Soon enough the multitudes were overtaken by the prevailing fear that an entire generation could completely withdraw to the confines of their bedrooms, neglecting family, friends, or any form of human interaction. Throw in the increasing prevalence of violence in entertainment media, and you had politicians and moralists decrying the entire gaming industry without ever picking up a joystick themselves. Yep, electronic games have been the subject of rigorous debate in the United States for decades, from 1976's arcade classic "Death Race", to 2006's controversial schoolyard adventure, "Bully". But few titles have aroused the kind of ire that id Software managed to fuel in the early 90s with the release of its seminal first-person shooter, Wolfenstein 3-D.

It's 1992. The ESRB rating system was not yet established, and games that had been unofficially deemed "mature" usually contained overtly sexual themes, like the Leisure Suit Larry series, or those esoteric Atari porn cartridges. But no authoritative board existed to formally classify violent games. So we realized we were in for something special when Wolfenstein was booted up for the first time and "PC-13" flashed across the loading screen. "OMG: Profound Carnage!" id software's voluntary warning label was a smart way to introduce an already heavily-hyped game to curious, eager players. The message was clear: "Brace yourselves."
Wolfenstein 3-D is set during World War 2, which was without question the greatest global conflict of the 20th century. Today, contemporary war games depicting modern military violence often flirt with delicate issues, especially considering our ambiguous situation in the Middle East. Throw in general concern for insensitivity toward active soldiers and army families, and you've got a lot of mixed feelings about the War genre, despite a healthy market.
But there's nothing politically incorrect about killing some Nazis.
Well, unless you live in Germany, where the game received a nation-wide ban upon release. Any allusion to Nazi imagery can be considered a federal offense in the country, but you can't really blame them for being touchy about the past. I mean, the Nazis WERE the most villainous war criminals of all time. Here in the United States, even some of the most staunch anti-war activists will agree that the iniquities perpetrated by Hitler and his legions demanded military action. So when mom walked in the room and witnessed what was happening on the computer screen, kids were prepared with a compelling argument: "But Ma-Uhm! They're NAZIS!"
Still, this didn't always justify the intense graphic content depicted in Wolfenstein to worried parents, many of whom were previously unexposed to this level of gore in a game. The unprecedented amount of violence in Wolfenstein 3-D was a shock to many of us gamers, too. But even more shocking was the realization that eventually more adults were playing it than kids. Wolfenstein 3-D quickly became the quintessential "office guy" game, and heavy promotion through shareware enabled it to spread across workplaces like wildfire.
The objective was simple enough: get out of Castle Wolfenstein and take down some Nazis in the process. Players control B.J. Blazkowicz, a captive American soldier who begins his escape armed with nothing more than a knife and his wits. Not a whole lot was going on story-wise, but Wolfenstein redefined the First-Person Shooter genre. The gameplay was addictive, and the responsive controls allowed players to either sneak around the prison complex taking out unsuspecting guards, or recklessly engage in all-out gunfights with multiple enemies on the screen at once. B.J. upgrades his arsenal throughout the game as he acquires new guns from fallen soldiers, picking up ammunition and health power-ups along the way.
The level designs were fairly simple; however, striking Nazi imagery decorates the prison walls, and the overall atmosphere is tense and eerie, creating the perfect environment for a shooter. The experience was so intense that the company's major follow up could only take place in one other setting: Hell itself. id Software would once again revolutionize the genre a few years later with the Doom series, influencing cubicle culture even further with the games' multiplayer "Deathmatch" feature. These were also some of the first games to encourage user-generated content; players were able to actually contribute by designing and sharing their own levels with the rest of the world.
But Wolfestein 3-D will always have more character in my opinion. Nothing will ever compare to the satisfaction of single-handedly taking out Hitler and the entire Nazi regime from the comfort of your own desktop. The latest next-gen installment, simply titled "Wolfenstein", will be released on August 17. In the meantime, the classic that started it all can still be purchased for download in its original form at id's website: http://www.idsoftware.com/games/wolfenstein/wolf3d/
Wolfenstein 3-D is set during World War 2, which was without question the greatest global conflict of the 20th century. Today, contemporary war games depicting modern military violence often flirt with delicate issues, especially considering our ambiguous situation in the Middle East. Throw in general concern for insensitivity toward active soldiers and army families, and you've got a lot of mixed feelings about the War genre, despite a healthy market.
But there's nothing politically incorrect about killing some Nazis.
Well, unless you live in Germany, where the game received a nation-wide ban upon release. Any allusion to Nazi imagery can be considered a federal offense in the country, but you can't really blame them for being touchy about the past. I mean, the Nazis WERE the most villainous war criminals of all time. Here in the United States, even some of the most staunch anti-war activists will agree that the iniquities perpetrated by Hitler and his legions demanded military action. So when mom walked in the room and witnessed what was happening on the computer screen, kids were prepared with a compelling argument: "But Ma-Uhm! They're NAZIS!"Still, this didn't always justify the intense graphic content depicted in Wolfenstein to worried parents, many of whom were previously unexposed to this level of gore in a game. The unprecedented amount of violence in Wolfenstein 3-D was a shock to many of us gamers, too. But even more shocking was the realization that eventually more adults were playing it than kids. Wolfenstein 3-D quickly became the quintessential "office guy" game, and heavy promotion through shareware enabled it to spread across workplaces like wildfire.
The objective was simple enough: get out of Castle Wolfenstein and take down some Nazis in the process. Players control B.J. Blazkowicz, a captive American soldier who begins his escape armed with nothing more than a knife and his wits. Not a whole lot was going on story-wise, but Wolfenstein redefined the First-Person Shooter genre. The gameplay was addictive, and the responsive controls allowed players to either sneak around the prison complex taking out unsuspecting guards, or recklessly engage in all-out gunfights with multiple enemies on the screen at once. B.J. upgrades his arsenal throughout the game as he acquires new guns from fallen soldiers, picking up ammunition and health power-ups along the way.
The level designs were fairly simple; however, striking Nazi imagery decorates the prison walls, and the overall atmosphere is tense and eerie, creating the perfect environment for a shooter. The experience was so intense that the company's major follow up could only take place in one other setting: Hell itself. id Software would once again revolutionize the genre a few years later with the Doom series, influencing cubicle culture even further with the games' multiplayer "Deathmatch" feature. These were also some of the first games to encourage user-generated content; players were able to actually contribute by designing and sharing their own levels with the rest of the world.But Wolfestein 3-D will always have more character in my opinion. Nothing will ever compare to the satisfaction of single-handedly taking out Hitler and the entire Nazi regime from the comfort of your own desktop. The latest next-gen installment, simply titled "Wolfenstein", will be released on August 17. In the meantime, the classic that started it all can still be purchased for download in its original form at id's website: http://www.idsoftware.com/games/wolfenstein/wolf3d/