RipTen Videogame Blog » Doom

This Is What It Would Look Like If DooM and Quake Were Made Today

Dave Oshry — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 15:00:15 +0000

First person shooters have changed. Whether you think it’s for better or for worse, things will never be the same.

Many of us PC gamers remember the good old days of id classics such as DooM and Quake, but what would those games be like if they were made like modern day shooters?

Well, a pair of YouTubers has figured it out, and the results are hilarious:

If DooM was done today…

If Quake was done today…

Will they ever make ‘em like they used to?

Geeked Out: Amazing Gaming Jack-O’-Lanterns

Catherine Cai — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 04:00:51 +0000

Halloween is a special time every year that I look forward to. When else would you have socially acceptable excuses to: 1) look at scantily clad women or dress like one 2) beg your neighbors for food without fear of being labeled as a hobo 3) scare the piss out of small children until they begin to cry, and best of all 4) take your anger out on a pumpkin by stabbing it until it has that grinning excuse for a face. Sure, you don’t get any days off of class or work, but I think it’s still safe to say that Halloween is a pretty awesome holiday.

Pumpkin Phelps Agrees

One of my favorite Halloween things to do is to carve pumpkins, but I’m a liberal arts/pre-med major for a reason: I can’t art. I know our resident artsy, grammar Nazi editor Steph Gutowski is reading this somewhere yelling at her screen, “But art just takes practice!”… which I’m sure is true at some level. Sure, the technical skills of art take practice to perfect, but you need at least some level of talent to capitalize on before you can actually ‘do’ art. Alas, I’m a hopeless cause (sorry to let you down, Stephiroth), and so I can only experience the joys of pumpkin carving vicariously through other people on the Internet. That being said, as a person who likes video games, I really appreciate pumpkin carvings of video game-like things.

Whilst lurking on the mean streets of Reddit, I found various pumpkin carvings of game characters that really tickled my fancy, but I hit the jackpot here with Ceemdee’s collection of mutilated fall squash. There’s something akin to twelve pumpkin carvings, so obviously the carver had a lot of time on their hands.

Then How Am I Reading This... ?

My favorites are the L.A. Noire, Minesweeper, Bastion, and Worms ones, although they’re all fantastic. Worms and Minesweeper, I admit, I picked based off of personal bias and nostalgia, but L.A. Noire and Bastion both look like the carver easily put in 5+ hours into both. The artist had to carve friggin’ people. If most tried to duplicate the feat, they’d end up with a miserable, pulpy mess.

Anyway, so far this collection of pumpkin carvings has me most impressed. Anyone out there planning on doing some vidjeogame character pumpkin carving? Tell us about it!

Hungry for more hand-made swag? Take a leisurely stroll through our Geeked Out collection.

This Battlefield 3 Music Video Shows Off a Ton of New Gameplay Footage

Dave Oshry — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 07:45:02 +0000

What’s better than a badass BF3 music video? A badass BF3 music video made up of nothing but never before seen multiplayer gameplay.

The guys over at Quantic Gaming and Machinima put together this awesome video set to “The State” by Porter Robinson.

Enjoy:

Battlefield 3 is set to deploy on October 25th. Can you feel the hype?

For more on BF3 be sure to check out this fresh set of screens and our hands on preview from PAX.

DooM No Longer Banned In Germany After 17 Years

Dave Oshry — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 18:00:21 +0000

In 1994, id’s genre defining masterpiece DooM was deemed harmful to the German youth. It was restricted to adult only stores like a set of vibrating anal beads.

However, the ban has now been lifted because they feel the game only has artistic value and is no longer of interest to youngsters who would rather play realistic games like Call of Duty… and kill Russians and Nazis.

Who made this happen? Bethesda. id Software was acquired by ZeniMax (BethSoft’s parent company) back in 2009 and the company made an appeal stating that the game’s dated graphics made the violence have much less of an impact on today’s youth.

Although the German version of the FCC (a.k.a the Federal Department for Media Harmful to Young Persons or “Bundesprufstelle”) said their original decision was not based on the visual quality of the game alone, they did admit that even cell phone games are much more visually powerful than DooM these days. They say the original decision was due to the fact that the game contained an endless cycle of violence that was not counter balanced with the Doomed protagonist hugging bunnies and saving puppies or some shit.

Lies. He Loved That Bunny...

In a letter to the BBC, the Bunderwhatever stated that a game can be deemed unfit if it contains:

“drastic portrayals of violence directed against human or human-like beings”.

“If the game then does not contain any real alternative scenes which might on the whole ‘neutralise’ the violent parts, then the game is likely to be found to have a harmful effect on minors.”

