Overall 8.2 Graphics 8.1 Sound 5.1 Addictive 6.8 Story 6.8 Depth 5.4 Difficulty 6.1
6.5
Doom Redrunelord
What is the fine line that divides classic from something that has aged poorly? This is something that collectors must be meticulous in evaluating, for it can make the difference between something being worthless, and something that is the quintessential lottery. These people are under a lot of scrutiny, and must make a decision based on the most accurate information available rather than letting their opinions sway them into making an incorrect decision.
Video game consoles and their associated components also fall into this dangerous line of either being old, classic, or simply terrible. For example, the Atari2600 is often considered a classic, but some consoles are not remembered so fondly (a perfect example being most of Atari's subsequent work). A perfect example of a console that is remembered with almost universally disdain is the 32X. The 32X was the second, and final, add-on for the Sega Genesis, and had a relatively small library of games (around 40 North American releases) of varying degrees of quality. However, one of the most noteworthy games is the 32X's port of Doom.
Doom is an unusual first-person shooter in that it took numerous console ports to get the game right, but in the modern era a perfect port with multiplayer could theoretically be on a mobile phone, if it isn't already. The original PC version was, in many ways, and one of the most technically sound of the early versions. The one well known port, the SNES port, has an excellent soundtrack but the most unresponsive controls and game play along with poor visuals. The Atari Jaguar port had the most responsive controls and best visuals, but lacked any music whatsoever due to a CEO's reluctance to pay money for licensing. The single best port of these early attempts could have been achieved by using the Atari Jaguar's fluid game play and visuals with the 3DO's soundtrack. Yet, how does the 32X port fare?
Doom, for a quick summary, is a game that is designed in the same way as Wolfenstein 3D, but the player would shoot and annihilate hordes of demonic creatures sent straight from hell...technically speaking, that would make the games the same technically speaking, and in many ways they are. You basically move around a level aiming right to left shooting everything in your wake, while trying to find the exit, in the purest and simplest sense. Doom is a lot darker than its inspiration, and treasure is non-existent, since to demons it is useless but to tease its victims.
The game play is exactly like the other ports, but much more fluid than most. The controls are fairly simple to pick up and use, and work well through the emulator. The camera (which creates the first person view) moves at a fairly rapid rate which can be both a benefit and a hindrance simultaneously. While this increases the speed of the game, and allows for faster paced action, it may cause the player to accidentally fall down a height that they did not intend, miss a staircase without proper aiming, or land on the acidic pools due to moving too fast to control. How much this hinders game play will depend entirely on the player. Ammunition should prove to be abundant enough so someone can film their audition tape for the A-Team, yet still have enough of a challenge due to conversation which is a very fine line. On the whole, however, if someone has played Wolfenstein 3D, they should be familiar with the game play mechanics. The difficulty settings are amusing, but fairly accurate in what they're trying to say for the difficulty will mount up.
Visually, the game is competent for a 32 bit port. It gets the job done and doubtlessly looks a lot better than its SNES counterpart. The animations are smoother, and various objects are much more distinguishable. It isn't perfect compared to the 64 bit counterparts, but for the bits it gets the job done. The dark atmosphere is perfect for a demon annihilation game, and...it does the PC version fair justice for a console port, despite showing its age.
The audio for this port is what makes it memorable as an atrocious port for many gamers, and many analogies on it's quality is to a certain bodily function's sound. The music is typically the only real point covered in a standard conversation of this port. The music is best compared to, however, a midi file gone berserk at time. While the music is doubtlessly sub par to many of the other ports, it should be noted some of the early PC versions, which have been remarked upon as having a good audio through modern sound-cards, it would have had the exact same audio because of how certain sound cards would have responded. As well, the actual sound effects are fairly solid, such as the death cries and weaponry. Finally, the music can be turned off in-game separate from the sound effects, which does not force the player to listen to something they may or may not enjoy (for many, likely the latter). Thus, turn up some heavy metal, or have another port of Doom's soundtrack (like the SNES or 3DO's) set on loop, and kick some demonic (explicit).
Doom has been covered numerous times by countless reviewers, so there is little that hasn't been said that could already be said. The 32X version is a fairly solid port for the period, and if someone is willing to overlook the sub-par audio is definitely worth a look at. This game may go down in history as an abomination, but is really a misunderstood child that has been neglected for a single defect. No one is perfect, and this game isn't, but it deserves a place in history as an early adequate Doom port, and definitely has its placed on Vizzed.
