DOOM 3 (PC) Review

John Carmack is a god amongst video game programmers, which became evident once more by how good his brand new id Tech 4 was. The perfect sample of what this could do is none other than id Software's third episode of its flagship franchise, where a great graphic engine met some great artists. Things look a bit different, though, don’t they? Well, yeah, but it’s important to remember that the series has always been somewhat influenced by the movie Alien. In fact, 1993’s DOOM was basically the result of the developer’s failure to acquire the rights for a licenced Alien title. With DOOM 3 the influence is even more pronounced, with the abstract, “game-y” level design of previous title gone altogether.

The station of Mars looks extremely realistic, with a fantastic attention to detail, even after so many years from its release. It feels as if every screen, cable and screw has its purpose, with pretty much all locations looking like how most would imagine a real space colony where actual humans live and work to look - one build by a ruthless conglomerate that is. Part of the joy here is reading the many scattered PDAs, where you basically learn about the world through emails and notes left behind by the now dead personnel of UAC, aka the Wayland-Yutani Corp. of this universe. It’s this purposely “mundane” aura that makes the hellish corruption that players will soon witness stand out a lot more than in almost any other entry in the series.

The most important ingredient here is undoubtedly the dynamic lighting. Lights flicker, strobe, glow, but also cast realistic shadows that beautify each and every “boring” scene you’ll come upon. The pitch-black darkness also makes everything much spookier. Players will feel that something is hiding in the shadows of these claustrophobic corridors, and many times it is. The shift in style, with its heavier focus in sci-fi, extends to the monsters themselves, who now look less like demons and more like aliens, whether that's the agile, ape-like imp and his multi-eyed, insectoid face, or the non-horned, gargantuan Barons of Hell. They still look menacing, yet it’s easy to understand why they sort of alienated the hardcore fan-base of the series. Having said that, they all have great design, which is heavily complemented by the dynamic lighting.

From the minimalistic, introductory chapter, which has the nameless hero wander around the space station without anything to point a gun at, to the absence of music bar some dark ambient tunes, it is crystal clear that this has nothing to do with the classic duology of old, apart from the title, and the concept of portals that lead straight to the fire and brimstone of an infernal dimension. This is generally less like a fast-paced shooter and more like a horror FPS. So, no fast-paced gunfights and large groups of enemies to blow up to pieces? How could this work?! Well, let's just say, for the sake of argument, that there was no DOOM before it, and that this is the very first in the series, and should therefore be judged solely on its own merits. So, is it good?

The first couple of hours are fantastic. Finally experiencing the first moments of the demon invasion and guiding the marine towards his next goal while his radio is filled with screams and demonic static is exceptionally well done, and deeply immersive. The pacing is just right for the sci-fi/horror adventure that this is, and the atmosphere is so good that it's not hard to imagine a Xenomorph jumping from a dark corner. Unfortunately, the excitement diminishes with every passing minute, with the main problem being that this just isn't as scary as it could, mainly because it relies too much on uninspiring, lukewarm jump scares, and rarely in something more imaginative. How many times can an Imp that comes crashing through a metal panel scare people? Once? Twice? Furthermore, these "scary" sequences happen so often that they soon get predictable.

Note that when it comes to true horror, it’s not really about terrifying monsters lurking in the dark or tons of gore and bloodshed. No, the most crucial factor when it comes to horror, is the feeling of hopelessness, which is - partly - absent here. Yes, the space marine is now much slower than before, and his enemies don’t go down as easily, and yet he remains armed to the teeth, the ammo is in very high abundance, and, since the demons are confronted in much smaller groups, they don’t pose the level of challenge expected from a game that aims to terrify. To put it in another way, DOOM 3 tries to be a horror title, but ends up being simple shooter that happens to have a horror feel. That isn’t to say that it isn’t fun, however…

2025 EDIT: After doing his… millionth playthrough of the whole series, yours truly decided that he was a bit hard on DOOM 3, thus the following will explain why the score was raised a bit from the initial from 6/10 (Good). So, yes, this was a disappointment to many a fan, as in its attempt to be something different, it lost a lot of what people expected from a DOOM game, and, as this short review has shown up until now, it’s not even that effective in what it tries to be - but it is still very good. Yes, it’s an extremely linear, "Haunted House" roller coaster ride where one gets the same three flavours of scary again and again, and yes, the mood-enhancing darkness ends up being an annoyance - but it still very good.

It took a lot of time, but yours truly finally learn to love this by realising that every single irritating thing here is by design, and it is what makes this entertaining. The marine is slow, and his weapons frequently need reloading? Well, that forces the one controlling the action to be in the moment every moment, trying to not waste a single second or small movement, and think in a tactical fashion, especially in the much more entertaining, higher difficulty modes which enhance the survival horror vibe quite a bit… even though you still carry way too much ammo. Moreover, for the first time in a DOOM instalment, you are not meant to simply shoot at things. Okay, sure, DOOM 3 is not that good as a shooter as it could be, and it can get quite repetitive, but at the same time it can be quite the engrossing experience.