Customer Reviews

Doom 3

5 star:		(263)
4 star:		(124)
3 star:		(88)
2 star:		(45)
1 star:		(62)

 

 

I, like so many others, was an original Doom 1 & 2 customer back in the "download it from the local BBS" days. I couldn't wait for Doom 3 after learning about it a few months back.

Now that it's been out a few days (I bought it the morning it was released), here's the deal:

1. The engine is incredible. The sound and graphics are top notch, as is the overall environment, physics, etc. These guys at id always show everyone else how games are done. Everyone will now copy them for the next 5 years until id does it again. However, it's far more of a hog than we're being told. This is a game that forces you to buy a new computer (much to the industry's delight), just like all of id's other games (each Quake release forced us to buy new machines). I have a brand new Dell 3.2 GHz machine with a GeForce FX and 7200rpm drives. For Doom 3, I had to kick all the detail and graphics settings down to rock bottom, and also down to 640X480 jsut to keep it from being a slideshow. It's now merely "playable" (still looks great!). As computers and graphics cards get faster, this is really going to be cool, so id was wise to go way over the top detail, performance and feature-wise. Technically speaking, this game will enjoy along life (if other things are fixed - keep reading).

2. Creep factor - not nearly the frightfest we were hyped up on. This is basically you walking around in an "Alien" movie. Not a single goosebump while playing it at work. If I have to play it at night to get goosebumps, then it's not that scary. Fright factor of the old DOS Doom was way more scary than this one. The original Doom game truly SCARED us, and scared us JITTERY. It was mesmerizing and all-encompassing. It was a combination of atmosphere (the levels were downright intimidating and revolutionarily epic) and originality. Doom 3 just feels like you're a pest control guy from Orkin who's wandered into an "Alien" movie.

3. The gameplay is great, but monotonous. Here we are in the 22nd century, and still holding flashlights? Heck, I strap on a little battery-powered head lamp when going out to my wood pile so I can use my hands and have light AT THE SAME TIME. A high-tech space marine doesn't have a combat helmet with a light on it? Or nightvision? I've played this game less than 6 hours and I'm already sick to death of getting killed because I'm holding a flashlight instead of a weapon. This aspect of the game is not only ridiculous and unbelievable, but downright stupid.

4. The monsters are great. Too bad you don't get to appreciate them. They're so fast you never get a good look at them. It's so dark when you drop your flashlight to shoot them that you never get a look at them. You have to kill them so fast that you don't get a good look at them. And when you do kill them, they vaporize, so again, you never get a good look at them. This is a real bummer, because the game is all about the monsters. One of the fun aspects fo the original Doom games, at least when it was "new", was seeing that pile of guts laying there after you rearranged his internals with a rocket.

5. I agree with the "Doomed 3" review - this game is all about finding PDAs to get through doors. Boring, redundant, and gets in the way of playing the game. This is a lame attempt to add storyline and "cerebral content" to a game that, for obvious reasons, needs none. I mean - a revolutionary computer game forcing you to use a simulated PDA to get through a door? It's ridiculous, tedious and interruptive. Give me Quake 2 any day, where every door works so I can go in there and waste monsters. There is such a thing as too much realism, such as flight simulators being so complex that they're no longer fun. Doom 3 gets very close to this problem - not good for any game, especially a shooter.

6. Hallways. As brilliant as the surroundings in this game are, I'm sick to death of hallways. Doom 1 and 2 had wide open areas where you could enjoy really fun long-range shots with rocket launchers and get good views of your enemies before pulling the trigger. You got to see huge hoardes of monsters out in the open and have lots of fun blowing those groups apart with long range rockets, plasma and BFG. Atmosphere is incredibly important, and hallways get boring really really really fast. What's the point of having a rocket launcher in this game when you're always in rooms too small to use it without blowing your own face off? This forces a very boring "pick them off one at a time as they jump you" gameplay scenario.

7. Weapons - fantastic. I love the reloading function. They did a great job on the weapons, and it couldn't be better. Now they need to give us some wide-open spaces with daylight to actually use them to their full potential. One thing I mes sis the bodies flying. When you hit an Imp in Doom1/2, the body went flying as it came apart. I haven't seen that in this game so far, and I really miss it. That was not only realistic, but VERY realistic.

