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Sure, these days have almost every game sporting the newfangled 3D, but way back when, everyone had to live with plain old 2D. 2D, or two dimensions, limit the game to scrolling backgrounds, but some games even now make use of this basic concept.
Games where the characters are 2D bitmap images (sprites), but the environment and scenarios are made in a 3-Dimensional space. This technique was commonly used on consoles like the PlayStation, Sega Saturn and Nintendo DS. Many 90's First-Person Shooters also used this technique. Some used it as a stylistic choice like Paper Mario and Rakugaki Showtime.
Belt scrolling is a 2D perspective, side-scrolling action with downward camera angle. The character is able to move not only sideways, but also vertically within a limited area, giving pseudo-3D depth. Mostly used by beat 'em up brawlers, this term is mainly used in Japan and comes from the conveyor belt like viewpoint.
Using a 2D sprite that always faces the camera within a polygonal 3D environment to fake a 3D effect.
The CP System is a family of arcade system hardware manufactured by Capcom for their arcade games from 1988 to 1999, including the Street Fighter II and Street Fighter III games.
In video games, dithering is a graphical technique using pixel patterns to simulate additional colors or transparency. While far more common on CRTs, many games still use the technique, especially games which use pixel art.
A parallel projection technique used in 2D sprite-based games to fake the appearance of 3D depth.
Marathon 2 Engine is a 2.5D game engine primarily used for making First-Person Shooters, Created by Bungie for the Sequel to Marathon "Marathon 2: Durandal" and was licensed out to other developers.
A simple texture mapping graphics mode on the SNES that allows a background layer to be rotated and scaled. Many game developers used this to create faux-3D worlds and environments.
Released in 1988, the game's Namco System 21 "Polygonizer" arcade board was one of the first gaming systems dedicated to polygonal 3D graphics, and was the most powerful gaming hardware of the 1980's. Its 3D graphical capabilities would not be surpassed until the release of Sega's Model 1 arcade system in 1992.
The Namco System 22 is an arcade system board, the successor to the Namco System 21 arcade board. It debuted in 1992 with Sim Drive in Japan, followed by a worldwide debut in 1993 with Ridge Racer. It was first 3D gaming system to feature texture mapping and Gouraud shading.
A NosCon (short for Nostalgic Continuity) is a game made with the purpose of appealing to people's nostalgia for the retro gameplay and style of a specific series.
Parallax scrolling is a scrolling effect used in video game graphics, employing multiple scrolling layers to create the illusion of depth, for a pseudo-3D effect in an otherwise 2D scrolling game.
This platforming-inspired sub-genre of fighting games often includes varied stage designs, the use of items and a lighter emphasis on damage-based KOs. Four or more players may join the mayhem though party-oriented elements may also be toggleable.
Who needs 2D when we've got 3D? 3D, or 3 dimensions, is what we're used to seeing in almost every game these days, letting us do all sorts of awesome stuff like run in circles!
Technique for detecting intersection of an object and a line in virtual space.
Sega VCO Object, also known as Sega Z80-3D system, was an arcade system board released by Sega in 1981. It was the first system specifically designed for pseudo-3D sprite-scaling graphics. In 1982, it was also the first system to support active-shutter stereoscopic 3D.
Side-scrolling games present the world as viewed perpendicular to the direction the characters are facing on screen. With a heavy focus on lateral movement, objectives are often met by moving from one end of a stage to the other.
Whether it's Super Scaler or Mode 7, growing and shrinking sprites/textures is a concept often used in sprite-based games. It was a popular technique used to create three-dimensional games with sprites, mostly during the 16-bit to early 32-bit eras. Sprite-scaling was an early form of 3D texture-mapping.
3D Stereoscopy is the use of two images generated from slightly different angles in order to create a 3D effect. This usually requires the use of 3D glasses to separate the left/right image for each eye.
A series of arcade system boards and graphics engines developed by Sega to produce advanced, three-dimensional, sprite-scaling graphics. Capable of scaling/rotating thousands of sprites, Super Scaler produced the most advanced sprite-based graphics, from the Sega Hang-On in 1985 to the Sega System 32 in the '90s. It was an early form of 3D texture-mapping.
The Taito Z System is a 16-bit arcade system board released by Taito in 1987, debuting with racing simulation Continental Circus. It was followed by an enhanced 32-bit upgrade, the Taito SZ System, which debuted in 1992 with first-person shooter Gun Buster.
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