FPS flow chart

[EzraPound]

I created this to demonstrate the evolution of FPSes overtime. It's not perfect--I'm sure I missed a few circuits here and there--but I hope it captures the basic gist for people wondering how the genre developed.

Let me know what you guys think.

http://img852.imageshack.us/f/fps2a.jpg/ (link to large version)

 

[GrizzlerBorno]

Uhh can't see the image. It says Domain Unregistered.
EDIT: Wait never mind. I can see it now. That was weird. :/

OT: That's interesting. I'm sure the "Nostalgia gamers" here will have a great time trying to decide at which exact point FPS' "jumped the shark", if you will.

I, on the other hand, haven't played more than like, 5 of those games. So I can't have said opinion....

 

[Cap'n Moe]

This is barely complete, seems like a personal list of enjoyed FPS's. At least you got the baselines right, Ultima, Wolf 3D, Doom.

 

[Elamdri]

I created this to demonstrate the evolution of FPSes overtime. It's not perfect--I'm sure I missed a few circuits here and there--but I hope it captures the basic gist for people wondering how the genre developed.

Let me know what you guys think.

http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/8504/fpslt.jpg (link to large version)

I don't see Battlefield 2 or Counterstrike/Counterstrike: Source

 

[FalloutJack]

Say, that's pretty good.

...which of course makes me feel bad for mentioning that there was a game prior to Quake known as "Strife". A friend of mine told me about it and said that while it's pretty good (and I have played it a little), it didn't sell so well on account of Quake coming out soon after.

 

[EzraPound]

I created this to demonstrate the evolution of FPSes overtime. It's not perfect--I'm sure I missed a few circuits here and there--but I hope it captures the basic gist for people wondering how the genre developed.

Let me know what you guys think.

http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/8504/fpslt.jpg (link to large version)

I don't see Battlefield 2 or Counterstrike/Counterstrike: Source

I forgot about CS; BF2:BC is obscured by the SmartDraw logo but flows out of BF1 and and CoD 4.

 

[Griphphin]

I love my flow charts, but I feel like if its purpose is educational as I suspect it is, then along with the names of games, it would be a good idea to add a major thing or two that they changed from the last game in the flow sequence. It would give a better overall understanding about how trends developed (class systems, regenrating health, etc.), and would give people that see the chart a good idea of older games that they would not be able to play firsthand for various reasons.
EDIT:
Another good idea (ties into the trends thing) would be to have the vertical positions of the games reflect the chronological date of their arrival, as in games fro '95 being at the same point on the y axis. I can see where that would make things a little cumbersome to link, however, and the chart is a little crowded already with the list you've got there. A thought to consider though.

 

[Elamdri]

I forgot about CS; BF2:BC is obscured by the SmartDraw logo but flows out of BF1 and and CoD 4.

Not Bad Company 2, Battlefield 2

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battlefield_2

 

[NLS]

This one is slightly outdated http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/Fpsengine.svg.
You should also check out this map over the Quake engine (if you ever wondered how Black Ops and Hexen or Half Life are related) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Quake_-_family_tree.svg

 

[Jordi]

I created this to demonstrate the evolution of FPSes overtime. It's not perfect--I'm sure I missed a few circuits here and there--but I hope it captures the basic gist for people wondering how the genre developed.

Let me know what you guys think.

http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/8504/fpslt.jpg (link to large version)

Spoiler: The chart

It looks nice, but can you explain something about how you came up with the lines/influences between the games. For instance, I don't really see how Goldeneye was inspired by Thief and Doom, or how Half-Life apparently flows directly from Duke Nukem 3D. These are just examples though. Also, what do the different shapes and colors mean?

Finally, are these all supposed to be First Person Shooters? Because some of them don't seem to be. Don't get me wrong, I like the chart and it's nice to see an overview of all of these games, but I'm just curious about the details.