8. Speaking of daylight, we're on MARS, for crying out loud! Let's get out there in the Martian terrain and have some fun! THAT would be atmosphere! Enough with all this crappy "dark hallway" stuff. It's putting me to sleep. Now, I confess I'm not all the way through the game yet, so hopefully the whole game isn't like this. I have faith that it eventually improves.

9. Speaking of darkness and gameplay, the endless darkness everywhere seems rather obvious that it's otherwise a very boring game without the suspense of being in the dark. Not good. This game is all engine and little fun in the sense that the original doom games were. Again, hopefully this improves as you go through the game.

10. This game REQUIRES serious multiplayer network ability, and id really blew it here. After giving us the Quake games, Return to Wolfenstien, etc., there's just no excuse for this limited, wimpy 4-player-only stuff. Shame on you, id. You guys know darned well that this would piss us off. And DOOM 3, of all games. If there was a game that needed to be perfect in network multiplayer capabilities, it's this one. And after games like the Quake series, I can't believe id botched multiplayer up so badly - the one function that makes their games legendary. If it would have taken another year to get Doom 3 out the door with the multiplayer abilities it deserves, we all would have been more than happy to wait for it.

11. This game is REALLY going to shine when the general public starts creating new levels for it. That is, if the guys at id release a level editor (have they?). Also multiplayer networking MUST be brought up to at least Quake 3 capability. This MUST happen, or Doom 3 will be a flash in the pan due to boring environment, lack of industry standard multiplayer networking, monotonously predictable monster attacks and ridiculous darkness darkness darkness.

12. Game's awesome, but only because of it's potential once people start creating custom levels for it and the assumption that multiplayer will be fixed. Doom 3 without multiplayer "warfare" capability just will not do.

I highly recommend the game, it's great. Could be better, but it's still top notch, especially for the single player.

Doom 3(2004). The Third PC Game In The Doom Series.

Back in the Early 90's, when the computers where still hitting their stride, and video games were the last thing on people's minds, two revolutionary games were released. Those games were 'Wolfenstein 3D' and 'Doom'. Both games became immensely popular, so it's no surprise numerous sequels have been released for each game. 'Doom 2' was a worthy followup to 'Doom', but brought nothing new to the table. Now, in 2004, Id releases 'Doom 3', in full 3D surroundings with realistic graphics! So, is 'Doom 3' an overhyped disaster, or the game that lived up to everyone's expectations? Read on to find out!

Game Ratings-

Graphics- 'Doom 3's biggest draw has been its revolutionary graphics, so it's no surprise here what to expect. Character Designs are scarily real, the atmosphere you walk in feels almost as if you are in it, in other words, you feel the blood on the walls, and see the demons jumping out of the shadows, as if it's real. A very surreal experience. 5/5

Play Control- Although I'm not a huge fan of PC controls, there's nothing to complain about here, as 'Doom 3' easily places the FPS controls to make it easy for the gamer, and I found it a breeze to run around and blast demons. 5/5

Plot- 'Doom 3', much like 'Half-Life', has a phenomenal, and deeply horrifying plot. 'Doom 3' revolves around a Lab on the Planet of Mars accidentally opening a portal to hell, and you must fight off Mars and through demons to survive. The story is very enthralling, and once you start playing, it's hard to stop! 5/5

Challenge- 'Doom 3', while not as challenging as 'Half-Life', is still puzzling and hard in many ways. Most of the game, you are forced to fight multiple enemies at once, it dark surroundings(Much like the Aliens Vs. Predator series), and one of the most challenging things about the games is recovering after getting scared after a monster jumps out of nowhere. Also, as with the old games, you will be asked to recover keys, cards, etc. to continue your game, which is always a challenge. 5/5

Replay Value- 'Doom 3' is basically a Single Player game, and once you finish, really the only thing you can do is replay it. There is Multiplayer, but it only allows up to 4 players and isn't nearly as fun as the Single Player adventures. I wasn't too impressed. 2/5

Sound/Music- 'Doom 3' sports excellent sound, so good, in fact, that I found myself muting the sound for fear I would scream! In extremely dark, quiet rooms, when a demon jumps out of nowhere, making a ton of noise, it can get very scary! The sound is flawless in other words! 5/5

Fun- 'Doom 3', although not much different from other FPS's, still remains incredibly fun, and blasting your way through the demons to escape Mars will have you hooked once you pick the controller up!5/5

Overall, 'Doom 3' is a very good sequel to the first two Doom's, and now that it's got 3D and Pixel-Shaded atmospheres, it brings a whole new aspect to the game! Well deserving of all the hype, but I can't wait for 'Half-Life 2'!

