1996 -
Duke Nukem 3D
While easily one of my favorite games of all time, Duke Nukem 3D is a first-person shooter developed by 3D Realms and fully released in April, 1996. The game follows the adventures of Duke Nukem as he tries to save women from an alien invasion on Earth. Duke Nukem 3D consisted of four chapters back in 1996 each with its own final boss (five chapters in the new version released in 2016). There were all sorts of different levels that were centered in places like LA, Hollywood, movie theaters, prisons, and even the moon! Duke had an arsenal of weapons that he could gather throughout the levels: duke's own "mighty" foot to melee enemies, a pistol, a shotgun, a machine gun (ripper), an rpg, a grenade launcher, pipe bombs, laser tripwires, a freeze ray, a shrink ray, and an expander (growth ray). Duke could also collect items to assist the levels, such as steroids to make duke run fast, a medkit to heal, scuba diving gear to breathe underwater, armor for extra protection, a hologram, a jetpack, and even night-vision goggles to see in the dark. Enemies include pig cops (mutated LAPD officers), aliens, octabrains, and other lizard-like enemies. This game is a classic and it is considered a major landmark in gaming history for continuing the first-person shooter genre. There were also a LOT of "easter eggs" in Duke Nukem 3D. These easter eggs range from things like Luke Skywalker, Indiana Jones, Snake Plissken, Doomguy, and the terminator to other quotes from famous movies such as Alien, They Live, Pulp Fiction, Jaws, and more! Duke Nukem 3D is currently available on the Xbox One, PS4 and PC/Mac. Duke Nukem 3D was made with Ken Silverman's BUILD Engine, which is what I will be covering in a little bit of depth in the near future.
Diablo
Diablo is considered a role-playing hack and slash game that was released by Blizzard Entertainment in December, 1996. David Brevik, the main creator and designer of Diablo, originally envisioned the game as a turn-based role-playing game, and he proposed the game to many publishers, where many of which turned him down because they thought RPGs were "dead". However, Blizzard Entertainment took interest in the idea and offered to help make the game under the condition that it be made real-time and that it contained multiplayer. Diablo begins in the town of Tristram, which once held a monastery with Diablo trapped in an enchanted soulstone buried deep beneath it. Later on, a cathedral was built over the ruins of the monastery and Diablo possesses an archbishop to destroy the soulstone prison from which he is trapped. Upon unleashing, he possesses the king to launch assaults on peaceful kingdoms, and Diablo later possesses the king's son, Prince Albrecht, to fill the caverns below the cathedral with horrific creatures from the prince's dreams. Tristram had no king, no law, and nobody left to protect it, so people became fearful. It is up to the player to descend through randomly-generated dungeons and save Tristram from Diablo. The gameplay consists of a 3D isometric view of the world. Diablo utilizes a class system and the player can choose to be a warrior, a rogue, or a sorcerer. The player can acquire items, defeat enemies, cast spells, interact with non-player characters, and explore this vast land!
Duke Nukem 3D gameplay screenshot
Diablo gameplay screenshot