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First-person shooter ('''FPS''') is a genre of Computer And Video Games , which is characterized by an on-screen view that simulates the in-game character's Point Of View . Notable examples of the genre include Wolfenstein , Doom , Quake , Half-Life , and Halo . Games like '' Battlezone '', and most Flight Simulator s might at first seem to be included in this broad definition; however, in the early 1990s , the term came to define a more specific type of game with a first-person view, almost always centered around the act of aiming and shooting handheld weapons, usually with limited ammunition. On-rails Shooter s are often viewed from a first-person perspective but are a sub-genre of FPS rather than an FPS proper. The modern FPS Genre emerged during the early 1990s, at the point when home computers became sufficiently powerful to draw basic 3D Graphics in realtime. Id Software 's '' Wolfenstein 3D '' and '' Doom '' are widely considered to be the breakthrough games of the genre. The latter, in particular, defined the genre so emphatically that FPS games were commonly referred to as " Doom Clone s" for a significant period after its release. First-person shooters have been subject to substantial Controversy due to the levels of violence included in most games, and the visual realism that can be more inherent in the shooting of things in a first-person perspective. OVERVIEW The first-person shooter can be considered a sub-genre of Shooter Game s, though almost all other two dimensional shooter games, especially Shoot 'em Up s, are more concerned with the gameplay mechanic of dodging than of precise aiming. The term FPS has recently come to refer to games where the player has full control over a character and can interact directly with the environment, although any game in first perspective that is a shooter is considered an FPS, for example Duck Hunt is an FPS game. Many ''''' or '' Duke Nukem 3D '') it is possible to toggle the game between both viewpoints. Sub-genres The realism in FPS games can vary from Arcade Shooter s, which are fast paced and have unrealistic elements (such as the player being able to shrug off bullets or falling large distances) to levels approaching reality, where players are routinely killed by a single shot. In practice, most games fall somewhere between the two. Distinct FPS sub-genres exist, which use a similar viewpoint and mechanics, but emphasise different aspects of FPS gameplay.
The lines between these sub-genres are often blurred; games such as '' Perfect Dark Zero '' and '' XIII '' include stealth elements—avoiding detection being advantageous in certain situations—in addition to action-packed sequences more typical of a "run and gun" FPS. Many first-person shooters are designed primarily as Multiplayer games, and the single-player component (if any) consists entirely of play against Bots . Notable examples include '' Quake III Arena '', '' Counter-Strike '', '' Unreal Tournament '' and '' America's Army ''. The '' TimeSplitters '' series began as a Split Screen multiplayer-focused game, although its single-player modes have since become more elaborate. The MMOFPS combines first-person shooter gameplay with a large number of simultaneous players over the Internet. '' World War II Online '' and '' PlanetSide '' are pioneers of this new sub-genre. Some FPS games strive to increase the realism of graphics and game environments, while retaining unrealistic gameplay. As a result, in many games the player has exaggerated physical capabilities and resiliency that allow him to make maneuvers such as "grenade jumping", which is an action that allows the player to gain an extension to normal jumps by blast effects. The extended jump is possible with other game weapons and can thus have different names: for instance, the '' Quake '' series allows "rocket jumping". Other maneuvers common in FPS games are Straferunning and Circlestrafing . For many, the appeal of the FPS lies in immersive frantic blasting with a touch of verisimilitude, humour, puzzle-solving, and Claustrophobia . For others, the single player mode in story-oriented games can have compelling narratives which allow for added element of drama in the games. Game conventions
Platforms and hardware development The primary platform for modern FPSs has traditionally been the PC , though there have been notable games on other platforms, and the number of releases on consoles are increasing steadily. FPS are among the most demanding programs for computing resources, persuading many users to upgrade computers that are still suitable for more mundane tasks, such as online browsing and office work. According to . Recently, consumer HMDs have been introduced which should further drive developments in Virtual Reality technology and better game play by providing a more immersive experience. Online play and mods Most FPSs feature competitive and/or co-operative Online Multiplayer modes. Players of these games often form into teams, or " Clans " and participate in organised tournaments and championships. Some of these contests have sufficient prize funds to allow players to turn partially or even fully professional. Among modern video game styles, FPSs were the first genre to gain a widespread online gaming community. This was due to a deliberate policy of innovation by games developers (notably by id Software), aided by the combination of two technical factors: The relatively small number of moving objects in the game world (particularly in early games) reduces the amount of information to be transmitted across the