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED TO FANS OF FIRST PERSON SHOOTERS, THE ORIGINAL DOOM GAMES, AND PEOPLE WHO WANT TO BE SCARED! WARNING- DOOM 3 REQUIRES A REALLY GOOD COMPUTER, AND ALSO IT'S VERY SCARY AND QUITE VIOLENT AND DISTURBING! NOT RECOMMENDED FOR PEOPLE UNDER 13!

Also Recommended-

Doom 2- PC
Half-Life- PC
Unreal Tournament 2004- PC

Thanks For Reading!

Id Software revealed Doom 3 in 1999 to both fanfare and criticism. Id Software promised a thrilling single-player game, some rudimentary multiplayer and of course, a brand new engine from Carmack and Co. I've waited impatiently, and while (without counting the presentation) Doom 3 doesn't break new ground, it follows the norm very well.

Id Software has crafted Doom 3 with a rather engaging story, for a first person shooter at least. It is the year 2145 and the people at Earth are running out of natural resources. What can be done? Well, various corporations, including the Union Aerospace Corporation have built facilities on Mars that will allow Earth to gain natural resources from the red planet. When you begin the game, you are armed with absolutely nothing and have the task of finding a scientist and completing other basic tasks. As you progress, and it doesn't take long, you begin to realize that something is clearly not right and then, well, all hell breaks loose. For fans of the classic Doom games, it is important to note that Doom 3 is id Software's retelling of the original Doom not a continuation of the story line.

Although there is an emphasis on story, it never brings down the pace of the game too much. Most of it is told through cutscenes and the rest you'll learn from your trusty PDA, a new addition for the series. The PDA allows you to receive email, audio messages, codes and other useful information. Some of this is meant to help you understand the story (so you can know exactly why all hell broke loose), while other information is meant to help you advance through the game. Even other messages (including the spam messages) are meant to add humor to the otherwise cold game.

Let's be honest, the reason that many of us have been waiting for Doom 3 is because of its rendering engine. John Carmack and the others at id Software have continually raised the bar for graphics with each successive engine. Id Software pushed the PC to the limit with the original Doom, then brought true 3D with Quake and has now created the most technically impressive game I have ever seen. Even up against recent heavyweights like Painkiller and Far Cry, Doom 3's visuals are a notch above. Using pretty much every graphical technique available like normal mapping, self-shadowing, per-pixel lighting and others that my frail brain cannot understand, the Doom 3 engine is sight to behold. Some games that use normal mapping appear too "shiny" or have a "plastic" look, but Doom 3 does not. All of the indoor environments are meticulously designed with working computer monitors and what not. Furthermore, these environments are incredibly interactive and you'll often have enemies creating their own doors from walls and stairs. A fully functional physics engine lets you toss around boxes and soda cans, and the enemies as well. The animation system is simply breath-taking, and is enhanced by the shadowing system in the game. The weapon effects are plentiful, as well. Everything casts realistic shadows and further enhances id Software's view of Mars.

Of course, to get the full splendor, you'll need quite a powerful system to run. On the my best, I was able to play at 1024x768 on high settings and get playable framerates. Just for giggles, I played the game on a 2GHz processor, 512MB RAM PC with a nVidia Geforce FX 5200 and found that was able to play at 640x480 low. Even at this resolution the game looks wonderful. HardOCP has a full and detailed article regarding Doom 3 hardware which is recommended reading. Click here to take a look at it.

While a lot of the presentation relies on the kick-ass graphics, the audio in the game completes the atmosphere. Sure, you can run the game with stereo speakers, but to get the full experience, you'll want to hook up the 5.1 speakers. Id Software has used surround sound to a great degree, and you'll be able to hear enemies coming before you can see, adding to the realism. Otherwise, the sound effects and voices are crisp and solid, as expected.

