Rise of the Triad: Dark War

Rise of the Triad: Dark War sends five agents of a secret unit to an island where a cult is preparing an attack on the surrounding city, and before starting the player picks one of the characters, each differing in speed and stamina. The game originally began life as a sequel to an older shooter from the same publisher and grew technically beyond it too, which shows in the level design. The weapons are utterly over the top: alongside pistols and a submachine gun there are rocket launchers, homing missiles, and magical items that temporarily turn the hero into a god or a dog. On top of that come bounce pads, narrow walkways over chasms, moving platforms, and a wealth of traps, making the levels feel far more vertical and playful than the flat corridors of the previous generation.

The engine is an extended version of older technology, but with a host of additions that mask its age: characters move at different heights, there are jump pads, walls of fire, and breakable windows. What stands out most, though, is the gore, since a rocket hit turns an enemy into a shower of flying body parts, and the game clearly plays this for laughs. Digitized guard barks and exaggerated death sounds underline the overall comic-book tone. The title also offered a multiplayer mode with its own rules and modifications, which considerably extended its lifespan among players.

Rise of the Triad arrived at a time when it was already competing against far more modern shooters, so technologically it felt a bit behind, but its sheer inventiveness and over-the-top attitude won it a loyal following that has stuck with it to this day. At the time, reviewers praised the wealth of ideas in the levels and the playful weapons, while criticizing the aging graphics. Today it's one of the most fun old shooters around, because unlike serious modern shooters it never once tries to be realistic, and its chaos is exactly what keeps it alive. Thanks also to a community that still builds custom levels for it, this game hasn't been forgotten in retro circles.