Three-dimensional graphics, usually constructed of polygons. Not two-dimensional.
Nintendo‘s 64-bit console was first released in 1996 in Japan (and in limited numbers in the USA), and 1997 everywhere else.
The N64 was the third Nintendo video game console (after the NES and the SNES) and was a leap forward in technology that had a profound effect on the games market as a whole. It is a console suited to 3D graphics and gameplay, but also extremely capable with 2D graphics (although you’d be hard pushed to find a game on the N64 that was entirely made of 2D graphics).
The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard is a third-person action/adventure set in the world of Bethesda‘s famous The Elder Scrolls series. It was initially released in 1998 for the PC, running under MS-DOS.
A modern remake of the classic 3D Realms shooter is a great idea – the original adventures of Lo Wang (the lead character in the Shadow Warrior games, and the character you play in this) were a lot of fun.
MotoGP 2 is a great, high octane bike racing game, first released by THQ in 2003. It was developed by UK-based Climax Brighton for the original XBox, and for Microsoft Windows.
An Elder Scrolls Legend: Battlespire is a spin-off from the famous Elder Scrolls series of RPGs by Bethesda Softworks. It first came out in 1997 – between Daggerfall and Morrowind – and is an MS-DOS-based action/RPG with fairly primitive 3D graphics.
Nihilistic Software‘s 2000 release, Vampire: The Masquerade – Redemption, is a 3D RPG with real-time combat and is held in very high regard by those who have played it.
On the surface Redemption is similar in style to Neverwinter Nights, although Neverwinter Nights came two years after Vampire, which demonstrates how ahead of its time it was.
Not a sequel, but a ‘data disk’ add-on that you load through the original Mercenary. The Second City starts off pretty much the same as Mercenary – crashing on a planet (this time the other side of the one you explored in Mercenary, and also a different colour) and having to explore to get on and eventually escape.
A 16-bit conversion of Paul Woakes‘ classic 8-bit exploration sequel to Mercenary. Well, not really a sequel – more a continuation… The real sequel came later.
The Atari ST‘s power (relative to the Commodore 64) means smoother, faster 3D graphics; more colours (useful, when colours are used to identify rooms and places underground); and more sensitive controls.
A fine 16-bit conversion of the classic Mercenary by Paul Woakes, written by Woakes himself it seems. And why wouldn’t it be? It’s a great game and deserves doing right, so who better to code it than the original creator?
Microsoft‘s Midtown Madness games have always been fun to play, but this third instalment in the series is arguably the best, with the most detail. It was an original XBox exclusive, first released in 2003.
The King of Grabs 