So… if DooM had cutscenes in between the levels where the space marine mopped up all the blood and planted flowers around the lost Deimos Base, things might have been different. Or maybe if there was an option to make all of the blood turn into donuts like in Serious Sam Double D. (Yeah, you can do that)

Anyhow, the bunderwunders further stated that children are far less likely to play DooM now and will likely play much more realistic and challenging games… which are still not as good or as influential as DooM.

In a related story, Wolfenstein 3d will never be released in Germany – blow it out your ass.

Five O’Clock Fan Art: Team Fortress Doom

Dylan Duarte — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 00:00:34 +0000

I know Dave Oshry is a little sick of Team Fortress 2 fan art, but hopefully a little Doom fusion will cheer him up.

Five O’Clock Fan Art is perfect for wrapping up the work day. You don’t want to think anymore, you just want to look at awesome things. And there’s nothing more awesome than a well crafted piece of videogame fan art. If you don’t agree, what the hell are you doing at a gaming blog?

ChemicalAlia could survive on the Nightmare! difficulty level.

How To Wake Up Your Four Year Old – DooM Style

Dave Oshry — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 13:30:12 +0000

I saw this video a few days ago, but it wasn’t really newsworthy until today… when I was rudely awakened at 6am.

However, if my father were as cool as this dude, I’m not sure I would really mind.

Humming the music from E1M1? Nailed it.

id Explains Why RAGE Looks So Damn Good On Consoles

Dave Oshry — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 19:00:11 +0000

In their latest developer diary, id Software said that RAGE was arguably the best looking game on consoles. As can be expected, gamer reactions were decidedly mixed about such a statement.

However, it just so happens that RipTen had a chance to speak with id’s creative director Tim Willits recently, and he answered our questions about how they got RAGE to look so damn good on consoles:

So, there you have it. The answer to every question about RAGE and id Software is… John Carmack.

Actually, the answer is the awesome technology behind the new id Tech 5 engine… but you probably already knew that.

Stay tuned to RipTen for continued coverage of RAGE and all things id.

Id Says RAGE Is Arguably The Best Looking Game on Consoles and Runs at Twice the FPS

Dave Oshry — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 01:30:35 +0000

Id Software has said and shown off quite a bit about their upcoming FPS as they look to add to their already legendary stable of games that have become household names in the genre that they made famous. Yet, we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg.

Id co-founder and real life rocket scientist John Carmack and his team have always pushed the limits of cutting edge technology with their games, but now they’re pushing the limits of the current generation of consoles with RAGE.

Furthermore, in their latest developer diary, the guys have made a very bold statement about RAGE on consoles:

“We are arguably the best looking game on the consoles today and the point is we are running at two times the frame rate of what other people might argue is the best looking console game”

A bold statement indeed. However RAGE does look simply amazing both on PC and consoles. Moreover, the first time I saw RAGE being played on an Xbox 360, I actually thought it was on a PC… and I wasn’t alone.

Better yet, RipTen just interviewed id’s creative director Tim Willits about just how they got RAGE to look so damn good on consoles!! <– Check it out and be sure to stay tuned to RipTen for more on RAGE and all things id Software.

The Greatest Collection of DooM Swag You’ve Ever Seen

Dave Oshry — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 23:18:11 +0000

Do you like DooM? Well not as much as this guy.

He’s got every edition of every game, every shirt, every mag and comic that had DooM on the cover, every poster . . . yeah, this guy is DooMed.

Here’s what the BethBlog had to say about it:

Our European PR manager, Alistair Hatch, pointed me to an insane collection of DOOM collectibles on Flickr and YouTube. Collected by Mahmut Saral (aka DOOM Collector), he’s got every possible version of the game (32X!!!), as well as guns from the movie, old as dirt press kits, and even an HD-DVD.

It’s a collection that would even make John Carmack envious… unless he’s actually got John stashed in somewhere in there.

I’m waiting for Carmack to jump out of this guy’s closet.

id Software vs. The Supreme Court – Are Video Games Free Speech?

Dave Oshry — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 06:07:52 +0000

If you are reading this, then before you go any further, sign The Gamer Petition, an independent campaign started in order to mobilize the gaming community before the case of Schwarzenegger v. ESA and EMA is heard. This landmark Supreme Court case will determine whether video games will continue to be protected as free speech like any other respectable medium of art. If you’ve not already been made aware of this case, then we’re glad you’re here.

Here is what The Gamer Petition states:

We, the undersigned American video game consumers, purchase, rent and play video games the way we do other entertainment content such as movies and music. We respectfully request that you hold that video games are indeed free speech, protected under the First Amendment, like other entertainment media.

