Of Shamblers, Shades, and Sectors: Children of Doom Episode 6

[@rorykurek643]

I absolutely love how you read that John Romero Quake quote. Very "nerd full of exciting ideas who hasn't yet had to actually try and squeeze them into a video game."

[@InnuendoStudios]

And when finally he did, Daikatana happened

[@marreco6347]

@@InnuendoStudios Anachronox, Rise of the triad, Daikatana... John Carmack gets credit for being the tech guy, but he really was holding the reins of the team, streamlining crazy ideas so their games would actually be popular.

[@maximummatt73]

All hail John Romero.

[@daishoryujin95]

This is called “pulling a Peter molyneux”

[@charlesteames5401]

I feel like every fps developer of the PS3/360 era looked to Quake for influence but the only lesson they took from it was: "ah yes, B R O W N"

[@Cythil]

Know what you mean. Felt that way on PC to at a time. It seems like Quake was seen as so influential at the time, so photo realistic compared to other games, that brown became the colour for making high quality, gritty games. Naturally now we will all scoff at that. But at least for me that seemed to be the vide for a while. Personally I started to hate that but I guess it help me question the whole notion of gritty realism to. And quake did not try to be realistic like many other later games will dull pallet. And Quake actually did throw in a bit of colour just because they knew they were going a bit to far with the brown. Others did not learn this...

[@MadMac5]

I'll also partially blame Half-Life 2: Lost Coast for that, since its "HDR" rendering used excessive bloom to show intense lighting and, when used irresponsibly, led to a very beige world. And that kind of lighting meant "HD Generation." Part of it could also be that Gears of War was very Grey and Brown since that was the game's aesthetic (for good and for bad), and since everyone knew that it was easy to make Unreal Engine 3 look good in that colour palette that's what everyone used.

[@Volvagia1927]

​@@MadMac5 The dirt spectrum era is...I'd mostly put it to 2006-2011. When even BAYONETTA is doing it, it's a trend, and a regrettable one at that. Now? There are still games that do it, but I wouldn't call it an "era" in the same way.

[@ileutur6863]

@@Volvagia1927 Bruh even racing games were brown and grey back then

[@Robert399]

Actually I think it was more the success of Call of Duty 4 (which doesn't draw from Quake at all), which led publishers to think all shooters need to be gritty and "realistic", no matter the setting. I think it's more convergent evolution (so to speak) than direct inspiration.

[@pissqueendanniella4688]

My first ever journal entry, January 1997, opens with "Today is Sunday and I'm bored. I'm watching dad play duke nukem, he just accidentally killed a stripper.."

[@Fractal_blip]

My first journal got me kicked out lol

[@planescaped]

My sisters first journal was mostly Xena fanfiction. XD

[@aksen303]

i think one important aspect that you overlooked when talking about these 2 games is good old +mlook. i remember when i first started playing quake, which was deathmatch in a computer lab at uni (well before trying the single player campaign). we were all wolf3d and doom veterans, so we all just played with keyboard. after a couple of months one of the others heard about mlook, and switched over to it. we all laughed at him as he struggled to adjust to this new, weird way of playing...for about a week, at which point his ability to circle strafe us forced all of us to give up on playing purely with keys. from that moment on, anything that DIDN'T have mouselook felt antiquated (which, obviously at the time, was basically EVERYTHING). that ability to view a 3d world as a true 3d space, to look up and down, over edges, behind you as fast as you could move your hand, that was why quake matters, at least to me. i know it didn't invent it, i know other games did it first, but quake was the one that popularised it. all of which is to say that duke 3d felt old to me at the time, at least mechanically. coupled with hating the character of duke, i did not like duke nukem 3d. which makes your observations about it being the first FPS to model real places interesting because i never thought of it like that. did my dislike of the mechanics and hatred of the character make me ignore that? i certainly didn't think of it way back then. it's not going to change my opinion of it as a game, but i think i will be a little more...open to its importance in FPS history.