And then there's the actual game portion of Doom 3. As I said above, Doom 3 doesn't really differ from the standard FPS action of shooting things that move. Most of the time you'll move around the claustrophobic areas in the levels, shooting one of the game's many disturbing enemies. Thankfully, it isn't all run and gun and there are numerous times when I actually jumped back because a monster popped out of nowhere. A friendly looking set of stairs can tear apart, and you'll have a monster ready to feast on you. A lot of what makes Doom 3 different is the atmosphere, which includes plentiful amounts of gore and blood, and the dark, creepy environments. The fear is heightened because you can't use your flashlight and a gun at the same time. This forces you to rethink your strategy since you'll need the flashlight to see otherwise pitch black areas, but you don't want to be caught off guard.

The game's weapons should be familiar to FPS fans but work very well, given Doom 3's gameplay. At the beginning of the game, you'll only have your fists! Thankfully, before any real action starts, you'll have the flashlight, a pistol and a bit later the shotgun. The pistol is a decent weapon but only if you run out of the powerful shotgun shells. Later in the game you'll receive a machine gun, which is rather accurate and fast, a plasma gun, which is basically a sci-fi machine gun and a chaingun, which is much faster but less accurate. You'll also find grenades, the fan-favorite rocket launcher (which looks awesome), and the devastating BFG (Big F'ing Gun) 9000, which will wipe out the enemies in the current screen. There's also a mysterious Soul Cube, which is quite powerful and beneficial. Ammo is rarely scarce in the game, allowing you to have fun looking at the pretty weapon effects.

You'll find the typical Doom enemies in Doom 3, albeit with a 2004 makeover. These monsters include an assortment of demons, zombies, flying skulls, spiders, imps and the lovable pinky. Many of these will shoot at you, forcing you to take them out quickly. The larger enemies in the game take quite a few shells to take down, but they aren't very smart. They'll just keep coming at you while you shoot them. This is a little disappointing and takes a bit away from the horror. Of course, you'll be plenty scared when they break through something or come out of a shadow.

Multiplayer in Doom 3 is limited to four players, although id Software has made it clear that future mods may support more players. A basic interface lets you join or create a game and works well. There are five maps, including Edge 2, a remake of the much-loved Edge map and four game modes. The most interesting mode is Tournament where you battle an opponent directly. Once they die (or you die) another player, who is waiting, gets a turn. The other game modes are Deathmatch, Team Deathmach and Last Man Standing, all of which are exactly what they sound like.

Although multiplayer is simple in the nature, the graphics engine adds to the experience. For instance, Doom 3 features per pixel hit detection, so it is possible to shoot between someone's torso and arm. The lighting and shadowing provide areas to hide and forces you to be smart about using your flashlight.

To be honest, when Doom 3 was announced, I didn't expect anything more than a technology demo to prove how powerful the engine was. While I wasn't entirely incorrect in this statement, Doom 3's gameplay (for which the single-player mode alone is fifteen hours plus) offers enough thrills to warrant the $54.99 purchase. And thanks to id Software's support of the modding community, we'll see some kick-ass mods in the near future.

12 years after wincing my way through the originals, I picked up id Software's latest from my local Fred Meyers last Tuesday. By Saturday morning I watched the end credits scroll past my traumatized eyes. Clearly, id went old-school gameplay with the latest graphics in *Doom 3*.

*D3* plays like *Quake*. It's dark and alien looking. Doors open automatically or you use the fire key to activate buttons. You have no alt-fire, stealth, lean, or use functions.

You do have a story for once. *Half-Life* owes about half its plot to the original *Doom*: both games are about clearing research facilities of teleporting monsters from another dimension, and id did it first. But *D3* plays like a devilish mod of *Half-Life: Blue Shift*. Both titles send a lowly guard to some forgotten corner of a massive research facility. Hell breaks loose as soon as the player reaches their respective destinations. Barney and the "Marine" must work their way to a portal to another world. They fix some critical problem in the other dimension and return to Earth for a final battle in some other forgotten corner.

That's okay. *D3* is a hard core game. It's also a hardcore system hog-with my AMD 64 FX-51 CPU, my 512MB Registered ECC RAM, and my Radeon 9800 Pro 128MB AGP the game lagged in places, particularly around doors, on the "High Detail" setting with 1092 x 768 res. The last few levels just killed my framerate.

Speaking of hardcore killing, *D3* is all about overkill. Beginning with the opening scene this game is just plain dark; and I don't mean subject-wise: apparently nobody has heard of floodlights in 22nd Century Mars. Id likes shadows long and deep. Id also likes blood: just about every room the character wanders into is caked in blood. That and red lights and disembodied voices form the primary chills in this game. And to rub it all in, id makes sure that enemies jump out of every nook and cranny, often teleporting all around the character while evil laughter echoes through the area.

