Doom

""If you are a gamer that plays games for graphics, you, sir, are no gamer.""

Doom. Doom, Doom, Doom...

The Super Nintendo port of Doom. What can one say about it? Is it bad? Not really... in a way. Is it good? Not really... in a way. Is it average?

That, my friends, is the question I hold in front of me today. Is it worth your time and trouble to obtain a copy of Doom for the Super Nintendo? It depends. Sure, it looks crappier than the PC version. (Heck) (heh, I said {heck}), it looks worse then the 32X version. But... does that doom it (no pun intended. Honest!)?

No.

Everyone one of you will say, ''What?! You have got to be kidding me! I wouldn't play that even if it was made of gold! It's total crap!'' Listen carefully, everyone. I have played many games, and I have to say that to port a game that was optimized for a 486 and working it so that it could play on a system that is barely running a 286... is quite a feat. Many will say that it is not worth it. Many will say that it doesn't look good. But... if you look at it from my point of view... you realize that it must have been total terror trying to port it... but they succeeded. They succeeded valiantly and now you all condemn it because of graphic issues? It's a sad day when we all just think about... graphics for the systems. I learned something about games while I play them - graphics mean nothing as much as if they are fun. And is it fun? It's Doom! It's always fun blowing away the demon forces, right? Am I right?! Take out that Shotgun and remove the demons. Take out that Chaingun and mow them all down. Take that Rocket Launcher and take out that evil demon. Take out that Plasma Rifle and fry the demons. And, to top it all off... take that BFG 9000 and take out your worst adversaries with one big blast.

My friends... we must realize that unless the game can deliver the fun... the game is not a game at all. It's a chore. Remember this when you are playing your high-tech PC games or your Gamecube games or your PS2 games or your X Box games... if you find a game that is based purely on graphics and nothing else, that, sir... is no game. If you are a gamer that plays games for graphics, you, sir, are no gamer. Not all games are meant to be pretty. Let that be remembered to you all. Games are meant to be fun, not graphic. If anything, we should appreciate this port.

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Category Summary

The Scoring categories are...

Story - The mission or reason the game exists. Does the story give me the feel for the game? Or does it just seem to be ''there'' for no reason? If there is no story, the review will ignore this category.

Graphics - The presentation of the game. Does it work for the style of the game? Or does it seem ''out of place''?

Music - The songs of the game. Does it warrant a listen to? Or would I rather listen to something else?

Sounds - The sounds of the game. Does it bring out the game? Or does it just annoy me?

Gameplay - The handle of the game. Does it feel that you are in control? Or does it feel that ''leaps of faith'' would define the controls?

Fun Factor - The game's enjoyment. Would you enjoy the game? Or would it just bore you quickly?

Replayability - The possibility of bringing you back to the game. Are you going to play a game a month later to remember how good it was? Or just to see why you hated it so much?

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Story

''You are Doom (officially named in Quake III Arena), the last of the Space Marines sent to the base. You must exterminate the evil.''

Yep... Good ol' Doom.

Score: 7/10

Graphics

Pixelation aside, the graphics are quite excellent. I'm surprised they ported this as well as they did. You have to give Williams and ID a big hand for that. To port such a high-profile game to such a low-class system... is pretty impressive. That's what's important to me. They took the time and effort to make a game such as this and made it into a game of grand proportions... it should make you feel privieged to play this game.

Score 9/10

Music

One thing that no one can deny is that the music absolutely rocks on this system. All the channels were set to custom music so that they sound even more impressive. Another round of applause for making such a great work on this port.

Score - 9/10

Sounds

Shotguns are a-blazing, rifles are firing round after round and the demons keep growling and you finally take them out with a large rocket. They gurgle on the ground as a final defeat. Wow, I could be dramatic. Sounds are good... at least they fit on the cartridge.

Score - 8/10

Gameplay

To make the Doom engine work on a Super Nintendo... that's... just impressive. The fact that they took the time and energy to make it work as well as it did on a system built for 2D games... amazing. Absolutely amazing. Why do people condemn it so? Because it looks horrendous, it looks ugly... not the Doom they knew. People, this game is just as much Doom as the next one, but this one took the extra time and energy to make it work on a 286. That's right! They didn't have any kind of enhancements, but they did it anyway. To all you who don't like it because it's not ''pretty'' lemme tell ya something - Doom was not meant to be ''pretty'' in the first place.

Score - 8/10

Fun Factor

Folks, just because it's not like a PC does not at all mean that this game is no fun. It's Doom. It has the Doom lineage and it will continue it on as the series develop. This game will always be the ''port that was forgotten'', but it does not have to be! Only the people who snubbed it because it was not ''the PC version'' should not worry about it. But I... personally own a copy. It's been used just as well. Why? Because Doom will always be Doom, no matter where it goes!

Score - 9/10

Replayability

If I could remember correctly, this is Doom. Play it as you please. The game is good and fun and is especially good for those days when you really want to get someone for what they had done. Just go into the virtual world and take out a few demons with a shotgun. That will make you feel better and make your day brighter.

Score - 8/10

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Score Summary

Story - 7
Graphics - 9
Music - 9
Sounds - 8
Gameplay - 8
Fun Factor - 9
Replayability - 8

Total - 58/70

Overall Score - 8/10

Recommendation - I would recommend it to anyone who can stand the fact that it is not like the Doom for the PC... but feel that they can still have a (darn) good time with it. I recommend it to anyone who can see it as what it really is - a port that proves that not everything is pretty, but everything is possible.

* Remember this review is my opinion only. You should make the final call on the game. *

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 06/14/03, Updated 06/14/03