3D Realms
Encyclopedia
3D Realms is a current video game publisher
Video game publisher
A video game publisher is a company that publishes video games that they have either developed internally or have had developed by a video game developer....

 and former video game developer
Video game developer
A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...

 based in Garland, Texas
Garland, Texas
-Climate:* The average warmest month is July.* The highest recorded temperature was in 2000.* On average, the coolest month is January.* The lowest recorded temperature was in 1989.* The maximum average precipitation occurs in May....

, United States, established in 1987. It is best known for popularizing the shareware
Shareware
The term shareware is a proprietary software that is provided to users without payment on a trial basis and is often limited by any combination of functionality, availability, or convenience. Shareware is often offered as a download from an Internet website or as a compact disc included with a...

 distribution model and as the creator of franchises on the PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...

 such as Duke Nukem, and also the publisher of other franchises such as Commander Keen
Commander Keen
Commander Keen is a series of video games developed by id Software in the early 1990s. The series focuses on the adventures of Billy Blaze, an 8-year old boy who travels through space and assumes the identity "Commander Keen". The series was successful at replicating the side-scrolling action of...

and Wolfenstein 3D
Wolfenstein 3D
Wolfenstein 3D is a video game that is generally regarded by critics and gaming journalists as having both popularized the first-person shooter genre on the PC and created the basic archetype upon which all subsequent games of the same genre would be built. It was created by id Software and...

.

While the company is known as "3D Realms", the legal name of the company is Apogee Software, Ltd. The name "3D Realms" was initially created as a branding label in July 1994 for use by Apogee which would be dedicated to just 3D games (as Apogee was then known for several styles of games). However, shortly after this, 3D games started to dominate the industry, and Apogee decided to direct its focus on this style of game; as such, "Apogee" was abandoned as a trade name
Trade name
A trade name, also known as a trading name or a business name, is the name which a business trades under for commercial purposes, although its registered, legal name, used for contracts and other formal situations, may be another....

 in late 1996. In July 2008, however, it announced that the brand Apogee Software would be revived with new games, but licensed to an external company, Apogee Software, LLC
Apogee Software
Apogee Software, LLC is a video game publisher based in Garland, Texas, established in 2008 as a spin-off of 3D Realms .- History :The original Apogee Software was established in 1987 as Apogee Software Ltd. In 1994, Apogee established its 3D Realms brand for publishing 3D video games distributed...

.

Background

Apogee started in 1987 with the release of Scott Miller
Scott Miller (programmer)
Scott Miller is an American entrepreneur best known for founding Apogee Software, Ltd. in 1987.- Personal life :...

's Kingdom of Kroz
Kingdom of Kroz
Not to be confused with Zork.The Kroz series is a series of video games created by Scott Miller. The first episode in the series, Kingdom of Kroz, was released in 1987 as Apogee Software's first game. It was also published on Big Blue Disk #20...

, which used crude extended ASCII
Extended ASCII
The term extended ASCII describes eight-bit or larger character encodings that include the standard seven-bit ASCII characters as well as others...

 characters as graphics. Nevertheless, the game sold quite well and Apogee was born. In 1991, George Broussard
George Broussard
George Broussard is a game producer and designer known in the PC game community as one of the creators of the Duke Nukem series ....

 joined the company as co-owner, bringing with him several games of his that were previously released under the name Micro F/X.

Apogee published games by other developers
Video game developer
A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...

 in addition to its own in-house titles. One of these developers, id Software
Id Software
Id Software is an American video game development company with its headquarters in Richardson, Texas. The company was founded in 1991 by four members of the computer company Softdisk: programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer Tom Hall, and artist Adrian Carmack...

, contributed to Apogee's success with games such as Commander Keen
Commander Keen
Commander Keen is a series of video games developed by id Software in the early 1990s. The series focuses on the adventures of Billy Blaze, an 8-year old boy who travels through space and assumes the identity "Commander Keen". The series was successful at replicating the side-scrolling action of...

and Wolfenstein 3D
Wolfenstein 3D
Wolfenstein 3D is a video game that is generally regarded by critics and gaming journalists as having both popularized the first-person shooter genre on the PC and created the basic archetype upon which all subsequent games of the same genre would be built. It was created by id Software and...

, but later severed their ties with Apogee with their release of Doom in 1993 (although in its earliest stages, Doom was still an Apogee title).

Shareware and the Apogee model

Unlike traditional larger publishers that sold games in retail outlets, Apogee (like many independent developers) sold their products using the shareware method, depending mostly on BBSs
Bulletin board system
A Bulletin Board System, or BBS, is a computer system running software that allows users to connect and log in to the system using a terminal program. Once logged in, a user can perform functions such as uploading and downloading software and data, reading news and bulletins, and exchanging...

, such as Software Creations
Software Creations (US)
Software Creations was a division of Linton Enterprises located in Clinton, Massachusetts, and run by Dan Linton. It was not connected with Software Creations , the British software development company specializing in computer games located in Manchester, England.-Software Creations BBS:Software...

, for distribution of their software.

Initial Apogee games (Beyond the Titanic and Supernova) were distributed as traditional shareware; that is, giving away the full game for free, and asking the customer to pay for it if he/she liked it. Upon registering, the customer would be able to receive support and help for the game. However, this marketing model did not prove to be profitable enough, so Apogee decided to implement a variation on the shareware model. Starting with Kingdom of Kroz
Kingdom of Kroz
Not to be confused with Zork.The Kroz series is a series of video games created by Scott Miller. The first episode in the series, Kingdom of Kroz, was released in 1987 as Apogee Software's first game. It was also published on Big Blue Disk #20...