[@matthewrease2376]

Doom has mlook though

[@nepu47]

I am a modern gamer, I felt reversely. when I got into DOOM 1,2 and Duke nukem, I was shocked. The fact that I can play FPS without mouse, and even using mouse is a bit janky because you can not see up but move forward, was so fresh to me. I sometimes want to play an action game just with keyboard, those old FPS serves me well.

[@Medytacjusz]

@@matthewrease2376 " i know it didn't invent it, i know other games did it first, but quake was the one that popularised it."

[@RannekoPlays]

@@matthewrease2376 as I recall the mouse in doom didn't let you look up or down, it instead moved you forwards and backwards. Source ports have long fixed this but it was a pretty painful control scheme

[@bensdecoy7871]

This is almost my exact experience though I’m younger than you being 10 in 1996. For some reason I think that was just the right age for Quake to dig it’s teeth into my developing brain. I never quite “got” Doom but Quake clicked instantly because it was a true 3D experience. Mods like Rocket Arena, low gravity maps, and that really basic airplane mod (AirQuake?) all emphasized verticality in an actual tangible way other games with rendering tricks couldn’t. My brother and I came to Duke and Shadow Warrior afterwards so even with all of its interactivity it felt like a step backward.

[@TehNoobiness]

Honestly, the aesthetic of Quake 1 is my favorite thing about it, even though it's ultimately a product of a team being told to redo the whole thing because they couldn't finish the original version.

[@huesos_azules]

shut up

[@casanovafunkenstein5090]

Yeah, I agree. It has a similar vibe to Warhammer 40,000 and Doom in that it's a bunch of disparate elements and influences that don't always fit together comfortably but ultimately create a totally unique and captivating aesthetic.

[@TehNoobiness]

It makes me wish there were more "shotgun gothic" games with this sort of ancient-evils-meet-big-guns setting. DUSK exists, and is excellent, and WRATH: Aeon of Ruin feels like an evolution of this aesthetic, but I want moar, dammit!

[@Jewpacca]

Strongly agree with this. Don't be hating on my knights+cybermarine aesthetic! It's the best part of the game.

[@trinidad17]

No way man, and I think that it was partially because Quake looked so damn awful that Build Engine games were so popular at the time despite having a less advanced engine.

[@GameDevYal]

**cheerful music** **giant explosion** MISSION STATUS: FAILURE Doesn't quite top the "you are dead" song from Total Distortion, but that's definitely making it to my top 5 favorite game over screens.

[@AFnord]

One nice thing about Terranova is how it sometimes throws you a curveball during missions. Things don't go as planned and the mission you're sent out to do fail for story reasons, and now you're given new objectives that you need to achieve. And those failed objectives will still show up as failed ones in the mission log.

[@BoswerLK]

it is, without a doubt, the most victorious failure theme I've ever heard in my life

[@kalevtait7442]

Glad to see you are continuing the tradition of comforting distraction for Innuendo Studios.

[@aLev-s3n3ctus]

That sounds like a diss and a compliment at the same time lol

[@InnuendoStudios]

Yes, we appreciate this service

[@argonaut999]

errant signal: come for the thoughtful comparisons between Quake and Duke Nukem 3D, stay for "oh so THAT'S why system shock 1 looks like that"

[@allmight9840]

When you are such a boomer you played SS1 on release....

[@danielg3857]

not a boomer, but with modern mouselook it was pretty kickass, the mood was good and the lofi graphics really added to the vibe; I still remember going to the first floor elevator or computer room and Shodan just haranguing the player, really spooky in combination with the low fidelity that added a cursed old video game kind of feel to it

[@Breaknoon0]

Quake had rollback netcode in '96 and fighting games are JUST NOW really starting to utilize it.

[@AlyxxTheRat]

Watching someone trying to kill a shambler with a grenade launcher is the definition of pain.

[@ErrantSignal]

In my defense, that was pickup footage of me trying to get the shambler to attack so I could hide behind cover as referenced in the dialog there; it wasn't my actual run at beating the game. But yeah, watching me play in general is nauseating; I flick the mouse too much.

[@ShjadeNexayre]

Why is this bad? Do they take reduced damage from grenades or something?

[@fearless1000]

@@ShjadeNexayre You are correct.

