Editing CD-i (section)

==Commercial software==
{{See also|List of CD-i games|CD-i games from The Legend of Zelda series}}
[[File:Philips-CDi-220-Console-BR.jpg|thumb|right|Some games required the optional MPEG cartridge, typically inserted into the back of the system (behind the red panel pictured) ]]
[[File:Philips-CDi-Digital-Video-Cartridge-1.jpg|thumb|right|The optional MPEG cartridge, branded as the Digital Video Cartridge]]

CD-i software was typically developed using [[Authoring system|authoring tools]] from one of two companies: OptImage, which offered the Balboa Runtime Libraries and MediaMogul, and Script Systems, which produced ABCD-I. Much of the CD-i software was promoted or published by American Interactive Media (AIM), a joint venture between Philips and its subsidiary [[PolyGram]], formed in [[Los Angeles]] in 1986 to publish CD-i consumer software.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://archive.org/stream/CD_Interactief_Volume_02_Issue_04_1995-04_Haarlems_Uitgeef_Bedrijf_NL/CD_Interactief_Volume_02_Issue_04_1995-04_Haarlems_Uitgeef_Bedrijf_NL_djvu.txt|title=CD Interactief - Volume 02 Issue 04 (1995-04)(Haarlems Uitgeef Bedrijf)(NL) |date=April 1995}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.icdia.co.uk/history/aim.html| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211031/http://www.icdia.co.uk/history/aim.html| url-status=live |archive-date=2021-10-31|title=The New International CD-i Association}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://archive.org/stream/9011532.nlm.nih.gov/9011532_djvu.txt|title=Optical disc technology|year=1990}}</ref> Philips Interactive Media was similarly launched in Europe.

Philips initially marketed CD-i as a family entertainment product and avoided emphasizing [[video game]]s to prevent competition with game consoles.<ref name="cgw199401">{{Cite magazine |last1=Miller |first1=Chuck |last2=Dille |first2=H. E. |last3=Wilson |first3=Johnny L. |date=January 1994 |title=Battle Of The New Machines |url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1994&pub=2&id=114 |magazine=Computer Gaming World |pages=64–76 |access-date=November 2, 2017 |archive-date=December 14, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191214005055/http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1994&pub=2&id=114 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.academia.edu/124463721 | title=Video game history of the Netherlands | date=October 6, 2024 }}</ref> Early releases focused on educational, music, and self-improvement titles, with relatively few games, many of which were adaptations of [[board game]]s such as ''[[Connect Four]]''. However, the system struggled in the multimedia device market against low-cost [[Personal computer|PC]]s,<ref>{{cite magazine|title=The Next Generation 1996 Lexicon A to Z: CD-i|magazine=[[Next Generation (magazine)|Next Generation]]|issue=15 |publisher=[[Imagine Media]]|date=March 1996|page=31}}</ref> and games became its best-selling software. By 1993, Philips encouraged [[MS-DOS]] and console developers to create games, introduced a $250 peripheral with expanded memory and full-motion video support, and added a second controller port to new consoles for multiplayer games.{{r|cgw199401}}

Attempts to establish a foothold in the games market were largely unsuccessful, as the system, designed primarily as a multimedia player, was underpowered compared to other gaming platforms.<ref>{{cite journal|title=75 Power Players|journal=[[Next Generation (magazine)|Next Generation]]|issue=11|publisher=[[Imagine Media]]|date=November 1995|page=63|quote=CD-i started life as an ahead-of-its-time multimedia player, but ended up an under-powered game machine.}}</ref> Notable CD-i games included entries in [[Nintendo]] franchises, though not developed by Nintendo: ''[[Hotel Mario]]'' and three ''[[The Legend of Zelda|Zelda]]'' titles: ''[[Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon]]'', ''[[Link: The Faces of Evil]]'', and ''[[Zelda's Adventure]]''. These were made possible by an earlier agreement between Nintendo and Philips to develop a CD-based add-on for the [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System]], which never progressed beyond the prototype stage.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gamersgraveyard.com/repository/snes/history/snescdrom.html |title=The SNES CD-ROM |author=Staff writer |website=The Nintendo Repository |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080224060354/http://www.gamersgraveyard.com/repository/snes/history/snescdrom.html |archive-date=24 February 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> However, the agreement granted Philips the right to develop games using Nintendo characters.<ref name="Jumping">{{cite web|url=https://www.gamesreviews.com/news/07/stephen-radosh-a-qa-with-the-creator-of-hotel-mario/|title=Stephen Radosh: An Interview with the Creator of Hotel Mario|author=Samuel Clemens|date=July 4, 2022|website=Games Reviews|publisher=GR Media|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220705182426/https://www.gamesreviews.com/news/07/stephen-radosh-a-qa-with-the-creator-of-hotel-mario/|archive-date=July 5, 2022|url-status=dead|access-date=July 5, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Johnson |first=Shona |date=2013-03-28 |title=An interview with the creator of the CD-i Zelda games |url=https://zeldauniverse.net/2013/03/28/an-interview-with-the-creator-of-the-cd-i-zelda-games/ |access-date=2025-05-08 |website=Zelda Universe}}</ref>

