story-oriented shooters - Half-Life, Deus Ex, Strife
tactical shooters - Counter Strike, Call of Duty, Battlefield
Subcategories are tactical shooters with a story (Halo, Titanfall), hero shooters (essentially just faster tactical shooters, like Overwatch), rougelike shooters (there's like a game that originated them, forgot its name), etc.
UT2K4 and Quake 3 Arena were my favorite - shit, UT2K4's linux support is part of what got my interested in Linux (that and not wanting to pay for windows)
...yeah, windows 95 was released about three years after wolfenstein 3D (or four years after hovertank 3D and catacombs 3D, depending upon where you want to start counting)...
Doom 3, Doom 2016, Doom Eternal, and Doom Dark Age is Half-Life (or Painkiller/Serious Sam if we split FPS into the 3 actual categories it has in modern times: The labryrinth (boomer shooters), the Story Line (Half-Life), and the Arena Shooter (Serious Sam, Painkiller)).
A better question is: What is System Shock 2, Dishonored, and Prey? FPS? RPG?
Immersive Sim. This slots in with things like Deus Ex and Dishonored.
Though, now that I think about it, I'm not entirely sure what makes something an im-sim vs just being a first person RPG like say TES:Oblivion. In the context of Prey and System Shock, they have a persistent world where killed enemies (mostly) stay dead and items stay picked up. I don't know if this is the case for games like Deus Ex or Dishonored though, it kind of is true because you play levels, but I think the almost metroidvania feel of Prey and System Shock were a key part of what I now define as an im-sim. But Deus Ex and Dishonored are names that are always trotted out as examples of good im-sims.
Is Selaco an im-sim? I think it is, it has a persistent world which you navigate in a metroidvania style and dead enemies stay dead and picked up items stay picked up. There are upgrades and power ups and light RPG mechanics. However its Steam store page does not list it as one.
So I guess my point is that I know System Shock and Prey are considered Immersive sims but I don't have much of a fucking clue on what that actually means in detail.
Immersive Sims are FPS games set in believe/realistic maps and have a high degree of interactivity and/or depth. Being able to interact with all the doors, computers, vending machines, toilets, etc. I can't remember if it was Deus Ex or Duke3D that first coined the term, but a lot of Build Engine games were described as immersive sims (and where I first heard the term) and the biggest things that set Duke3D apart from Deus Ex is Deus Ex has the RPG elements, like character stats, augments, and dialogue trees.
Honestly, tho, the genre is vague enough that if it simulates enough reality in a way that makes you feel like you're actually in the game world, it could be called an immersive sim.
What makes an ImSim and ImSim is how you interact with it. They're usually systems-first games. Most of your interactions are not dictated by the game designer, rather they're emergent from the systems. The typical line of ImSim vs regular FPS is if you can stack boxes to do something the designers didn't intend. HL2 has boxes, but they're essentially exclusively placed to be used in a certain way. An ImSim might have a locked door, but you can stack boxes to get into a vent, as an example. It's all about options, and having the player figure things out for themselves.
I don't think this is technically an ImSim, but a good example of this is BG3. You can place objects in your inventory, so the designers can't really prevent you from bringing a hundred crates to climb over a wall, or bringing explosives to instantly kill a boss. They give you tools, and there are many ways they can be used.
I've never considered system shock 2 as a first person shooter. I mean, its first person and you shoot things, but that's like saying GTA 5 is Gran Turismo because cars.
There are just very few games nowadays that play like OG Doom, aside from actual OG Doom. Quake is probably the more relatable example, despite being newer and deriving influence from Doom.
They do play very differently. I like both, but I feel like Quake-style gameplay lends itself better to the kinds of "retro" shooter games that people make nowadays. I've played some games that try to really emulate Doom gameplay, only to discover that the player movement doesn't really jive with contemporary level design.
Calvin's dad is explaining how the outside of a record spins faster than the inside.
Fun fact, I used to make PlayStation 2 games, and this fact meant that data could be loaded faster from the outside of the game disc than the inside. But discs started with first data written at the inside of the disc. So we'd pad "garbage" data at the start of the disc for faster overall load times.
81 replies
I personally uphold three main categories of FPSes:
Subcategories are tactical shooters with a story (Halo, Titanfall), hero shooters (essentially just faster tactical shooters, like Overwatch), rougelike shooters (there's like a game that originated them, forgot its name), etc.
