The first-person-shooter genre is experiencing a dirge of titles, with Halo 2 and Half-Life 2 being released soon. Perhaps the most exciting, though, is Doom 3.
Many people remember the Doom revolution in 1993. Doom was a video game that immersed the player in a three-dimensional environment, another world where they could walk, interact, and die.
Doom exploded the gaming industry. Families packed away Monopoly and hooked up a computer network for a deathmatch. Doom further popularized video games, particularly for the PC, previously thought of as a lifeless work machine.
Today, Doom is thought of as a classic. Gamers have left Doom behind to enjoy the phenomenon it created. But on August 3, Doom came back; not with such an impact as the original, of course. id Software spent four years mixing graphics and quality to make another revolution, a terrifying world that was more real than any other game; id made a Doom 3.
I am a big fan of the original Doom, so the day Doom 3 came out, I bought it with high expectations. I was a little worried, though, that id Software would sacrifice quality for graphics, as many believe they did in their last big title, Quake 3 Arena.
After I installed Doom 3 (and was relieved to find the CD-key worked), I fired it up. The game starts with the player playing the role of a research scientist stationed on Mars running around following colleagues’ instructions. The game finally gets going after the player finds a lost scientist who, right in front of the player, is transformed into a zombie.
Doom 3 met my graphics expectations and then some. There is a large range of video settings that can be set depending on the PC’s hardware. In the lowest quality, everything looks as if it was Styrofoam. But the highest quality is what the game was made for. The intense effort id put into lighting effects in Doom 3 really shows. The Mars base the player is stationed on is displayed as a dark, dirty (not to mention bloody) place. The enemies in the game are shockingly, horribly real. Doom 3 shows a gamer just how important graphics are.
In the past, id Software has not worried too much about sound. They would support two-speaker stereo, throw in a music soundtrack, and that was about it. But for Doom 3, id had something else in mind. With the recruitment of Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, id gave Doom 3 a constant background of engines churning, air conditioners rumbling, and a range of other ethereal noises. I set up surround sound speakers for Doom 3, which it supports very well. The game is unmatched as far as realism with surround sound, you can hear sounds all around you, like an enemy sneaking up behind you. With a surround sound setup, Doom 3 is as close to Mars as man has ever gotten. As far as enemies, the sounds get a little repetitive. From the “hiss-squeal” of the Imp to the screech of the Revenant, the sounds that alert you of a near-by enemy get a little less chilling every time.
Gameplay in Doom 3 is well-done in many areas, a little sketchy in others. I jumped back the first time I opened a door to find an Imp flying at me, but not so much the 400th time. The weapons are great, from the generic shotgun to the hellish Soul Cube. Doom 3 is terrifying. You’ll be walking down a hallway, looking for the red keycard, when the lights shut off and you hear a grunt. All of a sudden there are zombies in every direction, carrying anything from wrenches to chainguns.
Gamers everywhere agree: id Software has done it again.
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