Today was the last day to file, “friend of the court briefs” to be be considered by the court before the case is heard. Well, the gaming pioneers over at Id Software have done just that. In a 32 page document, Id states many reasons why games should receive the same free speech protection as do movies, books and other forms of media, and we’ve sifted through the entire thing to outline them. If you enjoy legal jargon, feel free to read the entire brief here.

The brief begins by outlining who Id is and why they have any reason to address the court. We all know that Id helped to pioneer gaming as it is today and that their games have been brought into question many times before, but being a legal document, this all must be re-iterated at length:

Id Software LLC (“Id Software”) is a limited liability corporation organized under the laws of Delaware. It has been recognized as a pioneer in the creation and development of video games. See Micro Star v. Formgen Inc. Id Software has also been active in explaining why the First Amendment protects video games as much as any other artistic medium, having been a party in James v. Meow Media, Inc. and Sanders v. Acclaim Entm’t Inc. It also submitted a brief amicus curiae in Interactive Digital Software Ass’n v. St. Louis County. In addition, two briefs submitted in the instant case make specific, negative references to Id Software’s work. See Brief of Amicus Curiae Eagle Forum Educ. & Legal Def. Fund in Support of Petitioners(referring to the video game Doom); Brief of Amici Curiae California State Senator Leland Yee, Ph.D. (referring to the video game Wolfenstein 3D). These amici have thus put Id Software’s interests directly at issue.

They then go on to say how their livelihoods depend on being able to create video games, and that this ruling would threaten their own human expression and free speech rights:

… from the perspective of individuals who create and develop video games, whose livelihood depends on such activity, and one of whose primary forms of expression consists of such activity. The statute under review not only threatens their expression, but also threatens to destabilize an artistic movement of which these individuals form part of the vanguard. A decision by this Court affirming the Ninth Circuit would protect important constitutional interests, confirm the status of video games as a fully protected form of expression, and substantially serve the interests of Id Software.

What they are basically saying is, that if you take away games as a form free speech, then you take away the creators rights to free speech as well. Just as you would if a piece of literature or film was not considered free speech. They then go on to summarize their argument:

As a matter of content and form, video games are a projection of such traditional media as literature and film, both of which the First Amendment protects in full. In fact, the themes on which video games rely are staples of fiction … This being true, this Court could not deny full protection to video games without making an artificial distinction among forms of art. This Court would not ask whether a book or film lacks serious value, either for minors or for adults. The First Amendment fully protects such works, leaving the individual to decide what his or her expressive fare will be. As this Court has made clear, the First Amendment does not permit any department of the government, or even a majority of the voters, to dictate the expressive activities of others … Numerous lower courts have reached this very conclusion, and this Court should confirm the correctness of their decisions. Video games are a form of art presumptively entitled to the protection of the First Amendment … A game can be every bit as expressive as any other work of art. In addition, to seek to deny protection to video games because of their interactivity mistakes a virtue for a flaw.

They then go on to draw comparisons to Homer’s “The Illiad” (Which you probably read in high school) I’ve always thought The Odyssey would make a great Action/RPG myself.

A Comic Book Adaptation of Homer's "The Iliad"

No legislature subject to the First Amendment could prohibit a minor from purchasing a copy of The Iliad. After all, the Iliad is a bedrock of western civilization and a staple of many a curriculum. But the Iliad – actually read – is not a polite book. People die horrible deaths in this epic, after they have cooperated with their killers, after they have begged for mercy, after we have learned about their loving families. Consider the fate of Dolon, a young man caught spying by the Greeks. After he has helped his captors, revealing his comrades’ positions, he learns that Diomedes will do away with him:

With that, just as Dolon reached up for his chin to cling with a frantic hand and beg for life, Diomedes struck him square across the neck – a flashing hack of the sword – both tendons snapped and the shrieking head went tumbling into the dust.

To describe this scene as “graphic” or “violent” – “a flashing hack of the sword” – “both tendons snapped” – a “shrieking head went tumbling into the dust” – is almost superfluous. The imagination allows us to see and hear Dolon’s decapitation. The Iliad is full of such images, for Homer does not flinch in his descriptions. A god does not simply walk in anger. Instead, “Arrows clang at his back as [he] Quake[s] with Rage.”

And they are not wrong, the imagination is capable of conjuring up just as vivid an image as a video game. So why protect literature and film, yet allow video games to be scrutinized?

They go on to say that:

A person might respond that Homer should sanitize his violence, that he should tell his story without being graphic. Homer chooses the contrary. The Iliad, accepts violence as a permanent factor in human life and accepts it without sentimentality, for it is just as sentimental to pretend that war does not have its monstrous ugliness as it is to deny that it has its own strange and fatal beauty.