network, and the relatively large distances between player Avatars (compared to, say, Fighting Game s) mitigates the effect of the inevitable network Lag . Despite these effects, these games remain highly sensitive to network speed, and complaints about lag are still common. Many FPS games are designed with a core Game Engine , separate from the graphics, game rules, and Level s. This enables developers to reuse or License the core software for other games. This "plug-in" design, combined with the general-purpose nature of the PC (compared to consoles) allows amateur Programmer s to add new elements to games, such as new rules, characters or weapons without having access to the underlying technology. This process is known as " Modding ", from ''mod''ification. Indeed, it is a common characteristic of FPSs that players and enthusiasts are able to create their own levels (''see'' '' increases the potential audience for a user-created level by allowing a custom level to be downloaded when a player connects to a server, as opposed to requiring the levels to be downloaded and installed in advance. The communities of amateur programmers around FPS games can often become recruiting grounds for development companies; Valve Software have taken this as far as recruiting the core development teams of mods and releasing their product commercially. HISTORY Main article: First Person Shooter Engine The first-person shooter, as the phrase is currently understood, emerged in the early 1990s . However, the modern genre is a logical extension of earlier games, particularly those involving 3D graphics. While these early games are not First-Person Shooters in the modern sense, many of them come very close in gameplay terms, and many others contained ideas which later influenced the modern genre. Beginnings It is not clear exactly when the first FPS was created. There are two claimants, '' Spasim '' and '' Maze War ''. The uncertainty about which was first stems from the lack of any accurate dates for the development of ''Maze War'' — even its developer cannot remember exactly . In contrast, the development of Spasim is much better documented, and the dates more certain. The initial development of '' Maze War '' probably occurred in the summer of 1973 . A single player made their way through a simple maze of corridors rendered using fixed perspective. Multiplayer capabilities, with players attempting to shoot each other, were probably added later in 1973 (two machines linked via a serial connection) and in the summer of 1974 (fully networked). '' Spasim '' was originally developed in the spring of 1974 . Players moved through a wire-frame 3D universe, with gameplay resembling the 2D game '' Empire ''. Graphically, ''Spasim'' lacked even hidden line removal, but did feature online multiplayer over the world-wide university-based PLATO Network . 1979-1990: Arcades and home computers )]] The next significant games arrived in the Video Arcade boom of the late 1970s . The 1979 game '' Tail Gunner '' was the first commercial game to provide a first-person perspective. Players could not move through the simulated world, but fought off opponents from a fixed point in space. 1980 's '' Battlezone '', a tank combat simulator, allowed players to move around the game world in their battle with computer-controlled enemies, and thus became the earliest widely-available first-person shooter in arcades. It was a resounding commercial success. )]] In the early 1980s, the Home Computer market grew rapidly. While these machines were relatively low-powered, limited first-person-perspective games appeared early on. '' Star Raiders '' (1979) gave the player the perspective of a spaceship pilot flying through a streaming 3D starfield; motion was unrestricted, but the environment consisted only of stars and individual moving objects, with no 3D scene rendering at each individual frame. '' 3D Monster Maze '' (1981) for the Sinclair ZX81 was the first truly 3D first-person adventure game on a home computer, although not a shooter. '' Phantom Slayer '' (1982) restricted the player to 90-degree turns, allowing "3D" corridors to be drawn with simple fixed-perspective techniques. In these games, computer-controlled opponents were drawn using bitmaps. '' 3D Deathchase '' (1982) on the ZX Spectrum featured a 3D shooter chase through a forest, with the 3D being created using drawings of trees getting larger as they moved closer to the player. Similar to ''Phantom Slayer'', the 1983 game '' 3-Demon '' was a 3D version of PacMan for the IBM PC situating the player first-person inside the ''PacMan'' maze. )]] Numerous other "tricks" were used by programmers to simulate 3D graphics. Examples include two early games from Lucasarts, '') which scaled simple bitmaps to create the illusion of 3D. Other good examples of 8-bit first-person 3D games are Pete Cooke 's ZX Spectrum titles '' Tau Ceti '' (1985) and '' Micronaut One '' (1987), the former having a 3D planetary environment and the latter involving the player's ship travelling through wireframe tunnels. Later in the decade, the arrival of a new generation of home computers such as the Atari ST and the Amiga increased the computing power and graphical capabilities available, leading to a new wave of innovation. The first true 3D flat-polygon (hidden surface) first-person shooter was the single-player '' Driller '', in 1987 , using the acclaimed Freescape Engine . It lacked most modern graphical features such as textures and colors. Other FPS games of the flat-polygon era include '' Faceball 2000 '', and '' MIDI Maze '', notable for its networked multiplayer feature (communicating via the computer's MIDI interface, of all things). 