill the beast. The game's story follows a similar theme with A'kanna in the role of Bêlit. Told as a campfire story, cut scenes—in the form of static artwork or animation rendered by the game engine—open and close each level with narratives from an elderly A'kanna.[4]

The story starts at Parad Isle where Conan is raiding a tomb. Instead of finding treasure, he unknowingly frees Graven, a wizard who had been confined in a magical prison for his transgressions. Showing no gratitude, the wizard curses Conan's armor, scatters it across the world, and teleports the barbarian away. Vowing to retrieve his armor,[4] Conan meets A'kanna while he is fighting through a pirate base. Teaming up with the barbarian to find his armor, the warrior queen hopes to use its magic to end the curse—the Black Death—that is causing her people to kill each other.[18] Their quest leads players through several locations and boss creatures such as dragons, undead elephants, and krakens. Flashbacks are shown when retrieving a piece of armor after killing certain bosses; these back-stories tell of Graven's imprisonment of the gods,[19] his plan to sacrifice his daughter A'kanna,[20] and his creation of the Black Death to transform the world to his liking.[21]

In the last level, Conan has retrieved all his armor and returns to Parad Isle to rescue A'kanna from her father. After a long boss fight and several button-pressing sequences, Conan slays the wizard at the bottom of the ocean. Graven's defeat frees the gods he had imprisoned, and they bring him back to life for eternal punishment.[19] The story ends with the separation of the barbarian and the warrior queen. Conan goes on to fulfill his destiny to be a king as written in Howard's stories. A'kanna, however, grows old in a village, telling stories to children and never forgetting Conan.[22]

## Development

The artwork in the game, such as the environment of Kush, was conceived as oil paintings (upper image) and created as digital images (lower image).

In 2005, THQ acquired the rights to produce a series of video games featuring Conan the Barbarian and the world of Hyboria.[23] This news came to the attention of Nihilistic Software who had just completed the action game Marvel Nemesis. The video game developer was looking to develop an action game similar to God of War for its next project and saw the world of Conan as a good setting. The team quickly built a prototype to demonstrate its concept to THQ and received approval for the project.[24] The video game publisher officially announced the game to the industry on February 26, 2007.[25]

Nihilistic decided to use the features of other action games for Conan. While God of War was its inspiration for the camera system, Ninja Gaiden was a great influence on the combat engine. The team wanted to emulate the complexity of Ninja Gaiden's combat system, with many attacking options and an equal emphasis on being alert to the actions of enemies.[10] Nihilistic also wanted the game to appeal to button mashing players as well as those who want to control their character with finesse. In addition, it designed the game to increase the frequency and difficulty of encounters as players advance through the levels.[26]

Conan was developed to be released on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3. Although the architectures of the two consoles were very different, Nihilistic designed its product to perform equally on both of them, using force feedback and motion sensing to enhance the playing experience.[2] Conan was originally scheduled for an early 2008 release, but was brought forward to the second half of 2007 because of THQ's poor performance in that fiscal year.[27][28] After the game was released in Europe, Nihilistic made demos of the game available for downloading over Xbox Live and PlayStation Network.[29]

### Visual style

The appearance of Howard's Conan and Hyboria in the popular imagination owes much to Frazetta's distinctive oil paintings.[3][8] While Nihilistic's writers tried to tell a story in Howard's style, its artists attempted to emulate Frazetta's style on the electronic display screen.[12] Instead of making each computer representation as realistic as possible, they created models based mainly on their perception of each object's intrinsic nature. The artists used video graphics technology such as normal mapping technique to emulate brush strokes on the models' textures. These digital brush strokes were visible on the cliffs in the game.[3][12][16] The character models were outlined with light colors instead of dark ones, creating the subtle blend of object and background found in oil paintings, and fog effects allowed the team to recreate Frazetta's use of shadows in the middle area of the image. To complete the game's appearance, the artists used darker color palettes, motifs, and themes to present a more serious mood, in harmony with the gore and nudity in the game.[12]

