History
Discussing GameSpy Arcade's history, Ian Birnbaum of ''PC Gamer US'' wrote, "GameSpy began in 1996 as a fan-hosted server for the original ''Quake (video game), Quake''. By the early 2000s, GameSpy was ''the'' online multiplayer platform, adding dozens of games every year." The service closed in May 2014.Features
GameSpy Arcade included various other features which enhance its overall functionality: *Ability for users to have their own profiles. *Scanning a user's hard disk for Arcade compatible games. *A basic web browser. *Voice Chat *Buddy Instant Messaging *Game Staging rooms *Dedicated Server browsing *User RoomsSubscription
GameSpy Arcade was free. However the software maintained shareware status as there were three different subscription levels. These levels provided benefits, each according to their price.Basic users
"Basic users" could be created for free at the GameSpy website. They were able to display and connect to games, as well as chat to users inside the game lobby. Advertisements were shown inside the program for these users.GameSpy Arcade
"GameSpy Arcade", the first pay subscription service ($4.95/Month, $24.95/Year), provided extended functionality such as no advertisements and in-game voice chat, as well as priority service for technicians to assist in solving problems with the software.Founders Club
"Founders Club", the second pay subscription service ($9.95/Month, $79.95/Year), was the highest possible level of membership to GameSpy arcade. This subscription had benefits which applied across the entire GameSpy network, including FilePlanet access, and ‘Insider’ newsletters. This was the most expensive of the subscriptions on offer. There were some issues with the "Founders Club" subscription that caused this subscription to show up as a normal subscription on GameSpy Arcade.Games
GameSpy Arcade allowed users to play games online such as Halo: Combat Evolved, Battlefield 2, Counter-Strike (video game), Half-Life: Counter-Strike, Unreal Tournament, Star Wars: Battlefront II (2005 video game), Star Wars: Battlefront II, Quake III Arena, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Rogue Spear, Rogue Spear, as well as various other first-person shooters and strategy games. Additionally, there were parlor games, but these were removed due to security flaws found in the actual parlor games. Some of the parlor games that existed were Y.A.R.N (story making) Reversi, Checkers, Chess, and Backgammon.See also
* The All-Seeing EyeReferences
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