It’s hard to believe, but it’s been more than three decades since Wolfenstein’s inception. Since Castle Wolfenstein came out in 1981, there have been a variety of releases, each perfectly encapsulating the evolution of video games, from gameplay to graphics.
We’ve decided to take a trip down memory lane, and show you each of these games as well as tell you a little about them. Maybe then you’ll be able to fully appreciate Wolfenstein: The New Order, and just how gorgeous it really is.
In the gallery below you can see our retrospective of the Wolfenstein franchise, from 1981 to 2014.
Wolfenstein: A Look at its Radical Transformation Over Three Decades
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Castle Wolfenstein - 1981
A lot of gamers seem to think that Wolfenstein 3D was the first game of the series. That isn't the case. In fact, Castle Wolfenstein, a game that came out 11 years prior, was the first.
Instead of being a first-person shooter, which wasn't even invented yet actually, it was a side-scrolling action-adventure game. Unlike many other games of its style at the time, it was very stealth driven (think Metal Gear).
Developed by Muse Software, it had 8-bit graphics. As you can see in the gameplay shot on the left, it wasn't a particularly great looking game. In 1981 it was considered above par, though. It would go on to sell well given the small size of the gaming industry, and would be given a positive review by Creative Computing, a popular magazine in the early 80s.
Platforms: Apple II, MS-DOS, Atari 400/800, Commodore 64
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Beyond Castle Wolfenstein - 1984
Muse Software experienced enough success with Castle Wolfenstein to immediately begin working on a sequel. Called Beyond Castle Wolfenstein, it continued the narrative and brought back the same 8-bit graphics of its predecessor.
Despite its similarities, Beyond Castle Wolfenstein had a much more compelling storyline which included Adolf Hitler and his secret bunker. This brought with it some controversy.
For the most part its visuals didn't do much to raise the bar, but Muse Software did include a bonus for those who completed the game: a high graphic of Hitler's bunker being destroyed. Images like these were impressive at the time and gave gamers a general idea of what games could do in the future.
Platforms: Apple II, MS-DOS, Atari 400/800, Commodore 64
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Wolfenstein 3D - 1992
Wolfenstein 3D was a godsend for the gaming industry. Responsible for establishing the first-person shooter archetype that developers have adhered to since, it was a huge achievement both in gameplay and visual presentation when it came out in 1992.
This was the first Wolfenstein game to come from id Software, and would become one of John Carmack's most recognized creations. It employed state-of-the-art technology using ray casting to render one-dimensional objects that appeared 3D to the player. If you've played Wolfenstein 3D, this would explain why the objects always face you.
Wolfenstein 3D would go on to win a variety of awards, and would sell hundreds of thousands of copies—a huge feat at the time. It can now be found on a variety of devices including mobile.
Platforms: MS-DOS, Archimedes, Mac OS, Apple 2, Amiga 1200, PC-98, SNES, Atari Jaguar, 3DO, GBA, Windows Mobile, iOS, Android
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Wolfenstein 3D - William B.J. Blazkowicz
This was considered impressive in 1992. What a long way we've come.
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Return to Castle Wolfenstein - 2001
Despite Wolfenstein 3D's success, the franchise would go on a bit of a hiatus—Doom would release during this time—, eventually returning in 2001. By then, the world had seen remarkable evolution. Full 3D environments had arrived, operating systems had GUIs, and millions of people had computers in their homes.
Return to Castle Wolfenstein was the first "true" 3D game of the franchise, introducing a 3D model of B.J. and fully realized Nazi environments. It was also a reboot for Wolfenstein, ignoring many of the developments of earlier games.
The game ran on a heavily modified version of the id Tech 3 engine, which was built in-house at id Software and written in C language. Its character models would use vertex movements, and its shadows were dynamic. In 2001, a Wolfenstein fan couldn't have been more happy.
It was also the first game of the franchise to not only have a major presence on consoles, but also to be published by Activision.
Platforms: PC, Linux, OS X, PS2, Xbox
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Return to Castle Wolfenstein - William B.J. Blazkowicz
B.J.'s first full 3D model.
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Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory - 2003
Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory was originally supposed to be an expansion pack for Return to Castle Wolfenstein, but was later made a standalone game. This would show in its presentation.
Unlike other games in the franchise, Enemy Territory was, first and foremost, a multiplayer game. It may have been a response to the exploding popularity of games like Counter-Strike. Whatever the case, it did a great job of introducing the franchise to the online space and would gain quite a bit of traction in the gaming community.
More than anything, Enemy Territory was known for its open-source nature—id Software released the code in January 2004. Modders would have a field day tweaking and playing around with the code resulting in some spectacular creations.
Platforms: PC, Linux, OS X
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Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory - William B.J. Blazkowicz
Some minor improvements to B.J.'s model.
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Wolfenstein - 2009
As strange as it is, it wouldn't be until almost three decades after Wolfenstein's introduction to the world that it would receive a game simply named 'Wolfenstein'. This 2009 release was the first in the franchise to see a release across PC and console on the same day. It was an attempt by Activision to widen the install base of the franchise, allowing for new consumers to see what all the fuss was about.
It was received moderately well, but stands out as the lowest scoring game of the franchise. Despite this, it was graphically impressive, running on id Tech 4, similar to Doom 3 which was a PC benchmark for numerous years—until Crysis came out.
Its narrative was focused locally on a fictional town called Isenstadt, where B.J. would operate covertly to prevent the Nazis from executing their master plan.
Platforms: PC, PS3, Xbox 360
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Wolfenstein - William B.J. Blazkowicz
Now we're talkin'.
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Wolfenstein: The New Order - 2014
It's now 2014, and graphics are at a point where they're beyond what a child of the 80s like myself would have ever imagined. Wolfenstein: The New Order is an impressive benchmark which runs on the id Tech 5 engine, the same as the upcoming Doom 4. Actually, purchase of Wolfenstein: The New Order includes access to the Doom 4 beta.
Despite all this id Software related stuff, The New Order has little to do with id Software. It's developed by MachineGames, a new studio under ZeniMax Media, and published by Bethesda Softworks, both being firsts for the franchise.
In The New Order players get to experience post World War 2 Wolfenstein for the first time ever. Nazis have taken over the planet, and it's once again up to B.J. to provide relief for humanity.
Running at 1080p and 60FPS on Xbox One and PS4, it's one of the first showcases of next-gen console hardware.
Platforms: PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One -
Wolfenstein: The New Order - William B.J. Blazkowicz
B.J. is practically real at this point.