Needless to say, the First Amendment fully protects the Iliad as a work of creative expression, for minors as well as for adults. In precisely the same way, the First Amendment would protect the Iliad – or the epic story of the Spartans at Thermopylae – as a comic book. (300) And so too would the First Amendment protect a film of the Iliad (There have been many), or of Thermopylae (300), as much for minors as for adults. The question then arises how a video game with the same expressive characteristics can somehow lose commensurate protection. The answer must be that it cannot.

A Movie Poster for "300" Based on a Graphic Novel and Inspired by The Battle of Thermopylae

I could not agree more. How can you say that The Illiad is protected by free speech, 300 is protected by free speech, and yet DooM is not? Id then goes on to further elaborate on how games are similar to other forms of media:

In their current state, video games bear many of the same formal qualities as books and film, including attention to plot, characters, dialogue and setting. With these qualities in mind, the authors of a video game create narrative parameters in a fictional world to reflect their vision, and the player navigates through the game in relation to these parameters. As with other artistic media, a successful video game creates for the player a rhythm through the story it tells, using both visual and aural tableaux, including such facets as animated figures, props, architecture, landscape, narration and music. And, like other narrative forms of art, including polyphonic music, video games draw a thematic arc from exposition to climax and denouement … video games present fictional worlds that immerse their audiences in a broad range of aesthetic possibilities. And each technological advance enhances the immediacy and scope of such possibilities … As with any form of art, video games draw inspiration from other media. Their narrative, for instance,often derives from myths, and their basic texture is cinematic. With the ‘hero of a thousand faces’ almost always at the center of video games, we see familiar recurring themes: the triumphant underdog, the common man caught up in (and important to) events on a global scale, the outsider proving he is not so much odd as he is special, the unavoidable prophecy fulfilled, hard work rewarded, and so on.

Now, if that wasn’t enough of a comparison between mediums, the argument then goes on to show how video games have been used to inspire other forms of media, such as film. They make reference to DooM, Tomb Raider and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World:

At the same time, video games often provide the template for artists working in other media. Consider film, video games’ closest artistic relative. As the members of this Court may know, Id Software’s Doom was later made into a film starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Likewise, the cinematic character Lara Croft, played by Angelina Jolie, originated in the video game Tomb Raider. A more recent example of video games’ influence on film is Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. In this film, the hero – much like Hercules – must overcome the seven former boyfriends of his new love.

A Poster for the Film Adaptation of the video game, "Tomb Raider"

They even go on to reference new off-Broadway plays that have adapted the themes of classic video games:

The thematic elements of video games have even translated into theater. This past summer, the off-Broadway production Game Play converted iconic video games into comic vignettes. As Seth Schiesel of the New York Times asks in his review: “What if the gorilla in Donkey Kong is really an abusive, down-on-his-luck meathead straight out of a Tennessee Williams script who keeps his handicapped blond paramour (the princess) captive in their topfloor apartment, periodically thrashing the Italian building superintendent (Mario), who attempts to climb the stairs to alleviate the woman’s suffering? What if Pac-Man is really a gluttonous German burgher out to gorge himself while dodging the ghosts of those he has so callously wronged, à la Dickens? What if the pilots in Asteroids are merely profane technicians existentially trapped within a corporation that knows nothing more than to send them into the void to shoot rocks, until they become smaller rocks and smaller rocks, until they become nothing? Video games, then, have the same formal properties as traditional forms of expression. This being the case, a decision to deny full constitutional protection to video games, in addition to being impossible to square with what the First Amendment already embraces, would eviscerate what is perhaps the most vibrant, growing and influential sector of the artistic world today.

Id furthermore states that video games do not fall into any category of unprotected speech such as, “Fighting Words.”

Moreover, the video games subject to the statute do not fall into any category of unprotected expression. First, they are not incitement. Second, they are not obscene, nor do they constitute “variable obscenity” Finally, they are not “fighting words” (They state numerous court cases to back this up) … They are therefore fully protected by the First Amendment, and the state may not restrict access to them on the basis of their content, unless it adopts means narrowly tailored to serve a compelling public interest. A contrary holding, allowing the government to regulate video games on the basis of their content without satisfying strict scrutiny, would make a hash of this Court’s jurisprudence, destabilize a vibrant artistic medium, and subject courts to the impossible task of classifying individual works of art according to their assessed social value.

Indeed, if this law were to be passed, each and every video game would be subject to strict government scrutiny before even being considered for release. That is a task that is not only ridiculous, but damn near impossible and quite frankly a waste of government time and resources. They continue:

The First Amendment would not turn its back on a bad film – complete with bad acting, bad dialogue, bad sets, and a bad score. As the members of this Court are no doubt aware, such films exist. (Many based on video games) And yet the First Amendment would protect such films, because our courts do not judge among works that otherwise fall within a protected medium. These are lines the First Amendment will not allow the courts or any other department of the government to draw.