[@trogdo]

i was like use the nailgun

[@ShjadeNexayre]

@@fearless1000 Huh. I had no idea enemies had different defense types in Quake.

[@Ellohir]

The period between 95 and 2000 was an incredible technical revolution, I love this deep dive into the era 🥰

[@tsartomato]

up until 2008 was golden age of gaming it's all downhill from there now your only choice is aaa copypaste garbage or pixelart rng indie garbage, both with not a single new mechanic midcore was the only thing pushing the medium forward both best years in gaming 1998 and 2006 fall on that period

[@daishoryujin95]

I love the feedback loop of Ian saying he loves these videos and then he’s referenced in these videos.

[@jabberw0k812]

Serious feels when you brought up Marathon Infinity. That was also when they released mapping tools for the engine. As a kid confined to the Mac, Infinity was my Duke Nukem

[@sergiobuzetti]

I'll give my highest praise that is watching this as I have lunch

[@Enterim]

Great video. Your part on Quake's influence made me think of an under-examined part: it was the first id game with an in-game console, which was used not only in later games but even in *earlier* games: the first consoles in Doom source ports were literally stolen from the Quake source leak.

[@gordongraham2064]

For what it's worth, I'm a big fan of the way you've been stretching your legs into longer videos lately. If they're not straining your time and attention, don't worry about straining our patience, I love a good sprawling and thorough video.

[@misterkefir]

+1 to that.

[@RandyJr]

Just wanted to add a comment about the channel as a whole. Errant Signal is one of the most interesting, well considered, mature, thoughtful and insightful channels on this here KZbin. Genuinely always excited to see a new episode drops, and frequently revisit old ones. Discovered plenty of games through your content, and appreciate the alternative or just deeper perspective than 99.9% of content on here.

[@robertskitch]

41:47 "An era before dual-analogue sticks" It's amazing to think that back in 1987 people were playing Robotron: 2084 twin stick on their Atari 7800s with the caveat that they had to use both controllers to do so. (these days Atari enthusiasts can buy speciality controllers that plug into both ports)

[@nate567987]

that is why arcades were arcade

[@neoqwerty]

@@nate567987 Honestly arcades had the best controllers, there's something for the immersion when you can literally get up on a jetski and play a watercraft racing game.

[@AudioSuede]

Anyone interested in a more in-depth look at Realms of the Haunting should check out the Ross's Game Dungeon episode about it. It's probably the video of his I've watched the most.

[@snowcrash1905]

Amen to that. He also gave a few good hints on how to make that thing run on modern hardware so we all can enjoy the nostalgia again in person. All the more reason to go and see that vid afte you guys are done here.

[@lionocyborg6030]

Don't forget that Marathon Infinity's plot has a subtle time travel theme coupled with the nightmare levels after choosing a timeline which Ken Levine took inspiration from for Bioshock Infinite (he'd previous been inspired by the first game for elements of System Shock 2). Those elements being timeline jumping, mind screws in the plot, dream sequences (though Infinite used them a lot less and they were really short) and an existential ending, except that Infinite handled that last part better than Marathon 3.

[@marrvynswillames4975]

i'm playing Infinity at the moment, and the story is really bizarre, lol

[@Squalidarity]

30:22 I fondly remember, at age 7, getting a demo disc for the Zoo Tycoon 2 Marine Mania expansion in a carton of raw chicken of all things.

[@johndevoe8787]

I never played Duke Nukem growing up, but I did have a friend who was unironically into the duke persona. Looking forward to next episode for a game I did play as a kid.

[@Arrahant]

Great vid. Love this series. Another notable thing about Strife is how the hub world can be in multiple states, depending on the player's actions and progression in the story. I was 12 in 1996. Myself and a lot of classmates got their first computer in this year because of a government programme in the Netherlands that allowed almost any worker to get a PC via work pretty cheap. Let me tell you: we all wanted to play Duke 3D. In my recollection there also was simply more buzz for Duke over Quake in the magazines, but I only read the gaming magazines and not the PC hobbyist magazines. Like Errant mentions, Quake was perhaps only more popular in the latter type of outing. Let's also not forget Duke's shareware version was released in '95, and received much attention there already. I dunno, I'd give the nod to Duke. 1997 is the year in which we all stopped playing Duke, and did not stop fragging each other in Quake, on the other hand! :)

[@TalenLee]

I remember the absolute brain sorcery I thought I committed when I used shoot triggers that overlapped to make 'glass' in Quake.

