I know the immediate impulse here is to just say "It's Doom" and leave it at that, but it should be acknowledged how impressive it is that this is still a fairly good time, given the numerous ways in which it is immensely dated. The different weapons are all fun to use (except the pistol, which feels somewhat underwhelming), the enemies are varied and visually interesting, and it cannot be overstated how much the music absolutely kicks ass.
Still, I don't know if this is the perfect, shining beacon of a lost shooter golden age that people like to say it is. For as much as many people will complain about cover shooters, and harken back to the run and gun gameplay of older FPS's, this game doesn't really fit that fantasy. Standing in the open for more than a second or two is a great way to end up as swiss cheese, and enemies like the cacodemons individually pack enough punch to wallop Doomguy back to the stone age. There's a lot of "poke your head out, shoot, retreat, repeat" here.
The level design starts out fine and seems to get progressively worse. This game has that old school tendency of pressing a button so that the game can cheekily tell you with a wink and a grin that it did something somewhere. Where, exactly? Well, wouldn't you like to know, weather boy? Go find it. The keycards themselves are not obnoxious, but the increasingly labyrinthine level design is not only tedious, it seems to directly contradict the whole "constant, high intensity action" schtick.
The ability to not look up or down is actually significantly less of a problem than I would expect, and in fact creates a somewhat unique gameplay experience that is enjoyably streamlined. However, as the game progresses, it becomes increasingly frequent for enemies to approach from above or below, which is awkward at best to handle. If I can only shoot forward, things I need to shoot should only be forward!
It would be remiss of me not to re-emphasize how nice this game is visually. The areas are varied and interesting (even though it would've been appreciated for the levels on Earth to look... anything like Earth?). The demon designs are super cool; cacodemons are iconic for a reason! The level of gore was shockingly intense for a game this old, but also totally appreciated. Seeing those cacodemons dissolve into a pile of blood and guts is so nice, especially after you blasted 80 shotgun shells into the damn thing. And also - the music, the music, the MUSIC. I think my favorite track is "Into the Code", but every single one goes so hard.
It's a good game, but my various annoyances led to me somewhat powering through by the end moreso than fully enjoying myself.
Still, I don't know if this is the perfect, shining beacon of a lost shooter golden age that people like to say it is. For as much as many people will complain about cover shooters, and harken back to the run and gun gameplay of older FPS's, this game doesn't really fit that fantasy. Standing in the open for more than a second or two is a great way to end up as swiss cheese, and enemies like the cacodemons individually pack enough punch to wallop Doomguy back to the stone age. There's a lot of "poke your head out, shoot, retreat, repeat" here.
The level design starts out fine and seems to get progressively worse. This game has that old school tendency of pressing a button so that the game can cheekily tell you with a wink and a grin that it did something somewhere. Where, exactly? Well, wouldn't you like to know, weather boy? Go find it. The keycards themselves are not obnoxious, but the increasingly labyrinthine level design is not only tedious, it seems to directly contradict the whole "constant, high intensity action" schtick.
The ability to not look up or down is actually significantly less of a problem than I would expect, and in fact creates a somewhat unique gameplay experience that is enjoyably streamlined. However, as the game progresses, it becomes increasingly frequent for enemies to approach from above or below, which is awkward at best to handle. If I can only shoot forward, things I need to shoot should only be forward!
It would be remiss of me not to re-emphasize how nice this game is visually. The areas are varied and interesting (even though it would've been appreciated for the levels on Earth to look... anything like Earth?). The demon designs are super cool; cacodemons are iconic for a reason! The level of gore was shockingly intense for a game this old, but also totally appreciated. Seeing those cacodemons dissolve into a pile of blood and guts is so nice, especially after you blasted 80 shotgun shells into the damn thing. And also - the music, the music, the MUSIC. I think my favorite track is "Into the Code", but every single one goes so hard.
It's a good game, but my various annoyances led to me somewhat powering through by the end moreso than fully enjoying myself.
cowboyjosh
9 months ago