, Apogee would provide the first installment of a game composed of several episodes (usually three) for free (as shareware), and sell the remaining installments by mail order
Mail order
Mail order is a term which describes the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote method such as through a telephone call or web site. Then, the products are delivered to the customer...

. Registering the first episode would also enable the customer to receive support for that game, as well as giving them cheat codes for it. This method became known as the Apogee Model. Initially, each episode of a game was sold separately, with discounts for buying all the episodes together. Later games did not offer the option to buy a specific episode; the customer could play the shareware version (first episode) for free, and buy the full registered version (all episodes) if they liked the game. The former model has some similarities with the episodic model currently used by some game companies.

Apogee's commercial success led to the widespread adoption of the shareware model (and most of the time, the specific Apogee Model) by other major publishers such as Capstone
Capstone Software
Capstone Software was a subsidiary of IntraCorp, a Miami, Florida-based computer and video game company. Founded in 1984, Capstone created first-person games such as Corridor 7: Alien Invasion, William Shatner's TekWar and Witchaven, and is also known for releasing games based on movie/TV...

, Parallax Software
Parallax Software
Parallax Software was a video game developer best known for creating the Descent series of computer games. Parallax Software was started in 1993 by Matt Toschlog and Mike Kulas. After the release of Descent II in 1997, the company was split to form Volition, Inc. in Champaign, Illinois, and...

, id Software
Id Software
Id Software is an American video game development company with its headquarters in Richardson, Texas. The company was founded in 1991 by four members of the computer company Softdisk: programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer Tom Hall, and artist Adrian Carmack...

, Activision
Activision
Activision is an American publisher, majority owned by French conglomerate Vivendi SA. Its current CEO is Robert Kotick. It was founded on October 1, 1979 and was the world's first independent developer and distributor of video games for gaming consoles...

 and Epic Megagames
Epic Games
Epic Games, Inc., also known as Epic and formerly Epic MegaGames, is an American video game development company based in Cary, North Carolina. Its most recent success has been the Gears of War series of games, although it is also known for its Unreal Engine technology. It is the parent company of...

, and also led to a growth of Software Creations BBS, which would become the largest BBS in North America. Apogee later moved to the traditional retail model through distributors like GT Interactive; however, it still offers its earlier titles via shareware.

Apogee to 3D Realms

With the original intent to create a division for every genre of game Apogee produced, the two brand names 3D Realms (formed in July 1994) and the now disused Pinball Wizards were created. Instead of publishing every game under Apogee as it had been in the past, the goal of this strategy was to create a different brand for each type of game genre, making each new game identifiable based on which brand it belonged to. This enabled Apogee to target different markets.

However, many of those varied genres such as platform
Platform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...

 or scrolling shooter (that were much of Apogee's early releases) were slowly dying out in the late 1990s, which made this strategy unnecessary. In addition, due to the increasingly lengthy development time in producing a game title, video game publishers were no longer releasing titles at the rapid rate at which they once were.

3D Realms was created in 1994 for the 3D
3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...

 game Terminal Velocity
Terminal Velocity (computer game)
Terminal Velocity is a video game developed by Terminal Reality and published by 3D Realms on May 1, 1995. It is an arcade-style flight combat game, with simpler game controls and physics than flight simulators...

and was responsible for the latest installments of the successful Duke Nukem
Duke Nukem (character)
Duke Nukem is a fictional character and action hero who has been the protagonist in over a dozen video games.The character first appeared in the 1991 video game Duke Nukem developed by Apogee Software...

games and for producing the Max Payne
Max Payne
Max Payne is a BAFTA Award–winning third-person shooter video game developed by Finnish developers Remedy Entertainment and published by Gathering of Developers in July 2001 for Microsoft Windows. Ports created later in the year for the PlayStation 2, Xbox and the GameBoy Advance were published by...

series (earlier 3D games like Rise of the Triad
Rise of the Triad
Rise of the Triad: Dark War is a first-person shooter video game that was first released on February 17, 1995 and developed by Apogee Software . The members of the development team involved referred to themselves as "The Developers of Incredible Power"...

were released under the Apogee name). The Pinball Wizards name was created for the 1997 pinball
Pinball
Pinball is a type of arcade game, usually coin-operated, where a player attempts to score points by manipulating one or more metal balls on a playfield inside a glass-covered case called a pinball machine. The primary objective of the game is to score as many points as possible...

 title Balls of Steel but has not been used since.

The last game to be published under the Apogee name was Stargunner
Stargunner
Stargunner is a horizontal scrolling shooter computer game developed by Apogee Software. It was released on November 19, 1996, and it has the distinction of being the last title sold under the Apogee brand name.-Overview:...

in 1996. Since 1998, all the company's games have been using a 3D engine (even if the gameplay is 2D, like in Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project
Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project
Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project is a platform game developed by Sunstorm Interactive, produced by 3D Realms, and published by Arush Entertainment. It was released on Microsoft Windows on May 14, 2002 in North America and on June 14, 2002 in Europe...

). As a result, 3D Realms has replaced Apogee as the brand name to publish games under. Also, by the end of the 1990s, Apogee felt their brand name was more associated with old, outdated games and adopted the 3D Realms brand for all future releases. When the 3D Realms name was first conceived, the official motto was Reality is our Game. This motto is no longer used.

The Apogee name was spun off as Apogee Software LLC
Apogee Software
Apogee Software, LLC is a video game publisher based in Garland, Texas, established in 2008 as a spin-off of 3D Realms .- History :The original Apogee Software was established in 1987 as Apogee Software Ltd. In 1994, Apogee established its 3D Realms brand for publishing 3D video games distributed...

 in 2008.

