I just got my copy of the new Wolfenstein game.  Hard to believe it's been 17 (!) years since Wolfenstein 3D, the classic first person shooter from id Software (that game, of course, was based on the classic Apple II hit, Castle Wolfenstein).Â
I haven't had a chance to dig into the new game yet, but it did get me thinking about how much game development has changed in the two decades.  When Wolf3D came out, it was the essence of garage band gaming - a small group of geeks in a small apartment churning out something amazing.  Breakthrough games (LittleBigPlanet, Halo, etc.) are still possible on consoles, but I keep hearing developers moan about the unwieldly size/complexity of game making teams. Maybe the new world of iPhone apps will usher in second golden age for indie development.Â
In the meantime, here's a video that id co-founder John Romero posted, capturing the id "band" in their heyday - coding Doom, the follow-up to Wolf3D, in their new offices in Mesquite, Texas.
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David Kushner is the author of many books, including Masters of Doom, Jonny Magic & the Card Shark Kids, Levittown, The Bones of Marianna, and Alligator Candy. A contributing editor of Rolling Stone, he has written for publications including The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, Wired, and The New York Times Magazine.