I support Unreal tournament and fuck y'all refuse to admit is like duck sounding shit...
Unreal - Quake.
I don’t get it. Is the main difference story, or is it a gameplay thing?
They both fall under the common genre of sewer barrelers
I'd love people getting as excited about rpgs and turnbased games as they are for twitch games 😕
Nothing will top 1998's Unreal for me though, Half-Life came out half a year later and somehow just didn't provide the same level of fun for me.
Was reading down for this comment.
Unreal is a Quake2 like game.
Quake3 is Unreal Tournament like game. /s
UT2K4 and Quake 3 Arena were my favorite - shit, UT2K4's linux support is part of what got my interested in Linux (that and not wanting to pay for windows)
Nice easter egg in UT2004: If you set all graphic options to maximum a sound is played "OH My GOD".
Wasn't it "hooooooly shit shit shit shit"?
There are two types of wolves and both are inside you.
Yet I cannot awoo in stereo 🧐
Guess you need a subwoofer
But what if I want to be a topwoofer?
you're at a furry convention
The two types of FPS are Wolfenstein 3D and Ultima Underworld.
Quake? Wolfenstein 3D.
Half-Life? Ultima Underworld.
Deus Ex? Ultima Underworld.
Team Fortress? Wolfenstein 3D.
Despite being an Ultima game, Ultima 9 is Wolfenstein 3D.
Duke Nukem? Commander Keen.
Wolfenstein 3D? Windows 9x 3D Maze Screensaver.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCHioDwvZr0
...yeah, windows 95 was released about three years after wolfenstein 3D (or four years after hovertank 3D and catacombs 3D, depending upon where you want to start counting)...
Yes, you're right.
Oh god it's the soup and salad discussion all over again.
Please enlighten us, what was it about?
Every food is either a salad or a soup. No in between.
This is DOOM erasure and I will not stand for it
Doom is quake
It's Quake, but good.
Quake is quake arena
DOOM 2016 is totally Quake
It even has quad damage.
DOOM is Rise of the Triad and Rise of the Triad is Wolfenstein 3-D
Also half-life
No, Erasure was featured in Robot Unicorn Attack, not Doom.
“Despite predating both, Doom is Quake and Half-Life at the same time.”
DOOM is Wolfenstein 3D. And get off my lawn.
Doom 1 and Doom 2 is Quake.
Doom 3, Doom 2016, Doom Eternal, and Doom Dark Age is Half-Life (or Painkiller/Serious Sam if we split FPS into the 3 actual categories it has in modern times: The labryrinth (boomer shooters), the Story Line (Half-Life), and the Arena Shooter (Serious Sam, Painkiller)).
A better question is: What is System Shock 2, Dishonored, and Prey? FPS? RPG?
Immersive Sim. This slots in with things like Deus Ex and Dishonored.
Though, now that I think about it, I'm not entirely sure what makes something an im-sim vs just being a first person RPG like say TES:Oblivion. In the context of Prey and System Shock, they have a persistent world where killed enemies (mostly) stay dead and items stay picked up. I don't know if this is the case for games like Deus Ex or Dishonored though, it kind of is true because you play levels, but I think the almost metroidvania feel of Prey and System Shock were a key part of what I now define as an im-sim. But Deus Ex and Dishonored are names that are always trotted out as examples of good im-sims.
Is Selaco an im-sim? I think it is, it has a persistent world which you navigate in a metroidvania style and dead enemies stay dead and picked up items stay picked up. There are upgrades and power ups and light RPG mechanics. However its Steam store page does not list it as one.
So I guess my point is that I know System Shock and Prey are considered Immersive sims but I don't have much of a fucking clue on what that actually means in detail.
Immersive Sims are FPS games set in believe/realistic maps and have a high degree of interactivity and/or depth. Being able to interact with all the doors, computers, vending machines, toilets, etc. I can't remember if it was Deus Ex or Duke3D that first coined the term, but a lot of Build Engine games were described as immersive sims (and where I first heard the term) and the biggest things that set Duke3D apart from Deus Ex is Deus Ex has the RPG elements, like character stats, augments, and dialogue trees.
Honestly, tho, the genre is vague enough that if it simulates enough reality in a way that makes you feel like you're actually in the game world, it could be called an immersive sim.