1991-1993: Defining the genre By 1990 the technology to render very simple flat-colored 3D worlds was widespread, and was being used extensively in simulator games such as '' Abrams M1 '', '' LHX Attack Chopper '', and others. In April 1991 , the then-unknown Id Software released '' Hovertank 3D ''. Various assumptions about the game world simplified the processing sufficiently to allow real-time rendering of a 3D maze. The game environment was a simple flat grid-based map, with enemies rendered as Sprites . Later the same year, a modified version of the same game engine, adding texture-mapped walls, was used in '' Catacomb 3D '', which also introduced the concept of showing the player's hand on-screen, strengthening the illusion that the player is literally viewing the world through the character's eyes. In 1992 , id improved the technology by adding support for VGA graphics in '' Wolfenstein 3D '' which surprisingly was only created by 13 people in 2 months. With these improvements over its predecessors, Wolf 3D was a hit, and marked the emergence of the modern FPS genre. A lesser-known predecessor to ''Wolfenstein 3D'' is '' Ultima Underworld '' (1992), developed by Looking Glass Studios and marketed by Origin Systems . Unlike ''Wolfenstein 3D'', ''Ultima Underworld'' supported many true 3D features such as non-perpendicular walls, walls of varying heights, and inclined surfaces. A technology demo of this game was, in fact, John Carmack’s inspiration for ''Wolfenstein 3D''’s game engine. ''Wolfenstein 3D'' was soon surpassed by id's next game, the genre-defining '' Doom '' ( 1993 ). While still using sprites to render in-game opponents, ''Doom'' added texture-mapping to the floor and ceiling, and removed some of the restrictions of earlier games. Walls could vary in height, with floor and ceiling changing levels to create cavernous spaces and raised platforms. In some areas, ''Doom'' removed the ceiling altogether to create the outdoor environments that were generally lacking in previous genre games. However, there were still significant limitations on the environment; all surfaces were strictly horizontal or vertical, and a map could not "stack" floors one above another. While the graphical enhancements were notable, ''Doom'''s greatest innovation was the introduction of network multiplayer capabilities. While similar multiplayer modes had existed in previous mainframe- or arcade-based games, ''Doom'' was the first mass-market game to gain a significant following dedicated to multiplayer (usually, but not exclusively, LAN -based) contests, and guaranteed persistence of the FPS in gaming formats; the real thrill of these already-atmospheric games comes from blasting human opponents, be they friends or strangers on the Internet. ''Doom'' was also one of the earliest FPS games to gain an active community of fans producing add-on maps. 1994-2000: After ''Doom'' ''Doom'' dominated the genre for years after its release. Every new game in the genre was held up against id's masterpiece, and usually suffered by comparison. However, some developers wisely chose not to attack ''Doom'' head-on, but instead to concentrate on its weaker aspects, or expand the new genre in alternative directions. '''' ( 1995 ) and '' Marathon Infinity '' ( 1996 ), included a strong plot, revealed through a series of computer terminals, a radical change from the simplistic "blast anything that moves" style of most earlier FPSs. Unfortunately, these games did not reach a wide audience, being released on the Apple Macintosh platform, and only ''Durandal'' being released on the PC. '' System Shock '' ( 1994 ) and '' System Shock 2 '' ( 1999 ) combined an FPS-style viewpoint and controls with Role-playing Game and Horror gameplay elements. Both games received huge praise from critics and huge cult followings, but limited mainstream success. In '', introduced a linear storyline with levels presented as 'missions' with certain objectives to be done, and cutscenes that advanced the plot. It was also the first Doom clone to be set in a definite background ( Imperial bases, Star Destroyer s, ships, planets etc) instead of simplistic surreal mazes and 'find the exit' scenarios. The 1995 game '' Descent '' used a fully 3D polygonal graphics engine to render opponents (previous games had used Sprites ). It also escaped the "pure vertical walls" graphical restrictions of earlier games in the genre, and allowed the player six degrees of freedom of movement (up/down, left/right, forward/backward, Pitch, Roll And Yaw ). Descent became a cult favorite and is still modded & played online today. In 1996 id Software released their eagerly-anticipated '' Quake '' which significantly enhanced the network gaming concept introduced by ''Doom''. Like ''Descent'', it used a 3D polygonal graphics engine to render enemies, but, again, ''Quake'''s greatest influence was felt in network-based multiplayer gaming. ''Quake'' was the first FPS game to really break out of the LAN and gain a widespread fanbase dedicated to multiplayer Internet gaming. ''Quake'' also innovated by actively encouraging user-made modifications. These " Mods " contributed to its longevity and popularity with players; in some cases (such as '' Team Fortress '') they even developed a semi-independent existence. '' Duke Nukem 3D '', also released in 1996 , was the first game using what proved to be the most popular engine of the decade (12 released titles), Ken Silverman 's Build Engine . Build was outwardly similar to Doom's engine, but the internals (and many engine features) were radically new and different. The game itself was a new take on the shooter, with main character Duke characterizing himself by way of witty, egotistical one-liners and interaction with all sorts of goofy objects, from blowing up urinals to tossing cash at strippers. Duke, and Build, are also notable for having one of the simplest map editors of any 3D game ever made. In 1997 , '' GoldenEye 007 '' was released for the Nintendo 64 . It was praised for a realistic setting, incorporating impressive Artificial Intelligence and animation, elaborate bullet-hit detection (permitting a player to inflict maximum damage through accurate "head shots"; a practice encouraged through the incorporation of a "sniper scope" weapon function), and mission objectives and well-designed environments based on the '' GoldenEye '' film's sets. Its Split Screen multiplayer Deathmatch mode was also well-regarded for the range of options offered. Console first-person shooters have for many years been criticised for having control schemes less precise than the Keyboard and Mouse of PC titles, yet ''GoldenEye'' overcame such complaints to be considered the first great FPS for a console, as well as one of the best movie-to-game adaptations. Also released that year was the first Western-based shooter by '' a game with a Star Wars theme. ''Jedi Knight'' is still active and is still being modded by enthusiasts today at locations like The Massassi Temple . The lasting popularity of both ''Jedi Knight'' and ''GoldenEye'' is interesting considering their nature as film licences, relatively few of which are highly-regarded by gamers. In 1998 , the game '' Half-Life '' was released, featuring a single-player game with a notable narrative focus directing the action and the goals of the player. The tremendous success of the game encouraged the creation of many more games with a similar focus on story-based action. ''Half-Life'' also produced many successful mods, such as the hit '' Counter-Strike ''. Counter-Strike continues, seven years later, to be the most popular multi-player FPS in the world; a feat of no small achievement in a market of ever-changing consumer tastes. Also in '' because of its heavy anime influence and strong emphasis on story and characters, although the game never made great commercial successes and is relatively unknown. Another game of 1998, '''', while not a major commercial success, was also very influential. Supporting large numbers of players, vehicles, wide-open landscapes and innovative movement mechanics provided by the jetpack all players Spawn ed with, ''Tribes'' can be considered the ancestor of many modern multiplayer-focused shooters including '' Battlefield 1942 '' and contributed greatly to the creation of the Massively Multiplayer FPS genre (including '' World War II Online '' and '' PlanetSide ''). '' series with '' Unreal Tournament 2003 '' and later '' Unreal Tournament 2004 '', and the '' Quake '' series with '' Quake 4 '', released October 2005 . The 2000s In 2000 , '' Deus Ex '' was released, a single-player FPS that blended elements from RPG and Adventure Game s. It featured many side-quests and multiple ways of completing each mission. This game also had a character building system similar to an RPG where the player gained Experience Points for completing various objectives, which were then spent on upgrades for your character. Additionally, it incorporated stealth elements that first appeared in ''Thief: The Dark Project''. In '' was released for the Xbox , a first person shooter with third-person vehicle usage. The game was acclaimed for its Artificial Intelligence used to control the game's enemies, and key features of its gameplay have since become genre standards. For example, the game's limited weapons inventory (two weapons at any given time), and recharging shield on top of a non-recharging health supply have been widely imitated. In ''. Due to its weighting towards exploration, many critics referred to the title as a First-person Adventure game. In 2004 , many sequels to older games were released, along with some newcomers:
There have been many attempts to combine the FPS genre with '' blended some RPG elements with an experience and skill-based point system that can work across matches. '' Battlefield 2 '' has a stats tracking similar to ''Enemy Territory'', and a complicated scoring system. THE FUTURE Several games currently slated for release in 2006 and 2007 plan to add more revolutionary physics and gameplay tactics to the traditional FPS style of play. '' Prey '' will add the effects of random portals and walking on walls and ceilings at designated areas, allowing enemies to approach you from a full 360 degrees. Randomized portals allow for smooth transitions into a completely new environment without interrupting the gameplay. '''', which has been in development for several years and has been delayed several times, will add a persistent and ever-changing gameworld where NPC characters have as much of an effect on the environment as you do and creatures and NPCs continue to go about their business whether you're there or not, relying on a completely randomized script. Because of these randomized occurrences, no playthrough will play exactly the same. Advances in graphics and physics can be seen in the upcoming '' Crysis ''. Crysis will use such features as soft shadows within their graphics engine while implementing realistic physics into the gameplay. Such physics as bushes and grass rustling and being disturbed as you move through them present the next generation in realistic physics and