I could not agree more. But Id makes yet another strong argument before this brief comes to an end: Video Games Distinctive Characteristics Do Not Exclude Them From Full Constitutional Protection.

Their status as games, for example, is irrelevant. “Dungeons and Dragons” is a game, but at least one court has properly recognized it as a form of expression entitled to constitutional protection. Nor is video games’ status as interactive a reason to deny them full protection. For one thing, with the advent of the DVD, film is no longer necessarily passive. A viewer may choose to watch the same scene many times in a row, or skip scenes he or she does not like. Even if the distinction between “passive” film and interactive video games persists, it does not diminish the latter’s claim to full constitutional protection. As many have observed, “interactivity” is inherent to the appreciation of art. Video games are certainly not alone in transporting their audience, in “affecting their audience powerfully.” At the end of the day, therefore, petitioners’ objections to video games reduce to acute anxiety over one medium of violent imagery among many.

Read on as Id presents a final argument, also find a recap and my final thoughts afterward:

Needless to say, the First Amendment does not allow people to assuage their anxiety – even acute anxiety – by suppressing the expressive rights of others. As this Court has noted, the First Amendment precludes even a majority from deciding for everyone else what is palatable or correct as a normative matter. This is not because such matters are unimportant, but instead because – at least in the context of expression – they are not the government’s business. As Justice Kennedy emphasized in United States v. Playboy Entertainment Group, Inc., “The Constitution no more enforces a relativistic philosophy or moral nihilism than it does any other point of view. The Constitution exists precisely so that opinions and judgments, including ethical and moral judgments about art and literature, can be formed, tested, and expressed.”

Who knows what expression will enable the minors of today, or of the next generation, to prepare for the demands of adulthood? The First Amendment proceeds from the assumption that no one can answer this question well enough to dictate to others. Many of today’s minors already live in a violent world, or may be on the verge of one. Some, for example, may be only a year or two away from service in the military. To be sure, parents are important to the picture, but minors have an independent and compelling claim to the protections of the First Amendment … People are unlikely to become well-functioning, independent-minded adults and responsible citizens if they are raised in an intellectual bubble. Also important is the ability to engage violence as a serious subject … Historically, cultures have used stories to make sense of senseless acts of violence. Telling stories about violence can, in effect, remove some of its sting and help us comprehend acts that shatter our normal frames of meaning. In sum, video games make a powerful contribution to the world of art and expression, and this Court should confirm that they lie fully within the protective scope of the First Amendment.

So, let’s recap. Id software, pioneers within the video game industry, have filed this brief in opposition to the case of Schwarzenegger v. ESA and EMA. This case would seek to take away video games’ protection under the first amendment right to free speech. Id software claims that since video games are no different from other forms of media such as literature and film, that they should receive equal protection. Numerous lower courts have reached this very conclusion, and Id feels the supreme court should confirm the correctness of these decisions. Id has drawn numerous comparisons to film and literature as well as stage productions, to enhance their belief that these mediums should be treated equally. They have also made it clear that video games do not fall into any of the categories of unprotected speech. Moreover, if the government were to pass this law then they would have to go about the near impossible task of scrutinizing every video game to be released. Id has also stated that video games status as games, is irrelevant. Courts have already recognized games as a form of expression and deemed them protected under the first amendment as well. They have cited numerous court cases to back up each and every argument they have made, and each argument is more compelling than the next. If you allow literature and film to be protected, then so must video games.

It is safe to say that I could not agree more with Id Software. I would judge a good game just as I would a good book or film, since to me, these mediums are one in the same. If a law is to apply to one, it must apply to all. It is as simple as that. If there is no distinct line to be drawn between these forms of media, then no distinct laws can be put into place to decide which recieves protection under our constitution and which does not. I believe that goes against everything that I was taught America stood for. Video games conjur up no less vivid images that do a well written book or well directed film, and the fact that they are interactive is quite frankly, irrelevant. Many gamers out there think that this case is so ludicrous that there isn’t even any reason to pay attention. They simply assume it will be thrown out. However, I’d hate to be the man who said, “I told you so” if somehow this law does pass, and you soon find yourselves unable to play the games you once loved. After all, if this issue is important enough for Id to stand up for, isn’t it important enough for you? If we simply sit idly by while our leaders continue to go unscrutinized as they seek to take away our freedom of speech … then I think we’re all DooMed.

