1996 in video games
1996 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Super Mario 64, Duke Nukem 3D, Street Fighter Alpha 2, Super Mario RPG, Virtua Fighter 3, and Tekken 3, along with new titles such as Blazing Heroes, NiGHTS into Dreams..., Crash Bandicoot, Pokémon Red/Green/Blue, Resident Evil, Dead or Alive, Quake and Tomb Raider. The year's best-selling video game console worldwide was the PlayStation, while the best-selling consoles in Japan were the Game Boy and Sega Saturn. The year's best-selling home video game worldwide was Super Mario 64, while highest-grossing arcade games in Japan were Street Fighter Zero 2 (Street Fighter Alpha 2) and Virtua Fighter 2. Events
March – Swedish video game magazine "Super Power" changes name to Super Play. 15 July – Tom Kalinske announces he will leave his position as president for Sega of America on 1 October. May 16–18 – The second annual E3 is held in Los Angeles, California, United States. 7 September - Sega opens SegaWorld London as part of the London Trocadero in England. It is the first Sega World park to open outside of Japan. 1 October – Tom Kalinske resigns as president for Sega of America. December 31 – Battle.net Classic is released. Hardware 

 February 21 – Sega Model 3, an arcade system board considered to have the most technically impressive graphics at the time
 November 23 – Bandai's Tamagotchi virtual pet handheld
 Nintendo's Nintendo 64, the first true 64-bit home console
 Nintendo's Game Boy Pocket (GBP) handheld console (30% smaller version of the previous Game Boy handheld console)
 Sega's Net Link modem for the Sega Saturn home console
 SNK's Neo Geo CDZ (Japan only)
 Namco's Alpine Racer arcade game, including a new type of user interface
 The debut of Apple's Apple Pippin console (their only dedicated gaming console until the Apple Vision Pro)

Discontinuation 
1996 saw a major shakeup in the crowded home console market, with the Virtual Boy, Atari Jaguar, 3DO Interactive Multiplayer, Sega CD, 32X, and CD-i all being discontinued. Top-rated games

Game of the Year awards
The following titles won Game of the Year awards for 1996. Critically acclaimed titles

Famitsu Platinum Hall of Fame 
The following video game releases in 1996 entered Famitsu magazine's "Platinum Hall of Fame" for receiving Famitsu scores of at least 35 out of 40. Metacritic and GameRankings 
Metacritic (MC) and GameRankings (GR) are aggregators of video game journalism reviews. Financial performance

Highest-grossing arcade games

Japan
In Japan, the following titles were the highest-grossing arcade games of 1996. United States
In the United States, the following titles were the highest-grossing arcade video games of 1996. Australia
On Australia's Timezone monthly arcade charts published in the March 1996 issue of Leisure Line magazine, Sega's Manx TT Super Bike was the top-grossing dedicated arcade cabinet and Namco's Point Blank was the top-grossing arcade conversion kit. Best-selling video game consoles

Best-selling home video games 
The following titles were the top ten best-selling home video games (console games or computer games) worldwide in 1996. Japan
In Japan, the following titles were the top ten best-selling home video games of 1996. United States
In the United States, the following titles were the top ten best-selling home video games of 1996. Europe
In Europe, the following titles were the best-selling home video games of 1996. In addition to the PlayStation games listed above, the following titles were the year's best-selling Sega Saturn and PC games in the United Kingdom. Top game rentals in the United States
In the United States, the following games were the top video game rentals of each month, according to the Video Software Dealers Association (VSDA). Notable releases 