Id's obsession with atmosphere affects gameplay. What good are shadows if the player can snag night vision goggles or a radar? That's right: the staple of many first and third person shooters is absent. Instead, the player wields a heavy flashlight which doubles as a useless club against the thick-skinned opponents. To use a gun, the player must sacrifice light. This can make self-defense rather challenging.

The old-school weapons challenge the player too. Aside from the fancy skins, the weapons might as well date from World War I. Given the anachronistic pistol with its wooden revolver grip and steel semi-automatic slide, I'm surprised the game designers didn't just go for a past/present motif all around. The "machine gun" sounds and behaves more like a 1920's Tommy Gun anyways. The shotgun has a semiautomatic bolt and charging handle, but operates strictly pump action. And *D3's* "chain gun" fires unusually slowly from a ridiculously limited ammo pool. All weapons other than the BFG 9000, the rocket launcher, and the "soulcube" appeared to have the same strength. Even the plasma cannon hit the same as the pistol, shotgun and machine gun.

But id's interesting design choices don't stop there. I can see why so many reviewers gripe. The gameplay consists mainly of the following formula:

1. Walk into a dark, confined room filled with flickering computer lights. Then:
a. A monster lurches out of the darkness.
b. A monster teleports into the darkness.
c. A ghost whispers something creepy.
d. A panel blows out of the floor or wall.

2. Next, walk into a dark, confined hallway filled with flickering overhead lights. Then:
a. A monster lurches out of the darkness.
b. A monster teleports into the darkness.
c. A ghost whispers something creepy.
d. A panel blows out of the floor or wall.

3. Then, walk into a dark, confined elevator filled with flickering touch-panel lights. Ride the elevator into one of the previous two locations.

Id varies this pattern with cute little horror movie scripts. Walk up to a bathroom mirror and suddenly a grainy red filter descends as laughter echoes and your reflection ages into one of the hapless zombies you kill. Walk into a control room and loose objects agitate violently, suddenly shooting across the room inches from your face. There are blood-soaked elevators with elevating body parts, skeletons that shift a few feet, bodies dangling from ceiling cables-just all kinds of nasty stuff.

Monsters included. *Doom* featured a bestiary right out of medieval Christianity. *D3* draws zoological inspiration from contemporary sci-fi horror like *Alien* and John Carpenter's *The Thing*. Id kept many of the *Doom* names, but the faces are far different, and new critters join the polygonal parade.

Little of this resembles the original and its pixilated 2D twitching-torso-on-a-stake decoration. *D3* brings a Satanic Invasion to the 3D realm (cough, cough) with an engine that sure renders light effects. Yet I can't tell much between it and *Far Cry's* Crytek engine. Id has certainly spent years crafting a grim-looking funhouse out of any Dark Castle picture. But Crytek could probably duplicate *D3* texture for bump-mapping for spectral if it wanted to. The only tech difference I detected were *D3's* totally cool computer screens clear enough to actually read, watch, and manipulate in-game.

Manipulation defines this black masterpiece. There is no multiple path option, no stealth mission, no player traps to spring. There is only the bloodstained hallway, the hum of a dying fluorescent light, and the total absence of anything safe and familiar. It is you and your shotgun versus Legion. It is awesome when it isn't repetitive.

I hate it and love it. *Half-Life* continues to be the PC bar to beat as far as balance and overall gaming excellence. *Far Cry* provides competitive graphic engines and effects. But when it comes to hotrod violence and horror, *Doom 3* is "it" in my limited library.

I've been anticipating this game for quite a while now, hoping that it would be all that I heard it was going to be. Am I satisifed. Bet your #!@.

GRAPHICS: The graphics are second to none. Absolutely the best I've ever seen. (And my PC will only run it on medium detail). They are eerie, atmospheric and overall, smooth and interesting. The humans look excellent and the monsters look outrageous. Being that the game so dark, however, you really aren't able to see that much of the level design. (Though what you do see is very cool). The cutscenes are very well done and a pleasure to watch.

STORY: The story is very cool and interesting. When I play - I'm interested in watching the cutscenes and interested in what's going on. The story is pretty easy to follow and the dialogue acting is pretty well done.