Graphics 9 Sound 4 Addictive 10 Depth 3 Difficulty 6
Review Rating: 4.3/5
Submitted: 07-13-11
Updated: 07-13-11
Review Replies: 2
8
Doom review G@mehe@d
Doom was one of the earliest, first person shooters. It was groundbreaking when it made its debut on the PC. It had more console ports then most games back then and they all had their share of problems. The Jaguar version had no music, the SNES version had bad visuals. That's just to name a couple consoles that it got ported onto. The 32X version is promising. It might be the best console port of Doom ever released.GAMEPLAY A-: I enjoyed this port of Doom more then any other. The responsive controls and fast action really help the gameplay. Its really satisfying to kill those monsters and solders. One thing I also like about the gameplay is how many secrets there are in the levels. That makes you want to explore the stages and find all the secrets. I found the controls quite easy to get used to, but unfortunately the button to strife is the C button and it's hard to get used to. Also you can't change weapons or see the map if you don't have the six button controller. How many people actually had that! Besides that, Doom for the Sega 32X is extremely fun to play.GRAPHICS A: This version of Doom has a smooth frame rate and no slow down (on a real 32X unit there is some slow down when several enemies are on screen at once). The detail is amazing and the sprites look great. The game looks similar to the PC original. Its too bad the 32X was a failure, because if more people saw this. They would really like it.SOUND D+: Many people have criticized the sound in this game. I believe the people that did. The soundtrack has a bunch of weird sounds added to it. They all sound terrible, and this game is on a 32X. Even the SNES version has a much better soundtrack. The sound effects are not bad though. It's just the terrible soundtrack that makes the sound primitive.ADDICTIVENESS B: This game is sure to keep you on for a while. Unfortunately the game has low replay value. Once you beat the game you are unlikely to play it again.DEPTH C-: I played the PC version of Doom and it had much more levels then this version. There is only 17 levels and they are quite short. There are also lots of missing textures, objects, enemy sprites, etc. That every other version had. DIFFICULTY MEDIUM: The game starts out quite easy, then after a few levels the game gets really hard. The later levels have more keys you have to get to unlock doors and you are likely to get lost in some of the levels.OVERALL RATING B
Graphics 9 Sound 7 Addictive 9 Depth 6 Difficulty 7
Review Rating: 4/5
Submitted: 11-03-12
Updated: 11-02-14
Review Replies: 0
8.5
Doom 32X Doom0o0
Doom is my faved shooter of all time. This port of doom makes me very happy. Most fans dont like it though, but I dont care. This is one of the few ports that wont lag all the time. The controls are smooth and the visuals are nice and bright. The sound is what makes many people hate this game, but the odd sound adds to the game for me. The one thing I hate about Doom (and I mean any Doom port) Is the story. You dont even know what the story was until you beat the game. I love how addictive this game is though. Some players may not like fps's like this one, so they wont be as happy. and this game is only easy depending on what level you choose. This game does not have as many levels as it should, but thats about one of the only problems with this port. Overall, this is a very good port of Doom if you like it fast. Doom seems best on a 32 bit console anyway. Thats all I have to say about Doom on the 32X. I give it an 8.5!
Graphics 9 Sound 7 Addictive 10 Story 3 Depth 7 Difficulty 5
Review Rating: 3.9/5
Submitted: 09-18-11
Updated: 09-18-11
Review Replies: 3
8.5
Doom Review Marcmoney
Overall - 8.5
Doom is a great shooting game. I really enjoyed playing it. I tried this game out because it looked familiar to a game on the PC.
Graphics - 8
The graphics were not perfect, it was sort of blocky.
Sound - 8
The sound was really weird. It sounded so creepy and sounded like it was messed up, but I don't know if that is suppose to be natural.
Addictiveness - 6
I may play this game again. The movement is just not my style, but it sure was fun. :)
Story - N/A
There is no story in this game.
Depth - 7
The game has 15 levels and 5 different difficulties. That is basically it. :S
Difficulty - 3
The game in easy mode is really really easy. It can be hard if it is at Nightmare mode.
Wrap Things Up...
Doom seems to sound popular, but I am not sure. It is a great game to play. I recommend trying this game out, it can be interesting to see how fun it is to beat the game. :)
Graphics 8 Sound 8 Addictive 6 Depth 7 Difficulty 3
Review Rating: 3.5/5
Submitted: 07-13-11
Review Replies: 2
6.8
The other port of DOOM everyone forgets about DragonSlayer22
I want to say something quick to clear things up. I did not own a Sega 32x, I may have owned a Genesis at some point, but with no expansions. I found the emulator later on and decided to try it out.Graphics: 7 Pretty much the PC version on terms of graphics and not pixellated like the Super Nintendo port. Nothing more to say other than the better performance as it uses the original game engine.Sound: 5 This is exactly what killed the port, it is the exact opposite of the Super Nintendo port. The sound effects are good but the music is terrible! Who thought it was a good idea to do this to E1M2!?[url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbroOMBYBYU[/url] PC version for comparison: [url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=re0A23CSvpw[/url]At least E1M1 is okay for the most part other than some minor compression, as it used the Sega Genesis' inferior sound card compared to the Super Nintendo. E1M3 and on sound like trash, turn music off when you play. Or even better, play the PC music for each stage.Addictiveness: 6 More playable than the Super Nintendo port, I'll give it that. PC version is always better though, so keep that in mind when you play. Story: 5 Same Mars base and demon problem as seen in the other ports. You are the last marine on the planet, so go put an end to them. Pretty much the same simplistic story that is in any DOOM game (except
DOOM 3, that one had a good story if I remember).
Depth: 7 It was pretty big for a game on a 16-with-a-32-bit-expansion console. Not really any other game on the console that was in pseudo 3.D. and had many levels to it. The game was different from others at the time.
Difficulty: 7 Easier to play than the Super Nintendo port, although same as the PC version, so not too difficult.
OVERALL: 6.8 I would have given it a higher rating than the Super Nintendo port, but the music hurts my ears too much to say so. The screen is also smaller than the Super Nintendo port by default (I don't think you can change it either) and you needed an expensive add on to your Sega Genesis to play it or else it did not work. The cartage is easier to come across compared to the Super Nintendo one, but is it really worth it? PC version is $6, go get that instead
Graphics 7 Sound 5 Addictive 6 Story 5 Depth 7 Difficulty 7
Review Rating: 3/5
Submitted: 02-02-17
Review Replies: 1