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1994-09-08
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Title/Name: DOOM ][: Hell on Earth
Requirements: Not available at review time.
Minimum Recommended: 486DX-33, 4 MB RAM
Ideal: 486 DX2-66 or faster, 8 MB RAM, fast hard drive, sound card
Reviewed On: 486 DX2-66, 8 MB RAM, SoundMan Wave, DOS 6.2
Reviewed On: Pentium-66, 16 MB RAM, Proaudio Spectrum 16, DOS 6.22
Specifications:
GRAPHICS- 320x200 256 color VGA
SOUND- Soundblaster, General MIDI, PAS, Soundblaster AWE32, also all
others supported by registered and shareware DOOM
HARD DRIVE SPACE- About 16 MB
CREATED BY- id Software
DISTRIBUTER- GT Interactive Software
PRICE- $44.95 from GT, probably about $40 at stores
CONTROL- Keyboard, mouse, joystick, Gravis Gamepad
COPY PROTECTION- None
SPECIAL/NOTES-
_________________________________________________________________
Summary:
OK, we've all heard of DOOM, quite possibly the best game created
to date. DOOM ][: Hell on Earth (HOE) is the commercial version, similar
to Spear of Destiny, the sequel to id's Wolfenstein 3D. It will be sold
to owners of registered DOOM by GT Interactive software, shipping soon
after disk duplication is finished. HOE will be available in stores
like CompUSA and Best Buy starting October 10, 1994.
When id released DOOM on December 10, 1993, they also released a
new standard all other first person, 3D action games will be judged by.
They continue in this tradition with HOE. HOE uses the same game engine
as seen in DOOM, adding new textures, enemies, weapons, graphics, sounds,
and levels. Several new command-line switches have also been added.
HOE contains all of the original enemies, all the weapons, and most
of the wall and ceiling textures. First, the enemies, using the same
names as found somewhere in the game (I won't tell you where, you have to
find it.)
In this preview, HOE means DOOM ][, and DOOM means the original
registered version.
Name: Description:
------------------- --------------------------------------------------
Zombieman Original Trooper
Shotgun Guy Original Sargeant
Heavy weapon dude Sargeant with chain gun, kills you as fast as the
Spider Boss in DOOM
Imp Original Imp
Demon Original Demon
Spectre Original Spectre
Lost Soul Original Lost Soul
Cocademon Original Cocademon
Hell Knight A toned-down version of the Baron of Hell. Same
size, different colors, fires the same fireballs,
but takes less damage to kill.
Baron of Hell Original Baron of Hell
Arachnotron A mini verson of the Spider Boss. Much easier to
kill, uses a plasma weapon (Very fast projectiles!)
Pain Elemental A new Cocademon. Instead of fireballs, this enemy
shoots Lost Souls. When you kill it, it explodes,
releasing three more Lost Souls
Revenant Skeleton-guy. Shoots homing rockets (slower, less
powerful rockets that will follow you until you
lose them and make them hit a wall). Will give
you a powerful punch if you get too close.
Mancubus Fat, dual plasma shooting enemy. Fires very
quickly.
Archvile Fire enemy. Will set you on fire if you stand
still, throwing you into the air. Will also
ressurect enemies you've already killed. Get
rid of this guy first!
Icon of Sin End boss. You'll have to see him for yourself!
The only new weapon is the super-shotgun. It is similar to the
original shotgun, but it fires two shells at once, taking twice as
long to reload. When you fire at long-range, the individual pellets will
spread out all over the wall, both vertically and horizontally. At close
range it is VERY effective, taking only one shot to kill a demon and two
shots to kill a cocademon. However, at long-range it is not very effective
against smaller targets like Zombiemen, since only a few of the pellets will
hit the target. It works well at long-range against a group of Zombiemen or
Shotgun Guys, taking a few shots to clear out a large group. At close range
against weaker enemies you can easily take out three or four guys at a time.