[@ethancossett7318]

Great video as always! An extra piece of historical significance to Final Doom: Dario Casali, one half of the brother duo responsible for "Plutonia", was shortly thereafter hired by Valve and contributed level design to both Half-Life games (don't quote me on this, but I recall reading somewhere that the initial outdoor reveal of City 17, that city square with the horse sculpture, is among his handiwork). He is also credited with level contributions as recently as Portal 2. Fascinating connection!

[@balohna]

Imagine saying "Square-Enix's Deus Ex titles" to someone from 1996. (Edit: of course Deus Ex wasn’t out in 1996, so pretend I said some year that was post-Deus Ex and pre-Squenix merger)

[@SimonBuchanNz]

Also known for Tomb Raider, and Marvel's Avengers. Yes, the bankrupt comic book company, not the upcoming major motion picture.

[@AleK0451]

i can pinpoint the moment i saw squeenix publishing a deus ex game and shat a brick because i knew it wouldn't be as good, just a painfully average game

[@MadsterV]

SQUEEEEEEEENIX

[@timothymclean]

In 1996, "Deus Ex" would probably sound like a JRPG where you fight a villain that either wants to be or is God, which would be well within Squenix's wheelhouse.

[@balohna]

@@timothymclean “Square-Enix” alone would blow minds

[@deathdoor]

OMGOOOOOOOD! "Realms of The Haunting"! That's it! I played a demo and lost it, never knew the name and I'm trying to find this game again for more than 20 years! Finally, it's here!

[@nthSonata]

Can I just say that I absolutely *love* this series. I am always super excited when I see a new video in my subscription feed, and I love listening to what you have to say. I myself was not alive at this time, but my dad introduced me to Quake when I was around 10 (plus I loved watching him play games like Urban Terror and Counter Strike). I love learning about games and cultural history, and I have a lot of nostalgia for this era, even if I did not experience it myself, so thank you so much for making this series

[@johann-sebastianflachland5424]

I remember the first game we really played as kids was "Invasion of Kellog's country" that also came out of a cereal box. Damn, the thing felt EPIC back then. But then again for us video games were such a novelty that our first impulse was to play it like a CD for music.

[@_remblanc]

Quake got ported to Switch and it's incredible, actually

[@SeattleSaurus]

The section about creating Duke3D levels brought back so many memories, but you and your friends were definitely WAY better at it than me!

[@benwasserman8223]

Yayyy Children of Doom is back. I missed these videos- can’t wait for 1997 and 1998’s big FPS titles.

[@johnstamos5948]

Imagine if the quake cube was 2pac asking you to get him out of that whack ass crystal prison

[@Fopenplop]

the lore goes so deep

[@crazyjak56]

Man, I was not expecting to see this here.

[@rocvan8190]

I come from the future to say that they finally ported the game to Switch: Quake Enhaced (also available on Steam).

[@Addsomehappy]

This was a very comprehensive and fulfilling video, although I would've taken anything after 9 months of anticipation.

[@disposable157]

Quake's multiplayer was why I never got the hype around Goldeneye. My console friends were raving about how revolutionary the multiplayer was and I'd been doing the same thing for over a year online

[@bf1701]

The end teaser is always a little too good at getting me hyped for the next episode.

[@ConstructMorePylons]

Right? It’s like, I thoroughly enjoyed this video, but now I wish I could watch that video instead haha

[@benjoe1993]

"The latest Resident Evil" * Shows video of the previous Resident Evil * Sorry, I assume this video has been long in the making :D

[@estebanrodriguez5409]

Well, the "latest RE" are remakes... so he kind of has a point... 1st person looks to be the new thing for the franchise

[@SimonBuchanNz]

@@estebanrodriguez5409 Village is out.

