Really shows the love the team that did the remaster had for the original IP. Not sure if the OG Westwood guys are still working on the team but if not, hope some of them saw this and it made them smile.
@@compmanio36 they did say that they were interrested in doing the same for red alert 2/tiberian sun but that really its all EA call at this point. so we will see they already had to fight a lot to get the first remaster accepted
The CnC Red Aleart 2 Installer was also still fun. You put the CD in, the Autorun opens "Warning: Military grade software detected; Top level clearance required" xD And instead of a boring old "CD Key" your "Encryption Key is required" :D
This is why I miss physical media on PC and don't really game on the platform much anymore. I miss being excited about getting home with the box, cracking it open, enjoying the new game smell and then inserting the disc (either floppy, CD or DVD) and letting the install go to town. God those were the days.
I feel you man, it's just the same for me. And when you do get a physical or collector's edition these days it's normally just a Steam code inside. I would be happy if they at least faked a cool game installer while the game is download from Steam in the background. XD
Thanks for the video, it's sad to think many of these creative installers will be lost in time. I hope a place like GoG might eventually start including some kind of installer emulation so you can still experience them. One of my favorites is the one for Sanitarium, which plays moody music and shows you mistifying images of the game to set the tone.
You're so right. Creative installation menus are right up there with box art, demo discs and cracktros / crack intros. Presentation used to be such a big deal. A windows 95 PC had so many little interesting things to find and games to play because a lot of people didn't have internet.
Westwood had one of the best installers, even Tiberian Sun & Red Alert 2 had highly modified Windows 98 InstallShield installers with some story and showcase of units showing during installation, not like todays GOG (at least they are offline DRM-free) or Sream/Epic/Poo Poo Ubisoft ones ;-) EDIT: NOX, I forgot about NOX also, how dare I ;-) Also I remember to intentionally slow down my CD-ROM to enjoy whole content of installers... Bluebyte, Blizzard had nice installers also ;-)
The installer of Need for Speed IV: High Stakes (has a different name in the US I think) just played a simple engine rev sound effect at start. That little thing got me so hyped.
It was all ruined by installshield standardizing everything in Windows making it difficult to do much more than a few background picture customizations. If Microsoft didn't push the Wizard concept so much then maybe installshield would have been easier to customise. Everyone ended up using Installshield because it handled everything you needed, integrated well with common development environment and Microsoft recommended it.
Macintosh users had a slightly different experience; although to what extent I am not sure. With Mac OS X, some programs could be simply dragged and dropped into the desired install location. Perhaps one reason I still occasionally still see installers on programs is because of the need to agree to EULAs. The last fancy installer I used might have been Star Craft II: Wings of Liberty, but I cannot remember if that was the case as it was over a decade ago. Outside of app store and game library application ecosystems, I also see launcher programs that are used to check for updates, install updates, and sometimes to configure software settings.
I miss the days of those installers. Some were so fun to watch you just didn't care how long it took to install. Funny enough, a bit of this survived until recently with pirated copy of games. Often those pirate groups makes a custom installer that has some interaction, like music and such.
In boredom I doubt many beat the Metal Gear Solid 4 on PS3 when playing with installation by chapter, you could smoke many cigarettes each install 😵💫🤣
around the end of the ps360 era something interesting happened with digital distribution, the idea of "partial" installs came about, originally intended as a way to make the horrendously slow installs on the consoles more exciting, it only ended up being implemented on PC as far as I know. Star Wars Battlefront includes a darth vader minigame that you can play when the installation reaches about 20%, other games let you play through the tutorial while the rest of the game installed, or something similar to that. ironically, this is now truly lost media since the newer EA/ubisoft apps no longer support this feature, so these partial install features can no longer be accessed at all, in any way.
That actually began in the 8 bit microcomputer era. Since games often took a long time to load, especially cassette games, they often included a simple game to play while the main game loaded. Some companies even had special load screen music such as Ocean software games.
I wonder if there is some place where those unique installers are documented? This kind of stuff needs to be preserved. So much work went into these usually trivial stuff to just getting forgotten in a few decades.
