MobyGames
MobyGames is a 27-year-old community-driven video game database cataloging 328,000+ games, 1.3M+ people, and 62,000+ companies across 346 platforms, monetized via MobyPlus subscriptions, tiered commercial API access, advertising, and the new Moby Professional career platform.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1999
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What MobyGames does
MobyGames, founded in 1999 and headquartered in San Francisco, is a video game database platform that catalogs over 328,339 games across 346 platforms, with records on 1,397,432 people and 62,631 companies. The platform is community-driven: a points-based contributor system and active forums sustain ongoing expansion of credits, cover art, screenshots, critic reviews (689,511), and technical specifications. A REST API exposes this data to external applications, and integrations span Steam collection sync and third-party game launchers (Obsidian, Playnite, RomM). MobyGames is a subsidiary of Atari, which acquired the company and under whose ownership it launched the Moby Professional career platform in June 2026.
The product portfolio is modular. The core free database is monetized through advertising and upsold to MobyPlus, a $5/month (or $4.08/month annual) premium subscription that removes ads, adds unlimited results, full-resolution images, CSV/JSON exports, analytics, and early feature access. A separate Hobbyist API ($9.99/month) serves non-commercial use cases, while a tiered commercial API (Bronze $99.99, Silver $499.99, Gold $4,999.99 per month) addresses enterprise use with progressively broader data rights and rate limits. Moby Professional, in beta through summer 2026 at $14.99/month thereafter, extends the platform into gaming-industry career services, including job listings, networking, salary tracking, and developer profile claiming with verified credit submissions.
The company operates with 1-10 employees, indicating a lean organization. Go-to-market is primarily product-led: free web access, self-serve subscription tiers, and community/developer-relations channels (forums, Discord, Twitter/X, Bluesky). Newer B2B surfaces (commercial API, Moby Professional) introduce elements of sales-led motion targeted at gaming studios, data consumers, and industry professionals. Revenue streams are subscription-recurring (MobyPlus, Professional, API tiers) and advertising, with no disclosed headcount growth, funding, or revenue figures beyond a 2013 round with no stated amount.
MobyGames firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- MobyGames
- Website
- https://mobygames.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1999
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- MobyGames is a 27-year-old community-driven video game database cataloging 328,000+ games, 1.3M+ people, and 62,000+ companies across 346 platforms, monetized via MobyPlus subscriptions, tiered commercial API access, advertising, and the new Moby Professional career platform.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
MobyGames industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Video Game Database & Data Services
- NAICS
- Hobby, Toy, and Game Retailers (45912)
- SIC
- Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Subscription Game Libraries & Storefront Bundles (MPAFACAE)
Keywords
Where MobyGames is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
MobyGames business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- MobyPlus Subscription: Premium subscription offering ad-free browsing, unlimited results, full resolution images, CSV/JSON game lists, analytics tools, and early access to new features. Priced at $5.00/month or $4.08/month billed annually.
- API Access - Hobbyist: Non-commercial API access for personal projects and custom game launchers. Includes games, add-ons, descriptions, cover images at 0.2 requests/sec. Priced at $9.99/month or bundled with MobyPlus for $12.99/month.
- API Access - Commercial Tiers: Commercial API tiers: Bronze ($99.99/month) with companies, promo images, Moby Score; Silver ($499.99/month) adds credits for 1.1M people, critic reviews, tech specs; Gold ($4,999.99/month) adds full data access with 8 requests/sec.
- Professional Tier: Career intelligence tier for gaming professionals with MobyPlus and Hobbyist API benefits plus job listings, salary tracking, skill demand analytics, and professional networking features. Priced at $11.99/month with 45-day free trial.
- Moby Professional: Premium career platform for game industry professionals offering job listings, networking, and business development tools. Beta free through summer 2026, then $14.99/month.
