Wolfenstein 3D / Wolfenstein 3D: The Claw of Eisenfaust
Publisher: Apogee Software (DOS), id Software (iOS), Activision (360, PS3), MacPlay (Mac), Powerslave Software (Acorn 32-bit), Imagineer (PC-98, SNES), Interplay (NA 3DO), Electronic Arts (JP 3DO), Atari (Jaguar), BAM! Entertainment (GBA)
Developer: id Software (DOS, iOS, SNES, Jaguar), Powerslave Software (Acorn 32-bit), Interplay (Mac), Logicware (3DO), Infinity (PC-98), Stalker Entertainment (GBA), Nerve Software (360, PS3)
Platform: MS-DOS, Mac, Acorn 32-bit, PC-98, Super Famicom / Super Nintendo Entertainment System, 3DO, Jaguar, Game Boy Advance, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, iOS
Year: 1992 (DOS), 1994 (Mac, Acorn 32-bit, PC-98, SNES, Jaguar), 1995 (3DO), 2002 (GBA), 2009 (360, PS3, iOS)
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When people think of id Software they usually think of the Doom series. However, Doom wasn’t their first big hit and it wasn’t even the first hit first person shooter. The year before Doom took the world by storm, id released Wolfenstein 3D. In many ways it was a much more primitive game but it was still extremely fun and also very successful.
Wolfenstein 3D was originally released for DOS based PCs but was ultimately ported to a wide variety of platforms. The original was released in 1992 and was inspired by a much older game, Castle Wolfenstein, which was originally released in 1981. In Wolfenstein 3D you play the role of a spy attempting to defeat the Nazis. Like Doom that followed it, the game consists of a number of episodes, the first of which was released as shareware. While there was never an official sequel, the game engine was licensed and eventually released as open source so there have been a number of games build on the same engine and there have been follow-up games released by other companies over the years.
In 1994, ports were released on the Super Nintendo, Macintosh, and Atari Jaguar. In 1998 there was even a port for the Apple IIgs. Later ports include the Game Boy Advance, Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation NEtwork and an iOS port by John Carmack in 2009.
Wolfenstein 3D never quite gained the fame of Doom for a few reasons. By the time the ports came along, Doom was already out and even the original release was was only a year or so ahead of Doom. While Wolfenstein 3D was an excellent game in its own right, Doom made a number of significant advancements with its entirely new 3D game engine, not to mention the online Deathmatch capability. However, first person shooter fans should definitely check out this game, preferably the original PC version, as it is really the granfather of all first person shooters.
