This might make me a "fake doom fan", but I really enjoyed this game. With that being said, it might be worth stating that I personally love slow-paced survival horror games (like the early Resident Evil games or the Silent Hill titles), and even though Doom 3 isn't 100% survival horror, it was a detour of the Doom formula that I more than welcomed. I played the original version of the game (not the BFG version that most people seem to have played), and I really enjoyed my time with it. Doom 3 seems to be more of a remake of the original game rather than a sequel, which was fine by me since the story came to a pretty good conclusion in Doom 64.
Let's start with the lighting. I've heard a lot of fans complain about the lack of light in Doom 3 (and 64), but I kind of loved this. The flashlight isn't automatic, and if you want to turn it on, you have to risk lowering your guard in case any monsters are around the corner, which I thought added a lot of tension and some strategy to the gameplay. I also love how the monsters are only visible in the dark through their glowing eyes, which led to some pretty great jumpscares.
One criticism that I'm already so tired of hearing is the overly used "Doom 3 isn't a bad game, it's a bad Doom game". Honestly, to me, that's like saying RE 4 wasn't a good Resident Evil game, which we can pretty much all agree isn't true. I love when franchises dare to try different things with new installments, and seeing as this is the 4th Doom game (wait, why is it called Doom 3?), the change of formula made for a really fun and honestly well executed experience. And oh yes, this still feels like a doom game. You're constantly looking for key items to open different doors, collecting a bunch of weapons, and fighting a lot of demons. Sure, the pace is slower, but that goes hand in hand with the more present story and the moody atmosphere (ost is pretty damn great btw).
But I did have some flaws with the game. First off, this game has a silent protagonist (I'm guessing he's supposed to be the Doomguy?), which worked just fine in the previous games, since they weren't really that focused on the story. But here it kind of got on my nerves a little bit. Other than that, I didn't really get the inclusion of the stamina bar, since it kind of hurts the gameplay, and isn't really a common feature in survival horror games anyway. For some smaller negatives, I would've liked to have seen some more puzzles throughout the campaign, and I also found the level designs to be a bit redundant at times (less so towards the end).
Overall, Doom 3 was a fun and scary experience, and it almost feels like a Dead Space prototype in some ways. I might even prefer it to Doom II to be honest (don't kill me)!
Let's start with the lighting. I've heard a lot of fans complain about the lack of light in Doom 3 (and 64), but I kind of loved this. The flashlight isn't automatic, and if you want to turn it on, you have to risk lowering your guard in case any monsters are around the corner, which I thought added a lot of tension and some strategy to the gameplay. I also love how the monsters are only visible in the dark through their glowing eyes, which led to some pretty great jumpscares.
One criticism that I'm already so tired of hearing is the overly used "Doom 3 isn't a bad game, it's a bad Doom game". Honestly, to me, that's like saying RE 4 wasn't a good Resident Evil game, which we can pretty much all agree isn't true. I love when franchises dare to try different things with new installments, and seeing as this is the 4th Doom game (wait, why is it called Doom 3?), the change of formula made for a really fun and honestly well executed experience. And oh yes, this still feels like a doom game. You're constantly looking for key items to open different doors, collecting a bunch of weapons, and fighting a lot of demons. Sure, the pace is slower, but that goes hand in hand with the more present story and the moody atmosphere (ost is pretty damn great btw).
But I did have some flaws with the game. First off, this game has a silent protagonist (I'm guessing he's supposed to be the Doomguy?), which worked just fine in the previous games, since they weren't really that focused on the story. But here it kind of got on my nerves a little bit. Other than that, I didn't really get the inclusion of the stamina bar, since it kind of hurts the gameplay, and isn't really a common feature in survival horror games anyway. For some smaller negatives, I would've liked to have seen some more puzzles throughout the campaign, and I also found the level designs to be a bit redundant at times (less so towards the end).
Overall, Doom 3 was a fun and scary experience, and it almost feels like a Dead Space prototype in some ways. I might even prefer it to Doom II to be honest (don't kill me)!