The Game of Life

This page is for the 1998 version. For the 2013 version, see The Game of Life (2013). For the 2016 version, see The Game of Life - The Official 2016 Edition.

The Game of Life
The Game of Life	1998
The Game of Life - Path to Success	2008
The Game of Life: SpongeBob SquarePants Edition	2008
The Game of Life (2013)	2013
The Game of Life - The Official 2016 Edition	2014
The Game of Life 2	2020

The Game of Life is a singleplayer and multiplayer bird's-eye view board and mini-games game in the The Game of Life series.

Key points

The installer is a 16-bit one, but a workaround is available. See Running the game on 64-bit Windows

Availability

Source	DRM	Notes	Keys	OS
Retail

Monetization

Type	Notes
One-time game purchase	The game requires an upfront purchase to access.

Microtransactions

Type	Notes
No microtransactions	None

Game data

Configuration file(s) location

System	Location
Windows

Save game data location

System	Location
Windows

Video

In-game options menu.

Graphics feature	State	Notes
Widescreen resolution
Multi-monitor
Ultra-widescreen
4K Ultra HD
Field of view (FOV)
Windowed		Use dgVoodoo 2.
Borderless fullscreen windowed		See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Anisotropic filtering (AF)
Anti-aliasing (AA)
Vertical sync (Vsync)		Use dgVoodoo 2.
60 FPS and 120+ FPS

Input

Keyboard and mouse	State	Notes
Remapping		See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Mouse acceleration
Mouse sensitivity
Mouse input in menus
Mouse Y-axis inversion
Controller
Controller support

Controller types

Audio

Audio feature	State	Notes
Separate volume controls
Surround sound
Subtitles
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost
Royalty free audio

Localizations

Language	UI	Audio	Sub	Notes
English
German

Network

Multiplayer types

Type	Players	Notes
Local play	6	Hot seat
LAN play	6	Versus
Online play	6	Versus The online multiplayer service is no longer available.

Connection types

Type	Native	Notes
Matchmaking
Peer-to-peer
Dedicated
Self-hosting
Direct IP

Issues fixed

Running the game on 64-bit Windows

Although the game installer is 16-bit, the actual game is 32-bit. There are two ways of running the game:

#1: Run the game directly from the disc

Running the exe from the disc^[1]
In the Game of Life CD directory, navigate to `Life` Run `life.exe` to play the game directly.

#2: Install the game manually

This also allows launching the game without a CD.

Setting up the game manually^[1]
Create a new folder called "The Game of Life" somewhere on the computer (eg. the Desktop). In the Game of Life CD directory, navigate to `Life` Copy the contents of the folder and paste them into the folder that has been created before. When the files are copied over, run the `life.exe` in this folder to launch the game.

Slowdown on modern Windows

Instructions^[1]
Use a DirectX wrapper like dgVoodoo 2

Other information

API

Technical specs	Supported	Notes
DirectDraw	5

Executable	32-bit	64-bit	Notes
Windows

Middleware

	Middleware	Notes
Multiplayer	MSN Gaming Zone

System requirements

Windows
	Minimum	Recommended
Operating system (OS)	95	98
Processor (CPU)	Intel Pentium 90	Intel Pentium 133 MMX
System memory (RAM)	16 MB	32 MB
Hard disk drive (HDD)	36 MB	68 MB
Video card (GPU)	1 MB of VRAM DirectX 5 compatible

References

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 Verified by User:Nessy on 2024-07-12

[2024-07-12-1] 1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 Verified by User:Nessy on 2024-07-12

[1]

Developers

	Mass Media Inc.
Publishers
	Hasbro Interactive
Release dates
Windows	September 30, 1998
Taxonomy
Monetization	One-time game purchase
Microtransactions	None
Modes	Singleplayer, Multiplayer
Pacing	Turn-based
Perspectives	Bird's-eye view
Controls	Point and select, Menu-based
Genres	Board, Mini-games
Art styles	Cartoon
Themes	Comedy
Series	The Game of Life