### Music

Mike Reagan, a music composer noted for his work in video games such as Darkwatch and God of War, was hired by THQ to write the music for Conan. To begin, he wanted to compose simple but powerful melodies, and looked to Basil Poledouris's score for the 1982 film Conan the Barbarian for inspiration. As Reagan played development copies of the game, he was influenced by two other works: Igor Stravinsky's barbaric and sensual ballet music The Rite of Spring,[30][31] and Bernard Hermann's score from the 1958 action film The 7th Voyage of Sinbad. Each week, Nihilistic and Reagan updated each other with copies of their work-in-progress, synchronizing their efforts. Reagan also studied with noted percussion artists Denny Seiwell, Emil Richards, and Michael Duffy to gain further insight on the use of drums to accompany the game's bloody and violent plot. After mastering the soundtrack, he brought the music of Conan to an October 2007 Video Games Live show, performing it live in Los Angeles , United States .[32][33][34]

## Reception

Reception

| Review scores

Publication| Score
PS3| Xbox 360
Destructoid| N/A| 4/10[35]
Edge| N/A| 7/10[36]
EGM| 5.5/10[37]| 5.5/10[37]
Eurogamer| N/A| 7/10[38]
Game Informer| 7/10[39]| 7/10[39]
GamePro| 4/5[40]| 3.75/5[41]
GameRevolution| C+[42]| C+[42]
GameSpot| 7.5/10[4]| 7.5/10[4]
GameSpy| [43]| [44]
GameTrailers| 7/10[45]| 7/10[45]
GameZone| 7/10[46]| 6/10[47]
IGN| (UK) 7.5/10[48]
(US) 6.7/10[1]| (UK) 7.5/10[48]
(US) 6.7/10[1]
OXM (US)| N/A| 6.5/10[49]
PSM| 7.5/10[50]| N/A
411Mania| 7/10[51]| 7.5/10[52]
Aggregate score
Metacritic| 69/100[53]| 69/100[54]

Conan received "average" reviews on both platforms according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[53][54] Most critics agreed that the game's best selling point was its variety in combat.[1][44][55][48] They had a lot of fun with its easy-to-learn controls, skill customization,[5] and most of all, the varied brutal depictions of Conan's kills.[4][48][39] TeamXbox said the combat system "blossoms into a complex string of commands that will reward the user (with gore) for pressing the right buttons at the right time".[56] The pounding, militaristic orchestra tunes accompanying the action further enhanced the critics' experience with the game.[4][39]

In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of all four sevens for a total of 28 out of 40,[57] while Famitsu Xbox 360 gave its Xbox 360 version a score of one six, two fives, and one six for a total of 22 out of 40.[58]

Critics had mixed opinions about three prominent features of the game: voice acting, artwork, and faithfulness to Howard's writings. Perlman earned acclaim for his vocal performance and gravely voice that matched the game's dialogue,[38][59] but he also received criticism for not sounding like a barbarian.[4] A few applauded Nihilistic for capturing the oil painting feel of Frazetta's art,[38][60] but several others said the graphics consisted of drab-looking environments that were jagged-edged and pixelated when zoomed in.[4][48][59] Although the animations were rated to be smooth and vivid, the lack of variety among enemy character models was criticized.[38] Several critics also praised Nihilistic for recreating the atmosphere of Howard's stories.[38][55][39] The decision to have Conan use magic was, however, called a "blasphemy" by IGN.[1] G4 Canada disagreed and forgave the game on the grounds that it was mostly faithful to the books.[18] Ray Huling of The Escapist said the game's developers misunderstood Conan's appeal to the masses. In the journalist's opinion, Howard's depiction of Conan's brutal physical nature called attention to the dull nature of their lives and offered them a temporary escape. Furthermore, Huling said that Nihilistic used the characteristics of Conan for superficial purposes and that, in copying the mechanics of another game without any groundbreaking innovations of its own, Nihilistic missed the essence of Howard's stories and created a shell of what its game could have been.[61]

