My Story of 3D Realms / Apogee Part I (2020)
Scott Miller and Joe Siegler recount the early history of Apogee Software and 3D Realms, from its founding in 1987 through the shareware revolution, the creation of classic titles like Commander Keen and Duke Nukem, and the development of the Build engine. The article details the company's evolution, key hires, and the transition from 2D to 3D gaming.
Background
- **3D Realms (originally Apogee Software)** was a legendary PC game developer/publisher, best known for *Duke Nukem 3D*, *Shadow Warrior*, and *Wolfenstein 3D*. They pioneered the "shareware" model — releasing an episode for free and selling the rest.
- **Scott Miller** founded the company and, with programmer **John Romero**, later co-founded **id Software** (of *Doom* and *Quake* fame). The two studios had a famously tight early relationship.
- By the late 1990s, 3D Realms was working on *Duke Nukem Forever*, a sequel that became the poster child of "vaporware" — announced in 1997 but repeatedly delayed, not released until 2011, and even then by a different studio.
- **Joe Siegler** was 3D Realms' webmaster / online manager for 14 years. This blog post is part 1 of his inside account of the company's rise, its split with id Software, and the slow unraveling that led to its decline — seen from the perspective of a longtime employee rather than an executive.