Doom 3
review by The Shape

It has been the better part of a decade since I last played DOOM. My memory of the last DOOM game consists of walking around a maze and blasting any monsters that got in my way. A lot of fun at first but it gets very repetitive after a while and other/better single person shooter games came out and replaced it . DOOM was not much to speak of graphically; I always thought of it as a copy of CASTLE WOLFENSTEIN with different colored maze walls and monsters instead of Nazi soldiers. Now Activision brings us the long awaited DOOM 3.

Let me start by saying that I am glad that I had all these pre-conceived notions about DOOM that kept my expectations fairly low for DOOM 3. This game can be summed up in one word - AMAZING!! I was totally immersed in the game as soon as I popped the disk into the X-Box console and the story started unfolding. DOOM 3’s gaming experience is best described as TOTAL RECALL mixed with EVENT HORIZON wrapped with the unrelenting dread of DAWN OF THE DEAD.

You are a space marine called to the Mars Research Facility of the Union Aerospace Corporation. Strange things are happening and you are sent on a mission to find a scientist who has gone missing and return him alive. Hence all your troubles and fun begin! When you find the scientist the lights go out and it sounds as if Satan himself starts laughing (very creepy stuff) – when the lights come back on (partially on) you see the scientist has become a zombie and wants to tear you to pieces. That kicks off the action as from now on the game is all about killing and surviving with an array of nice weapons to choose from – including my favorite the gatling gun. You also come across a chainsaw (kind of useless but fun), machine gun, plasma gun and rocket launcher to name a few.

DOOM 3 has tons of atmosphere and mood in the game – much of this created by dimly lit hallways or rooms with no lights at all. In these claustrophobic places you must use your trusty little flashlight to find your way around – always be ready for a zombie to become illuminated in the beam of your flashlight – as they lurk around every corner. DOOM 3 has its share of scares and admittedly I jumped like a schoolgirl on more than one occasion. Sound also plays a huge part in DOOM 3. The monsters claws make a distinct tapping in the floor when they are near and the zombie’s feet dragging are a sure sign they are close! Listen for them, as you will hear the monsters before you see them! But my favorite is when the lights go out throughout the game and you hear a demonic chuckle laughing at you from hell for thinking your marine can get out of this insane situation he is in. Pretty spooky stuff!
Another cool feature is when you are hit by a zombie or one of DOOM’s hell spawn the camera shakes violently and blood fills the screen. It takes you a second to get your bearings back and realize where to aim to blow the monster away as your gun is no longer pointing where you thought it was. And you better do it quick, as the monsters are relentless and intelligent. You can run from them but you can’t hide! They will follow you from room to room (opening the doors as they go) and hunt you down till one of you is dead. Besides the fact that they also hide in closets and storage bins and jump out at you when you are right next to them. Always makes for a good scare!

I have ranted about all of the things DOOM 3 does right – now here’s what it could have improved on. Why can’t a marine hold a flashlight and shoot a gun at the same time – he does have 2 hands – and I am sure he can walk and chew gum? Using the flashlight (which you will do a lot of) is cumbersome as when you see a monster you need to hit a button to go back to the gun to kill the badie. After a while it gets pretty annoying as you will wind up hitting the wrong button a lot in the heat of the moment trying to get your gun out.
Another problem is the use of the PDA’s during the game. In your journeys you will find dead scientists, workers, marines……(all blood soaked on the floor – some with their eyes missing, some with their faces torn off and some with their heads cut off ) and take from them their PDA’s. These contain e-mails that you must sort through to find codes to lockers in the facility. These lockers contain medical kits and ammo – do not pass them by!

All in all – DOOM 3 far exceeded my expectations! It has become a fantastic horror/survival game that is best played with the lights off and the sound up!