[@estebanrodriguez5409]

@@SimonBuchanNz it probably takes a month to do a video like that

[@SimonBuchanNz]

@@estebanrodriguez5409 Yes? That's what op said, and you replied with 'the "latest RE" are remakes' which is no longer true. Your comment didn't take a month!

[@estebanrodriguez5409]

@@SimonBuchanNz It's a little early to talk about the latest game, it only came last week.

[@jonnil1997]

Did Trent Reznor really do the sound and music for Quake? Thats cool as fuck. That man has done so much.

[@brobzoid]

trent reznor also did the voice for ranger in quake 1 (this is mostly grunting and huffing)

[@NinjaRunningWild]

@@brobzoid That’s sound, as mentioned in his comment.

[@Golbleen]

every one of these that comes out inches us closer to coverage of daikatana, my second favorite bad game of all time

[@lgob7]

I'm glad Hexen got a shout-out, I love that game so much. Even the little bit showed on screen here brought back so many memories. Good times.

[@Ramonatho]

When doing that intro on Iron Man versus Dark Knight, the whole time I was saying to myself "the difference is dark knight is a much better movie" and I'm so glad you dropped that right at the end, thank you.

[@diegowushu]

I heard "Best of the Worst" and I clapped!

[@RoboZombie777]

@@CatWithAHat2HD I'm pretty sure that's the joke

[@HandOfThemis]

@@CatWithAHat2HD ......OOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHH

[@tomservo110]

OH MY GAAAAAAAAWWWWWD

[@AntitheticalSTRINGS]

Thanks so much for this great video! I actually started playing Quake (a game that came out a year and a half after I was born) last month, partly because I was excited for your coverage of it and partly because I had liked your videos on it and Dusk so much. Really electrified me in some indescribable way. Have a good one.

[@whatsacowify]

Just wanted to say this has been my favourite series on youtube lately and I appreciate all the work that goes into it.

[@MarioVelezBThinkin]

These are the best videos I've watched on 90's gaming. Love rewatching them.

[@StimpyGamer]

I had the same experience with BUILD engine vs Quake. I loved being able to build 3D objects were cool, but the Build Engine, and having fun with the engine hacks like doors, room over room workarounds, and moving trains. There was a book that we had that guided me and my brother through the engine.

[@mr.pendleton7121]

One FPS from 1996 not mentioned here was Disruptor for the original Sony PlayStation. It was the first major release from Insomniac Games.

Duke Nukem was its own zeitgeist.

[@Adalore]

the chex quest stuff sends me back, I even managed to find the dev credits room by myself in that. :D It's so short with proper attention span and not being terrified of the not even threatening enemies because I was easily spooked as a child.

[@VariantNode]

I played quake on my rural dial up internet in the 90s. I had no idea what latency even was at first I think I was just lucky to have these one or two recurring players who would join my game and play with me.

[@roguerifter9724]

Ahh the memories. I loved Chexquest when I was a kid because until my parents gave me permission to play games with gore at home during summer 97 it was one of very few FPS games I played that weren't played at other people's houses, while my parents were asleep, or the brief periods I was home alone back then (I have multiple chronic medical conditions and until I received some new medical equipment mid 96 leaving me alone for more then an hour or two was a very bad idea) And I love both Quake I and Duke Nukem 3D. Its funny Shotguns are one of my favorite gaming weapon types so I loved Quake I because you start with a Shotgun but Duke Nukem 3D's Pistol is my favorite FPS starter Pistol of the 90s and in the running for all time

[@Vanessinha91Pucca]

All my school friends had Duke. I got Quake I was happy

[@dr_cheez811]

The fact that these videos are so well made often makes me forget that you are a small creator. I love these videos. Thank you for making them. I'm reminded of totalbiscuits desire for games to be treated as the art form that they are and this channel just oozes art. Keep up the great work

[@johnarmstrong5533]

I respect the boundless creative energy in Duke Nukem 3D and how its makers threw in a ton of ideas (& references to the things they loved) just because they could, regardless of whether it was supposed to fit together into a cohesive mechanical whole or not. But none of its novel level-design gimmicks could compare to how mind-blowing it was to connect to an IP address and join a Quake deathmatch using a dial-up connection. Playing computer games against other *people*, over the internet? My child-brain had never conceived of such a thing, and it felt like a real paradigm shift.

