Castle Wolfenstein

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Castle Wolfenstein
Studio Muse software
Publisher Muse software
Senior Developer Silas Warner
Erstveröffent-
lichung		 1981
platform Apple II , Commodore 64 , MS-DOS , Atari 400 , Atari 800
genre Stealth shooter
Subject Second World War
Game mode Single player
control Keyboard , joystick
language English

Castle Wolfenstein (also known as Wolfenstein 2D ) is a computer game and is considered to be one of the earliest representatives of the stealth shooter genre . It was written in 1981 by programmer Silas Warner for Muse Software and first published on the Apple II . Later there were ports for MS-DOS , the Commodore 64 and various Atari computers. The game was indexed in 1987 by a committee of the Federal Testing Office for writings harmful to minors; In 2012, the indexing was automatically canceled after 25 years. Castle Wolfenstein was the direct inspiration for Wolfenstein 3D released by id Software in 1992 .

Course of the game

In this game you move a prisoner whose goal is to escape from his prison environment, Wolfenstein Castle. You look from above at the individual rooms through which you move, but see your own figure, your opponents and various things like chests from the side. The structure of the game environment largely corresponds to an early computer role-playing game , you walk through different rooms with opponents and helpful objects in them in search of the exit.

The main aspect of the game is the undetected movement through the game environment. You can camouflage your character with found uniforms so that certain opponents do not perceive them as hostile. The making and avoidance of noises also plays a greater role, as the opponents react to the firing of a shot or the throwing of a grenade. Alternatively, you have the option of using force (pistol / grenades), but many opponents have advantages in direct shootings and there is a constant shortage of ammunition. Ultimately, there is still the possibility of non-violent robbery of opponents. The objects found while doing this and when opening boxes are sometimes important for the course of the game, but sometimes only serve to increase the atmosphere. Alcoholic drinks, for example, do not have a decisive influence on the game, but reduce the accuracy of your own character's hit if you consume them.

technology

A technical peculiarity of the game was the first-time use of digitized voice samples, the quality of which was limited by the hardware of the systems (also on the C64 only 1-bit resolution was used, although in principle better results due to the use of 4-bit and antialiasing would have been possible).

indexing

Castle Wolfenstein was indexed in Germany in 1987 because the responsible committee of the Federal Testing Office for writings harmful to minors had classified the game content as glorifying the war (decision no. 2893 (V)); NS symbols used in the game according to Section 86a of the Criminal Code did not play a decisive role in the indexing. In April 2012 the game was officially removed from the list for media harmful to minors after 25 years by the authority, which has meanwhile been designated as the Federal Inspectorate for Media Harmful to Young Persons, in accordance with Section 18 Paragraph 7 Sentence 2 JuSchG.

continuation

The sequel to the game, Beyond Castle Wolfenstein , also written by Silas Warner for Muse Software, was released in 1984, again for Apple II, C64, Atari and MS-DOS. The gameplay remained largely the same. This time, however, the aim of the game is to find a bomb in the rooms and bring it close to Adolf Hitler . As in the first part, you move through individual rooms and try to avoid the opponents as much as possible. Bribery and a code card system have been added, both of which offer more options for possible solutions. In addition, you can now silently switch off your opponents with a dagger , which does not alert other guards.

The source code of Beyond Castle Wolfenstein was later reconstructed and released with the game by the programmer's widow.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Tobias Messmer: Is a swastika the same as a swastika? The handling of the state protection of minors with anti-constitutional symbols in the digital game 1985-1994. History and Digital Games Working Group, August 23, 2019, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  2. ↑ Indexing / seizures April 2012 . In: schnittberichte.com . July 2, 2012. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
  3. ↑ Jeff Leyda: The Beyond Castle Wolfenstein Project - Beyond Castle Wolfenstein Project Quick FAQ ( English ) www.oldskool.org. Retrieved January 15, 2013: “ Q) Do you have the rights to distribute this game? A) Hopefully! Silas Warner's wife has granted permission to release the source code and game executables as a small memorial of his work. "