Short answers, pulled from the story.
Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt founded MobyGames on the 1st of March 1999. David Berk joined eighteen months after launch. The three had known each other since high school and built the initial database from their personal game collections.
MobyGames uses unpaid volunteer reviewers called approvers who fact-check submissions before they appear on the site. The review can take anywhere from a few minutes to several months. The primary reference sources are a game's website, its physical packaging, and its credit screens.
Atari SA agreed to purchase MobyGames for 1.5 million dollars, announcing the deal on the 24th of November 2021. The transaction was completed on the 8th of March 2022.
GameFly purchased MobyGames in mid-2010 without informing the community in advance. The new owners redesigned the site's interface, drawing widespread criticism. A few major contributors chose to leave rather than volunteer for a commercial company.
MobyGames introduced a paid Pro membership option in 2024. Free accounts lost certain features at that time, including the ability to browse more than six pages of a game list. Previously the site had generated income through banner advertising and a small number of Patreon patrons, a revenue stream that began in March 2014.
Since the 13th of February 2025, Tracy Poff, a veteran coder on the site, has served as site lead alongside Atari staff. Jeremiah Freyholtz, who had run MobyGames since 2013, stepped down to pursue other projects.