{| class="wikitable sortable" border="1"
|+ Notable releases of the year 1996
|-
! scope="col" | Release
! scope="col" | Title
! scope="col" | System
! scope="col" | Developer/Publisher
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Notes
|-
| January 25 || Guardian Heroes || Sat || Treasure/Sega || a beat-em-up game developed by Treasure 
|-
| January 26 || Mystaria: The Realms of Lore || Sat || Micro Cabin/Sega || a tactical RPG
|-
| January 29 || Duke Nukem 3D || DOS || 3D Realms/GT Interactive || a popular first-person shooter
|-
| January 31 || Mega Man X3 || SNES || Capcom || third X installment in popular Mega Man franchise. |-
| February 9 || Bahamut Lagoon || SNES || SquareSoft || Tactical RPG spin-off in the Final Fantasy series, before Final Fantasy Tactics. |-
| February 23 || Front Mission: Gun Hazard || SNES || SquareSoft || Sequel to strategy Super Famicom RPG Front Mission. |-
| February 27 || Pokémon Red and Green || GB || Game Freak/Nintendo || launched a wildly popular game series
|-
| February 29 || Civilization II || Win || MicroProse || acclaimed sequel to the highly influential 1991 4X game
|-
| February 29 || Ripper (video game)  || DOS || Take Two Interactive ||  Interactive movie, Point-and-click adventure Single Player game
|-
| February 29 || Rise 2: Resurrection || Win, Sat, PS1 || Mirage/Acclaim || the sequel to the fighting game, Rise of the Robots. |-
| February 29 || Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri || DOS || Looking Glass Studios || critically acclaimed FPS
|-
| February 29 || Zork: Nemesis || Win || Activision || 11th game in the Zork series, employing 360-degree views of environment
|-
| March 9 || Super Mario RPG || SNES || SquareSoft/Nintendo || beginning of the long-running series of Mario RPGs
|-
| March 21 || Kirby Super Star || SNES || HAL Labs/Nintendo || considered to be one of the best games in the Kirby franchise. |-
| March 22 || Resident Evil || Win (1997), PS1, Sat (1997) || Capcom || one of the foundational games in the survival horror genre, for a time it held the record for best-selling PlayStation game
|-
| March 22 || Panzer Dragoon II Zwei || Sat || Team Andromeda/Sega || an acclaimed rail shooter
|-
| March 24 || Someone's in the Kitchen!|| Win || The Neverhood Inc./DreamWorks || DreamWorks Interactive's first video game. |-
| March 29 || Dragon Ball Z: Hyper Dimension || SNES || TOSE/Bandai || the last Super Famicom game in the Dragon Ball Z franchise. |-
| April 20 || Barbie Fashion Designer || Win ||  || The game's strong sales sparked a renewed interest in developing games targeting girls. |-
| April 26 || Jumping Flash! 2 || PS1 || Exact/SCEA || Sequel to the first true 3D platformer. |-
| April 26 || The Legend of Oasis || Sat || Sega/Ancient || Prequel to the Genesis Zelda-style action game Beyond Oasis. |-
| April 30 || Indiana Jones and His Desktop Adventures || Win, Mac || LucasArts || Adventure game developed by LucasArts in the popular Indiana Jones franchise specifically to run in windowed form. |-
| May 14 || Fire Emblem: Seisen no Keifu || SNES || Intelligent Systems/Nintendo  || the fourth game in the popular Fire Emblem series. |-
| May 13 || Kirby's Block Ball || GB || HAL Labs/Nintendo || North American release of Breakout-inspired game in popular Kirby franchise
|-
| May 24 || Metal Slug || Neo || SNK || the first in the Metal Slug series that proved popular in the arcades. |-
| May 31 || Final Doom || DOS || id Software || Despite the name, it would be followed less than a year later by Doom 64. |-
| June || Last Bronx || Arcade || Sega || Ported to the Sega Saturn (1997) and Windows (1998)
|-
| June 22 || Quake || DOS || id Software || advanced 3D graphics technology and started a franchise that has sold more than 4 million games
|-
| June 23 || Super Mario 64 || N64 || Nintendo || One of two Nintendo 64 U.S. launch games. An archetype for nearly every 3D platformer which followed it, from the day of release it was widely hailed as one of the greatest games of all time. |-
| June 26 || Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 || Sat, SMD, SNES || Acclaim Entertainment, GT Interactive, Midway, Williams Entertainment || Console ports of the standalone update of Mortal Kombat 3
|-
| June 27 || Shining Wisdom || Sat || Camelot/Sega || Action adventure game in the Shining series
|-