I couldn't find any place. During my research I've only stumbled over a few Reddit and Vogon forum threads that mentioned a few, but there doesn't seem to be any central place.
Man, I miss these so much. I wonder, do the GOG offline installers include the original install programs for the games, or do they just use GOG's own installer?
It wasn't just cool, it was also useful. Many times you had the ability to select if you wanted to install FMV's or just keep them on the disc, you could select which languages to install so you didn't waste precious space on French audio when you don't speak French. Now the games will just happily install 4K textures even though you will never use them, along with uncompressed audio in 15 languages taking up 80GB of storage space for no freakin' reason. No one cares about optimisation at all any more. All desktop programs are just bloated Chromium apps and games require upscaling just to hit a stable frame rate leaving behind awful blurry artifacts every time you move the camera.
RTS had the best installers. Especially Command and Conquer, Red Alert and Age of Empires. StartCraft 2 was I think the last game I've ever seen that had an installer and I don't remember what (or if) Heart of the Swarm and Legacy of the Void had, I remember just the Wings of Liberty one that was very cool but not as Red Alert was.
Awesome upload and list! I'm a little surprised to see Warcraft II missing from the list, however. Who can forget the classic "Your sound card works perfectly"? Lol. ua-cam.com/video/slTHHXWNG4Y/v-deo.html
@@GoodPunk That was Namco's, IIRC. I know their PS1 library used a bunch of Arcade classics to load the main part of the game before starting the game proper. Ridge Racer 2 on the PSP did the same. To a lesser extent, I believe some of the Dragon Ball games on PS2 had minor versions where you interacted with whatever's on the screen to pass the time. While it's cool that that patent expired, we've (un)fortunately hit a point in gaming where loading screens aren't as necessary as they used to be. For better or worse - the latter, most of the time - technology marches on.
@GoodPunk thank you. It is seldom that my good efforts are recognized but when they are, it makes it all worthwhile. I remember the c&c red alert sound test from when I was young. That was cool 😎 good work on finding it
the fact that the red alert/tiberium dawn remaster kept this as a "fake" installer was great
@@athomicritics oh, I didn't even know that. Cool!
Really shows the love the team that did the remaster had for the original IP. Not sure if the OG Westwood guys are still working on the team but if not, hope some of them saw this and it made them smile.
@@compmanio36 they did say that they were interrested in doing the same for red alert 2/tiberian sun but that really its all EA call at this point. so we will see they already had to fight a lot to get the first remaster accepted
That would be a dream come true
The CnC Red Aleart 2 Installer was also still fun. You put the CD in, the Autorun opens "Warning: Military grade software detected; Top level clearance required" xD
And instead of a boring old "CD Key" your "Encryption Key is required" :D
This is why I miss physical media on PC and don't really game on the platform much anymore. I miss being excited about getting home with the box, cracking it open, enjoying the new game smell and then inserting the disc (either floppy, CD or DVD) and letting the install go to town. God those were the days.
I feel you man, it's just the same for me. And when you do get a physical or collector's edition these days it's normally just a Steam code inside. I would be happy if they at least faked a cool game installer while the game is download from Steam in the background. XD
Thanks for the video, it's sad to think many of these creative installers will be lost in time. I hope a place like GoG might eventually start including some kind of installer emulation so you can still experience them. One of my favorites is the one for Sanitarium, which plays moody music and shows you mistifying images of the game to set the tone.
@@davidspackagelp yeah it's really sad they are so badly preserved. But thanks for the tip with Sanitarium, I'll have a look at that.
@GoodPunk have you considered doing a series of these? There's probably plenty of cool installers to cover.
@@davidspackagelp if I find enough interesting additions sure. 😊 Though it would probably only be footage for preservation and not me talking again. 😄
@@GoodPunk can you post a list of them please?
many old games from GOG have CD images, so you can try to install it again in DOSBOX for example, after you install trough regular GOG installer ;-)
Oh man, that voice in the Red Alert installer is the guy that played Vision in the Avengers movies. I just now noticed this.
Its like listening to JARVIS all over again after all this time. 17 years now is it?
He's the guy who does all the red alert announcements. "Building... building complete... insufficient funds, construction paused" etc.