GAMEPLAY: Here is my only complaint with the game. The game can be kind of repetitive. It sticks to a pretty basic FPS outline. Go in room, clear room, get items in room, move on to next room. There are some variants to that formula, but not a lot. Otherwise, it plays just like a classic FPS. The game is definetely a blast to play. The atmosphere to this game is the best I've ever seen. This game is creepy, really creepy. Sometimes, when you go into a room, the lights will just go out and an evil laugh and then... you get the idea.

SOUND: There are some really creepy sounds in the game, some really scary random noises. There isn't really much music in the game, but what sound there is sounds really good. Especially with the 5.1 that the game comes with. The noises the monsters make are pretty scary too.

OVERALL: This game is awesome. The complaints I have are rather minor when you compare it to how much fun this game is to play. Graphically it is the best I've seen to date. (8/9/04). And it is also the scariest game ever. I've jumped playing it on several occassions. The atmosphere is so good that it just puts you right there. You feel truly immersed. (At least I do!)

Taking into consideration my complaints about the repetitiveness - Also, the weapons could have been a little better designed and sounding. They don't sound that incredible and they could have added a few better ones. But another positive note I want to add is that the interface in this game is one of the best I've ever seen. Very user friendly and very well arranged. So hats off for that.

Taking everything into consideration, my final grade is: A-

PC Note* - Have a damn good one. lol.

Introduction:

Doom 3 is undoubtedly one of the most anticipated PC games of all time, and it's no surprise that it is. Afterall, the original Doom started a whole new revolution in computer gaming that set a precedent for all future 3D first-person shooters to follow, even to the current day. There is no question the influence the Doom franchise has had on the industry and the reputation it has built up among the gaming community. However, influence is only skin-deep and reputation does not make a good game (although it might put a game into a better light). Id's latest installment is a perfect example of this. Although Doom 3 is built on groundbreaking new graphics technologies it still fails in the area that Id has historically been weak at: gameplay. In short, Doom 3 is just an average shooter with a big title.

Background:

I've been involved in the 3D first-person shooter genre since 1992 when Id introduced the granddaddy of first-person shooters, Wolfenstein 3D. I've also been there when Doom was released and took the world by storm. Since then I've followed every major 3D game and seen the gradual progression of the genre. Now, Id has been at the center of this and have historically produced the best graphics engines which have been the basis for countless games. However, their games always seemed to follow a specific formula with little or no innovation in between. In short, each new game they produced was simply a carbon copy of their previous game, only with a better graphics engine. Although their graphics technology is renouned their gameplay is not and sadly Doom 3 follows in the exact same pattern.

The good:

First, the good stuff. Doom 3 utilizes a brand spankin' new graphics engine with a heavy emphasis on bump-mapping, stencil shadowing, and per-pixel lighting. The result is a game with very impressive visuals, the likes of which has never been seen before. The monsters in particular are very well done and the amount of detail is simply astounding. The game has reached an almost cinematic quality, yet is still playable on modern hardware. The game is a feast for the eyes and the technology is well worth praising. It's a shame the game is so dark and often times it's only with the flashlight that you can see some of the finer details. The audio is also great and there's nothing like the screech of an imp to send a shiver up your spine. Ambient voices and random noises help to create a feeling of horror and suspense and keep you in the moment. Doom 3 is a treat for your senses and is groundbreaking in its technology. However, all praises stop here when we start looking at the gameplay aspects which, in my opinion, is the more important part.

The bad:

Doom 3's gameplay consists of simple run and shoot action. While this is adequate for the most part it doesn't add anything new to the table. What makes it worse is that Id has failed to incorporate many of the standard gameplay elements present in other games of its' kind (leaning, alternate fire, alternate ammo, etc.). In short, it follows in the exact same pattern of Id's previous games like Doom and Quake with no change what-so-ever. This kind of gameplay may have been acceptable 4 or 5 years ago but now it's horribly outdated. Even the weapons are the same with little or no innovation and some have even been downgraded. I think I can safely say that this game has the most underpowered and inaccurate shotgun ever devised in a videogame. Even the alternate spray fire of the Riot shotgun in Shadow Warrior was more accurate. Weapons like the plasma gun and machinegun are also pretty standard and don't do anything special. After playing games like Unreal 2 which had a large array of exotic weapons with multiple functions and ammo types and which had unique effects on enemies the weapons in Doom 3 are awfully stale. The weapons have one fire mode and none of them have any special effect on enemies and are just used for simple shoot-and-kill action. In short, the weapons are old and sub-par and make the game rather boring.