### Comparisons to God of War

Many critics complained that Conan copied many ideas from God of War.[1][44][60] Game Informer referred to this imitation as "[Conan] groveling at Kratos' feet, begging for gameplay wisdom".[39] A few reviewers, however, found this forgivable and said the game was made to be fun without any higher ambitions.[48][36] Conan's camera system irritated several critics for failing to provide an adequate view of the situation at certain critical moments.[5][48] Its puzzles were oversimple and lacked clear directions for proceeding to the next step.[1][4][55][48] The artificial intelligence for the adversaries in the game was found to be predictable and flawed by a few critics.[5][62][38] In addition, they found the final encounter with Graven to be overlong and frustrating. Calling the fight "as painful as a trip to the proctologist", IGN and Game Informer judged it to be one of the worst boss fights in video game history.[1][39]

### Sales

Despite the average reviews and success of Howard's franchise,[63][64] Conan sold poorly and failed to recoup THQ's investment. The publisher publicly announced that the game's poor sales contributed to their United States dollar 20 million write-off in fiscal year 2008.[65]

### Mature content

Although the game's violence was praised by the gaming industry, it was condemned by the National Institute on Media and the Family, which placed Conan on a list of games that parents were urged to avoid buying for their children.[66] Conan's Mature rating from the Entertainment Software Rating Board, largely due to its violent content, made the game a target for a law being pushed in California , United States. Proposed in 2005, the law was intended to regulate sales of Mature-rated games. It was blocked by a legal challenge from the gaming industry in 2007, but California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who played Conan in the 1982 film, appealed the judgment, seeking to ensure that Conan and other games with similar levels of violence would be sold only to those older than 17.[66] On February 20, 2009, his appeal was rejected by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, who ruled that such a restriction violated the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.[67]

