XnGine

XnGine
DeveloperBethesda Softworks
Initial release1995
LicenseProprietary

XnGine (or X-ngine)[1] is a DOS based 3D engine developed by Bethesda Softworks. Bethesda used the engine for several games released between 1995 and 1999.

History and features

XnGine was developed by Bethesda Softworks in 1995.[2] Bethesda has invested over $3 million and nine man-years in continued development of the engine.[2] The Terminator: Future Shock was the first game to use the engine, and also the first 3D PC game to use the now popular mouse-look interface, which was initially unpopular with gamers.[3][4]

XnGine incorporated technology advances that made games more realistic. The engine featured quicker action, unrestricted viewing angles and freedom of movement. Its proprietary technology integrates 360-degree rotation with fully textured polygons, SVGA/VGA graphics and specialized video effects. XnGine can generate weather effects, such as snow, sleet and fog; realistic shading; and textured, contoured terrain.[5] In an Interview with PCM&E Magazine in 1996, Todd Howard described the engine as a true 3D engine that delivered above any other engine in its lighting in that it uses real-time phong shading, which means that light effects from fires, explosions, the moon, or whatever will bleed off and light up anything the light will touch.[6]

With The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard, support was implemented for 3D graphics cards equipped with 3dfx graphics processors.[7] Competing technologies from Matrox and Nvidia were not supported.[7]

Reception

With the release of Battlespire, GameSpot wrote the following regarding the engine:

XnGine vividly demonstrates some of its traditional weaknesses. Being DOS-based, the XnGine suffers from stability problems within Windows 95, infrequently crashing for no apparent reason (even when using DOS window memory settings suggested by Bethesda). Battlespire's version of the XnGine has a real problem with "clipping" errors, which cause players and creatures to get hopelessly stuck in walls or the numerous 3D polygonal objects littering Battlespire's levels.[8]

Games using XnGine

Year Title Platform(s) Reference(s)
1995 The Terminator: Future Shock MS-DOS [2]
1996 Skynet MS-DOS [9]
1996 The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall MS-DOS [10][11]
1997 XCar: Experimental Racing MS-DOS [12]
1997 An Elder Scrolls Legend: Battlespire MS-DOS [13][8]
1998 Burnout: Championship Drag Racing MS-DOS [14]
1998 The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard MS-DOS [15]
1999 NIRA Intense Import Drag Racing MS-DOS [16]

Cancelled

The 10th Planet [17]

References

  1. ^ Heir, Manveer (July 18, 2000). "Interview with Pete Hines". Voodoo Extreme. Archived from the original on August 15, 2000. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
  2. ^ a b c "Terminator: Future Shock Demo Creates Website Gridlock for Bethesda; Top Internet Games Site Dubs it "Most Popular Game of the Season". Business Wire. November 20, 1995. Archived from the original on July 17, 2024. Retrieved February 11, 2026 – via Gale Research.
  3. ^ Miller, Matt (December 26, 2010). "Decrypting The Elder Scrolls". Game Informer. Archived from the original on April 21, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
  4. ^ "The Genesis of a Genre". Atomic: Maximum Power Computing. November 2004. p. 47. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
  5. ^ Bassave, Roy (February 3, 1996). "Terminator: Future Shock". The Miami Herald. p. 92. Archived from the original on November 19, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ White, Rod (February 27, 1996). "An Interview with Todd Howard, Producer of Terminator: Future Shock". PCM&E Magazine. Archived from the original on June 7, 1997. Retrieved February 11, 2026. Disable JavaScript to avoid being redirected&access the Interview
  7. ^ a b "Redguard". MaximumPC. March 1999. p. 84. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
  8. ^ a b "Battlespire". GameSpot. March 4, 1998. Archived from the original on December 3, 1998. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
  9. ^ "Skynet". Next Generation. December 1996. p. 163. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
  10. ^ Gussin, Lawrence (November 1996). "The consumer title publishing business". CD-ROM Professional. Archived from the original on July 21, 2024. Retrieved February 11, 2026 – via Gale Research.
  11. ^ "Bethesda Softworks Announces the Release of The Elder Scrolls: Daggerfall". PR Newswire. September 27, 1996. Archived from the original on September 12, 2025. Retrieved February 11, 2026 – via Gale Research.
  12. ^ "Is it Possible to Teach an Old Dog New Tricks?". GameRevolution. June 5, 2004. Archived from the original on January 27, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
  13. ^ Saltszman, Mark (January 29, 1998). "Battlespire not up to the challenge". Toronto Star. p. 112. Archived from the original on July 30, 2025. Retrieved February 11, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Burnout: Championship Drag Racing]". Gamezilla. May 18, 1998. Archived from the original on February 8, 2002. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
  15. ^ "Redguard - Behind the Scenes". The Elder Scrolls 10th Anniversary. Bethesda Softworks. 2004. Archived from the original on May 19, 2007. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
  16. ^ Copyright on the back box of the game
  17. ^ "Hollywood and high-tech converge on The Tenth Planet". PR Newswire. May 11, 1995. Archived from the original on July 20, 2024. Retrieved February 11, 2026 – via Gale Research.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.