[@SplotchTheCatThing]

You gotta admit though, idea of a cube that talks to you and can attack enemies for you if you feed it enough pain, is... well.... something iD would do later :D Have to admit, I love the last ending text for Quake though, 'cause when you strip out all the hyperbole it really seems to be outright saying "Welp, we've run out of levels so I guess you win now!"

[@timothysmith138]

I remember watching They Live for the first time many years after playing Duke Nukem 3D and being amazed at how awkward the bubblegum line is. The delivery is so weird.

[@CanelaAguila]

Gotta love secretly published videos

[@BoneMachine1443]

I was too young for Duke Nukem, but as a kid I was blown away by the MGS2 demo and its little attentions to detail--like the ice bucket with the melting ice cubes. It was the first time I had seen a game use such little mundane things to ground its setting. Little details can make a big difference.

[@DanMcLeodNeptuneUK]

Including both games like that is the best cop-out ever

[@CharliePhair]

I loved Exhumed for the PlayStation - think it went by Power Slave in the US. It also used the Duke Nukem engine and was made by Labotomy Studios who had handled ports of Duke Nukem and Quake to the Sega Saturn. The game was released to Saturn and PC first but I think the PlayStation was the definitive version of the game and was a lot more polished. It had an Egyptian mythology theme, you played a one man army going in to Egypt that had been taken over by aliens which obviously had an ancient Egyptian theme to them. There was a super mario styled over world map, you would access the levels from and there was a vaguely metroid feel to it as you unlocked artefacts that boosted your movement capabilities. This would open up the game a bit more as you went back through levels to unlock new paths through to new areas of the map. As I remember there were transmitter pieces hidden across all the levels that you had to collect, if you didn't get them all you would get the bad ending. I remember it fondly - it mixed the whole shooting an army of Anubi into giblets along with some first person platforming. I'm not sure if many remember it, it was one of those games my friend was gifted and we knew nothing about but ended up playing endlessly anyway. Had one of the best flamethrowers that's ever been in a FPS.

[@KewneRain]

If you wanna see someone run Realms of the Haunting, Ross Scott (Accursed Farms) ran it on Ross's Game Dungeon. GmanLives also covered it on his channel. I love their individual styles and approaches to reviewing the games.

[@helzrose2962]

Another Children of Doom episode ! excited to watch :)

[@Techtronos]

Oddly enough Quake aged better. Up until this day Quake is a solid single-player game with incredibly high skill cap, while intarctive elements of Duke Nukem are kinda boring this days, when you have GTA or Just Cause games.

[@ethemreal]

I grew up with Duke Nukem 3D and Chex Quest, which is so funny because both came out the year I was born. I still seem to lag about 8 years behind videogame releases.

[@homembarata]

Always saw Duke Nukem 3D as a punk rock response to DOOM's Heavy Metal. ID's games were always focused on technical stuff and fine tuned game design, where 3D Realms was more style than substance, focusing on making stuff look cool and edgy. And I really enjoyed games from both companies. Also spent long hours making Duke maps and feel the game was much more important to me than Quake. I feel though that Quake's level design is very underappreciated, levels feel more compact than DOOM's but also more interesting due to the new possibilities of having a 3D world, you can see that the level designers really went out trying different things. AFAIK, Quake's engine had also more limitations than DOOM as 3D graphics were more of a new thing, the limits to the number of polygons you could show made that the levels couldn't be too big had as many enemies on the map, there are no levels in Quake with big open spaces with hordes of enemies like in DOOM because of technical limitations, but instead, you have more use of level geometry and enemies with higher HP leading to longer fights and some times more interesting fights.

[@Eibon]

I grew up mostly on the SNES and N64, so Doom was entirely foreign to me, which made Chex Quest FASCINATING to dabble in as a kid.

