0:00:03.060,0:00:07.620
Two dimensions are all very well and good,[br]but even the earliest game developers yearned

0:00:07.620,0:00:10.549
to extend into the third.

0:00:10.549,0:00:17.549
The ability to craft a virtual space. The[br]forging of a polygon realm.

0:00:18.410,0:00:23.939
Of course, with limited hardware it was no[br]mean feat - early 3D games were burdened with

0:00:23.939,0:00:26.400
heavy compromise.

0:00:26.400,0:00:32.119
The very first were limited to wireframe representations[br]- and although simple, games like Atari's

0:00:32.119,0:00:38.640
Battlezone could paint an immersive scene[br]with just a few vector lines.

0:00:38.640,0:00:44.330
Similar tech was used to great effect in 1983's[br]Star Wars Arcade: putting the player in the

0:00:44.330,0:00:50.460
pilot seat of an X-Wing to recreate the attack[br]on the Death Star, complete with trench run.

0:00:50.460,0:00:55.250
Even the 8-bit home micros managed to get[br]in on the wireframe action: space trader Elite's

0:00:55.250,0:01:02.250
visuals might have been spartan, but the game[br]offered a huge swathe of space to explore.

0:01:03.120,0:01:09.140
The next logical step from wireframe polygons[br]was to fill them with flat shading: a simple

0:01:09.140,0:01:13.149
effect, but still tricky to achieve on early[br]systems without dropping the frame rate to

0:01:13.149,0:01:15.939
unacceptable levels.

0:01:15.939,0:01:21.020
The very first flat-shaded polygonal game[br]was arcade title I, Robot all the way back

0:01:21.020,0:01:23.499
in 1983.

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It was definitely ahead of its time, but a[br]new paradigm is a tough sell, and the game

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would not prove a financial success.

0:01:32.259,0:01:36.719
The advanced hardware needed for 3D games[br]and the decline in arcade interest over the

0:01:36.719,0:01:42.060
next few years rendered them prohibitively[br]expensive - so it wouldn't be until the end

0:01:42.060,0:01:46.490
of the decade that 3D games would become more[br]prevalent.

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As home computers became more powerful, certain[br]genres would embrace flat-shaded polygons:

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a trademark of early flight simulators, which[br]valued full freedom of movement over arcade

0:01:57.100,0:02:00.359
action or graphical detail.

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Some driving games employed this technique,[br]too: Geoff Crammond's Stunt Car Racer in 1989

0:02:05.499,0:02:12.499
had you driving at breakneck speed round a[br]fanciful track complete with three dimensions.

0:02:13.120,0:02:19.260
Not content with dull flat-shading, some turned[br]to hardware tricks to simulate 3D worlds:

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and the Super NES' Mode 7 could be considered[br]a rudimentary form of texture mapping.

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It was only a half-measure, but an ideal way[br]to introduce a 3D feel to classic 2D action:

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and games like Super Mario Kart maintained[br]a healthy frame rate while still giving the

0:02:36.620,0:02:40.610
illusion of into-the-screen racing.

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The SuperFX coprocessor included in carts[br]like Star Fox enabled polygonal 3D graphics,

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blended with sprite scaling effects and other[br]2D elements.

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Offloading graphics onto another processor[br]would prove a useful technique in the future:

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but some machines would rely on sheer grunt[br]instead.

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IBM-compatible PCs had the benefit of a modular[br]design - along with a price point far aloft

0:03:07.069,0:03:09.790
from console hardware.

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This meant that by the early 90s, they could[br]start to push graphical boundaries.

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However, early PC games could be pretty ugly:[br]4-colour CGA and 16-colour EGA modes often

0:03:23.159,0:03:26.590
left games with a distinctive, simple look.

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VGA graphics were a step up, offering 256[br]colours with far more nuance and a break from

0:03:34.200,0:03:37.689
unnaturally bright shades.

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Early PC titles would sometimes make use of[br]prerendered backgrounds - games like Alone

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In The Dark reserved polygons only for the[br]player and enemies, with the remainder of

0:03:48.250,0:03:51.129
the world painted as a bitmap.

0:03:51.129,0:03:56.079
This technique is a useful one for preserving[br]limited graphical power: instead of rendering

0:03:56.079,0:04:03.079
a full 3D scene, you can instead divert attention[br]to more detailed character models.

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Some early games were more ambitious, taking[br]a first-person perspective instead of a fixed

0:04:07.939,0:04:09.640
camera view.

0:04:09.640,0:04:15.409
Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss was an[br]impressive game that took RPGs into the third

0:04:15.409,0:04:22.409
dimension - and in turn would influence the[br]rise of the first person shooter.

0:04:22.800,0:04:27.919
One technique that made early texture-mapped[br]games viable was raycasting.

0:04:27.919,0:04:32.210
It's an efficient approach to scene rendering[br]that focusses solely on what the player can

0:04:32.210,0:04:39.210
see, and when combined with simple level geometry[br]can be made quite performant.

0:04:39.650,0:04:45.870
Wolfenstein 3D's levels were built on a simple[br]square grid, all on a single level: this meant

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that the walls could be fully texture mapped,[br]while the game remained playable even on a

0:04:50.100,0:04:52.360
modest PC.

0:04:52.360,0:04:58.180
Wolfenstein is the grandfather of 3D shooters,[br]but in terms of overall impact: Doom was the

0:04:58.180,0:05:00.530
daddy.

