Commander Keen: Goodbye Galaxy (1991): id Software Before the Guns
Two years before Wolfenstein 3D and three before Doom, id Software’s biggest release wasn’t a shooter at all — it […]
Platformer
Keen Dreams (1991): The Commander Keen Game id Almost Forgot
Commander Keen fans tend to know the original trilogy and the Goodbye Galaxy games well. Fewer know there’s a strange
Dark Ages (1991): Apogee’s Medieval Detour From Sci-Fi Platforming
Most of Apogee’s early shareware output leaned sci-fi or cartoonish. Dark Ages, released in 1991, went a different direction entirely
Monuments of Mars (1991): George Broussard’s Free Sci-Fi Platformer
George Broussard would go on to co-create Duke Nukem and spend the better part of a decade on Duke Nukem
Arctic Adventure (1991): George Broussard’s Shareware Platforming, One Sequel Later
By the time Apogee shipped Arctic Adventure in October 1991, George Broussard had already folded his own small studio into
Pharaoh’s Tomb (1990): The Free Apogee Platformer That Predates Duke Nukem
Before Duke Nukem, There Was Nevada Smith Long before the world knew Commander Keen or Duke Nukem, Apogee Software was
Duke Nukem II (1993): The Last Great 2D Duke Before Doom Changed Everything
December 1993 was a brutal month to release a 2D platformer — Doom was weeks away, and it would make
Flashback (1992) Retrospective: Delphine’s Bigger, Stranger Answer to Another World
A Year After Another World, Something Bigger A year after Another World (also known as Out of This World) put
Another World (1991): Eric Chahi’s One-Man Cinematic Platformer
There is no game quite like Another World, and there’s a simple reason for that: almost nobody else built an
Duke Nukem (1991): The Free Shareware Platformer That Started a Legend
Long before he was cracking one-liners in glorious 3D, Duke Nukem was a two-dimensional action hero in a side-scrolling platformer,
Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame (1993) — Mechner’s Tougher, Stranger Sequel
Sequels to beloved games usually play it safe. Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame did the opposite
Dangerous Dave (1990): John Romero’s Warm-Up Before id Software
Two years before Wolfenstein 3D, John Romero was still cutting his teeth on single-screen platformers for Softdisk — and Dangerous