Ah man so many good installers I’ve never seen before. Such a lost art indeed
My personal favourite is Command and Conquer: Renegade installer, which shows actual 3D models of vehicles and characters from the game
Sounds interesting, I'm going to have a look at that. :)
Loved that one! Played a cool song too!
Your soundcard works perfectly!
You're so right. Creative installation menus are right up there with box art, demo discs and cracktros / crack intros. Presentation used to be such a big deal. A windows 95 PC had so many little interesting things to find and games to play because a lot of people didn't have internet.
Westwood had one of the best installers, even Tiberian Sun & Red Alert 2 had highly modified Windows 98 InstallShield installers with some story and showcase of units showing during installation, not like todays GOG (at least they are offline DRM-free) or Sream/Epic/Poo Poo Ubisoft ones ;-)
EDIT: NOX, I forgot about NOX also, how dare I ;-) Also I remember to intentionally slow down my CD-ROM to enjoy whole content of installers...
Bluebyte, Blizzard had nice installers also ;-)
Really enjoy these videos. Please keep them coming. So much effort into this one. Well done.
Great concept for a video. This really is kind of a lost art form.
Ah, back when things outside of the software were part of the experience: the box, the manuals, the install wizard, the launcher...
this was really interesting i'm not old enough to remember this stuff but it's interesting to learn what it was like you earned yourself a sub
Ah good old times lived the C&C installers interface.
Aw man! I didn't even know about these! I was firmly in the "installshield" era of Windows by the time I got my first computer.
I legit looked forward to them. Still to this day one of the most satisfying process.
Mechwarrior 4, Crimson Skies, Freelancer, and the Command and Conquer series all have excellent installers
6:06 perfect.
My soundcard works perfectly.
The installer of Need for Speed IV: High Stakes (has a different name in the US I think) just played a simple engine rev sound effect at start.
That little thing got me so hyped.
It was all ruined by installshield standardizing everything in Windows making it difficult to do much more than a few background picture customizations. If Microsoft didn't push the Wizard concept so much then maybe installshield would have been easier to customise. Everyone ended up using Installshield because it handled everything you needed, integrated well with common development environment and Microsoft recommended it.
Great that you included Worms. Tomb Raider for DOS has quite a nice one too.
Ah interesting, I have to check that out then.
Rollercoaster Tycoon Cereal Box Edition played the Merry-Go-Round music while installing
Macintosh users had a slightly different experience; although to what extent I am not sure. With Mac OS X, some programs could be simply dragged and dropped into the desired install location. Perhaps one reason I still occasionally still see installers on programs is because of the need to agree to EULAs. The last fancy installer I used might have been Star Craft II: Wings of Liberty, but I cannot remember if that was the case as it was over a decade ago. Outside of app store and game library application ecosystems, I also see launcher programs that are used to check for updates, install updates, and sometimes to configure software settings.
this is precisely the accent i want for this content
I miss the days of those installers. Some were so fun to watch you just didn't care how long it took to install.
Funny enough, a bit of this survived until recently with pirated copy of games. Often those pirate groups makes a custom installer that has some interaction, like music and such.
Some piracy groups also add fancy installers to their illegal releases.
with sometimes amazing chiptunes/key gen music!
In boredom I doubt many beat the Metal Gear Solid 4 on PS3 when playing with installation by chapter, you could smoke many cigarettes each install 😵💫🤣
I feel like games in the past were just more creative overall, but especially considering that they put so much effort into their installers.
Must have been a nightmare to get this footage. Good stuff
Yeah, at least some of them were a bit tricky. ^^
around the end of the ps360 era something interesting happened with digital distribution, the idea of "partial" installs came about, originally intended as a way to make the horrendously slow installs on the consoles more exciting, it only ended up being implemented on PC as far as I know. Star Wars Battlefront includes a darth vader minigame that you can play when the installation reaches about 20%, other games let you play through the tutorial while the rest of the game installed, or something similar to that. ironically, this is now truly lost media since the newer EA/ubisoft apps no longer support this feature, so these partial install features can no longer be accessed at all, in any way.
The only type of installer I've been looking at for the last few years are the installers made by a certain athletic young woman.
