Computer Graphics : Games and Names

Computer graphics are an interesting topic to me. As an avid gamer for the majority of my life, I've come to appreciate the advance of computer graphics and graphics processing over the last 20 years.
My first experience with which was the original NES, and it's Picture Processing Unit, the Ricoh 2A03. This 8-bit microprocessor delivered the computing power necessary to process the graphics enjoyed by millions. The chip itself was optimized to use very little memory to store data pertaining to graphics. This small amount of memory could be extended through the use of mappers found on the game cartridges, quite the ingenious design to extend the lifetime of Nintendo's proprietary hardware.
        Similar design and hardware was found on the later generations of consoles, but I would rather move on to the advance of PC hardware. The company 'id' is best known for the controversy surrounding their game titles, "DooM" and "Quake." The games themselves play well, and pushed the envelope on what type of gross artwork they could fit into their games. The company gains little credit for it's efforts in advancing the standard of graphics in game engines. DooM was groundbreaking, Quake was groundbreaking, and Quake 3, also, was groundbreaking. Each of these games advanced the standard for what people would expect from their games. DooM brought to life sprites rendered in a 3D space. Quake realized a full 3D world with 3D models and particles, and Quake 3 utilized new technologies and hardware like OpenGL and real GPU's.
     

 This is all thanks to John Carmack, co-founder of id Software. I've known his name since I was a child, but it wasn't until I pursued my degree in Computer Science that I realized how brilliant of a man he is. He's invented several computer graphics algorithms, took advantage of advances in PC hardware to make his games shine, and has made major innovations in 3D graphics. The guy is spoken of entirely in awe, and I'm starting to understand why. He's made games what they are today, and without him titles like Call of Duty and Battlefield wouldn't exist. He's the father of modern gaming, and more so of modern graphics in games.