| July 5 || NiGHTS into Dreams... || Sat || Sega || The advertising campaign features the rebirth of the Sega Saturn; August 21 (US)
|-
| July 19 || Saturn Bomberman || Sat || Hudson || 
|-
| July 19 || Star Ocean || SNES || tri-ace/Enix || the first game in the Star Ocean series. |-
| July 25 || The King of Fighters '96 || Neo, NeoCD, Sat || SNK || an entry in the popular King of Fighters series. |-
| July 26 || Bust-A-Move 2: Arcade Edition || Sat, PS1 || Taito/Acclaim || The first home versions of the popular arcade puzzle game. |-
| July 31 || Phantasmagoria: A Puzzle of Flesh || DOS, Win || Sierra On-Line || a controversial sequel to the controversial Phantasmagoria. |-
| July 31 || Virtua Fighter Kids ||Sat, Arcade || Sega AM2 || a spin-off in the Virtua Fighter series
|-
| August 25 || Tekken 2 || PS1 || Namco || the second game in the popular fighting game series Tekken
|-
|August 26
|Azrael's Tear
|MS-DOS
|Intelligent Games
|Innovative adventure game, at the time featuring full 3D real-time rendering. |-
| August 31 || The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall || Win || Bethesda Softworks || an evolution of the sandbox RPG started with The Elder Scrolls: Arena 
|-
| August 31 || Die Hard Trilogy || Win, PS1, Sat || Probe Entertainment/Fox Interactive || 3 original games in 1 disk, each based on a different movie in the series. |-
| August 31 || Tetris Attack || SNES, GB || Intelligent Systems/Nintendo || first release of the popular Panel de Pon series in the US. |-
| August 31 || Madden NFL 97 || SMD, PS1, Win, SNES, Sat, GB || EA Sports/Electronic Arts || The first Madden game on gen 5 platforms. |-
| August 31 || Beyond the Beyond  || PS1 || Camelot/SCEA || The first traditional Japanese-style RPG for the PlayStation
|-
| August 31 || Jet Moto || PS1 || SingleTrac/SCEA || A futuristic motocross style hoverbike racing game. |-
| September || Jagged Alliance: Deadly Games || DOS || Sir-Tech || The second installment in the Jagged Alliance series. |-
| September || Virtua Fighter 3 || Arcade || Sega AM2 || A fighting game considered to have the most technically impressive graphics at the time. |-
| September 9 || Crash Bandicoot || PS1 || Naughty Dog/Universal/Sony || Crash was used as the mascot for the PlayStation console. |-
| September 14 || GunGriffon || Sat || Game Arts/Sega || critically acclaimed mech game, first in its series. |-
| September 20 || Revelations: Persona || PS1 || Atlus ||  first game in the Persona series, a spin-off series of the Megami Tensei series. Also the first Megami Tensei-related game to release outside Japan
|-
| September 26 || Pilotwings 64 || N64 || Nintendo || One of two Nintendo 64 U.S. launch games. |-
| September 27 || Meridian 59 || Win || 3DO || one of the first MMORPGs. |-
|September 30
|Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars|Win, PS1
|Revolution Software/Virgin Interactive
|acclaimed point and click adventure that started an iconic series. |-
|  || Wipeout XL/2097 || PS1 || Psygnosis  || a poster child of the PlayStation for pop culture infusions and sleek extreme action
|-
| September 30 || Shattered Steel || DOS || BioWare/Interplay || first game developed by BioWare
|-
| September 30 || Street Fighter Alpha 2 || Arcade, SNES, PS1, Sat || Capcom || second game in the Street Fighter Alpha spin-off series 
|-
| September 30 || Mr. Bones || Sat || Zono/Sega || platformer for the Saturn
|-
| September 30 || Tobal No. 1 || PS1 || DreamFactory/SCEA || fighting game famous for including a demo for Final Fantasy VII. |-
| September 30 || Formula 1 || PS1 || Bizarre Creations/SCEA || first racing game developed by Bizarre. |-
| September 30 || Donkey Kong Land 2 || GB || Rare/Nintendo || second Donkey Kong Land game
|-
|October 1
|Heroes of Might and Magic II: The Succession Wars
|DOS, Win
|New World Computing/3DO
|Second installment of the Heroes of Might and Magic series. Typically credited as the breakout game for the series. |-
| October 10 || Mortal Kombat Trilogy || N64, PS1, R-Zone, Sat (1997) || Avalanche, Midway, Point of View ||
|-
| October 15 || Marathon Infinity || Mac || Bungie || The last game in the Marathon trilogy. |-
| October 30 || The Neverhood || Win || The Neverhood Inc./DreamWorks || The game is done almost entirely in claymation and has gained a sequel. |-
| October 31 || Command & Conquer: Red Alert || DOS || Westwood Studios || the second major title in the Command & Conquer universe, and one of the most popular