A fit girl eh
or some old flash games gave you a minigame to play until the flash game itself loaded
That actually began in the 8 bit microcomputer era. Since games often took a long time to load, especially cassette games, they often included a simple game to play while the main game loaded. Some companies even had special load screen music such as Ocean software games.
@ ur old!!
@@The_Real_DCT I would say loading screen music was a _lot_ more common than loading mini-games.
I wonder if there is some place where those unique installers are documented? This kind of stuff needs to be preserved. So much work went into these usually trivial stuff to just getting forgotten in a few decades.
I couldn't find any place. During my research I've only stumbled over a few Reddit and Vogon forum threads that mentioned a few, but there doesn't seem to be any central place.
Thank you for this video.
Microsoft Games had some amazing install video/audio during the Rise of Legends/Starlancer era.
Hmmm minigames in Ridge Racer Type 4 after loading on PSX
or how cool some crack programs looked that would patch your game so you could run a pirated copy of it!
I believe cracked installer music is genre of music within itself.
they called DEMO, and there is still demo scene, if you interesting in that ;-)
@@captainuniversalart3796 besides demo, you can find some as tracker music as well, its really good
The fucking Tiberian Sun installer AUUUGHHH
Some kind of vibes as loading music on Amiga and Atari machines.
Man, I miss these so much. I wonder, do the GOG offline installers include the original install programs for the games, or do they just use GOG's own installer?
Just GOG's installer. :(
@gamingtonight1526 Aw, that sucks. It would be nice if GOG could somehow preserve these original installers as well
It wasn't just cool, it was also useful. Many times you had the ability to select if you wanted to install FMV's or just keep them on the disc, you could select which languages to install so you didn't waste precious space on French audio when you don't speak French.
Now the games will just happily install 4K textures even though you will never use them, along with uncompressed audio in 15 languages taking up 80GB of storage space for no freakin' reason. No one cares about optimisation at all any more. All desktop programs are just bloated Chromium apps and games require upscaling just to hit a stable frame rate leaving behind awful blurry artifacts every time you move the camera.
awesome, thx for sharing
the self inmolating worms XD
@@nekokna great, aren't they? 😂
RTS had the best installers. Especially Command and Conquer, Red Alert and Age of Empires. StartCraft 2 was I think the last game I've ever seen that had an installer and I don't remember what (or if) Heart of the Swarm and Legacy of the Void had, I remember just the Wings of Liberty one that was very cool but not as Red Alert was.
Now if only stalker2 would give you something to do while compiling shaders
We making it out of Keygen Church wit this one 🙌🙌🔥🔥
I had not idea this was a thing, unfortunately I only experienced the install shield era.
Bist du von Deutschland?
Jup. :D
Awesome upload and list!
I'm a little surprised to see Warcraft II missing from the list, however.
Who can forget the classic "Your sound card works perfectly"? Lol.
ua-cam.com/video/slTHHXWNG4Y/v-deo.html
@@AlphaGodDamn4
Look again, that's included right after I say good bye. 😁
@@GoodPunk AH my god, sorry I missed that!
Wasn't there a patent that somebody took out that stopped these?
I don't think so. There was a patent on mini games in loading screens though that expired recently.
@@GoodPunk That was Namco's, IIRC.
I know their PS1 library used a bunch of Arcade classics to load the main part of the game before starting the game proper. Ridge Racer 2 on the PSP did the same. To a lesser extent, I believe some of the Dragon Ball games on PS2 had minor versions where you interacted with whatever's on the screen to pass the time.
While it's cool that that patent expired, we've (un)fortunately hit a point in gaming where loading screens aren't as necessary as they used to be. For better or worse - the latter, most of the time - technology marches on.
The ms codepage is wrong so all borders are broken!
@@evertp yeah, I've noticed that after the upload. Oh well 😅
Myth 2, soldier of Fortune, any windows 9x / XP game really.
Pointless video. I don't need to see old game installers these days when I have steam
Troll Alert! 😄
@GoodPunk thank you. It is seldom that my good efforts are recognized but when they are, it makes it all worthwhile. I remember the c&c red alert sound test from when I was young. That was cool 😎 good work on finding it