Current state and products

The latest game released by 3D Realms was Prey
Prey (video game)
Prey is a first-person shooter video game developed by Human Head Studios , and published by 2K Games. The Xbox 360 version was ported by Venom Games. The game was initially released in North America and Europe on 11 July 2006...

, on July 11, 2006 after being in development
Development hell
In the jargon of the media-industry, "development hell" is a period during which a film or other project is trapped in development...

 for eleven years. Prey was originally developed internally by 3D Realms, but after several years of delays, the company outsourced the development to Human Head Studios
Human Head Studios
Human Head Studios is a computer game development company located in Madison, Wisconsin.It was founded in October 1997 by a group of six developers formerly from Raven Software: Chris Rhinehart, Paul MacArthur, Shane Gurno, Ben Gokey, James Sumwalt, and Ted Halsted—later joined by game producer Tim...

.

The other major project that 3D Realms was working on is Duke Nukem Forever
Duke Nukem Forever
Duke Nukem Forever is a 2011 first-person shooter video game for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 developed by 3D Realms and Triptych Games and finished by Gearbox Software and Piranha Games...

, the sequel to Duke Nukem 3D
Duke Nukem 3D
Duke Nukem 3D is a first-person shooter computer game developed by 3D Realms and published by GT Interactive Software. The full version was released for the PC . It is a sequel to the platform games Duke Nukem and Duke Nukem II published by Apogee...

. It was announced in 1997, and on May 6, 2009, its development was halted due to the development team being let go. The official release date of the game is "when it's done." During the years of the development of the game, some outside developers have developed and published Duke Nukem spinoffs.

On May 6, 2009, due to lack of funding, major staff cuts were initiated with the entire development team being laid off and other employees being given notice of their employment with the company being terminated. The official company website briefly went offline on that day, but went back up soon afterwards. While there was no official statement at that moment on the closure, apart from messages on the 3D Realms forum, a final message appeared in the front page of the site, showing a group photo of the 3D Realms team, with the caption "Goodbye. Thanks for being fans and for all your support."

It was reported on May 14, 2009 that Take-Two, holders of the publishing rights of Duke Nukem Forever, filed a breach of contract suit against Apogee Software Ltd (3D Realms) over failing to deliver the aforementioned title. Take-Two has asked for a restraining order and a preliminary injunction, to make 3D Realms keep the Duke Nukem Forever assets intact during proceedings.

On May 18, 2009 3D Realms key executives released the first full official "press release" with their side of the developments.
"... 3D Realms (3DR) has not closed and is not closing. ... Due to lack of funding, however, we are saddened to confirm that we let the Duke Nukem Forever (DNF) development team go on May 6,... While 3DR is a much smaller studio now, we will continue to operate as a company and continue to licence and co-create games based upon the Duke Nukem franchise. ... Take-Two’s proposal was unacceptable to 3DR for many reasons, including no upfront money, no guarantee minimum payment, and no guarantee to complete the DNF game. ...we viewed Take-Two as trying to acquire the Duke Nukem franchise in a “fire sale
Fire sale
A fire sale is the sale of goods at extremely discounted prices, typically when the seller faces bankruptcy or other impending distress. The term may originally have been based on the sale of goods at a heavy discount due to fire damage...

.” ...we believe Take-Two’s lawsuit is without merit and merely a bully tactic to obtain ownership of the Duke Nukem franchise. We will vigorously defend ourselves against this publisher."

On the September 3, 2010, Take-Two announced that development of Duke Nukem Forever had been shifted over to Gearbox Software
Gearbox Software
Gearbox Software, LLC is an American video game development company based in Plano, Texas.-History:Gearbox Software was founded in January 1999 by five members of the content team from the defunct developer Rebel Boat Rocker: Randy Pitchford, Brian Martel, Stephen Bahl, Landon Montgomery, and Rob...

, effectively ending 3D Realms' association with the game after 12 years of stunted development. 3D Realms remained a co-developer on Duke Nukem Forever, due to their involvement in developing most of the game. However, the rights and intellectual property have been sold to Gearbox, who are now the owners of the Duke Nukem franchise.

As Apogee Software

Developer
  • 1986 – Beyond the Titanic
  • 1986 – Block Five
  • 1986 – Diamond Digger (aka Raiders of the Forbidden Mine and Gold Miner)
  • 1986 – Maze Machine
  • 1986 – Maze Runner (aka Rogue Runner)
  • 1987 – Kroz series
    Kingdom of Kroz
    Not to be confused with Zork.The Kroz series is a series of video games created by Scott Miller. The first episode in the series, Kingdom of Kroz, was released in 1987 as Apogee Software's first game. It was also published on Big Blue Disk #20...

  • 1987 – Supernova
  • 1988 – Night Bomber
  • 1988 – The Thing
  • 1988 – Trek Trivia
  • 1988 – Word Whiz
  • 1989 – Meteors (aka Asteroid Rescue)
  • 1990 – Phrase Master
  • 1991 – Arctic Adventure
  • 1991 – Crystal Caves
    Crystal Caves
    Crystal Caves is a trilogy of side-scrolling platform games, developed and published by Apogee Software, released on 23 October 1991. The three episodes have the titles "Troubles with Twibbles," "Slugging it Out" and "Mylo Versus the Supernova."...

  • 1991 – Duke Nukem
    Duke Nukem (computer game)
    Duke Nukem is a platform game developed and published by Apogee Software , featuring the adventures of the fictional character Duke Nukem. The game was released on July 1, 1991.-Story:...

  • 1992 – Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure
    Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure
    Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure is a video game programmed by Todd Replogle and published by Apogee Software in 1992. It is a two-dimensional side-scrolling platform game produced for the PC platform, and features 16-color EGA graphics at 320×200 screen resolution...

