Wolfenstein 3D is 21 years old today

Happy 21th anniversary Wolfenstein 3D! I am making two games just to celebrate. I will hopefully get the two games released today. Does anyone have any memories of this game that they would like to share? I remember when I played the first episode back in the 90s. My first boss battle was Hans Grosse. I also remember an SS hiding in an elevator back in the 90s. Man, those were the days. I also remember the dogs and episode 1 enemies along with the items in episode 1.

It was 21 years ago this month that I had first been given an alpha shareware disk of Wolfenstein 3D. I was in 5th grade and my 3rd grade schoolmate's father gave me a disk copy. It had 6 levels that you can get to without warping. I played it over and over again that summer. I thought that if you warped, then level 9 has Hans Grosse, but he just stands there and can't hurt you. If I remember right, in the alpha shareware there were 21 levels, but the levels after level 9 were redundant and/or poorly made. It's almost like they had forgotten to delete them before distributing them.

ID Software didn't make Wolfenstein 3D first. They made a Super Mario Brothers 3 computer game. The test market loved it, but Nintendo businessmen hated it. So ID Software made the original character of Commander Keen. Commander Keen is an 8-year-old genius that runs around on another planet that apparently has less gravity.

In 1992, Apogee first sold only a disk with episodes 1-3 of Wolfenstein 3D. Then they sold a disk with episodes 4-6. The Spear of Destiny ending level was a shocking video game ending for 1993. In 1993, it wasn't as common to be connected to the internet and they gave you a bonus disk with a shareware game episode with your shipment. Now the shareware is online.

In 1994, FormGen sold The Spear Mission Packs and Spear Super CD boxes at Sam's Club and Egghead Software. There seemed to be nothing wrong with Egghead software and I'm not sure why it went out of business. In 1994, Apogee sold Wolfenstein 3D Super Upgrades with over 800 levels, a level editor, and a random level generator. I don't like the random level generator anymore. The Super Upgrades have no graphics changes and are now freeware on 3D Realm's web site. Level set C or CC was 60 levels and pretty good.

Rise of The Triad originally was going to be a Wolfenstein 3D add-on. The Wolfenstein 3D secret level in R.O.T.T. wasn't impressive enough or made too close to the deadline, so they made The WolfenDoom secret levels in Doom 2. The Wolfenstein 3D secret level in R.O.T.T. became freeware on the internet. In 1994, I was on level 15 or 20 of Doom 2 and had discovered the map computer. It revealed the secret to me on the full map, but I was perplexed about how to get to it.

Some foreigners are oblivious that Hans and Gretel Grosse were taken from the story of Hansel and Gretel!

Wolfenstein 3D was supposed to be more complicated. Apogee or ID wanted the option to drag bodies, wear clothes as disguises, and they had some things that would offend people that ended up not in the final version. I think that Wolfenstein Reloaded is the one where you can drag bodies. I think that Wolfenstein Umbrella Beginnings is the one where you can wear stolen clothes as a disguise and the Germans don't fire at you until you fire at them.

Wolfenstein 3D is banned in Germany because of censorship. The German version of Doom 2 doesn't have the WolfenDoom levels because of censorship.

I watched a Youtube video this year of Neil DeGrasse Tyson talking about video games. He said that ID Software either originally wanted a Star Trek 3D game or they got the idea for Wolfenstein 3D from The Star Trek holodeck. The holodeck is like virtual reality, but I would say that it isn't as lame as The Matrix movies.

In the 1980s, there was Castle Wolfenstein, Beyond Castle Wolfenstein, and Castle Smurfenstein for a computer. It's 2D. I played it on an emulator and it's either that the emulator didn't work right or it's lame. I try not to be superficial, but when the framerate is bad and when it crashed about every 2 minutes, I think I can call it lame. EDIT: It also made annoying noises probably caused by an emulation glitch.

I've played Wolfenstein 3D for the Super Nintendo and it doesn't do Wolfenstein 3D justice. It had inferior graphics resolution. They replaced dogs with giant rats, and took out swastikas, which is OK I guess. You'd probable have more fun with the 3-dimensional scenes of Super Nintendo Jurassic Park. You need the instruction booklet and almost need the Nintendo Power maps to beat it.

I found the Aardwolf Sign by accident without any help, and my Dad called Apogee about it!

Wolfenstein 3D wasn't the first 3D game. There were some that flopped. I thought that the first color 3D game was Catacombs Abyss, but I haven't played it. I've played Moraff's World, but I don't know if it came before Wolfenstein 3D. Moraff's World is in color and has perspective, but no animation. You could fall through the floor. If I remember it correctly, it was a surreal, elf or Pagan game where you are a Viking fighting dragons. A seance is mentioned and they believed that the Earth is on a sailing ship. I never could quite figure out where it's going. I wonder if they thought that fantasy games would be a hit. Before Wolfenstein 3D, we had Scarab of Ra and a bobsled game on The Winter Olympics Games disk for the original black-and-white Macintosh or Macintosh Plus. The Scarab of Ra had perspective, but no animation. I never could beat it for some reason. If your lantern burnt out, then it's grey and your vision is messed up. Oil could spill on your map and ruin it. EDIT: I think that Battlezone in 1980 was the first 3D game. I had forgotten to mention that I think we had Falcon, a flight simulator for The Macintosh or Macintosh Plus, probably before Wolfenstein 3D. Does Falcon count as a 3D game?

Wolf3d can drink in America now. Let's drink to that.

LONG LIVE WOLFENSTEIN 3D!!!