|-
| October 31 || Master of Orion II || DOS || Simtex/MicroProse || 
|-
| October 31 || Toonstruck || DOS || Burst Studios/Virgin Interactive Entertainment || 
|-
| October 31 || Drowned God || Win || Epic Multimedia Group/Inscape || Adventure game. |-
| October 31 || SimCopter || Win || Maxis || Flight simulation game in popular Sim series. |-
| October 31 || King's Field III || PS1 || FromSoftware/ASCII Entertainment || the last of three games in the King's Field series released for the PlayStation. |-
| October 31 || DeathDrome || Win || Zipper Interactive/Viacom || First game developed by Zipper Interactive. |-
| October 31 || WWF In Your House || DOS, PS1, Sat || Acclaim|| First WWF game developed specifically for consoles. |-
| October 31 || Twisted Metal 2 || PS1 || SingleTrac/SCEA|| Second game in the popular Twisted Metal franchise. |-
| October 31 || Destruction Derby 2 || PS1 || Reflections Interactive/SCEA|| Second game in the popular Destruction Derby franchise. |-
| October 31 || NBA Live 97 || PS1, Sat, SNES, SMD || Electronic Arts, EA Sports|| 
|-
| October 31 || Pandemonium! || PS1, Sat, Win (1997) || Electronic Arts, EA Sports|| 
|-
| November 1 || Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain || PS1, Win || Silicon Knights/Crystal Dynamics || First game in the Legacy of Kain series. |-
| November 14 || Tomb Raider || PS1, Sat, DOS || Core Design/Eidos || Action adventure game which was among the year's most critically acclaimed games and proved highly influential on both 3D games development and cinematic presentation
|-
| November 20 || Sonic 3D Blast || Sat, SMD || Sega/Traveller's Tales || Isometric platformer in the popular "Sonic the Hedgehog" series. |-
| November 22 || Donkey Kong Country 3 || SNES || Rare/Nintendo || the third installment to the popular Donkey Kong Country franchise
|-
| November 25 || Killer Instinct Gold || N64 || Rare/Nintendo || a home fighting game based on the arcade's Killer Instinct 2. |-
| November 25 || Bubsy is 3D in "Furbitten Planet" || PS1 || Eidetic/Accolade  || Noted for its negative reception. Was the last title in the Bubsy series for 21 years. |-
| November 26 || Area 51 || PS1, Win, Sat || Mesa Logic/Atari Games || Ported versions of the classic arcade shooter. |-
| November 26|| Dead or Alive || Arcade, Sat (1997), PS1 (1998)|| Team Ninja/Tecmo || The first game in the Dead or Alive series of fighting games. |-
| November 30 || Contra: Legacy of War || Sat, PS1 || Konami/Appaloosa Interactive || the first true 3D entry in the popular Contra series
|-
| November 30 || Dragon Force || Sat || Sega/Working Designs || a combination of war simulation and RPG
|-
| November 30 || Fighting Vipers || Sat, Arcade || Sega AM2 || a popular fighting game. |-
| November 30 || Virtua Cop 2 || Sat, Arcade || Sega AM2 || a popular light gun game
|-
| November 30 || Virtual On: Cyber Troopers || Sat, Arcade || CRI/Sega || the first game in the Virtual On series
|-
| November 30 || Bug Too! || Saturn, Win || Sega/Realtime Associates || a sequel to Bug!|-
| November 30 || FIFA Soccer 97 || SMD, PS1, Win, SNES, Sat, GB || EA Canada/Electronic Arts ||
|-
|December 3 ||  || N64 || LucasArts/Nintendo || one of the first Nintendo 64 games, an action game in the popular Star Wars franchise. |-
|December 12 ||  Ignition || DOS, Win || Unique Development Studios/Virgin Interactive||3D racing game
|-
|December 14 ||  Mario Kart 64 || N64 || Nintendo||The Mario Kart series first 3D game. |-
|December 16
|Furcadia
|Windows
|Dragon's Eye Productions, Inc.
|First social MMORPG, longest-running online game of said genre
|-
|December 17 || Mega Man 8 || PS1 || Capcom || The first Mega Man game to be released on PlayStation. |-
|December 19 || Terranigma || SNES || Quintet/Nintendo || Popular RPG famous for being released in Europe but not in America, a rarity in the mid-1990s. Also a spiritual successor to Illusion of Gaia. |-
|December 26 || YU-NO: A Girl Who Chants Love at the Bound of this World || NEC PC-98 || ELF Corporation || An influential visual novel credited with revolutionizing the genre. |-
|December 31 || Death Rally || DOS || Remedy Entertainment/GT Interactive || The first game developed by Remedy Entertainment. |-
|December 31 || NBA Hangtime ||  Arcade, SNES || Midway|| Arcade-style basketball game developed by Midway. |-
|}