  • 1992 – Secret Agent
  • 1993 – Bio Menace
    Bio Menace
    Bio Menace is a 2D, side-scrolling, platform game both developed and published by Apogee Software in 1993 for DOS. It was built on a licensed version of id Software's Commander Keen game engine, and was known as Bio Hazard during production...

  • 1993 – Duke Nukem II
    Duke Nukem II
    Duke Nukem II is a platform game developed by Apogee Software and released December 3, 1993. The game consists of four episodes , the first available as shareware...

  • 1993 – Major Stryker
    Major Stryker
    Major Stryker is a 2D vertical scrolling shooter game written for DOS, by Apogee Software .The game was originally distributed as shareware. It consists of three episodes, with only the first episode distributed as shareware, and the rest available commercially...

  • 1993 – Monster Bash
    Monster Bash
    Monster Bash is a side-scrolling platform video game developed and published by Apogee Software on 9 April 1993 for the MS-DOS PC. The game features 16-color EGA graphics and IMF AdLib compatible music. It was developed by Frank Maddin and Gerald Lindsly.The game is divided in three episodes or...

  • 1995 – Realms of Chaos
  • 1995 – Rise of the Triad
    Rise of the Triad
    Rise of the Triad: Dark War is a first-person shooter video game that was first released on February 17, 1995 and developed by Apogee Software . The members of the development team involved referred to themselves as "The Developers of Incredible Power"...

  • 1996 – Stargunner
    Stargunner
    Stargunner is a horizontal scrolling shooter computer game developed by Apogee Software. It was released on November 19, 1996, and it has the distinction of being the last title sold under the Apogee brand name.-Overview:...



Publisher/producer
  • 1988 – Trivia Whiz – Micro F/X Software
  • 1988 – Star Trek: The Next Generation Trivia – Micro F/X Software
  • 1989 – The Thor Trilogy – Scenario Software
  • 1990 – Pharaoh's Tomb
    Pharaoh's Tomb
    Pharaoh's Tomb is a DOS platform game created by George Broussard and published by Apogee Software. The protagonist, Nevada Smith, is an archaeologist and adventurer who is exploring an Egyptian pyramid....

    – Micro F/X Software
  • 1990 – Monuments of Mars
    Monuments of Mars
    Monuments of Mars is a third-person puzzle platform video game developed by Scenario Software and published by Apogee Software. The game consists of four 20-level episodes, the first episode being shareware, the rest being commercial software...

    – Scenario Software
  • 1990 – Commander Keen: Invasion of the Vorticonsid Software
    Id Software
    Id Software is an American video game development company with its headquarters in Richardson, Texas. The company was founded in 1991 by four members of the computer company Softdisk: programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer Tom Hall, and artist Adrian Carmack...

  • 1991 – Dark Ages
    Dark Ages (1991 computer game)
    Dark Ages is a platform game written for MS-DOS, published by Apogee Software. It was the first shareware game to feature support for the AdLib sound card....

    – Scenario Software
  • 1991 – Commander Keen: Goodbye Galaxy!id Software
    Id Software
    Id Software is an American video game development company with its headquarters in Richardson, Texas. The company was founded in 1991 by four members of the computer company Softdisk: programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer Tom Hall, and artist Adrian Carmack...

  • 1991 – Paganitzu
    Paganitzu
    Paganitzu is a tile-based, CGA/EGA computer game created by Keith Schuler and published by Apogee Software in October, 1991. It is the sequel to Chagunitzu. The game is a 2D puzzle game comparable to Chip's Challenge. It requires the player to solve various puzzles to complete the game.Paganitzu...

    – Trilobyte
  • 1991 – Jumpman Lives!
    Jumpman
    Jumpman is a platform game written by Randy Glover and released by Epyx in 1983. Originally developed for the Atari 400/800, versions were also released for the Commodore 64, Apple II, and IBM PC....

    – Shamusoft Designs
  • 1992 – Wolfenstein 3D
    Wolfenstein 3D
    Wolfenstein 3D is a video game that is generally regarded by critics and gaming journalists as having both popularized the first-person shooter genre on the PC and created the basic archetype upon which all subsequent games of the same genre would be built. It was created by id Software and...

    id Software
    Id Software
    Id Software is an American video game development company with its headquarters in Richardson, Texas. The company was founded in 1991 by four members of the computer company Softdisk: programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer Tom Hall, and artist Adrian Carmack...

  • 1992 – Word Rescue
    Word Rescue
    Word Rescue is an educational platform game written by Karen Crowther of Redwood Games and released by Apogee Software in March, 1992.Like many Apogee games of the time, Word Rescue includes 3 episodes, with only the first episode playable in the shareware version.*Episode 1 - Visit Gruzzleville...

    Redwood Games
    Redwood Games
    Redwood Games was created about 1990 by Karen Crowther . Named after the Redwood Trees of Mendocino California, the company is now located on Maui. Games developed at Redwood Games include Math Rescue, Word Rescue, Talking ABC's, Pickle Wars and Rescue the Scientist. Math and Word Rescue were...

  • 1992 – Math Rescue
    Math Rescue
    Math Rescue is an 1992 educational platform game created by Karen Crowther of Redwood Games and published by Apogee Software. Released in October 1992 for the MS-DOS platform, it is a loose successor to the earlier game Word Rescue, whose game engine is reused to power it with minor changes...

    Redwood Games
    Redwood Games
    Redwood Games was created about 1990 by Karen Crowther . Named after the Redwood Trees of Mendocino California, the company is now located on Maui. Games developed at Redwood Games include Math Rescue, Word Rescue, Talking ABC's, Pickle Wars and Rescue the Scientist. Math and Word Rescue were...