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Hilary Goldstein (October 23, 2007). "Conan Review". Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/10/23/conan-review.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 GameSpot staff (June 29, 2007). "Q&A: Conan developer Nihilistic [date mislabeled as "July 3, 2007""]. CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/articles/qanda-conan-developer-nihilistic/1100-6173422/.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Brad Shoemaker (September 7, 2007). "Conan - The Barbaric Preview [date mislabeled as "September 10, 2007""]. CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/articles/conan-the-barbaric-preview/1100-6178402/.
4. ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 Ryan Davis (October 24, 2007). "Conan Review". CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/conan-review/1900-6181674/.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Adam Rosenberg (October 23, 2007). "Conan Review". IGN Entertainment. http://www.ugo.com/ugo/html/article/?id=17952.
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 GameSpot staff (February 28, 2007). "Conan Q&A: Barbarian Influences [date mislabeled as "March 2, 2007""]. CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/articles/conan-qanda-barbarian-influences/1100-6166569/.
7. ↑ Ricardo Torres (March 1, 2007). "Conan First Look [date mislabeled as "March 5, 2007""]. CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/articles/conan-first-look/1100-6166703/.
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Don Herron (August 1984). The Dark Barbarian: The Writings of Robert E. Howard : a Critical Anthology. New England, United States: Greenwood Press. p. 174. ISBN 0-313-23281-4. http://www.barbariankeep.com/darkbarb2.html. Retrieved May 30, 2008.
9. ↑ Santiago Fouz-Hernandez; Alfredo Martinez-Exposito (August 21, 2007). "Muscular Bodies". Live Flesh: The Male Body in Contemporary Spanish Cinema. London, United Kingdom: I.B. Tauris. p. 72. ISBN 978-1-84511-450-3. https://books.google.com/books?id=ewbgDJfT27IC&pg=PA62. Retrieved April 30, 2008.
10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Robert Hubner (2007). "Developer Q&A for GameStop". https://www.gamestop.com/xbox-360/games/conan/65277.
11. ↑ IGN PlayStation Team (September 14, 2007). "Conan Magic Vignette". Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/09/14/conan-magic-vignette.
12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 Gerald Villoria (August 28, 2007). "The Art of Conan". Ziff Davis. http://xbox360.gamespy.com/xbox-360/conan/816481p1.html.
13. ↑ César A. Berardini (September 7, 2007). "Top Talent to Contribute to Development of Conan". IGN Entertainment. http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/14443/Top-Talent-to-Contribute-to-Development-of-Conan/.
14. ↑ Richard Mathews (January 2, 2002). "Darkening Antiquity: Sword and Sorcery". Fantasy: The Liberation of Imagination. Oxon, United Kingdom: Routledge. p. 123. ISBN 0-415-93890-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=xg1jq-IxPBMC&pg=PA118. Retrieved April 30, 2008.
15. ↑ Mike Snider (October 15, 2006). "Conan: The (video) games begin". USA Today (Virginia, United States: Gannett Company). https://www.usatoday.com/life/2007-10-15-conan-games_N.htm.
16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Ryan Clements (September 10, 2007). "Conan Hands-on". Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/09/11/conan-hands-on.
17. ↑ Andrew Podolsky (September 10, 2007). "Conan (Preview; XBOX 360)". Ziff Davis. http://www.1up.com/previews/conan.
18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 John Powell (November 22, 2007). "'Conan' is bloody good fun". G4 Media. http://www.g4techtv.ca/technews/JP/JP_20071122_conan.shtml.
19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Nihilistic Software (September 28, 2007). Conan. THQ. Level/area: Dark Prison. "A'kanna (elderly): The ancient spirits were angry. But not with the men from the cities. They were angry with Graven. The sorcerer had enslaved them and forced them to serve his black desires. Now they were free. And they would exact their revenge. Forever."
20. ↑ Nihilistic Software (September 28, 2007). Conan. THQ. Level/area: Elephant Graveyard. "A'kanna (elderly): He craved immortality ... and he would have it, no matter the price. He slaughtered his children, so that he may live. But not all his children died. One girl escaped ... A'kanna."
21. ↑ Nihilistic Software (September 28, 2007). Conan. THQ. Level/area: Dark Prison. "Graven: The primal gods are angry, Conan. Angry to see what man has done to their world. Civilization is a sickness. I am freeing Man from his fetters. The Black Death liberates the savage within. Surely you understand this."
22. ↑ Nihilistic Software (September 28, 2007). Conan. THQ. Level/area: Dark Prison. "A'kanna (elderly): Conan thought A'Kanna had been lost to the shadow realm that day. But the spirits were merciful. They lifted her to safety. A'kanna lived. But she never saw the Cimmerian again. She thought of him often. She still does."
23. ↑ Tom Bramwell (November 11, 2005). "THQ acquires Conan rights". Gamer Network. https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/news111105thqconan.
24. ↑ Homer (September 7, 2007). "Conan Interview 3". CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/videos/conan-interview-3/2300-6178366/.
25. ↑ Cam Shea (February 26, 2007). "Brutal Hyborian Action Game Confirmed". Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/02/27/brutal-hyborian-action-game-confirmed.
26. ↑ Ellie Gibson (March 15, 2007). "Conan (Preview)". Gamer Network. https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/conan-preview.
27. ↑ Robert Purchese (September 12, 2007). "THQ pulls Conan into Sept". Gamer Network. https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/thq-pulls-conan-into-sept.
28. ↑ Emma Boyes (September 12, 2007). "Conan Crom-ing September 28 in UK [date mislabeled as "September 13, 2007""]. CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/articles/conan-crom-ing-september-28-in-the-uk/1100-6178590/.
29. ↑ GameSpy staff (October 8, 2007). "Conan Demo Released". Ziff Davis. http://xbox360.gamespy.com/xbox-360/conan/825639p1.html.
