Wolfenstein 3D publisher recalls fight to distribute game in Germany — porn stores and plain packaging came to the rescue of 1990s FPS gamers

The publisher of Wolfenstein 3D has recalled the struggle to distribute copies of this seminal FPS game in Germany back in the early 1990s. Released as shareware by Apogee in 1992, the game was an instant hit around the globe, but the Nazi symbols and imagery clashed with Strafgesetzbuch section 86a, Germany’s postwar criminal code, which prohibited unconstitutional iconography.

In the tweet above, you can read the recollections of Scott Miller, the founder of Apogee Software, and flag bearer for the first-level-as-shareware model during the PC’s infancy as a gaming superpower.

Miller mentions that the ensuing legal tussle would result in the unshackling of U.S. created content. We aren’t sure if he is talking about the exceptions to Strafgesetzbuch section 86a for educational, artistic, or scientific purposes being modified to include video games. That actually happened in 2018, so wouldn’t seem to be closely related to the Wolfenstein 3D case.

Porno-piggyback distribution and the bad voice actors

The Nazi imagery story isn’t the only interesting nugget Miller shared in his social media posting. He explains that, in this pre-internet era, Apogee would deliberately use plain packaging to send shareware to Germans, helping 100s of orders get past the customs / censors. “We did everything we could to not leave German-based gamers out of the fun,” including omitting any Apogee labeling, noted Miller.

The Apogee founder was replying to legendary game designer Sandy Petersen, best known for working on Doom, Doom II, and Quake levels at id Software.

Germany had come up as a topic because Petersen was recalling how other id Software employees, who had no German language skills, actually did the voices for “the SS guys” and other foes in the game. Apparently, this lack of linguistic skill was a source of hilarity among German gamers, who were lucky enough to be able to grab a copy of Wolfenstein 3D, however they could manage that.

Petersen also highlighted that German gamers would face an unlikely obstacle to buying a copy of Wolfenstein 3D at retail. Specifically, the game designer recalled that this seminal FPS was only available “in literal adult stores, alongside porn,” for a time.

Writing about the above reminded me of another of Germany’s special laws that impacted video games. Until the 2010s, the country’s Youth Protection Laws often meant that publishers would swap red blood for green or blue blood, to limbo under certain content age-ratings, or avoid censor delays. But that’s another story.

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