Want to discuss this further? Feel free to e-mail me at Dave@Ripten.com or find me @DaveOshry on Twitter

FPS Alphabet: From Aliens to Zombies

Bryce Wilson — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 01:09:37 +0000

Join me as I take an in-depth look at an alphabetical list of games, publishers, and developers, that have helped to make the first person shooter genre one of the most robust around on both the console and the PC over the years.

This list pays tribute to the FPS highs and lows while trying to be as diverse as possible. Check it out, and let us know some you think in the comments section at the end. Let’s sing, shall we?

A is for: Aliens v Predator

Released in 2010, Aliens v Predator allowed players to play 3 separate campaigns as both the factions in the title plus as a Marine. The title went on to garner mixed reviews from critics both prior to and post launch, however it pleased fans and is still a much played title on Xbox LIVE and PC.

B is for: Battlefield Series

Spanning over 10 years and including 16 titles the Battlefield series has become a household name for many gamers. The original title “Battlefield 1942″ allowed players to enter the roles of four unique classes: Scout, Assault, Medic and Engineer. As well as 4 unique classes the game has allowed players to commandeer over 100 vehicles throughout its lifespan. With the release of Battlefield: Bad Company 2 only recently the series is still going strong and hard.

C is for: Call of Duty Series

Perhaps the biggest name in shooters, the Call of Duty franchise started off in 2003 and in only seven years has managed to move 55 million units worldwide taking over three billion dollars for Activision and Infinity Ward in the process. Modern Warfare 2, the latest spawn in the long running series went on to become the world’s biggest entertainment launch and to bring in over one billion dollars.

D is for: Doom

Originally launched in 1993, Doom has gone onto become perhaps the pivotal figure in popularizing console FPS and making it a force to be reckoned with. Telling the story of a Marine stranded on the planet Mars, who is assigned to protecting a corporation responsible for secret teleportation experiments. All goes awry of course and you’re left the only one alive and tasked with fighting through hordes of demons. Plagued with demonic imagery and gory death, Doom was a head turner for its time.

E is for: Enemy Territory: Quake Wars

Sequel to Quake 4, Enemy Territory was set in the same universe as it’s brethren Quake 2 and Quake 4. Featuring heavily multiplayer orientated gameplay as well as a plethora of new vehicles Quake Wars went on to receive an average of 84% on reviews and still features a heavy modding community.

F is for: Fire Warrior: Warhammer 40k

Fire Warrior was a little known FPS title to grace the Playstation 2 and PC. Putting you in the boots of a Tau soldier during a campaign that was spanned over 24 hours. The game featured innovative Multiplayer for it’s time being one of only a few to offer 8 Player MP through the PS2 Broadband Adapter. Fire Warrior received mixed reviews from the press.

G is for: Goldeneye

Where would any First Person Shooters, especially console ones be without perhaps the father of all FPS? Goldeneye was a Nintendo 64 exclusive released in 1997 to reviews that even now are impressive. During the 2001 Top 100 Games of All Time by Game Informer, it came in ranked in at 16th whilst a similar poll by Game FAQs ranked it at 7th. Either way, Goldeneye is the proverbial father of FPS on consoles and could even see a remake sometime in the future.

H is for: Halo Series

Launching in 2001 on the Xbox console, Halo is and will always be the most recognizable name alongside the Xbox and Xbox 360. Featuring in-depth campaigns, beautiful sound tracks and a multiplayer mode used by MLG, it will be a sad day when Bungie parts way with the series after Halo: Reach launches at the end of 2010. Inspiring Machinima shows, thousands of fan made montages and reviews all over the internet, it is safe to say everyone has heard of Halo at some point.

I is for: Infinity Ward

Definitely deserving on a place in this comprehensive FPS alphabet tribute, Infinity Ward has gone on to produce shooters at a level yards ahead of other developers. Whether it is the crazy hype that follows them or their devoted fan base, IW is forever etched into the tomes of FPS history. Whether the development of their titles is ever the same again is hard to say after the dramas that have occurred in the last three months.

J is for: Jurassic Park: Trespasser

Released in 1998 and billed as the literal successor to the Jurassic Park 2, this game essentially flopped. Receiving a review of “1″ by Computers and Video Games and billed as a “dog” by the same people, Trespasser contained horrible game mechanics and required a heavily modified and up to date PC to run it even back in 1998. 12 years later the game still features a heavy modding community and the game is still played.

K is for: Killzone 2

The beaming light at the end of the tunnel that is Playstation 3 shooters. Featuring an extensive and in-depth campaign alongside a multiplayer mode supporting up to 32 players, Killzone 2 is quite the shooter. Receiving an average score of 91% as well as going on to sell over a million units this title is a commercial success as well. It’s interesting to note too, that all in game voice as added after the game was done by having artists around the world record their voice then send it to the studio.

