We all know the story of Doom. One man, hundreds of monster, thousands of bullets and seas of blood and spent ammo. Doom is an artifact, but a holy one; a game developed during a simpler time when all you needed was copious amounts of bloodshed, stiff challenge and wild, elaborately designed levels. It didn't need a compelling storyline or deep commentary to make it a classic. Doom is old school shooting at its finest: raw, brutal and straight to the point.
These simpler times didn't often use polygons. Doom maintains the Wolfenstein standard of sprites and pixels, while helping to take its genre away from stale presentation and single floor stages. The realms you visit offer more various terrain, complete with vistas and basements. Never mind these features, though, because you can see them in almost any game nowadays. Doom's biggest visual and aural strong points rest in its iconic imagery and now legendary sound effects. Bright pink devils race around the battlefield, snarling and chomping at you as you approach. Possessed, undead marines stalk the grounds, their bodies putrefying even as they walk. And with each blow they sustain, blood flies, body parts crumble and creatures collapse in campy, lovable displays of death.
The pure fury on offer also guarantees that you are almost never safe. If you lower your guard, the immense population of zombies, imps, Cacodemons and other hellish creations will converge on you and give you a pixelated beatdown with teeth, claws and fireballs. They'll leave you a smoldering, bloody mess before the dust settles. Players who remain aware of their surroundings, however, may escape with a few cuts and bruises. No space marine survives without quick reflexes and some semblance of a plan. You need to observe your surroundings and keep your mind on the mob, while utilizing whatever means becomes available. Combat may boil down to dancing circles around the enemy contingent, or strafing side to side, or ducking behind a corner. That way you deal with the opposition one or two at a time, delivering fatal shotgun blasts to demonic faces with relative ease.
Community review by JoeTheDestroyer (October 14, 2018)
Rumor has it that Joe is not actually a man, but a machine that likes video games, horror movies, and long walks on the beach. His/Its first contribution to HonestGamers was a review of Breath of Fire III. |
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