Magic Carpet

Magic Carpet came out at the end of 1994 and still feels like one of the most original experiments in what can be done with a first-person view. The player is a wizard on a flying carpet, soaring over an open landscape, casting spells and trying to collect magical energy scattered across the world after a botched spell released it. But the energy isn't gathered directly — first you must slay monsters that drop it, then have it carried off by flying helpers to your own castle, which grows larger with every delivery while also needing to be defended against rival wizards.

It's precisely this fusion of action and building that makes the game exceptional. The magical arsenal ranges from simple bolts through lightning and fireballs all the way to spells that literally reshape the terrain, trigger earthquakes, or summon your own creatures. The landscape isn't just scenery: hills can be leveled, seas can be raised, and the marks of battles remain in it. Technically, it was a flagship title of its time, with sloped terrain, smooth flight, a day sky, and effects not seen elsewhere at the time; the game could even handle the experimental stereoscopic 3D displays of the era. The sound and Middle Eastern-flavored music round out the exotic mood.

Reviewers were enthusiastic above all about the technical side and the unusual combination of genres, though it was noted that the fifty levels start to repeat after a while and that orientation in open space without fixed landmarks is demanding. The concept barely got any direct successors, which makes Magic Carpet a distinctive island in the genre's history. Today it's still a fresh experience: the sense of flight is excellent, and the territorial struggle against opponents has a surprising drive, though you should expect a dense interface and the need to learn the rules. The sense of rivalry also works beautifully: an opponent's structures on the horizon grow just as yours do, giving each match a natural momentum and a clearly readable plot without a single word of story. Few games from the mid-1990s still look this distinctive today.