The level designs are also out-of-date and in-line with their previous games. They aren't laid out in any logical design but are simply a maze of corridors, rooms, and doors to connect them. The environment is also stale and static. Aside from the few barrels you can blow up there's very little interaction with the environment. You can't knock over things or blow up objects like you'd expect and even fragile objects like soda pop machines and computers are apparently indestructable. The levels are also very dark, which may have been intentional but they were entirely too dark. The darkness was supposed to give a sense of suspense and terror but it was more annoying than anything else. You have to constantly switch to the flashlight to find your way around. Honestly, a brighter game with a few dark areas would have been much better. The levels are also horribly scripted and half of all enemy encounters is in the form of an ambush. I know Id was looking to create an element of surprise with this but, like the darkness factor, they overused it. After a while it becomes expected and the element of surprise disappears and is replaced with irritation. A few big surprises here and there mixed with some quiet moments would have had a much better effect.

The AI is also another area where the game suffers. The enemies in this game are utterly stupid. They don't seem to think at all simply walk towards you shooting. Sometimes they may leap or jump at you but they are simple reaction events, not the result of a clever AI. In short, they've simple reused the basic, outdated AI from their previous games. The physics engine could also use some tweaking and I've had experience with some scenarios where objects seemed to literally defy gravity.

Conclusion:

Overall, Doom 3 is nothing but eye candy. It's an old game wrapped in a new, shiny coating delivered as a horror/suspense game. If you're looking for a fast-paced game with modern gameplay this game is not for you. If you're looking to be scared out of your wits this game is also not for you as it's not that scary to begin with and any surprise or suspense quickly wears off. This game is also not good for multiplayer (VERY limited multiplayer support) and neither does it provide any decent single-player challenge. Honestly, the only people who should be buying this game are those who revel in eye candy and have the hardware to take advantage of it. Doom 3 has rather steep system requirements, although it will run on older hardware as well. I know many will be drawn to this game for its' name but that's no reason to get it. A skunk by any other name would smell just as bad and this game just stinks out loud. If not for the incredible graphics technology and the relatively good ambience and sounds this game wouldn't be worth a dime.

Let me get this straight. Doom 3 WAS NOT, I repeat, WAS NOT supposed to have revolutionary gameplay. id Software said so in an interview. So I would like to let the people know, that if you are expecting something different other than run 'n gun, then look elsewhere, because you will not find it here, and you will most likely be dissapointed.

If, however, you are expecting just that, then read on. Doom 3 might be the best FPS released this year, along with Far Cry.

-Graphics-

Well you probably already know about this. What can I say, it is absolutely AMAZING. Lighting effects are some of the best I've seen, and enemies are meticulously detailed. I cannot say I have seen better graphics anywhere else. I have a Radeon 9800 Pro, so it helps a lot.

Yes, the game is dark, but it only adds to the atmosphere. I cannot see why people complain that its so dark. The game was supposed to be dark, and if you don't like it, then don't play it and stop complaining! That's like saying Far Cry is too bright it's annoying. I simply enjoy the overall darkness. That's what the flashlight is for anyway.

Oh, and THIS is the area where the game was supposed to be groundbreaking. And it truly did it's job.

-Sound-

Excellent sound effects overall. HOWEVER, I highly suggest you download the Trent Reznor Sound Pack. It enhances many weapon and monster effects in the game, making them much much better. There is no music other than the main theme (which is awesome). Music would have only taken away the spookiness. Monsters hiss at you before attacking. You can actually hear spiders walk along walls and ceilings. Sometimes you even hear whispers from those who have fallen before you. It really contributes to create a truly terrifying experience.

-Gameplay-

Ahh, the most important part. I won't lie, Doom 3 is really just kill enemy, find PDA, open door, kill more enemies, etc. But the cool thing is how amazingly well it is all executed. I was never bored, and I have played many FPS's in my life. It's all about how much you expect from this game.

For maximum effect, just like the manual says, play the game at night, doors locked, with 5.1 speakers. When you play in the day its not that scary and kind of feels a bit different, but when you play at night alone you really get nervous about what to expect from every corner.