what the future may bring in terms of graphics and physics. FPS GAMES AND REAL-LIFE VIOLENCE First-person shooters, often with graphical, brutal and interactive Video Game Violence , are common examples in the debate on the connection between violent video games and real-life violence or violent behaviour. Lt. Col. David Grossman , a former West Point psychology professor, has written several books that pertain to the subject of violence in the media, including ''On Killing'' and ''Stop Teaching Our Kids to Kill''. During heights of video game controversy he has been interviewed on the content of his books, and has repeatedly used the term "murder simulator" to describe first-person shooter games. He argues that video game publishers unethically train children in the use of weapons and, more importantly, harden them emotionally to the act of murder by simulating the killing of hundreds or thousands of opponents in a single typical video game. Video game violence critics generally agree that violent video games are at least as bad an influence on children as are television shows with the same level of violence and cruelty, and most seem to believe that video games are more threatening to a child's well-being, because the video game player uses the controller to make an on screen character act out the violence personally. It was widely reported that the Spree Killer s in the Columbine High School Massacre were, like many teenagers, fans of first-person shooter games. They had recorded a videotape before the massacre in which they said they looked forward to using their shotguns just as in the game '' Doom '' (the ''Doom'' levels made by one of the attackers -the most popular being one called " UAC Labs"- can still be found on the Internet as the Harris Levels ). Years later, there was much speculation in the UK media that the Beltway Sniper Attacks were inspired by first-person shooters and games such as '' Grand Theft Auto '' that have first-person shooter elements. There has been much debate around this within and beyond FPS and gaming circles. It has further been claimed that the system of rewards and punishment in violent video games like ''Doom'' systematically teaches participants to be violent. Opponents to this view hold that such games actually ''prevent'' violent behavior by providing a safe outlet for aggression. Over two hundred studies have been published which examine the effects of violence in entertainment media and which at least partially focus on violence in video games in particular. Some psychological studies have shown a Correlation between children playing violent video games and suffering psychological effects, though the vast majority stop short of claiming behavioral Causation . Craig A. Anderson has testified before the U.S. Senate on the issue, and his Meta-analysis of these studies has shown 5 consistent effects: "increased aggressive behavior, thoughts, and affect; increased physiological arousal; and decreased prosocial (helping) behavior". ( Violent Video Games: Myths, Facts, and Unanswered Questions ) However, some studies explicitly deny that such a connection exists, most notably Anderson and Ford (1986), Winkel et al (1987), Scott (1995), and Ballard and Lineberger (1999). Some studies have shown that children who watch violent television shows and play violent video games have a tendency to act more aggressively on the playground, and some people are concerned that this aggression may presage violent behavior when children grow to adulthood. Common themes in the continuing debate is whether people with violent dispositions prefer violent games or violence in games predispose players to violent behavioural patterns, and the role gender differences plays. Most FPS games have a voluntary ESRB rating of ''T'' (for Teen) or ''M'' (for Mature audiences), but sale of these games to children in the USA was not moderated or enforced until late in 2003 , when it was announced that a number of major retail outlets such as Wal-Mart and Best Buy , which account for a large share of video game sales, would begin restricting sales of "M"-rated games to people under the age of 17. There is no national law in the United States prohibiting sale of such games to children, but bills have recently been proposed that would prohibit the sale of games to customers under the ESRB rating's age. Video Game Industry professionals oppose such a law, citing that the ESRB is a voluntary rating and similar rated materials are not regulated, such as the MPAA Film Rating System 's minumum age for movie patrons. Controversial , and it's developers, Rockstar Games . However, according to official and reliable statistics from the , possibly one of the most ultra-violent computer/video games to date. [http://www.gamerevolution.com/oldsite/articles/violence/violence.htm LIST OF NOTABLE TITLES AND DEVELOPMENT HOUSES Selected list of FPS developers This is a short list of developers of first-person shooters who have achieved both critical and popular success, selling many units, developing lucrative intellectual properties into series of titles and/or creating strong followings that transcend the core FPS gaming audience and touched the mainstream media:
SELECTED IMPORTANT GAMES IN FPS DEVELOPMENT A chronological listing attempting at listing the more "ground-breaking" or "influential" games from this Genre , mainly the more popular or well known examples: See Also: List of first-person shooters For a comprehensive list of the genre, see the List Of Computer And Video Games By Genre . SEE ALSO
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