[@felman87]

I know exactly how you feel when it comes deciding between Quake and Duke Nukem 3D. I just had more fun with 3D, it had more charm and personality. Though, if you asked me which was more influential, it has to be Quake, hands down. It was practically the first popular actual 3D FPS and, though the game itself is rather lacking in terms of frills, the engine it was built on had an unimaginable effect on gaming. The mod scene continued from Doom but now we could become movie directors, giving us Machinima. The engine would power Half-Life, another influential FPS and also the Call of Duty series. Without Quake and its engine, gaming today would probably be a much different land scape than what we have. I know Unreal's engine would take off in the mid 2000s as THE engine to build games off of, but before that it was Quake.

[@marsupialmole3926]

Just found this series and your channel, loving this so far, and really looking forward to you covering the first FPS I actually played as a child, as opposed to first experiencing in my late teens.

[@MDK-fo7jw]

Damn, I couldn't have said any of this video better myself, exactly how I feel about these games having recently replayed them (several times with different settings). Props to you.

[@misterkefir]

This is some good stuff, glad I decided to check this channel out. Cheers.

[@its0xFUL]

"It's the reason we haven't gotten a Quake reboot" Oh just you wait

[@Jay_Sullivan]

I'd rather a remake that adds in what they didn't have time to make (such as bosses for each episode) and adds a few more episodes. If they do a reboot, though, I would like to see the original design more closely followed.

[@SticktheFigure]

I have been looking forward to this one for a while now. Absolutely had to drop everything to watch this ASAP.

[@CritStanley]

Holy crap. The Soulcube from Doom 3 was a direct baby of something called the Hellgate Cube?? That makes me really respect Carmack for bringing it back. But also solidifies my stance that Doom 3 should have been Quake.

[@computersocsci]

I HAVE VERY STRONG FEELINGS ABOUT REALMS OF THE HAUNTING'S EXACT RELEASE DATE!1!!! (did i do it right?)

[@thrillhousecycling7260]

Such a great episode my friend! I've been watching your videos since 2014 while doing my master's (with some focus on video game studies), and I continue to love everything you produce and contribute. I know how the "content grind" can get, but please know that each of your thoughtful, considered, intelligent videos is an absolute breath of fresh, deliciously critical air! Be well!

[@Rain-King]

I've recently replayed 'Quake' between longer game sessions, and got an itch to watch Campster's incredible coverage of the game and its broader genre. I wholeheartedly agree that 'Quake' is amazing for its well-realised 'vibe' and the sheer magnitude of its legacy, but I think the video does the core mechanics of 'Quake' a bit of a disservice. While the game does represent the point past which id Software would begin to lose its creative momentum, it's also where I feel like they perfected the retro FPS gameplay loop. The rock-paper-scissors dynamic between enemies and weapons is among the best I've ever experienced, and the level design perfectly supports the fast pace by intuitively winding back on itself. It is 'basic', but polished to mirror sheen. (The one area where the game falls flat for me is in its two boss fights, which don't build on the core mechanics at all.) For what it's worth, I think 'Quake' holds up better than 'Duke Nukem' today as a standalone experience, disconnected from historical importance.

[@XanderGrishchenko]

I am so glad you're back! These series is my favorite thing on your channel

[@lobachevscki]

This has been the best entry so far. Great work, dude.

[@FrancoStrider]

Also, this year: Daggerfall, the second Elder Scrolls game. Tunnel B1 (PS1 title). I played the demo that came with the console. It was fun, but I have no idea what it's about.

[@icarusavery5691]

"not a single Quake game has been ported to switch" *three months later*

[@ShadesMan]

Shamblers, sectors AND *Shades*? Yes, please! You may consider covering mods for games like Quake, like Quake 1.5, Arcane Dinensiins or Slayer's Testaments!

[@FEfan56]

Maybe i am showing my age with this comment but i'm very excited for this series going forward. Goldeneye and the mid to late 90's console shooters were very much the era i grew up with so i'm excited to learn more about these games that i probably didn't know!