  • 1993 – Alien Carnage
    Alien Carnage
    Alien Carnage, originally called Halloween Harry, is a side-scrolling platform game written by SubZero Software and distributed by Apogee Software. The game features 256 colour VGA graphics and background music in MOD format. Alien Carnage is composed of four episodes...

    (aka Halloween Harry) – SubZero Software
  • 1993 – Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold
    Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold
    Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold is a first-person shooter computer game created by JAM Productions and published by Apogee Software. It uses the Wolfenstein 3D game engine to render graphics in first person, while adding many features....

    JAM Productions
    JAM Productions (software)
    JAM Productions was a computer game development company based in the United States. It is most notable for creating the 1993 first person shooter Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold....

  • 1994 – Blake Stone: Planet Strike
    Blake Stone: Planet Strike
    Blake Stone: Planet Strike is the sequel to the computer game Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold, made by JAM Productions and released on October 28, 1994, by Apogee Software...

    JAM Productions
    JAM Productions (software)
    JAM Productions was a computer game development company based in the United States. It is most notable for creating the 1993 first person shooter Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold....

  • 1994 – Boppin'
    Boppin'
    Boppin is a puzzle game developed by Accursed Toys , originally published for the Amiga by KarmaSoft. The Amiga version only sold 284 copies, according to the developers, and so it was ported to DOS and released as shareware, published by Apogee Software.The primary differences between the Amiga...

    – Accursed Toys
  • 1994 – Hocus Pocus
    Hocus Pocus (computer game)
    Hocus Pocus is a 1994 side-scrolling platform video game developed by Moonlite Software and published by Apogee Software for MS-DOS. It is a 256 color VGA game featuring 360 degree scrolling and parallaxing backgrounds. A part of this title is distributed under the shareware license...

    – Moonlite Software
  • 1994 – Mystic Towers
    Mystic Towers
    Mystic Towers is a computer game created by Australian developer Animation F/X and published by Manaccom domestically and Apogee Software internationally. It stars Baron Baldric, a geriatric wizard with a magic staff and an array of amusing mannerisms, who must quest through twelve towers and rid...

    Animation F/X
    Animation F/X
    Animation F/X was an Australian video games developer founded in circa 1992 based out of Brisbane that successfully managed to release two video games featuring the video game character Baron Baldric, a rude geriatric wizard...

  • 1994 – Raptor: Call of the Shadows
    Raptor: Call of the Shadows
    Raptor: Call of the Shadows is a 2D raster graphics vertical scrolling shoot 'em up single player game for the x86 PC originally written for MS-DOS, by Cygnus Studios...

    Mountain King Studios
    Mountain King Studios
    Mountain King Studios is a computer game company located in Chicago, IL. It was founded by game programmer/game designer Scott Host.- Games :*Galactix...

  • 1994 – Wacky Wheels
    Wacky Wheels
    Wacky Wheels is an MS-DOS arcade kart racing video game released by Apogee Software in 1994, with the emphasis on fun over realism both in looks and gameplay...

    – Beavis Soft
  • 1995 – Xenophage: Alien Bloodsport
    Xenophage: Alien Bloodsport
    Xenophage: Alien Bloodsport is a fighting game written for DOS, by Apogee Software . It was originally released as shareware....

    – Argo Games
  • 1995 – Rise of the Triad
    Rise of the Triad
    Rise of the Triad: Dark War is a first-person shooter video game that was first released on February 17, 1995 and developed by Apogee Software . The members of the development team involved referred to themselves as "The Developers of Incredible Power"...

  • 1996 – Death Rally
    Death Rally
    Death Rally is a top-down perspective racing video game developed by Remedy, published by Apogee and distributed by GT Interactive. It was released on September 6, 1996...

    Remedy Entertainment
    Remedy Entertainment
    Remedy Entertainment is a Finnish computer game developer founded in 1995 and based in Espoo, Finland. The company is best known for its Max Payne and Alan Wake series of video games.-History:...



Canceled projects
  • The Underground Empire of Kroz
  • Dino Days
  • Gateworld – Cancelled due to poor quality; later released by HomeBrew Software.
  • Commander Keen: The Universe Is Toast
  • Fantasy 3D
  • Cybertank 3D – Used a Wolfenstein 3D
    Wolfenstein 3D
    Wolfenstein 3D is a video game that is generally regarded by critics and gaming journalists as having both popularized the first-person shooter genre on the PC and created the basic archetype upon which all subsequent games of the same genre would be built. It was created by id Software and...

    -like engine.
  • Tubes – Later released by Software Creations
    Software Creations (UK)
    Software Creations was a video game developer based in Manchester, England, first established in 1987. They are primarily known for their video games based on movie and comic licenses like Marvel Comics, Cutthroat Island, Disney's Beauty and the Beast and original titles Solstice and the sequel...

    .
  • BoulderDash 5000
  • Nuclear Nightmare – Windows 3.1 game.
  • Angels Five
  • The Second Sword – To be developed by Cygnus Studios.
  • Wards of Wandaal
  • Doom – Was supposed to be published by Apogee, but a discussion with id Software
    Id Software
    Id Software is an American video game development company with its headquarters in Richardson, Texas. The company was founded in 1991 by four members of the computer company Softdisk: programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer Tom Hall, and artist Adrian Carmack...