 

[blankedboy]

This one is slightly outdated http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/Fpsengine.svg.
You should also check out this map over the Quake engine (if you ever wondered how Black Ops and Hexen or Half Life are related) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Quake_-_family_tree.svg

NINJAAAAAAAAAA

I love those charts. They're awesome ^^

 

[Sinketi]

Woah this is weird, I started reading the chart, thinking "Hmm, what about... Oh, there it is... What about... No, that's there too..." It's actually pretty decent, a couple of 'sub-genres' (where's the Serious Sam?), but good work!

 

[oplinger]

Hold the phone RIGHT THERE.

Ultima Underworld was released in 1992.

If those are release dates anyway...

EDIT: I too would like an explanation on the arrows. Without context it just seems silly. For the most part I'd say good work though with a few tweaks I would make it a poster to put in any classroom!

 

[Mr Somewhere]

Ultima is not a first persons "shooter", so, with that in mind. Where is Metroid Prime?

 

[new_vision]

VTM: Bloodlines needs to be a parent of Fallout 3, as (to my knowledge) a large amount of ex-Trokia guys ended up working in it. I would say that many of the design decisions in Fallout 3 were thus based upon what worked, and what didn't for VTMB. If you play them both, you can really see the similarities.
Other than that, chart looks good.

 

[EzraPound]

I forgot about CS; BF2:BC is obscured by the SmartDraw logo but flows out of BF1 and and CoD 4.

Not Bad Company 2, Battlefield 2

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battlefield_2

Hold the phone RIGHT THERE.

Ultima Underworld was released in 1992.

If those are release dates anyway...

EDIT: I too would like an explanation on the arrows. Without context it just seems silly. For the most part I'd say good work though with a few tweaks I would make it a poster to put in any classroom!

Woah this is weird, I started reading the chart, thinking "Hmm, what about... Oh, there it is... What about... No, that's there too..." It's actually pretty decent, a couple of 'sub-genres' (where's the Serious Sam?), but good work!

I love my flow charts, but I feel like if its purpose is educational as I suspect it is, then along with the names of games, it would be a good idea to add a major thing or two that they changed from the last game in the flow sequence. It would give a better overall understanding about how trends developed (class systems, regenrating health, etc.), and would give people that see the chart a good idea of older games that they would not be able to play firsthand for various reasons.
EDIT:
Another good idea (ties into the trends thing) would be to have the vertical positions of the games reflect the chronological date of their arrival, as in games fro '95 being at the same point on the y axis. I can see where that would make things a little cumbersome to link, however, and the chart is a little crowded already with the list you've got there. A thought to consider though.

I created this to demonstrate the evolution of FPSes overtime. It's not perfect--I'm sure I missed a few circuits here and there--but I hope it captures the basic gist for people wondering how the genre developed.

Let me know what you guys think.

http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/8504/fpslt.jpg (link to large version)

I don't see Battlefield 2 or Counterstrike/Counterstrike: Source

I implemented some of the revisions you guys suggested in the above do-over. Let me know what you guys think.

 

[Kayevcee]

Wow, I remember Rise of the Triad! Don't see Heretic, Hexen or Hexen II though- not sure how they relate to the Doom/Quake area, or if they are left out intentionally because they didn't add anything to the genre (being conversions using similar engines).
EDIT: Ah. Series that *advanced* the genre. Fair enough. I think SHOGO: Mobile Armour Division and Blood 2 used the same engine, but I can't remember what it was. Are they worth mentioning?

Still, fun trip down memory lane!

 

[oplinger]

I implemented some of the revisions you guys suggested in the above do-over. Let me know what you guys think.

Looks good now! maybe a bit confusing XD but I like it.

Good job especially with explaining all the arrows...that helped it make much more sense.

 

[Elamdri]

I implemented some of the revisions you guys suggested in the above do-over. Let me know what you guys think.

Looks even better, very comprehensive

 

[TheYellowCellPhone]

It's great, you just clumped it a bit close to each other. Make it more open.