[@informitas0117]

I almost disliked when you called Quake mediocre, that game was my life as a teen, it even inspired my art in some ways. But yeah, by today's standard, I guess my adolescence was mediocre.

[@BestBean]

An Errant Signal drop always makes a good day

[@sindrelf]

Really loving this deep dive, man. Looking forward to the next episode!

[@Alianger]

Quake is pure sadistic joy.

[@dougcarey2233]

The Cube reminds me of the ghosts in Destiny.

[@MrHissara]

Epidemic looks dope as hell. The differing design focus between Japanese and American developers isn't often explored in the context of FPSs (unless we're counting light gun games) and I love comparing them. I'll have to check it out.

[@robcoon5390]

Finally got around to watching this and apologies if someone else mentioned it, but one thing I feel is a little undersold here in establishing quake as the FPS for 1996 is the mod system. Quake launched with qcode, a scripting language that made making mods easy along with making mod source accessible to new coders so that anyone could learn what made their favorite mods tick. I still remember the giddy excitement I had making a rudimentary grappling hook and handing it out to friends to play with before even official launch. I know I played a hell of a lot more multiplayer modded quake than Duke.

[@aaronmarko]

I'm glad you're still doing these. It sounds like you've been on the verge of burnout. I hope you really understand these videos really are appreciated.

[@christina.morris]

I AM SO STOKED FOR THE GOLDENEYE EPISODE

[@JoakimfromAnka]

No comment about the tone of music and ambience of Duke Nukem 3D? While the character is a macho guy finding pop culture references here and there the overall tone in Duke3D I think is that of gloom or urgency. You feel as if you are the last human on Earth who has not been captured or killed by the invading aliens while you wander through abandoned and partially ruined city scapes at night time, or you are on space stations where you sometimes find dead astronauts and creepy alien ships. I always thought E3M1 was particularly atmospheric as a kid when I first played it. The music has a sense of mystery and hostility while you explore a resturant and find dinner plates with chopped up human body parts and a dark room covered with alien slime and captured women in it. Most of the music is either gloomy (E1M2, E2M1, E2M8, E3M11), hostile (E1M1, E1M5, E2M4, E2M5) or give a sense of urgency (E1M3, E3M9). Especially the fan made (?) updated tracks that you can find on youtube. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gXnTfopvjrqNpM0 Otherwise, great video an analysis. I wish there was more talk about Hexen. :)

[@fretzil]

man what a different universe we'd live in if quake 1 stuck to its og concept

[@Medytacjusz]

Really, you're one of the few creators that save KZbin for me. Seems everyone is following the same blueprint in this rat chase for views these days, but your vids still feel yours, with its own aesthetics. And idk... somehow more chill, I feel like KZbin is screaming at me constantly "WATCH ME!!! THIS IS COOL!!", not to mention constant drama and shit, but you're here just chillin talkin about stuff you love in depth. And that's awesome and wholesome, thanks.

[@tsartomato]

try kurzgesagt

[@Medytacjusz]

@@tsartomato I'm already a subscriber to Kurzgesagt for many years, thanks. And yes, they are awesome :)

[@DraggyBDragon]

I really enjoy every episode you upload, keep up the good work!

[@tomservo110]

God damn this whole video was like freebasing pure nostalgia. 15 / 16 year old me played a bunch of these and my life was forever changed. Especially Quake, Duke 3d and the Build editor. I too had a summer of doing nothing but map making in Build! Also nice shout out to the hack frauds of RLM. I wish I could hang with you and watch BOTW / Mst3k.

[@brunosiffredi]

I'm surprised you didn't mention the 3rd level in Duke Nukem 3D, Death Row. It's a huge breakthrough in environmental storytelling, the way it takes the player from place to place building a story without any exposition at all. Still, great video.

[@enriquegarciacota3914]

Playing Quake with Roxette in the CD player was a journey.

[@timothymclean]

So, the answer you came to about whether to discuss Quake or Duke Nuken 3D for '96 was to talk about Quake for almost ten minutes and try to pass it off as an introduction? That's a pretty clever way to square an obnoxious circle. I wonder how Age of Heroes managed '08. I should finish this video first though.