As announced at [[Consumer Electronics Show|CES]] 1992,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jQ8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=RA1-PA73|title=Billboard|date=June 13, 1992|access-date=October 9, 2019|archive-date=May 2, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240502201814/https://books.google.com/books?id=jQ8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=RA1-PA73#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> numerous [[full-motion video]] titles appeared, including ''[[Dragon's Lair (1983 video game)|Dragon's Lair]]'' and ''[[Mad Dog McCree]]''. One, ''[[Burn:Cycle]]'', is considered one of the stronger CD-i titles and was later ported to PC. ''[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]'' noted that CD-i’s full-motion video capabilities were its strongest feature; however, most titles required the MPEG upgrade card to take advantage of them.<ref name="EGM55">{{cite magazine|title=New Life For CD-i|magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]|issue=55|publisher=Sendai Publishing|date=February 1994|page=20}}</ref>

Philips also released CD-i adaptations of popular TV [[game show]]s, including ''[[Jeopardy!]]'' (hosted by [[Alex Trebek]]), ''[[Name That Tune]]'' (hosted by [[Bob Goen]]), and two versions of ''[[The Joker's Wild]]'' (an adult version with [[Wink Martindale]] and a kids' version with [[Marc Summers]]). All North American CD-i games, except ''Name That Tune'', featured [[Charlie O'Donnell]] as announcer. The Netherlands released its own version of ''[[Lingo (Dutch game show)|Lingo]]'' in 1994.

In 1993, American musician [[Todd Rundgren]] created the first fully interactive music CD, ''[[No World Order]]'', for CD-i, enabling over 15,000 points of customization. Dutch Eurodance duo [[2 Unlimited]] released a CD-i compilation album, ''Beyond Limits'' (1994), featuring standard CD tracks and CD-i-exclusive media.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/2-Unlimited-Beyond-Limits/release/357137| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211031/https://www.discogs.com/2-Unlimited-Beyond-Limits/release/357137| url-status=live | archive-date=2021-10-31|title=2 Unlimited - Beyond Limits|website=Discogs.com| year=1994|access-date=12 August 2019}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name=CDiMagazine>{{cite web|url=http://www.cdinteractive.co.uk/download/mags/0102%2011-1994.pdf|title=Philips CD-i Magazine November 1994|access-date=September 26, 2018|archive-date=September 30, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930191404/http://www.cdinteractive.co.uk/download/mags/0102%2011-1994.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

CD-i featured a range of children's [[edutainment]] titles, including ''[[Busytown]]'' and ''[[The Berenstain Bears]]''. By mid-1996, the U.S. CD-i software market had dried up, though Philips continued publishing titles in Europe.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=A Cry for Help from a CD-i Owner |magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]|issue=88 |publisher=[[Ziff Davis]] |date=November 1996|page=281}}</ref> Philips then shifted focus to kiosk and industrial multimedia applications.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.philipsmedia.com:80/media/systems/kiosk.html |year=1997 |title=Kiosk Systems |author=Staff writer |website=Philips Media |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19970606095911/http://www.philipsmedia.com/media/systems/kiosk.html |archive-date=June 6, 1997 |access-date=November 30, 2018 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

In later years, [[homebrew (video games)|homebrew]] developers released new CD-i titles, including ''Frog Feast'' (2005), ''Super Quartet'' (2018), and ''Nobelia'' (2022).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rooijakkers |first=Luc |title=CD-i Development in the 21st Century |url=https://www.theworldofcdi.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/CDiDevelopment20190331.pdf |access-date=8 August 2022 |website=The World of CD-i |archive-date=May 13, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190513061214/https://www.theworldofcdi.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/CDiDevelopment20190331.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>