30. ↑ Lawrence S. Cunningham; John J. Reich (June 1, 2005). "Toward the Modern Era: 1870–1914". Culture And Values. 2 (6 ed.). Connecticut, United States: Thomson Wadsworth. p. 351. ISBN 0-534-58229-X. https://books.google.com/books?id=0Kxk-XtfUVgC&pg=PA325. Retrieved 2008-08-12.
31. ↑ Marianne Williams Tobias (September 2003). "Classical Music Sampler". Classical Music Without Fear. Indiana, United States: Indiana University Press. p. 174. ISBN 0-253-21618-4. https://books.google.com/books?id=QIxCfcSJxHIC&pg=PA107. Retrieved August 12, 2008.
32. ↑ THQ staff (October 1, 2007). "Conan Interview with Mike Reagan". http://www.thq-games.com/au/features/show/3075.
33. ↑ IGN staff (November 21, 2007). "Conan: The Man Behind the Music". Ziff Davis. http://ps3.ign.com/articles/836/836648p1.html.
34. ↑ "VGL Announces Special Guests in LA!!". Mystical Stone Entertainment. October 16, 2007. http://www.videogameslive.com/index.php?story=113.
35. ↑ Jim Sterling (November 15, 2007). "Destructoid review: Conan (Xbox 360)". Enthusiast Gaming. https://www.destructoid.com/destructoid-review-conan-xbox-360--54307.phtml.
36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 Edge staff (December 2007). "Conan (X360)". Edge (Bath, England: Future Publishing) (182): 93. ISSN 1350-1593.
37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 EGM staff (December 2007). "Conan". Electronic Gaming Monthly (Ziff Davis) (222): 104.
38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 38.2 38.3 38.4 38.5 Dan Whitehead (October 2, 2007). "Conan (Xbox 360)". Gamer Network. https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/conan-review.
39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 39.2 39.3 39.4 39.5 39.6 Andrew Reiner (November 2007). "Conan". Game Informer (United States: GameStop) (175). ISSN 1067-6392. http://www.gameinformer.com/NR/exeres/73A1DCB8-C093-412A-9A06-176C985E42A1.htm. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
40. ↑ Andrew Gori (November 28, 2007). "Review: Conan (PS3)". GamePro (IDG Entertainment). http://www.gamepro.com/sony/ps3/games/reviews/150408.shtml. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
41. ↑ Cameron Lewis (October 24, 2007). "Review: Conan (X360)". GamePro (IDG Entertainment). http://www.gamepro.com/microsoft/xbox360/games/reviews/143128.shtml. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
42. ↑ 42.0 42.1 Chris Andrien (November 20, 2007). "Conan Review". CraveOnline. http://www.gamerevolution.com/review/39442-conan-review.
43. ↑ Steve Steinberg (November 7, 2007). "GameSpy: Conan (PC3)". Ziff Davis. http://ps3.gamespy.com/playstation-3/conan/833628p1.html.
44. ↑ 44.0 44.1 44.2 Steve Steinberg (November 7, 2007). "GameSpy: Conan (X360)". Ziff Davis. http://xbox360.gamespy.com/xbox-360/conan/833631p1.html.
45. ↑ 45.0 45.1 "Conan Review". Viacom. October 31, 2007. http://www.gametrailers.com/gamereview.php?id=4475.
46. ↑ Michael Lafferty (October 30, 2007). "Conan - PS3 - Review". https://www.gamezone.com/reviews/conan_ps3_review/.
47. ↑ Steven Hopper (October 29, 2007). "Conan - 360 - Review". https://www.gamezone.com/reviews/conan_360_review/.
48. ↑ 48.0 48.1 48.2 48.3 48.4 48.5 48.6 48.7 Rob Burman (October 4, 2007). "Conan UK Review". Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/10/04/conan-uk-review.
49. ↑ "Conan". Official Xbox Magazine (Future US): 75. December 2007.
50. ↑ "Review: Conan". PSM (Future US): 86. December 2007.
51. ↑ Armando Rodriguez (December 8, 2007). "Conan (PS3) Review". http://www.411mania.com/games/reviews/64795.
52. ↑ Rod Oracheski (December 7, 2007). "Conan (Xbox 360) Review". http://www.411mania.com/games/reviews/64681.
53. ↑ 53.0 53.1 "Conan for PlayStation 3 Reviews". CBS Interactive. https://www.metacritic.com/game/conan-2007/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation-3.
54. ↑ 54.0 54.1 "Conan for Xbox 360 Reviews". CBS Interactive. https://www.metacritic.com/game/conan-2007/critic-reviews/?platform=xbox-360.
55. ↑ 55.0 55.1 55.2 Rob Taylor (October 8, 2007). "Conan". London, England: Future Publishing. http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=173345.
56. ↑ Dale Nardozzi (November 8, 2007). "Conan Review (Xbox 360)". IGN Entertainment. http://reviews.teamxbox.com/xbox-360/1427/Conan/p1/.
57. ↑ "Famitsu score 28/11/07". Gamer Network. November 28, 2007. https://community.eurogamer.net/thread/100675.
58. ↑ "Famitsu Xbox 360 rates Lost Odyssey". November 27, 2007. https://www.neogaf.com/threads/famitsu-xbox-360-rates-lost-odyssey.211709/.
59. ↑ 59.0 59.1 John Gaudiosi (January 18, 2008). "The Barbarian Is Back, Slashing". The Washington Post (Washington, D.C., United States: WP Company): p. 31. ISSN 0190-8286. https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/17/AR2008011700684.html.
60. ↑ 60.0 60.1 Gerald Villoria (July 16, 2007). "Conan (Preview)". Ziff Davis. http://xbox360.gamespy.com/xbox-360/conan/805585p1.html.
61. ↑ Ray Huling (February 19, 2008). "Conan's B-list Problem—And Ours". Defy Media. http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/video-games/issues/issue_137/2942-Conan-s-B-list-Problem-And-Ours.
62. ↑ Matt Leone (October 23, 2007). "Conan (Xbox 360)". Ziff Davis. http://www.1up.com/reviews/conan_2.
63. ↑ Dale E. Rippke (October 25, 2004). "Afterword by Benjamin Szumskyj". The Hyborian Heresies. Virginia, United States: Wild Cat Books. p. 96. ISBN 1-4116-1608-1. https://books.google.com/books?id=cwKnkNJ1U3EC. Retrieved August 6, 2008.
64. ↑ Tim DeForest (May 2004). "Weird Tales: Things That Bump into You in the Night". Storytelling in the Pulps, Comics, and Radio: How Technology Changed Popular Fiction in America. North Carolina, United States: McFarland & Company. p. 53. ISBN 0-7864-1902-4. https://books.google.com/books?id=1xAXWwYchscC&pg=PT50. Retrieved August 6, 2008.
65. ↑ Brandon Boyer (January 24, 2008). "THQ Drops Stuntman, Juiced Franchises, Closes Concrete Studios". UBM plc. https://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=17089.
66. ↑ 66.0 66.1 Steve Geissinger (December 10, 2007). "Video-game 'Conan' too barbaric for governor". The Mercury News (California, United States: Digital First Media). https://www.mercurynews.com/2007/12/10/video-game-conan-too-barbaric-for-governor/.
67. ↑ Brittany Blueitt (February 28, 2009). Anna Lamut. ed. "Governor Schwarzenegger's Video Game Act Terminated by the Ninth Circuit". Jolt Digest (United States: Harvard Law School). http://jolt.law.harvard.edu/digest/9th-circuit/video-software-dealers-assoc-v-schwarzenegger. Retrieved May 29, 2009.

