1996 in retro gaming: from Diablo to Daggerfall
Thirty years ago — yes, 1996, the year we all discovered that 3D graphics could both amaze us and instantly melt our PCs — computer gaming had finally learned to walk, run, and occasionally trip over its own polygons. The DOS era was still hanging on, Windows 95 was flexing its new Start button, and CD-ROM drives were the loud, whirring engines of digital dreams.
1996 didn’t just “deliver a few games.” It straight-up dumped a truckload of instant classics on our desks:
- Diablo launched and taught us that clicking repeatedly could become a lifestyle.
- Duke Nukem 3D brought immature humor, great level design, and more one-liners than a whole season of action movies.
- Tomb Raider introduced Lara Croft — triangle-shaped, yes, but destined for icon status.
- Quake made everyone’s computer cry but revolutionized shooters forever.
- Civilization II took over the lives of anyone who thought, “Just one more turn.”
- And The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall tried to create the largest RPG world ever… and in the process created enough bugs to qualify as a nature documentary.
- Heroes of Might and Magic II let us conquer kingdoms, manage armies, and feel like overlords without any actual risk of being overthrown.
Adventure games were still kicking too: The Neverhood brought us claymation weirdness, Broken Sword set new standards for 2D charm, and Toonstruck gave us Christopher Lloyd trapped inside a cartoon well before the internet made that a daily experience.
Movies and music in 1996
Meanwhile, at the movies, testosterone AND CGI were flooding the planet: Independence Day, The Rock, Twister, Mission: Impossible, and Eraser. Thankfully, Fargo, Trainspotting, and Jerry Maguire balanced things out — each in wildly different ways. And then there was Space Jam, which happened. We still don’t fully understand why, but it happened.
The Billboard Top 10 for 1996 was… musically speaking… a science experiment in what happens when pop, R&B, ballads, and pure chaos get locked in a room together:
- "Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix)" — Los Del Rio
- "One Sweet Day" — Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men
- "Because You Loved Me" — Céline Dion
- "Nobody Knows" — The Tony Rich Project
- "Always Be My Baby" — Mariah Carey
- "Give Me One Reason" — Tracy Chapman
- "Tha Crossroads" — Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
- "I Love You Always Forever" — Donna Lewis
- "You're Makin' Me High" — Toni Braxton
- "Twisted" — Keith Sweat
Want more games from 1996? Abandonware DOS has plenty of them waiting to be downloaded — no retro PC or Voodoo graphics card required.