- Advertising: Display advertising on the free tier of the platform, with ad removal as a premium MobyPlus benefit.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | MobyPlus - Ad-free premium browsing with enhanced database features |
| Subscription | Monthly | Professional - Career intelligence for gaming professionals |
| Subscription | Monthly | Hobbyist API - Non-commercial API access |
| Subscription | Monthly | Bronze API - Commercial entry tier |
| Subscription | Monthly | Silver API - Full commercial API with moderate rate limits |
| Subscription | Monthly | Gold API - Maximum commercial API tier |
| Subscription | Monthly | Moby Professional - Career platform with job listings |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
MobyGames product offering
Product offeringCore offering
MobyGames operates a community-contributed video game database platform cataloging 328,000+ games across 346 platforms, with detailed credits, cover art, screenshots, technical specs, critic reviews, and pricing history for 1.4 million people and 62,000+ companies. It monetizes through a freemium consumer subscription (MobyPlus), a tiered commercial REST API (Hobbyist plus Bronze/Silver/Gold), display advertising, and a career networking product (Moby Professional) launched in 2026.
Product overview
MobyGames is a video game database platform with a modular product portfolio. The core offering is the MobyGames Database (mobygames.com) which catalogs over 328,000 games across 346 platforms with information on companies, people, and game attributes. This core is augmented by MobyPlus, a premium subscription providing ad-free browsing, analytics, and data export features. Two API products serve different needs: the Hobbyist API for non-commercial personal projects at $9.99/month, and Commercial API tiers (Bronze/Silver/Gold from $99.99 to $4,999.99/month) for businesses requiring broader access including credits data, trivia, and player reviews. The newest addition is Moby Professional, a career intelligence platform launching June 2026 at $14.99/month (free during beta) that integrates professional networking and job market tools with the database.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- MobyPlus: Premium subscription tier offering ad-free browsing, full resolution images, CSV/JSON game lists, analytics tools, and early access to new features.
- Moby Professional
- Hobbyist API
Products and services
- MobyGames Database The core free web-accessible video game database cataloging 328,339 games across 346 platforms, with credits, cover art, screenshots, release dates, technical specifications, critic reviews, and pricing information for 1,397,432 people and 62,631 companies. Used by gaming enthusiasts, researchers, collectors, and historians to discover, document, and preserve video game information.
- MobyPlus Premium consumer subscription ($5.00/month or $4.08/month annually) offering ad-free browsing, unlimited search results, full-resolution images, CSV/JSON game list exports, price history charts, analytics tools with genre filtering and MobyRank rankings, and early access to new features. Targeted at individual gaming enthusiasts and researchers.
- Hobbyist API Non-commercial REST API access ($9.99/month or $7.99/month annually) at 0.2 requests/sec covering games, add-ons, descriptions, release dates, developers, publishers, genres, cover images, screenshots, Moby Score, and official URLs. Bundled with MobyPlus for $12.99/month. Used by hobbyists and personal game launchers such as Obsidian, Playnite, and RomM.
- Commercial API (Bronze, Silver, Gold) Three-tier commercial REST API for business use: Bronze ($99.99/month) includes companies, promo images, video links, critic reviews, tech specs; Silver ($499.99/month, 4 req/sec) adds credits for 1.1M people, groups, identifiers, product codes, AKAs, full images, critic reviews, tech specs; Gold ($4,999.99/month, 8 req/sec) adds game trivia, player reviews, and full data access. Targeted at commercial applications, market research firms, and data product builders requiring licensed gaming data.
- Moby Professional Career intelligence and networking platform for game industry professionals offering job listings, professional networking features, business development tools, personalized career context within the database, shared credits and collaboration history, network updates on games and releases, and job market intelligence including skill demand and salary tracking. Targeted at game developers, artists, designers, and other gaming industry workers, particularly during industry volatility including layoffs and studio closures.
Quantifiable outcome
- Database coverage: 328,339 games across 346 platforms
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use MobyGames
Customer profileSegments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
MobyGames technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration4 records
Feature6 records
MobyGames partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators11 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
MobyGames competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- IGDB (Internet Game Database): IGDB is the most direct competitor to MobyGames, providing a community-contributed video game database with similar API access and Twitch/Amazon ownership. Both serve as canonical game metadata sources for developers, researchers, and gaming enthusiasts.
