“Friday Old Games” is a series of articles in which we review a game from the older generations of consoles, share why we picked it, and whether or not it holds up with time.

Back in 1992, id Software set the world (of PC gaming nerds) on fire by making the first in a new genre called “First Person Shooters”. The best part: Wolfenstein 3D was shareware, so it was not only legal, but encouraged that you give the first episode of the game to your friends.

In its heyday, Shareware was an awesome way to try out new PC games. If you were lucky enough to have internet access back then, you could dial in to a BBS and download the files, which I’m sure took days. If you were like me, it was a matter of going to the local mall where there was a brick and mortar store dedicated to the sale of Shareware floppy discs. You could then purchase the full game from the appropriate software company directly via snail mail.You kids these days have it great with your Steams and your Direct 2 Drives.

The Shareware disc of Wolfenstein 3D contained the first episode, which consisted of ten levels. Escape From Castle Wolfenstein, being the first episode and therefor the free one, is the best known amongst gamers. You start as a captured Ally spy, William “B.J.” Blazkowicz, who has just taken out his cell guard and stolen his Walther P38. You are searching through the maze-like Castle Wolfenstein for Operation Eisenfaust and overthrow the Nazi Regime.

With the full game, you would then head on to episode 2, Operation: Eisenfaust. You’d then battle through Castle Hollehammer in an attempt to stop the Nazi’s from unleashing an army of undead mutants. And in the final episode, Die, Führer, Die!, you fight your way to Hitler himself for a final showdown.

Why did I pick this game?

This weekend is Quakecon 2010, and I wanted to give the id Software guys the appropriate shout out. I have also been reading the excellent book Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture and have been wanting to go back and play some of their games from years past.

I only played Wolfenstein 3D in short bursts when I was kid. It was the kind of game that, had my parents caught me playing it, they would have likely grounded me from gaming on the computer in general.

Nowadays, you can play it on pretty much any device that plays games. I have been enjoying the iPhone version immensely. The touchscreen works much better than I would have expected for movement, shooting, and even changing weapons. You can even use tilt controls if that is more your thing. They also added a map that shows where you have already explored in a level, which is super handy for me. I normally have a heck of a time keeping track of where I am in these older FPS’s.

How does it hold up with time?

By today’s standards, Wolfenstein 3D is incredibly simple. There are only four weapons (more were added in various ports), there is no aiming up and down (the ceilings and floors don’t even have textures because of technological limitations of the time), and enemies move along pre-prescribed patterns (much like in 2D games). However, the levels are well designed, the combat is fun and very fast-paced, and every level is packed to the gills with secret rooms. Like any good classic game, its comparative simplicity is a benefit, not a detriment.

Also, you don’t just get to fight and kill Hitler, you get to fight and kill Mecha-Hitler.

Tags: Apogee Software, DOS, First Person Shooter, Friday Old Games, id Software, iPhone, Mac, PC, Playstation 3, Shareware, SNES, Wolfenstein 3D, xbla

This entry was posted on Friday, August 13th, 2010 at 2:37 pm and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.