1996 in video gaming
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| List of years in video gaming (table) |
|---|
| … 1986 . 1987 . 1988 . 1989 . 1990 . 1991 . 1992 … 1993 1994 1995 -1996- 1997 1998 1999 … 2000 . 2001 . 2002 . 2003 . 2004 . 2005 . 2006 … |
| Related time period or subjects |
| … 1993 . 1994 . 1995 - 1996 - 1997 . 1998 . 1999 … … 1960s . 1970s . 1980s -1990s- 2000s . 2010s . 2020s |
| Art . Archaeology . Architecture . Literature . Music . Science +... |
Contents |
[edit] Notable releases
- January 29 — Duke Nukem 3D, successor to the simple side-scrolling originals, and a genre-redefining title for first person shooters. (PC)
- February 27 - Nintendo releases Pokémon Red and Green for the Game Boy in Japan, launching a wildly popular game series.
- February 29 - Take-Two Interactive releases Ripper for DOS-based personal computers. It is known for having a high profile celebrity cast including Scott Cohen, Christopher Walken, Karen Allen, Jimmie Walker, John Rhys-Davies, Ossie Davis, Burgess Meredith, Anna Levine and Paul Giamatti.
- March 4 - Capcom releases Resident Evil for the PlayStation in Japan and the United States. It is believed to have invented the term "survival horror" and it popularized the genre.
- March 9 — Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars released in Japan
- May 13 — Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars released in North America
- May 31 — id Software releases Quake, advancing 3D graphics technology on the PC and starting a franchise that has sold more than 4 million games.
- June 23 — Nintendo releases Super Mario 64, the first 3D Mario platformer, in Japan as the flagship for their new Nintendo 64 system.
- July 31 — Astrorock is released by Intrepid Software Solutions, Inc. for computers running Windows 95 and above.
- August 25 — Namco releases Tekken 2 for the PlayStation. The game sold over 3,000,000 copies worldwide.
- August 31 — Bethesda Softworks releases The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall, a notable evolution of the sandbox RPG started with The Elder Scrolls: Arena. (PC)
- August 31 — Sega releases NiGHTS into Dreams... for the Sega Saturn. The advertising campaign for the game features the rebirth of the Sega Scream.
- September 3 — Sony releases Crash Bandicoot video game. Crash Bandicoot is used as the mascot for their PlayStation console.
- September 27 — 3DO publicly launches Meridian 59, widely regarded as the first MMORPG.
- October 15 — Bungie releases Marathon Infinity, the final installment of the Marathon Trilogy.
- October 31 — Command & Conquer: Red Alert, the second major title in the Command & Conquer franchise, and the most popular one yet. (PC)
- October 31 — Master of Orion II, the sequel to the revolutionary original. (PC)
- November 15 — Tomb Raider is released for the PC, PlayStation, and the Sega Saturn. It spawns a series of sequels as well as a series of movies.
- November 30 — Diablo is released. It is the first chapter in Blizzard Entertainment's enormously popular series. (PC)
- December 3 — Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire is released for N64. It is part of a large cross-media project by LucasArts.
- December 31 — Pajama Sam In: No Need To Hide When It's Dark Outside is first released
- Crusader: No Regret, the critically acclaimed sequel to Origin's innovative Crusader: No Remorse. (PC)
- Final Doom, the final release of the original Doom series. Contains 2 large and original storylines. (PC)
- Fragile Allegiance, the spiritual sequel to K240 is released.
- MechWarrior 2: Mercenaries, a successful sequel to the well-received MechWarrior 2. (PC)
- Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!, the third and last installment to the popular Donkey Kong Country franchise is released.
- Phantasmagoria: A Puzzle of Flesh, a controversial sequel to the controversial original. (PC)
- Sega Super GT is released in arcades, considered a graphical marvel just like its predecessor (Daytona USA), the game runs on the Sega Model 3 hardware and renders 1 million polygons per second.
- The first console emulators appear.
- Crash Bandicoot (series) released their first videogame.
[edit] Hardware
- Bandai's Tamagotchi virtual pet handheld
- Nintendo:
- Nintendo 64 64-bit home console
- Game Boy Pocket (GBP) handheld console (30% smaller version of the previous Game Boy handheld console)
- Sega's Net Link modem for the Sega Saturn home console
- SNK's Neo Geo CDZ (Japan only)
- Namco's Alpine Racer arcade game, including a new type of user interface
[edit] Business
- February — Blizzard Entertainment acquires a development group known as Condor, renaming it Blizzard North
- February 13 — Atari Corporation announces a plan to merge with JTS Corp.
- April — Eidos Interactive acquires Centregold plc, which holds Core Design (creator of the Lara Croft character) and U.S. Gold
- May 1 — GameSpot and GameFAQs are launched
- June — Firaxis Games is formed By Jeff Briggs with Sid Meier and Brian Reynolds
- July — GT Interactive purchases Humongous Entertainment
- July 24 CUC International, Inc purchases Sierra On-Line, Blizzard Entertainment and Davidson & Associates for about $3 billion in a stock swap.
- November 13 — Tom Clancy and Virtus Corp. found Red Storm Entertainment, headed by Doug Littlejohns
- Infogrames Entertainment SA acquires Ocean Software Ltd.
- Midway Games, Inc. (subsidiary of WMS Industries, formerly known as Williams Electronics) acquires Atari Games Corp. from Warner Communications Inc. (AOL Time Warner in 2000)
- Technos Japan Corporation, originator of the Nekketsu Kouha Kunio Kun series and Double Dragon series, goes out of business (assets acquired by Atlus Corporation)
- Black Isle Studios forms as a division by Interplay; doesn't use Black Isle name until 1998
- Game Park Inc. founded in South Korea
- The company formed by Microprose and Spectrum Holobyte in 1993 starts branding using only the Microprose name
- Overworks, Ltd. formed
- Zed Two Limited formed
- Nintendo of America, Inc. v. Computer & Entertainment, Inc.
- The 3DO Company purchases New World Computing
[edit] Awards
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