- RAWG: RAWG is a video game database offering a commercial API, personal game library tracking, and discovery features. It competes directly with MobyGames on the Hobbyist API and game metadata aggregation use cases.
- Hitmarker: Hitmarker is a gaming-industry-specific job board and professional network. It is the most direct competitor to the new Moby Professional product, also targeting the gaming career platform niche during a period of industry volatility.
- OpenCritic: OpenCritic aggregates professional game critic reviews and provides a Critic Score comparable to MobyGames' Moby Score. It competes for game-review aggregation and ranking mindshare among gamers and researchers.
Broad incumbents
- Giant Bomb: Giant Bomb is an established gaming media property with an extensive game database, reviews, and wiki-style content. While broader in scope (video content, reviews), it overlaps with MobyGames on game information and credits.
- Metacritic: Metacritic aggregates critic and user reviews for games, movies, and TV. It competes for the same critic-review and popularity-ranking data use cases that underpin MobyGames' Moby Score and review aggregation.
- GameFAQs: GameFAQs is a long-running game information and guides site (founded 1995). It overlaps with MobyGames on game metadata and historical documentation, though its primary focus is user-contributed walkthroughs and FAQs.
- GameSpot: GameSpot is a major gaming media outlet with an extensive game database, reviews, and news coverage. It overlaps with MobyGames on game information, critic reviews, and platform/genre metadata.
Others
- IMDb: IMDb is the established metadata database for film and TV, providing a strong analog for what MobyGames could become in gaming. Both monetize via freemium consumer access plus commercial licensing of structured data.
- GamesIndustry.biz: GamesIndustry.biz is a gaming-industry trade publication covering business, jobs, and market intelligence. It is a comparable destination for gaming professionals and competes with Moby Professional's networking and career content.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
MobyGames social profiles
Digital presenceMobyGames financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
MobyGames leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
MobyGames funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
MobyGames M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about MobyGames
What does MobyGames do?
MobyGames operates a community-contributed video game database platform cataloging 328,000+ games across 346 platforms, with detailed credits, cover art, screenshots, technical specs, critic reviews, and pricing history for 1.4 million people and 62,000+ companies. It monetizes through a freemium consumer subscription (MobyPlus), a tiered commercial REST API (Hobbyist plus Bronze/Silver/Gold), display advertising, and a career networking product (Moby Professional) launched in 2026.
Is MobyGames a public or private company?
MobyGames is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was MobyGames founded?
MobyGames was founded in 1999. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is MobyGames based?
MobyGames is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does MobyGames make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. MobyPlus Subscription is the primary driver. The others are API Access - Hobbyist, API Access - Commercial Tiers, professional Tier, moby Professional and advertising.
Who are MobyGames's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are IGDB (Internet Game Database), RAWG, Hitmarker and OpenCritic. Broad incumbents are Giant Bomb, Metacritic, GameFAQs and GameSpot. Others are IMDb and GamesIndustry.biz.
Does MobyGames have an API?
Yes. MobyGames offers a REST API with multiple subscription tiers. The Hobbyist tier ($9.99/month or $7.99/month annual) provides 0.2 requests/sec for non-commercial use, covering games, add-ons, descriptions, release dates, developers, publishers, genres, cover images, screenshots, Moby Score, and official URLs. The commercial API tiers include Bronze ($99.99/month), Silver ($499.99/month with 4 requests/sec), and Gold ($4,999.99/month with 8 requests/sec), adding companies, promo images, video links, critic reviews, tech specs, credits for 1.1M people, game trivia, and player reviews. Free access is available for non-commercial research purposes via a request form. Developer documentation is at documenter.getpostman.com/view/39086103/2sAY55Zci2.
What industry is MobyGames in?
MobyGames's product category is Video Game Database & Data Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAFACAE, Subscription Game Libraries & Storefront Bundles. Its NAICS code is 45912 and its SIC code is 5945.