     (developer of Doom) finished with the conclusion that Apogee would no longer publish any games of id Software.
  • Megaloman
  • Tom, Dick, and Harry – Was written by Chris Nurse and produced by Andrew Amess of Transcend Ltd, which was a British shareware company that was the United Kingdom distributor for Apogee games. Tom, Dick and Harry was offered to Apogee but never reached the market, as Transcend Ltd closed down.
  • Violent Vengeance
    Sango Fighter
    Sango Fighter is a fighting game for DOS made by the Taiwanese Panda Entertainment and released in 1993. Set in the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history, it is very similar to Street Fighter, but with historical context....

    – Also known as Sango Fighter; released later by Panda Entertainment under this title.
  • Descent
    Descent (video game)
    Descent is a 3D first-person shooter video game developed by Parallax Software and released by Interplay Entertainment Corp. in 1995. The game features six degrees of freedom gameplay and garnered several expansion packs...

    – Financial issues. Interplay
    Interplay Entertainment
    Interplay Entertainment Corporation is an American video game developer and publisher, founded in 1983 as Interplay Productions by Brian Fargo. The company had been a quality developer until they started publishing their own games in 1988, like Neuromancer and Battle Chess. The company was renamed...

     later became the distributor.
  • Monster Bash
    Monster Bash
    Monster Bash is a side-scrolling platform video game developed and published by Apogee Software on 9 April 1993 for the MS-DOS PC. The game features 16-color EGA graphics and IMF AdLib compatible music. It was developed by Frank Maddin and Gerald Lindsly.The game is divided in three episodes or...

     VGA
  • Crazy Baby – Later released by New Generation Software
    New Generation Software
    New Generation Software was a firm famous for the computer games with innovative graphics it produced for the Sinclair ZX81 and ZX Spectrum computers. It was conceived in the spring of 1982 shortly after the lead developer, Malcolm Evans created 3D Monster Maze New Generation Software was a firm...

     as Clif Danger.
  • Fumes
  • Crystal Carnage
  • Pitfall (PC version)
    Pitfall!
    Pitfall! is a video game released by Activision for the Atari 2600 in 1982. It is the second best selling game made for the Atari 2600, with over 4 million copies sold.-Gameplay:...

    Activision
    Activision
    Activision is an American publisher, majority owned by French conglomerate Vivendi SA. Its current CEO is Robert Kotick. It was founded on October 1, 1979 and was the world's first independent developer and distributor of video games for gaming consoles...

    , who did the original game, came to Apogee about it, but Apogee couldn't get the creative control they wanted.
  • Ravager – Sold to Inner Circle Creations, who named it Alien Rampage.
  • Cyberboard Kid – Later released by Reality Studios as Cyril Cyberpunk.
  • Duke Nukem Forever (scroll game) – Was a side scroll game Apogee intended to do but later canceled (not related to Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project
    Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project
    Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project is a platform game developed by Sunstorm Interactive, produced by 3D Realms, and published by Arush Entertainment. It was released on Microsoft Windows on May 14, 2002 in North America and on June 14, 2002 in Europe...

    ). The title was reused for a 3D game, Duke Nukem Forever
    Duke Nukem Forever
    Duke Nukem Forever is a 2011 first-person shooter video game for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 developed by 3D Realms and Triptych Games and finished by Gearbox Software and Piranha Games...

    .

As Pinball Wizards

Publisher/producer
  • 1997 – Balls of SteelWildfire Studios
    Wildfire Studios
    Wildfire Studios is a video game developer that was established in 1995. It is based in Brisbane, Australia.Wildfire has developed several pinball games for video game publishers, but their most recent games are released through RealNetworks.- Retail games :...


As 3D Realms

Developer
  • 1996 – Duke Nukem 3D
    Duke Nukem 3D
    Duke Nukem 3D is a first-person shooter computer game developed by 3D Realms and published by GT Interactive Software. The full version was released for the PC . It is a sequel to the platform games Duke Nukem and Duke Nukem II published by Apogee...

  • 1997 – Blood First developed by 3D Realms and Q Studios, but development finished by Monolith Productions
    Monolith Productions
    Monolith Productions is a Kirkland, Washington-based computer game developer. Monolith is also known for the development of the graphical game engine Lithtech, which has been used for most of their games...

    .
  • 1997 – Shadow Warrior
    Shadow Warrior
    Shadow Warrior, often known by its initials SW, is a first-person shooter computer game developed by 3D Realms and released on May 13, 1997 by GT Interactive. Shadow Warrior was developed using Ken Silverman's Build engine and improved on 3D Realms' previous Build engine game, Duke Nukem 3D...

  • 2008 – Duke Nukem 3D
    Duke Nukem 3D
    Duke Nukem 3D is a first-person shooter computer game developed by 3D Realms and published by GT Interactive Software. The full version was released for the PC . It is a sequel to the platform games Duke Nukem and Duke Nukem II published by Apogee...

    (Xbox Live Arcade
    Xbox Live Arcade
    Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...

     port)
  • 2010 – Duke Nukem Manhattan Project (Xbox Live Arcade
    Xbox Live Arcade
    Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...

     port)
  • 2011 – Duke Nukem Forever
    Duke Nukem Forever
    Duke Nukem Forever is a 2011 first-person shooter video game for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 developed by 3D Realms and Triptych Games and finished by Gearbox Software and Piranha Games...

    Developed and Produced by 3D Realms with assistance from Triptych Games and Piranha Games
    Piranha Games
    Piranha Games Inc. is a Canadian computer game developer based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company was founded by two members Russ Bullock President and Executive Producer and Bryan Ekman, VP and Creative Director...

     under guidance of Gearbox Software
    Gearbox Software
    Gearbox Software, LLC is an American video game development company based in Plano, Texas.-History:Gearbox Software was founded in January 1999 by five members of the content team from the defunct developer Rebel Boat Rocker: Randy Pitchford, Brian Martel, Stephen Bahl, Landon Montgomery, and Rob...