L is for: Left 4 Dead

Everyone knows Left 4 Dead, right!? One of the most co-operative games to grace a market full of “Pop ‘em and Drop ‘em” single player experiences, Left 4 Dead features intense combat, hordes of undead and an awesome story to boot. Developed by Valve, a long running developer of quality First Person Shooters, this game has seen a sequel produced as well as long running support for the original. The game also featured an awesome AI system called “The Director” that placed Zombies and Special Infected randomly so no two play throughs of a level were the same.

M is for: Medal of Honor

Due for release worldwide on the 12th of October, Medal of Honor is looking to reboot and revitalise the long running and obviously stale franchise that has all been set in World War 2. Moving the setting to modern day Afghanistan, players will take the reins of a “Tier 1 Operator”, a soldier in an elite group tasked with dangerous, and sometimes stealthy missions. At times players will also take control of a US Army Ranger to partake in bigger battles.

N is for: No One Lives Forever 2: A Spy In H.A.R.M.’s Way

Right, after reading possibly the longest game title in history here’s a bit of info on the game. NOLF2 was a FPS released in 2002, following the astounding success of the original No One Lives Forever title. This did equally well incorporating new gameplay features, graphics improvements by the bucket full and eventually went on to claim Game of the Year courtesy of GameSpy.

O is for: Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising

A spiritual successor to the original title (I call it a spiritual as it wasn’t produced by the original developers and didn’t have the same feeling, or performance), this game was a letdown to all involved, even Codemasters. Players had access to a huge island, 227km2 to be exact, that Codemasters bragged about time and time again. Turns out the player only gets around 5km to play around in. Originally meant to have monthly DLC, the game was dropped from support by Codemasters only 4 months after launch.

P is for: Portal

Portal, such a beautiful and unique game. Although you do shooting, it’s only of the namestake; portals. A puzzle game set in the First Person perspective Portal sees you take the role of Chell, a female test subject locked inside the bland white halls of Aperture Science. Featuring puzzles that will break your brain and a simple gameplay premise, Portal has gone on to be loved by critics and fans alike all over the world. It’s even been good enough to get a fully fleshed out sequel at the end of the year.

Q is for: Quake 3

Quake 3 Arena was released in 1999 and focused exclusively on Multiplayer fraggin’ action. Featured in some of the most exclusive Cyber athletics competitions around the globe, as well as played on thousands of dedicated servers through PC, Quake 3 is one of the pillars in competitive shooters and eSports. A port to the Xbox LIVE Arcade has also been planned.

R is for: Rainbow Six

A father of the tactical First Person Shooter genre, Rainbow Six features heavily based realistic combat along side a well written and thought out story by world renowned author Tom Clancy. Relying on players to accurately plan missions as opposed to blaze in all guns firing, this 1998 title is fun and enjoyable to play even today.

S is for: Shattered Horizon

For anyone that has benchmarked their PC Graphics and CPU before Futuremark should be a name you know. Well their first foray into the video game world and out of the Benchmarking tools world was quite an impressive one. Set in 2049, players take the role of an un-named Human on the Moon shortly before it explodes due to a huge mining accident. Combat is set in a Zero-Gravity environment challenging players whilst providing something new and unique. Critiques have given great scores with most even encouraging Futuremark to create a franchise.

T is for: Timesplitters 2

A cult classic if there ever was one, Timesplitters 2 is a FPS like no other. Placing players in the role of a space marine in 2401 whilst Humans are at war with a race named “TimeSplitters”. Instead of invading the Humans, the sentinel beings instead use things called “Time Crystals” to travel through, and alter time placing Earth into ruin. Featuring an awesome split screen mode and hours of fun, gamers around the world can only hope we see a sequel!

U is for: Unreal Tournament 2004

Like it’s brethren in the form of Quake III, UT2k4 is a heavily multiplayer orientated experience. Featuring vehicles for the first time, as well as a new game type titled “Onslaught” UT2k4 went on to win numerous “Multiplayer Game of the Year Awards” and to set the future benchmark for Multiplayer First Person Shooters.

V is for: Valve

V is for Valve, a long running American game production and publication company founded in 1996. Makers of revolutionary titles such as Half Life, Half Life 2 and new products like Left 4 Dead, they have firmly cemented themselves in gaming life. As well as their gaming exploration, they also invented the most popular and widely used Digital Content Distribution platform: “Steam”, saving PC users all of the world thousands of dollars.

