The line between 2D and 3D

[j_factor]

Nowadays, any game that doesn't use polygonal graphics is considered 2D. But, I've seen a lot of old articles that casually mention games like Zaxxon as being 3D (and I'm not talking about Zaxxon 3D, I mean the original). I vaguely remember one article from the early 90s that talked about "different kinds of 3D" and listed them: polygonal, vector, scaling sprites, isometric. I suppose 3D vector games (like Star Wars) never lost their 3D status, but the latter two are definitely not considered 3D anymore. For a while in the early to mid 90s, I remember the phrase "isometric 3D" being used to describe games like LandStalker and Super Mario RPG.

So, what qualifies a game as being "true" 3D? There's a lot of grey areas. You could say a game is 3D if it allows for three axis of movement (therefore having three dimensions), but then that would include games like Double Dragon, which are pretty clearly not 3D (or are they?). If the qualifier is polygonal graphics, then that raises the question of games that partly use polygonal graphics, like Resident Evil or Grandia.

I was talking to someone on IRC and he mentioned LandStalker as a 2D game. I didn't think LandStalker was really 2D, and I asked him if he also considered Dark Savior to be 2D. He said he wasn't sure. It's something I've never really thought about.

Anyway, I'm rambling. Thoughts?

[Alison DeMeyer]

Star Raiders (1980) on the A8 was already 3D.

Those 4 Lucasfilm games in the beginning were 3D.

[Kamisama]

2D Graphics + 2D World -> 2D
2D Graphics + 3D World -> 3D
3D Grahpics + 2D World -> 2D Gameplay
3D Graphics + 3D World -> 3D

this is how I call them. So Polygon stuff in a 2D World is not true 2D, but 2D Gameplay etc.

[klausien]

2D Graphics + 2D World -> 2D
2D Graphics + 3D World -> 3D
3D Grahpics + 2D World -> 2D Gameplay
3D Graphics + 3D World -> 3D

this is how I call them. So Polygon stuff in a 2D World is not true 2D, but 2D Gameplay etc.

I use the term 2.5D for games that have 2D gameplay with 3D backgrounds and/or character models. See Strider 2 and New Super Mario Bros. as examples. I believe the term comes from GameFan back in the era when games like Clockwork Knight were first starting to emerge.

[XianXi]

Shouldnt newer games be considered 5D?