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The History of Computer Games: Part Four: 1991- Present

© Dan Finkelstein

In 1991, many publishers were faced with the predicament of producing games for CD-ROM. First of all, many companies didn't want to make games exclusively on CD-ROM, because of the large share of the market that didn't have CD drives yet. Also, designers didn't really know how to use this new technology, so as a result, the first year or so of CD-ROM games were pretty bad. Designers used the added space of the CD-ROM to include videos that didn't add anything to the game--"eye-candy", and many CD-ROM's were simply the disk version of the games "shoveled" onto the CD. It took a few years for game designers to realize the full potential of the CD-ROM.

Some of my favorite games were published in 1991. "Wing Commander" actually told an intriguing story along with it's great gameplay. "The Adventures of Willy Beamish" used traditional hand-drawn animation in a game that looked and felt like a Saturday morning cartoon. "The Secret of Monkey Island", and "Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge", are, in my opinion, the two funniest games ever made for the computer.

In 1993, more quality games came on the market, as did advances SVGA graphics and sound. "Day of the Tentacle" was released, which refined LucasArts' SCUMM game engine. X-Wing was a hit among simulation and Star Wars fans alike, allowing the player to pilot his or her own X-Wing fighter.

Games became even more complicated in 1994. "Wing Commander III" was the first game, in my opinion, to use CD-ROM video technology to it's fullest--the game included videos starring real actors. The videos in WC3 actually advanced the on-going story. "IndyCar Racing" was the first game to accurately simulate the sensation of driving an IndyCar. "Magic Carpet" was probably the most stunning game graphically--the player could fly around dozens of worlds on a magic carpet.

1994 was also the year that a first-person shoot-everything-that-moves game called "Doom" was released by iD. To make a long story short, "Doom" was a run-away hit in just a few months. The way "Doom" was designed gave it almost limitless potential--gamers could alter the game in any way--making new levels, weapons, and enemies. Even today, "Doom" still has millions of fans around the world.

Sound cards rose to the next level in 1994. A technology called "Wavetable Synthesis" and "General MIDI" made in-game music sound as if it was being played by a real orchestra. The small size of MIDI files made it a perfect sound format for games.

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