W is for: Wolfenstein 3D

Another innovator of the First Person Shooter Genre, Wolenstein 3D gained most of its success through its Shareware agreement, basically allowing everyone to give out and to have as many copies as they wanted, but only one level. Of course you had to buy the full release to get the others! Being one of the first PC FPS games to implement Psuedo-3D, Wolfenstein 3D has become a retro favorite, but was also covered in controversy. Featuring levels constructed entirely of Swastikas and heavily Nazi party based imagery, many weren’t happy. One of the final bosses was even Hitler himself.

X is for: X

Not even I knew this game existed. That’s how hard it was to find. Released in 1992 on only the Gameboy, X puts you in the role of a tank commander tasked with completing numerous random missions. They include convoy protection through to defending whole bases. The game was listed by Famitsu as being one of four, in the most influential Game Boy games ever created.

Y is for: You Are Empty

A game I actually regret playing, You Are Empty puts you in the shoes of a high ranking Communist in Stalin-era Russia. The game features pathetic graphics for its time, a dismal gameplay experience and the stupidest ending I’ve ever encountered. No matter what you do you encounter the same clip montage ending in the destruction the Twin Towers in 2001. It scored a 1.5 courtesy of Game Informer reviewer Brent Todd. A little generous, I would’ve only given it a 0. DO NOT PLAY THIS, EVER!

Z is for: Zombie Panic! Source

One of, if not the most enjoyable community mod I played for Half Life was easily “Zombie Panic”. Zombie Panic! Source is a Half Life 2 redux of the original title that features content heavily emulating the classic Zombie movies and games of the world. Featuring four game modes, two of which are very similar to ones included in Left 4 Dead 2, Zombie Panic! Source is free to download off of Steam and well worth it.

Well that’s it for our comprehensive alphabet of FPS goodness. Some titles like Half-Life are missing, but I believe this is an awesome collection, and I hope you agree! If not, I’ll be more than happy to respond to your comments and suggestions below. Thanks!

Major Nelson: DOOM 2 Available On Xbox LIVE Arcade Tomorrow

Chad Lakkis — Tue, 25 May 2010 17:08:20 +0000

We just finished writing up a piece on the new Gears of War 3 arsenal revealed in a handful of Game Informer scans, and in it was a gun that reminded me very much of the BFG 9000 found in DOOM. Well, in an effort to stay on topic (sort of), we’re going to bring you some more DOOM-arific news.

Major Nelson posted an Xbox LIVE arcade announcement on his site some time last night stating that he had “just learned that DOOM 2 will be released this Wednesday …” The Xbox LIVE Arcade addition is joined by VooDoo Dice, and it’s expected that both will ring in at 800 MS Points.

What is the darkest ending in video game history?

Sam Naylor — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 16:22:01 +0000

It’s not as obvious as you might think, you know. Matt Belinkie over at Overthinking It has the answer- Double Dragon. Maybe the game is a little outdated, but the arcade version’s ending has a long-reaching effect. After reading the (well written) column, I’m convinced. We may well never again see a game which forces you to betray your loyal team-mate and above all, brother at the final step, simply down to ease of programming. Maybe in Gears of War 3, when you’re forced to mow down your trusty team, or in the next Pokémon, where to progress to the end you must slaughter all of your party in a sacrifice to the gods, we will see a similar situation, but the sheer doom faced at the moment where the words “Let’s Fight: 1Player vs. 2Player” are displayed will never be matched. Go read the article, all will become clear.

Heretic And Hexen Released For All Under GPL

John Kershaw — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 00:59:09 +0000

The classic PC games Heretic and Hexen have been given new freedom across the internet with their release under the GNU Public Licence.

The new release means you can freely download, modify and distribute the source code as you wish, leading to much wider implications of the legal use of the games. Up until now players have had to resort to either breaking the law, or re-coding the games from scratch to play them along side other open source games.

With help from a massive community effort spanning over a decade, as well as a few insiders helping out, not least John Romero, the games are now free to roam unrestricted.

To get your hands on the source code, head over to the SourceForge page.

Via: Doom World (pic wikipedia)

Retro Gore: Complete 1996 Doom Comic Book Surfaces Online

Chad Lakkis — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 19:59:26 +0000

Outside of video games, I have one other geek fetish, and that is comic books. Joe Haywood over at Aeropause stumbled upon this gem from 1996 while checking out Shawn Elliott’s Twitter feed.

I haven’t purchased a comic book in a few years now, but looking at the page by page break down of this beauty at bamkapow.com makes me want to run over to my local comic book store right now.

Speaking of comics, we got some Halo figures in the mail today that were made by a company named after a very popular comic book artist in the 1990s. Stay tuned for a chance to win them as soon as we devise a worthy contest.