Publisher/producer
  • 1995 – Terminal Velocity
    Terminal Velocity (computer game)
    Terminal Velocity is a video game developed by Terminal Reality and published by 3D Realms on May 1, 1995. It is an arcade-style flight combat game, with simpler game controls and physics than flight simulators...

    Terminal Reality
    Terminal Reality
    Terminal Reality is a video game development and production company based in Lewisville, Texas. Founded in 1994 by ex-Microsoft employee Mark Randel and former Mallard Software general manager Brett Combs, Terminal Reality develops a variety of games including racing games , 3D action games , and...

  • 1997 – Duke Nukem 64 (Nintendo 64
    Nintendo 64
    The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...

     port of Duke Nukem 3D) – Eurocom
    Eurocom
    Eurocom is a British video game developer founded specifically to develop games for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Since then Eurocom has expanded to several other platforms including handheld game systems and most major video game consoles.The company was once famous for its arcade to console...

  • 1997 – Duke Nukem: Total Meltdown (PlayStation
    PlayStation
    The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console first released by Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan on December 3, .The PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of consoles and handheld game devices. The PlayStation 2 was the console's successor in 2000...

     port of Duke Nukem 3D) – Aardvark Software
  • 1998 – Duke Nukem: Time to Kill
    Duke Nukem: Time to Kill
    Duke Nukem: Time To Kill is a third-person shooter video game for the PlayStation.-Gameplay:The gameplay and controls are very similar to those of Tomb Raider, a fact humorously referenced throughout the game...

    (PlayStation
    PlayStation
    The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console first released by Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan on December 3, .The PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of consoles and handheld game devices. The PlayStation 2 was the console's successor in 2000...

    ) – N-Space
    N-Space
    n-Space is an American video game developer founded in 1994 by Erick S. Dyke, Dan O'Leary, and Sean Purcell. n-Space is focusing mostly on Nintendo consoles since 2001...

  • 1999 – Duke Nukem: Zero Hour
    Duke Nukem: Zero Hour
    Duke Nukem: Zero Hour is a third-person shooter video game in the Duke Nukem series, developed by Eurocom for the Nintendo 64. The game uses a relatively large 32 megabyte cartridge and could also utilize the Expansion Pak to allow for better graphics but slowing down the frame rate...

    (Nintendo 64
    Nintendo 64
    The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...

    ) – Eurocom
    Eurocom
    Eurocom is a British video game developer founded specifically to develop games for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Since then Eurocom has expanded to several other platforms including handheld game systems and most major video game consoles.The company was once famous for its arcade to console...

  • 1999 – Duke Nukem (Game Boy Color
    Game Boy Color
    The is Nintendo's successor to the 8-bit Game Boy handheld game console, and was released on October 21, 1998 in Japan, November 19, 1998 in North America, November 23, 1998 in Europe and November 27, 1998 in the United Kingdom. It features a color screen and is slightly thicker and taller than...

    ) – Torus Games
    Torus Games
    Torus Games Pty. Ltd. is a video games developer founded in 1994, and is subsequently one of the oldest and most consistently stable game development studios in Australia....

  • 2000 – Duke Nukem: Land of the Babes
    Duke Nukem: Land of the Babes
    Duke Nukem: Land of The Babes is a third-person shooter video game in the Duke Nukem series of video games. This game is a direct sequel to the 1998 title, Duke Nukem: Time to Kill.-Plot:...

    (PlayStation
    PlayStation
    The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console first released by Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan on December 3, .The PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of consoles and handheld game devices. The PlayStation 2 was the console's successor in 2000...

    ) – N-Space
    N-Space
    n-Space is an American video game developer founded in 1994 by Erick S. Dyke, Dan O'Leary, and Sean Purcell. n-Space is focusing mostly on Nintendo consoles since 2001...

  • 2001 – Max Payne
    Max Payne
    Max Payne is a BAFTA Award–winning third-person shooter video game developed by Finnish developers Remedy Entertainment and published by Gathering of Developers in July 2001 for Microsoft Windows. Ports created later in the year for the PlayStation 2, Xbox and the GameBoy Advance were published by...

    Remedy Entertainment
    Remedy Entertainment
    Remedy Entertainment is a Finnish computer game developer founded in 1995 and based in Espoo, Finland. The company is best known for its Max Payne and Alan Wake series of video games.-History:...

  • 2002 – Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project
    Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project
    Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project is a platform game developed by Sunstorm Interactive, produced by 3D Realms, and published by Arush Entertainment. It was released on Microsoft Windows on May 14, 2002 in North America and on June 14, 2002 in Europe...

    ARUSH Entertainment
    ARUSH Entertainment
    Arush Entertainment was a video game publisher and developer based in Scottsdale, Arizona, United States. It published interactive entertainment software for personal computers and advanced entertainment consoles...

    /Sunstorm Interactive
    Sunstorm Interactive
    Sunstorm Interactive is an Indianapolis-based video game developer founded in 1995 by Anthony Campiti, which specialized in hunting simulators and first-person shooters...

  • 2003 – Duke Nukem Advance
    Duke Nukem Advance
    Duke Nukem Advance is a portable video game in the Duke Nukem series. Although it is a first-person shooter and many of the graphics and sounds have been ported from Duke Nukem 3D, the game has an original storyline and levels....

    (Game Boy Advance
    Game Boy Advance
    The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...

    )) – Torus Games
    Torus Games
    Torus Games Pty. Ltd. is a video games developer founded in 1994, and is subsequently one of the oldest and most consistently stable game development studios in Australia....