 Business 

 February – Blizzard Entertainment acquires a development group known as Condor, renaming it Blizzard North
 April – Eidos Interactive acquires CentreGold plc, which holds Core Design (creator of the Lara Croft character) and U.S. Gold
 May 1 – GameSpot and GameFAQs are launched
 June – Firaxis Games is formed By Jeff Briggs with Sid Meier and Brian Reynolds
 July – GT Interactive purchases Humongous Entertainment
 July 24 – CUC International, Inc purchases Sierra On-Line, Blizzard Entertainment and Davidson & Associates for about $3 billion in a stock swap. July 30 - Atari Corporation reverse-merges with JTS, Inc.
 August 6 – AOL buys Sierra's ImagiNation Network from AT&T for a reported $15 million. August 24 – Valve is founded. September 1 – AOL closes ImagiNation Network, the first online video game with graphics, after 5 years of service. September 29 – IGN is founded. November 13 – Tom Clancy and Virtus Corp. found Red Storm Entertainment, headed by Doug Littlejohns
 Infogrames Entertainment SA acquires Ocean Software Ltd.
 Midway Games, Inc. (subsidiary of WMS Industries) acquires Atari Games Corporation from Time Warner. Technos Japan Corporation, originator of the Nekketsu Kouha Kunio Kun series and Double Dragon'' series, goes out of business (assets acquired by Atlus)
 Black Isle Studios forms as a division by Interplay; doesn't use Black Isle name until 1998
 Game Park Inc. founded in South Korea
 The company formed by MicroProse and Spectrum HoloByte in 1993 starts branding using only the MicroProse name
 Overworks, Ltd. formed
 Zed Two Limited formed
 Nintendo of America, Inc. v. Computer & Entertainment, Inc. The 3DO Company purchases New World Computing

See also
1996 in games

References

External links

 
Video games by year