Horror history: Inside 3D Monster Maze
by Jennie Lees 
{ Apr 11th 2006 at 4:57PM }
Developed for the Sinclair ZX81
twenty-five years ago, 3D Monster Maze occupies a
tender spot in European gamers' hearts; consisting of a maze rendered in contemporary 3D and complete with a monster,
it truly lived up to its title. As the first 3D title for a home computer, and the first corridor-based horror game,
3DMM is considered by some to be the first FPS, a precursor to the likes of Doom -- technically the
game features no shooting, but there are similar elements.However, it wasn't developed as a game at all, as this behind-the-scenes look by Edge reveals. Originally a learning exercise, the frightening T-Rex only came to life after a casual suggestion, and the game's air of horror and suspense developed from there. This story really brings to life the days of bedroom coders and the times when a game could change on the creator's whim, although anyone who remembers the cold sweat induced by the words "HE HAS SEEN YOU" is probably quite glad they're over.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
The ZeroCorpse @ Apr 11th 2006 5:20PM
They'd be wrong to call this the first FPS (sans shooting). That honor should go to the Atari 2600 game "Tunnel Runner" by CBS Electronics. It featured extra RAM in the cartridge to allow for some cool tricks like randomization of the mazes, and speed boosts. Higher levels of the game were insanely fast.
In the game, you wandered through a maze, and several monsters were in it with you (they resembled Pac-Man). Your goal was to get the key, and get out of the maze. When the monsters moved, they made a little horror theme tune (dun-da-dun-dun) and it got louder as they got closer to you. You could actually hear them passing by you in nearby corridors, and hear the music fade away as they got further away.
This game rocks. To this day, when I play it, I can get freaked out by the monsters jumping out at me from around a corner while I'm speeding through the maze.
This was released in 1982, if memory serves. although the date isn't as far back as the one in this article, this program actually saw widespread release on a home video game console.
sockatume @ Apr 11th 2006 5:36PM
FWIW, Edge specifically state that it's probably not a precursor to Wolfenstein et al, seeing as it was never released in the US.
jennie @ Apr 11th 2006 5:46PM
Well, it mightn't be a direct antecedent but it's definitely part of the history of the genre :)
Don @ Apr 11th 2006 5:49PM
Boy I loved Tunnel Runner. Here is the Atari Age entry for those interested in learning more:
http://www.atariage.com/software_page.html?SoftwareLabelID=2339
Tunnel Runner and CBS' Mountain King probably sucked up most of my time late in the Atari era. Both games were top notch.
Gonzo @ Apr 11th 2006 6:15PM
Nice memory Zero. I forgot about that one myself.
The one that usually comes to mind when I think of the first game with this kind of look is the original Phantasy Star for the Sega Master System. If anyone wants to check that out you can get it in Phantasy Star collection for the gba.
jaemz @ Apr 11th 2006 6:34PM
I have a very vague memory of this game. The first 3D maze game I remember clearly was Wizardry for the Apple II computer. All you had was a small window that showed the maze and was then replaced by a static image of whatever monster you ran into. Wizardry III was a huge improvement.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wizardry
slow news day @ Apr 11th 2006 7:45PM
Jaemz, I'm so glad you mentioned Wizardry (1981). It predates 3DMM by a year, and was a lot of fun to play on the Apple II
Here's a better idea of how the 3D worked..
http://www.lava.net/~jh/wizardry/wizardry.html
alexr @ Apr 11th 2006 10:48PM
Maze War http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maze_War dates back to 1973-74, so it's older than every 2600 game.
epobirs @ Apr 11th 2006 11:28PM
A big landmark for real-time 3D movement through a maze was 'Wayout.'
http://apple2history.org/museum/software_games/wayout.html
It was just a maze complicated by high winds in some areas but the real-time movement really fired the imagination back then.
Shadow @ Apr 12th 2006 9:52AM
Oh I remember the first Wizardry. How I still curse those days of graph paper because there was no solid map system and one wrong turn could end hours of game play.... sigh
jaemz @ Apr 12th 2006 9:55AM
Awesome site, slow news day... what a flash back. 'It's Very DarkHere'. Werdna (Andrew) and Trebor (Robert) are very much responsible for my love of videogames.
Thanks epobirs. The little green 'Sirius' alien sure brought me back.
While on the topic of retrogaming, does anyone remember 'Rescue Raiders'?