  • 2003 – Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne
    Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne
    Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne is a third-person shooter video game developed by Remedy Entertainment for Microsoft Windows and Rockstar Vienna for the Xbox & PlayStation 2 and published by Rockstar Games. The game is a direct sequel to Max Payne and is followed by Max Payne 3...

    Remedy Entertainment
    Remedy Entertainment
    Remedy Entertainment is a Finnish computer game developer founded in 1995 and based in Espoo, Finland. The company is best known for its Max Payne and Alan Wake series of video games.-History:...

  • 2004 – Duke Nukem Mobile
    Duke Nukem Mobile
    Duke Nukem Mobile is the name given to two different games in the Duke Nukem series developed by MachineWorks Northwest and produced by 3D Realms.-Duke Nukem Mobile on Tapwave Zodiac:...

    (Tapwave Zodiac
    Tapwave Zodiac
    The Zodiac is a mobile entertainment console, launched on 5 May 2003, and released in October 2003 by Tapwave, a former private company that was based in Mountain View, California....

    , Mobile phones) – Machine Works Northwest/Tapwave
  • 2005 – Duke Nukem Mobile II: Bikini Project (Mobile phones) – Machine Works Northwest
  • 2005 – Duke Nukem Mobile 3D (Mobile phones) – Machine Works Northwest
  • 2006 – PreyHuman Head Studios
    Human Head Studios
    Human Head Studios is a computer game development company located in Madison, Wisconsin.It was founded in October 1997 by a group of six developers formerly from Raven Software: Chris Rhinehart, Paul MacArthur, Shane Gurno, Ben Gokey, James Sumwalt, and Ted Halsted—later joined by game producer Tim...

  • 2009 – Prey Invasion
    Prey Invasion
    Prey Invasion is a first-person shooter video game developed by MachineWorks, and published by Hands-On Mobile in cooperation with 3D Realms for the iOS.-Development:...

    – Machine Works Northwest
  • 2009 – Duke Nukem 3D (iPhone) – Machine Works Northwest
  • 2010 – Rise of the Triad (iPhone) – Mobila Interactive / Apogee Software
    Apogee Software
    Apogee Software, LLC is a video game publisher based in Garland, Texas, established in 2008 as a spin-off of 3D Realms .- History :The original Apogee Software was established in 1987 as Apogee Software Ltd. In 1994, Apogee established its 3D Realms brand for publishing 3D video games distributed...

  • 2010 – Duke Nukem 3D (iPad) – Machine Works Northwest


Canceled projects
  • Ruins: Return of the Gods
    Exhumed (video game)
    PowerSlave, also known as Exhumed in European territories and in Japan, is a first-person shooter developed by Lobotomy Software and published by Playmates Interactive Entertainment...

    – A 3D game using the Build engine
    Build engine
    The Build engine is a first-person shooter engine created by Ken Silverman for 3D Realms. Like the Doom engine, the Build engine represents its world on a two-dimensional grid using closed 2D shapes called sectors, and uses simple flat objects called sprites to populate the world geometry with...

    , it was sold to Playmates Interactive
    Playmates Toys
    Playmates Toys is a Costa Mesa, California toy manufacturer and a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Playmates Holdings Ltd , which was founded in 1966.-Proprietary brands:*Amazing Dolls*Amazing Pets*Kinder-Garden Babies*R.E.V.s*Waterbabies*WOW Pals...

     and retitled PowerSlave
    Powerslave
    Powerslave is the fifth studio album by the English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released on 3 September 1984 on EMI in Europe and its sister label Capitol Records in the US ....

    (Exhumed in Europe).
  • Blood – The game was supposed to be produced by 3D Realms and developed by Q Studios, but Q Studios was acquired and the rights were sold to Monolith Productions
    Monolith Productions
    Monolith Productions is a Kirkland, Washington-based computer game developer. Monolith is also known for the development of the graphical game engine Lithtech, which has been used for most of their games...

    , who finished the game, which was published by GT Interactive.
  • Descent: FreeSpace – The Great War – Non-exclusive rights sold to Interplay
    Interplay Entertainment
    Interplay Entertainment Corporation is an American video game developer and publisher, founded in 1983 as Interplay Productions by Brian Fargo. The company had been a quality developer until they started publishing their own games in 1988, like Neuromancer and Battle Chess. The company was renamed...

    .
  • Duke Nukem: D-DayPlayStation 2
    PlayStation 2
    The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...

     game to be developed by N-Space
    N-Space
    n-Space is an American video game developer founded in 1994 by Erick S. Dyke, Dan O'Leary, and Sean Purcell. n-Space is focusing mostly on Nintendo consoles since 2001...

    . Cancelled due to lack of sufficient progress.
  • Earth No More
    Earth No More
    Earth No More is an upcoming first-person shooter video game produced by Radar Group . It was scheduled to be released in 2009 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 video game consoles by the Finnish developer Recoil Games...

    – Transferred over to Radar Group
    Radar Group
    Radar Group is a video and computer game company. It is neither a publisher nor a development studio, but rather a brand creation and portfolio management company. It co-creates original intellectual property , designed from the ground up, working with independent developer studios and funding its...

    .
  • Prey 2
    Prey 2
    Prey 2 is an upcoming first-person shooter video game developed by Human Head Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks, due for release on Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 in 2012. It is the sequel to the 2006 video game Prey. The game is presented in open world format.-Plot:The...

    – Transferred over to Radar Group
    Radar Group
    Radar Group is a video and computer game company. It is neither a publisher nor a development studio, but rather a brand creation and portfolio management company. It co-creates original intellectual property , designed from the ground up, working with independent developer studios and funding its...

    .

External links


The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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