It will also change deathmatch play greatly, since you can kill with one
shot, whereas with rockets you have to wait for it to get there. You can
toggle between the shotgun and the super-shotgun using "3", assuming you
have both of them.
HOE contains many of the original textures from DOOM, and adds many
new textures more appropriate for earth buildings, like windows, bricks,
etc. id has again done a very nice job varying the textures, and using
the right textures in the right places. There are new sky textures which
correspond to the location of the level (see below for more details.)
One of the things I enjoyed about DOOM was the level design, which
I believe are MUCH better than most of the PWADs out there. Now, with
more experience and ideas from other people's levels, id has created another
incredible set of all new levels. These new levels are much larger and
harder than those found in DOOM. They are a totally different style when
compared with those in DOOM. One of the major differences is the ceilings
are a lot higher, giving the impression of huge, open areas, and an
abundance of large, slime floors.
HOE has only one end level, since it is only one episode, broken up
into many smaller pieces. The end level, called Icon of Sin, is definetely
the best end level in any of the DOOM episodes, and one of the neatest end
levels I have ever seen in a game. It is quite difficult, though. You'll
have to see for yourself.
Several new types of doors and lifts are featured in HOE. There are
super fast doors and lifts, giving you less time to react against whatever
is waiting on the other side. This helps keep the excitement level high as
you wonder what type of object you will be triggering next. Throughout the
game there are a lot more doors triggered by shots hitting the wall.
The new music in HOE is excellent, especially on a good wavetable
soundcard. It is a nice change from DOOM music, and really fits the mood
of the level. There is also more of a variety of music.
Many of the sounds from DOOM have made the trip to HOE. There are a
few new ones, like a couple of new screams as you die. The new monsters
also all have their own new grunts, shots, and chirps. The super-shotgun
sounds just like it should- a souped up version of the normal shotgun.
The enemies also have sounds that fit their personalities.
Since DOOM2.WAD contains all the original enemies, weapons, items, and
most of the original texures, so it will work with most of the PWADs
currently available with mimimum modifications. There are a few differences
in the way HOE treats levels, but it should only take a little while (most
likely about two weeks) for the level editors to work with HOE.
HOE uses the new version of DOOM.EXE, version 1.666. This version
is basically the same as DOOM's EXE, but has a few bug-fixes and new
features. For example, there is now a built in timer that will exit the
level after a specified amount of time, great for deathmatches. As in the
1.4-1.6 betas, -TURBO lets you run up to 250% your normal speed, and you can
record and playback multi-player demos.
Deathmatch is a totally new game with all the new options. 1.666
now subtracts frags when you kill yourself. It also has the option to
have respawning weapons, health, and ammo. This would be excellent if you
could specify what you want to respawn, but is not very good with the default
options. For example, soul spheres respawn, letting people keep going around
and collecting them. The super-shotgun also creates a new feelng of
complete fear, since you never know if you'll be dead with the next shot.
_________________________________________________________________
PROS-Hours of entertainment are available in the 32 supplied levels. Endless
additional hours of entertainment are available by downloading some of
the hundreds, perhaps thousands of available add-on levels.
CONS-Some may find the graphic and satanic nature of DOOM ][ offensive.
Josh's Ratings: (1-10)
GRAPHICS- 10.0
SOUND- 9.0
CONTROL/GAMEPLAY- 9.0
FUN FACTOR- 10.0
VALUE- 9.0
Overall Rating: >>> 9.5 <<<
Scott's Ratings: (1-10)
GRAPHICS- 9.5
SOUND- 9.0
CONTROL/GAMEPLAY- 9.0
FUN FACTOR- 10.0
VALUE- 10.0
Overall Rating: >>> 9.5 <<<
Should I Buy It?- What kind of question is this? Unless you have something
you find morally wrong with DOOM, YES!
In Short: DOOM ][: Hell on Earth takes the best, and makes it better. You
can't go wrong with a game like this. Plus, with all of the available and
mostly free add-ons, you will never run out of enjoyment from this game!