What makes an ImSim and ImSim is how you interact with it. They're usually systems-first games. Most of your interactions are not dictated by the game designer, rather they're emergent from the systems. The typical line of ImSim vs regular FPS is if you can stack boxes to do something the designers didn't intend. HL2 has boxes, but they're essentially exclusively placed to be used in a certain way. An ImSim might have a locked door, but you can stack boxes to get into a vent, as an example. It's all about options, and having the player figure things out for themselves.
I don't think this is technically an ImSim, but a good example of this is BG3. You can place objects in your inventory, so the designers can't really prevent you from bringing a hundred crates to climb over a wall, or bringing explosives to instantly kill a boss. They give you tools, and there are many ways they can be used.
I've never considered system shock 2 as a first person shooter. I mean, its first person and you shoot things, but that's like saying GTA 5 is Gran Turismo because cars.
FPWTWAW
First Person Whacking Things With A Wrench
Yeah but sometimes it's a crowbar or pipe.
But Half Life has the crowbar...
They are half-life
Prey 2006 is totally Half-Life. The other I've seen labeled as an immersive sim and those are their own category entirely.
Quake and Half-Life are Doom clones.
Back in my day if something was called a doom clone it was because it was made with the doom engine. Not because it was a first person shooter.
Quake broke new ground. Proper 3d with dynamic lighting. It was nothing like doom in the regard.
No, all FPSs were commonly called Doom clones until around 1998.
More DOOM erasure. Back in my day we didn't have "first person shooters" we had Doom clones.
I really start hating this meme format because there is never any explanation why they categorize things that way.
Quake, like doom is just point and shoot with fast movement and no real story.
With half life you have to think more about covers, envoirments etc, its story focused and not too much about running around as fast as you can
And Doom predates Quake, so why use Quake as example? Doom is also still pretty well known thanks to the "but can it run Doom" meme?
Also does not explain why Quake 2 is not Quake. Sure there was a story but how important was it really?
There are just very few games nowadays that play like OG Doom, aside from actual OG Doom. Quake is probably the more relatable example, despite being newer and deriving influence from Doom.
I love Doom, but have never liked any of the Quakes. They play pretty differently even when Doom is enhanced with true 3D and jumping.
They do play very differently. I like both, but I feel like Quake-style gameplay lends itself better to the kinds of "retro" shooter games that people make nowadays. I've played some games that try to really emulate Doom gameplay, only to discover that the player movement doesn't really jive with contemporary level design.
And that is precisely why I love it, no offense.
Based. Respect.
If you just give people the boundary condition, it's just another arbitary way to divide the world in two. There would be nothing to talk about.
This way people can feel clever for inferring the rule.
I have a hot take on this theory. Half-life actually fits in the quake category and the second category is Half-life 2
Half-Life 2 is actually Medal of Honor
Medal of Honour were brilliant games
Especially since Half Life runs on the (heavily modified) Quake engine.
Quake 2 (1997) came out before Half-Life (1998). So Half-Life is a Quake 2 game, if we're accepting the 3rd panel as true.
Half-Life is a Quake 1 game. Valve received the source code of Q1 engine, not Q2
The OP called Quake 2 a 'Half-Life', but Quake 2 came out before Half-Life.
All FPS fall into two categories: Quake-likes, and Quake 2-likes, or as I like to call them, 2uake-likes.
Heh Quake is Wolfenstein and Half Life is Duke Nukem change my mind
Duke Nukem is another Wolfenstein. And Half Life is Marathon. (frog blast the vent core)
This makes the most sense. Wolfenstein or Marathon.
Marathon is Pathways Into Darkness
Duke Nukem ain't afraid of no Quake.
This is riffing on the idea there are two types of games: Menu games, and Parkour games.
What's the source C&H for this meme? It's been memed so much I can't find the original.
Here's a copy of the original.
https://imgur.com/im-still-trying-to-wrap-mind-around-this-o5sVz
Calvin's dad is explaining how the outside of a record spins faster than the inside.
Fun fact, I used to make PlayStation 2 games, and this fact meant that data could be loaded faster from the outside of the game disc than the inside. But discs started with first data written at the inside of the disc. So we'd pad "garbage" data at the start of the disc for faster overall load times.
Tribes is the third type.
For instance, Halo is Tribes
Now that's a name I haven't heard in a long time. A long time.
What the shazbot? I can't ski in Halo!
I want to have skiing in Halo now.
Does Warthog Jump count?
Gears of War?
That's a third person shooter
Fair. I can take the loss
Here ya go
:.|:;