0:05:00.530,0:05:04.750
Building on the Wolfenstein engine, Doom extended[br]its featureset to permit levels with more

0:05:04.750,0:05:11.000
organic design: no more fixed grid maps, the[br]addition of variable lighting, and elements

0:05:11.000,0:05:14.000
at different elevations.

0:05:14.000,0:05:19.539
As a result, Doom was more atmospheric, its[br]locations more believable - and paired with

0:05:19.539,0:05:23.190
high-octane action it proved quite the success.

0:05:23.190,0:05:30.190
It inspired a huge number of clones, and paved[br]the way for the FPS genre as we know it today.

0:05:33.160,0:05:39.000
Many of these early games were reliant on[br]tricks to simulate a 3D world - limited geometry,

0:05:39.000,0:05:42.910
the use of sprites - or other time-saving[br]hacks.

0:05:42.910,0:05:47.889
True texture-mapped 3D games required a great[br]deal of processing power, and so it wasn't

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really until the second half of the 1990s[br]that such games took hold.

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Vanguards of hardware, the arcades led the[br]way with titles like Ridge Racer: although

0:05:59.210,0:06:05.349
dated today, at the time it was universally[br]praised for its sound and graphics.

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Treading in the arcade's footsteps, the fifth[br]generation of consoles could more confidently

0:06:09.490,0:06:15.729
tackle full 3D graphics, and so platforms[br]like the PlayStation and Nintendo 64 saw the

0:06:15.729,0:06:18.629
rise of the polygon within a home setting.

0:06:18.629,0:06:25.629
Super Mario 64 transplanted the previously-planar[br]plumber into a colourful 3D world: and would

0:06:25.900,0:06:30.360
prove to be arguably the first successful[br]3D platform game.

0:06:30.360,0:06:35.300
It blended the finest elements and charm of[br]previous Mario titles with new technology

0:06:35.300,0:06:41.500
- full freedom of movement and a dynamic camera[br]system that permitted exploration without

0:06:41.500,0:06:44.190
frustration.

0:06:44.190,0:06:49.440
The PlayStation had its own 3D platforming[br]heroes, with games like Crash Bandicoot: and

0:06:49.440,0:06:54.360
despite the low-polygon count afforded by[br]the hardware, its characters are expressive

0:06:54.360,0:06:57.139
and its artstyle charming.

0:06:57.139,0:07:03.400
These games were not only technically impressive[br]- they were fun to play: true 3D games were

0:07:03.400,0:07:10.400
a novelty no more, and instead an integral[br]part of mainstream gaming.

0:07:10.590,0:07:15.580
While console hardware arrives in discrete[br]generations, the pace of PC development is

0:07:15.580,0:07:21.199
continuous: and with the popularity of PC[br]gaming post-Doom, there was no shortage of

0:07:21.199,0:07:24.159
3D titles.

0:07:24.159,0:07:27.919
Magic Carpet was an interesting attempt at[br]transplanting Bullfrog's earlier god-game

0:07:27.919,0:07:31.659
formula into a third-person perspective.

0:07:31.659,0:07:36.300
Hugely impressive from a technical perspective,[br]although its gameplay was slightly lacking

0:07:36.300,0:07:41.750
and was otherwise overshadowed by more conventional[br]games of the era.

0:07:41.750,0:07:46.650
Descent was notable for its six degrees of[br]movement, permitting full exploration of its

0:07:46.650,0:07:48.199
maze-like mines.

0:07:48.199,0:07:54.389
A peculiar blend of space shooter and Doom[br]clone, it stands as an important example of

0:07:54.389,0:08:01.389
early software rendering - full 3D without[br]shortcuts or compromise.

0:08:01.569,0:08:06.729
Id software were prime innovators within the[br]PC gaming space: and not content with the

0:08:06.729,0:08:11.259
countless clones their creations spawned,[br]they set the bar even higher with the release

0:08:11.259,0:08:13.199
of Quake.

0:08:13.199,0:08:18.669
Quake was very much a true 3D game: gone were[br]the sprites and lack of vertical aiming of

0:08:18.669,0:08:25.030
Doom, replaced with polygonal enemies, weapon[br]viewmodels and biaxial aiming.

0:08:25.030,0:08:31.699
Quake, in all its brown-hued lovecraftian[br]glory, was a prelude to the next wave of 3D

0:08:31.699,0:08:35.200
graphics development.

0:08:35.200,0:08:41.669
One final footnote worth a mention are voxels:[br]volumetric pixels, an alternate approach to

0:08:41.669,0:08:44.310
polygon construction.

0:08:44.310,0:08:50.430
Instead of triangular faces, objects are built[br]from 3D pixels: essentially building blocks,

0:08:50.430,0:08:52.820
in a manner similar to Minecraft.

0:08:52.820,0:08:58.930
Ideal for carving out terrain from heightmaps,[br]games like Delta Force and Outcast are an

0:08:58.930,0:09:02.490
interesting example of what would prove to[br]be an evolutionary dead-end.

0:09:02.490,0:09:09.490
Although voxels showed some promise, any progress[br]was nipped in the bud by the rise of 3D acceleration.

0:09:12.790,0:09:17.510
With dedicated hardware games now had the[br]power to construct smooth and detailed worlds

0:09:17.510,0:09:19.690
without compromise.

0:09:19.690,0:09:26.690
The magic of hardware acceleration was about[br]to unfold.

0:09:28.070,0:09:35.070
Join me in part four, as the pace of 3D technology[br]quickens and we near our approach to the modern

0:09:35.690,0:09:36.860
era.

0:09:36.860,0:09:38.540
Until then, farewell.