Caltrops - Doom III - Review[56k-unfriendly version]

Forum Overview :: Doom III

by Bodybag 08/04/2004, 3:47pm PDT

It'd be totally understandable if Doom 3 was to collapse under the weight of it's own considerable hype; after all, we're talking about the ~~sequel to~~ remake of the world's most influential shooter ever. A lot of folks have voiced concern that this iteration could never live up to the Doom of old, citing its fast pace and hordes of foes.

For my part, I thought Doom was all about survival, trying to get from point A to point B without getting eaten, with each new level throwing bigger and nastier obstacles in your way. In this light, Doom 3 takes the mantle and runs with it. From the first zombie encounter to the final boss fight I'm fucking fighting for my life, and I'M LOVING IT. Is it as scary as they say? I have no idea. About what they're saying, I mean. I've been too busy chainsawing my way to salvation to read about what freaked this guy out. But it's pretty scary, at least on Veteran difficulty(AKA: THE ONLY WAY TO PLAY THIS GAME)

Apparently, this technician is "too busy" to chat with me. Busy...with what, exactly? Where are his tools? Yeah, and when he eventually gets zombified, it won't be personal. Honest.

You'll notice in the image above that the flashlight is used instead of a weapon, not in comination with one. This is an intentional design decision, and one that pays off IMO. It lets you relive the scene in Aliens where Hicks is inspecting the ceiling tiles only to be surprised by *SHREIK* MONSTERS!!! over and over. Plus, it's easy enough to manage the flashlight: hit the flashlight key once to holster your weapon and pull out the light, then again to re-ready your weapon. Simple! Except when it's in an unlit room full of zombies. Then it becomes awesome. Although I'm sure some people will nevertheless whine about the game's lighting.

fahbs69: christ this game is dark

After the shit hits the fan: That same tecnician from earlier, now with wrench in tow and, ironically enough, all the time in the world for me.

The graphics, as you may have heard, rock. The interactive computer terminals, for example, look like something you could literally reach out and touch. The monsters look truly menacing, and the lighting is a character all its own. Bonus: zombie corpses stay! Unless you keep shooting them, in which case they gib. Demons, however, disentigrate into fiery embers when dispatched. Like you're blowing them back to kingdom come. While the visuals are ace, it's the audio that sucks you into the game's world. The sound work in Doom 3 is probably the most immersive in any medium, ever. Play this one with the lights out...if you dare!

Remember when I said I wouldn't take it personally? I lied. *BLAM*

Note the brain flying over the shoulder.

For me, the game was exciting from start to finish. Sure, there's some backtracking here and some item fetching there, but that's all broken up by many vicious, andrenaline-charged battles against an army of seriously horrible shit. All the classic Doom weapons are here, with the exception of the super-shotgun, plus a few new additions. Satisfaction: the feeling you get when you unload the shotgun into a demon's face point blank, sending him cartwheeling into a railing that he ragdolls over while disentigrating into glowy red sparks. YES!

Most of the game's sparse story is told through PDA logs that you find scattered about, but I just found the PDA interface to be something to lull you into a state of ease right before something jumps out and bites you. There's a few boss-type creatures, most of which require you to perform a "trick" to defeat them. As such, the boss fights end up being memorable only for the visuals - which, incidentally, are totally kickass.

Here's the end of the review, as symbolized by me spotlighting a giant demonic sphincter. Anyone up for a HELLcolonic? LOL