--

All in all I'd have to say Doom 3 is fantastic in just about every way. I cannot be more pleased with id Software for the great work they have done. If you are a Doom fan, an FPS fan, whatever, do yourself a favor and pick up Doom 3. Just don't expect the groundbreaking gameplay so many people here thought the game was supposed to have, and you will be immeresed in the dark world of Doom 3.

There is a lot of false information floating around on the internet about what kind of super computer you'll need to run Doom 3. Here is what we know:

John Carmack, who is programming the graphics of the game, has stated that you'll be able to run Doom 3 with all graphicsdetails at a reasonable framerate (probably around 30 fps) with a Geforce 3. Anything below that (Geforce 2, Radeon DDR) and you will have to turn down a lot of the details to get it to run well.

Doom 3 is designed for a Geforce 1 level class of card, so any DirectX 7 card with hardware T&L will be able to display all the effects.

Doom 3 was shown at Quakecon running on a P4 2.2 GHZ with a Radeon 9700. It has been shown twice on the Radeon 9700, and was shown at a higher resolution and framerate the second time. This means the code is improving, and a Radeon 9700/Geforce 4 card should be able to run the game smoothly with all the details turned up.

If you're wondering if you should upgrade now, you could hold off until early 2003 when newer cards are being released. A Geforce 4 or Radeon 9700 should run the game great, but there will better cards available by the time of release.

This is a gorgeous game in terms of video presentation, but...
A lot of the visual quality is lost due to the darkness of the game. Still, this is another step forward in gaming. As a result, it taxes game PCs almost to death unless you are willing to turn the eye candy down.
That it is a replay of the original Doom storyline is both good and bad - with all the effort that went into making such a pretty game it's a shame the story could not have been expanded. On the other hand, the original twisted Doom story, though now a cliche from overuse, was a good one and it is nice to see it looking like Hell.
Sound is generally good, though there are times when strange anamolies creep in.
I get the impression the developers saved their money for the visuals at the expense of AI and design. The monster's show little subtly (always turn when you see a bad guy because the default appears to be to spawn another right behind you with no warning - another little bit of a cliche after a while) and tend to come pretty much right at you. The design is very linear and does not lend itself to much in the way of tactical movements, which simplifies AI programming, of course, but makes for a relatively fast game. And sometimes the tasks seem padded to draw out the game - go find this card, go back to that console, etc.
But is it worth this much cash for around 20+ hours of playing? Well, if your standard is Falcon 4.0 or Morrowind you won't be happy with having it go past so fast. But, then, FPSs are steadily becoming the potato chip of the game industry - they tend to be brief and hope that multiplay provides the attraction. I don't think that will work with D3 - it's multiplay needs some help and there is a ton of competition from other online multiplayer FPSs. Otoh, if you want to see a game that is able to really tax that brand new video card you mortgaged your mother's wedding ring for and you don't care much about tactics (or would just like a game where you basically just kill anything that moves and don't have a lot of thinking to do, and not everything has to involve deep thought to be fun), then you'll like D3. If you want newer shooter a little less linear, you might try Far Cry. If you don't have the rig for D3, but like a game that can scare you, you might try The Suffering.

To make my review hopefully useful to you, I'll keep it short and to the point. Like many others I have followed the Wolfenstein and Doom progression over the years and I too got caught up in the hype surrounding this game. For me, any PFS is about 3 things; graphics, sound and gameplay. Yes, the graphics are very detailed and life like, but the levels all look very similar and after a while I wished they'd added some variety. The sounds are standard fare, low droning noise, industrial clanks and clonks, distant screaming, whispered voices, etc. etc. Yawn. Yes, it does create an atmosphere of suspense and drama, but like the graphics, after a while I yearned for some variation. The gameplay is the weakest aspect. It's linear which means there's only one way to get somewhere or achieve something. Pity. Also, nearly everything you come up against is triggered by you. Pick up some ammo, enter creature stage left. Locate the required PDA, enter monster stage right. Yawn. What about some realtime events? What about some random events? What about turning the lights on? It's way too dark and after a while that gets irritating. Doom 3 is good, but does not live up to the hype. For me, the most engaging FPS so far is Half-Life and the best FPS shooter overall is Deus EX. Just my opinion. If you desperately need Doom 3 to check it out for yourself, wait a few months for the price to drop. Let's hope HL2 does live up to its hype!