## External links

* Conan official website (Internet Archive)
* 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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* v
* t
* e

Atari

Corporations|

| Primary|

* Atari, Inc. (1972–1992)
* Atari Corporation (1984–1996)
* Atari SA, Atari, Inc. (2003–present)

|

Subsidiaries and
spin-offs|

* Atari Games
* Atari Interactive
* AtariAge
* Chuck E. Cheese (1977–1978)
* Cyan Engineering
* Digital Eclipse
* Kee Games
* MobyGames
* Nightdive Studios
* Tengen

Arcades games
and amusements|

* Anti-Aircraft
* Asteroids
* Asteroids Deluxe
* Atari Basketball
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* Battlezone
* Black Widow
* Breakout
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* Stunt Cycle
* Super Breakout
* Super Bug
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* Tank
* Tank 8
* Tempest
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* Ultra Tank
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* Warlords

| Prototypes|

* Tank II

|

Software and utilities|

* Atari BASIC
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Video game
consoles|

* Home Pong
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* 2600+

| Prototypes|

* Game Brain
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* 2700
* Atari Mindlink
* Panther
* Sierra

|

Personal
computers|

* Atari 8-bit computers
* Atari ST
* MEGA STE
* TT030
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* Falcon

| Portables|

* STacy
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* Portfolio

|

Prototypes|

* Sierra

Peripherals|

| Printers|

* 825 80-Column Printer
* 1020 Color Printer

|

Gaming devices|

* CX40 joystick
* Atari joystick port
* XG-1 light gun

Other|

* Atari Democrat
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* Intellivision
* Sears

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