Doom 3

"This game was made to scare the crap out of you... and that it does."

Introduction
Doom... such a long history this game has. Starting back on the PC and branching off into so many remakes. Then one day ID Software decided they wanted to remake this game into a true three dimensional monster with an absolute sense of realism. When it was released a few years ago, the hype was well worth it for those who understood its intentions. And that was to scare you ****less. Of course, appreciating this game might be a bit harder for those that don't fright easily. But I guarantee if you play this game in the wee hours of the night, with all the lights off and the volume up just a bit higher than you usually do, the sense of realism will envelope you and you'll forget where you are. Welcome to hell.

Gameplay - 7/10
First things first, this game was not made to be a contender to Halo, Half-life or any other FPS out there. It was made to scare you. This game is fun, and the reason some very small annoyances exist in this game is to serve a greater purpose and that is to scare you. For example, the flashlight. You can not use it with another weapon. It really is stupid, but this one big disadvantage alone raises the fright level up very high. You have to be quick with the fingers and swallow your guts in order to advance in some parts of the game.

There really isn't much to the game either. You make your way through the Mars Facility and find out what happened, why it happened and how to save yourself and anyone else you find (which pretty much doesn't happen). You kill monsters, talk to survivors, find weapons, ammo and health, kill more monsters and that is pretty much it. Pretty lame for a FPS, I know, but hey, I've explained the purpose of this game plenty of times. Heck, I even put it in the title of this review. If you are not satisfied with this, then don't play it.

The weapons are pretty standard for the Doom series. But you haven't seen nothing like these weapons with the power of the consoles in this day and age. They are impressive indeed and so are the sound effects. However... I must complain that the grenades and rocket launcher are really as crap. I mean, I've never seen a weaker explosion in my life. The rockets look like soda cans shaken up and opened. They could've done a lot better.

Control - 9/10
The controls are fairly easy to get used too. Unlike some games like Halo, switching weapons, meleeing and jumping around can get tedious if you don't change your setup to something you prefer. Jumping is really crappy in this game. You will probably end up getting very frustrated at some points because your marine can jump about as high as a turtle on steroids. You'll be welcoming death quite a few times. About the only good thing about the controls is the D-pad, which you can use as a quick swap between four weapons. This comes in handy for those heart pounding life or death situations.

Storyline - 7/10
I never cared much for the story in this game. Though I must say they certainly built upon it compared to the original Doom, which literally had nothing but action. You at least see another living soul that isn't evil and speaks english. For that, you can be happy for. But hey, I didn't play this game for the story, are you going too?

Graphics - 10/10
Flawless. The shading is most noticeably impressive. This is where the flashlight comes into play. The environment of this game revolves around darkness. Which is the highlight of this game's purpose. Watching a movie is one thing, playing and actually feeling like you're in a game is another. I won't be one to lie when I say there were plenty of times I stopped playing because I was too unnerved to continue. I mean sure, I know it's just a game and nothing is going to happen, but when you stop playing because you're uneasy or scared, you know the developers just accomplished their goal. I would NEVER want to be in this marine's shoes, ever. Some of the enemies are down right disturbing.

Sound - 10/10
I don't know if I've ever given a game a 10 in this category for any game. Why a 10? Let me tell you why. Walking around in a near pitch black environment in an immensely real environment does not accomplish anything without background noise. Would you really be scared while playing a video game if something jumped out on you and the volume was on mute? Probably not. When you add steam hissing from a broken pipe, the soles of your shoes echoing off the metal catwalk, the occasional accelerated heartbeat of your marine and the clicking and moaning sounds some of the enemies make... you have one more reason to save and quit. When you reach a certain point in the game, it is so incredibly disturbing(the sounds) that I actually stopped playing this game for a lengthy period of time. I later forced myself to continue, knowing from older references that it was only a short period of time you were in this "place".

Overall - 8/10
I probably would've given this game a 7 if it wasn't for the fact it succeeded in scaring me countless times. If I had to recommend you buy or rent this game, I'd probably recommend you rent it. After beating this a few times and watching your friends play a couple, it'll probably get old. I never got the chance to play this on Xbox Live, but I hear there is extra content available to download. Give this game a shot and exercise your heart some.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/02/07, Updated 09/03/08

Game Release: Doom 3 (US, 04/03/05)