| Leonardo da Vinci | |
|---|---|
| Release | 1997 |
| Genre(s) | Interactive CD-ROM |
Leonardo da Vinci is a 1997 interactive CD-ROM game by Corbis, consisting of a "computerized viewing tool which permits the user to examine English translations of the Codex [Leicester] superimposed onto facsimiles of its pages". [1] The tool, known as Codescope, is licensed by Corbis.
In 1994, Bill Gates acquired the Codex Leicester. [1] In 1997, Gates' privately held company Corbis released a CD-Rom version of the manuscript. [1] On October 25, 1996 it was announced the game would be ready for the holiday season (Microsoft Windows in November and Macintosh in December [2] ), but this was ultimately postponed. [2] The game was one in a line of educational/entertainment CD-ROMs with subjects including Paul Cézanne, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and the Manhattan Project. [3] The game's promotion was kick-started by being featured in a Da Vinci exhibition at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. [4]
The title contains the Codex Leceister, as well as a virtual gallery of Leonardo's major paintings, plus his drawings, manuscripts, and lost works. [5] Players can view the Codex in the original mirror-script Italian, a reversed “normal” view, a transcription of the original Italian, and a modern English translation. [6] Leonardo Da Vinci is a coffee-table-book type game. [7]
Lawyer Gary L. Wolfstone deemed the project "impressive" and "interpretive". [1] Computer Shopper praised the title's ease of use and slick production values. [8] The Economist felt the game "exemplif[ies] the strengths and weaknesses of multimedia at its current, immature state of development". [9] ATPM felt the game would hold the interest of both novice and scholar. [10] The New York Times deemed it one of the better art-history CD-ROMs, despite some oversights in features and interface. [11] Wired explained that the experience of playing the game was "as if Leonardo can suddenly speak". [12] De Volkskrant felt that the game supported Gates' thesis that computer technology could be a form of art. [13] The Wall Street Journal wrote that while Da Vinci is a popular subject for video games, this title "beats them all". [14]
Corbis did not earn a profit from the game. [7]
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