Doom 64
Encyclopedia
Doom 64 is a video game for the Nintendo 64
released by Midway Games
in April 4, 1997. It is part of the Doom first-person shooter
video game series.
and BFG 9000
), but redrawn with new sprites. The chainsaw
was given two blades instead of one, the fists have bloodstained gloves on instead of brass knuckles, the plasma rifle has an electric core that emits a sparking sound when equipped, the rocket launcher has a small kick when fired, pushing the player back a bit, the shotgun's reloading cock is at the handle instead of under the barrel and the Super Shotgun reloads faster and causes recoil. A new weapon known as the Laser, or "Unmaker", has been added, using the same cell ammunition as the plasma rifle and BFG. It was first mentioned in the Doom Bible and was planned to be featured in the computer Doom games but never appeared. Its appearance in Doom 64 is its only official appearance, and with the power of three ancient artifacts found in the game, it becomes more powerful by shooting three laser beams (at a quicker rate than default) instead of one, the first artifact increases the laser speed, the second artifact adds a second laser and the third artifact allows the weapon to fire three simultaneous lasers which can automatically aim separately from one another allowing the weapon to attack three different enemies at once.
port of Doom two years earlier. The original Doom 64 team was working on a potential Doom 64 2 not long after the first game was released, but decided to scrap it due to the "Doom engine looking dated", and players' attention focusing on Quake and other, more modern 3D shooters.
gave Doom 64 a 7.4 out of 10 overall, despite little criticism of the gameplay, stating the game lacked the ability to look up or down, crouch and jump, and lacked a multiplayer mode.
Nintendo 64
The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...
released by Midway Games
Midway Games
Midway Games, Inc. is an American company that was formerly a major video game publisher. Following a bankruptcy filing in 2009, it is no longer active and is in the process of liquidating all of its assets. Midway's titles included Mortal Kombat, Ms.Pac-Man, Spy Hunter, Tron, Rampage, the...
in April 4, 1997. It is part of the Doom first-person shooter
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
video game series.
Features
Key differences from the computer games in the series include:- 32 exclusive new levels.
- New, larger spritesSprite (computer graphics)In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...
for all enemies, items, weapons and projectiles which were texture-filteredTexture filteringIn computer graphics, texture filtering or texture smoothing is the method used to determine the texture color for a texture mapped pixel, using the colors of nearby texels . Mathematically, texture filtering is a type of anti-aliasing, but it filters out high frequencies from the texture fill...
when close to the player to prevent pixelation. - Darker, more foreboding color schemes used to increase a sense of fear in the player.
- No Commandos, Arch-Viles, Spider Masterminds or Revenants (removed due to the expense of low capacity Nintendo 64 cartridges).
- Enemies that appear out of thin air after triggering a tripwire or switch.
- All new textures, scrolling skies, artificial room-over-room architecture, and custom scripting.
- Tripwire booby traps, from darts to homing fireballs.
- The player's viewpoint is from chest level, rather than eye-level, making all objects and characters appear larger in relation to the player.
- Eerie synth ambient music tracks (instead of MIDI rock music)
- More ambivalent usage of Satanic imagery (pentagramPentagramA pentagram is the shape of a five-pointed star drawn with five straight strokes...
s, inverted crossCrossA cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two lines or bars perpendicular to each other, dividing one or two of the lines in half. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally; if they run obliquely, the design is technically termed a saltire, although the arms of a saltire need not meet...
es, depictions of sacrifice) than the computer version of Doom with differing usages of horror schemes. - More advanced atmospheric colored lighting and effects, such as parallaxing skies, fog, and lightning.
- Re-designed weapons that act more devastating than previous installments of the game series (realistic jostling movements when firing the weapons are also present, including being knocked back a few inches from a fired rocket).
Weapons
All the weapons from the original game are present (Fist, Chainsaw, Pistol, Shotgun, Super Shotgun, Chaingun, Rocket Launcher, Plasma RiflePlasma rifle
When discussing weapons in science fiction, a plasma weapon is a type of raygun that fires a stream, bolt, pulse or toroid of plasma...
and BFG 9000
BFG 9000
The BFG 9000 is a futuristic weapon found in the video game series Doom. The BFG 9000 is a huge, solid metal gun that fires balls of green plasma. The most powerful weapon in the games, it is capable of destroying nearly any player or enemy in the vicinity with a single hit...
), but redrawn with new sprites. The chainsaw
Chainsaw
A chainsaw is a portable mechanical saw, powered by electricity, compressed air, hydraulic power, or most commonly a two-stroke engine...
was given two blades instead of one, the fists have bloodstained gloves on instead of brass knuckles, the plasma rifle has an electric core that emits a sparking sound when equipped, the rocket launcher has a small kick when fired, pushing the player back a bit, the shotgun's reloading cock is at the handle instead of under the barrel and the Super Shotgun reloads faster and causes recoil. A new weapon known as the Laser, or "Unmaker", has been added, using the same cell ammunition as the plasma rifle and BFG. It was first mentioned in the Doom Bible and was planned to be featured in the computer Doom games but never appeared. Its appearance in Doom 64 is its only official appearance, and with the power of three ancient artifacts found in the game, it becomes more powerful by shooting three laser beams (at a quicker rate than default) instead of one, the first artifact increases the laser speed, the second artifact adds a second laser and the third artifact allows the weapon to fire three simultaneous lasers which can automatically aim separately from one another allowing the weapon to attack three different enemies at once.
Plot
Following the conclusion of the original Doom series, the sole Marine who survived the horrors of hell had returned to Earth, reclaiming it from the invasion that almost eradicated the human race. Demons still lingered within the abandoned halls and complexes of Phobos and Deimos. As a last-ditch effort, the military decided to bombard the moons with extreme radiation in hopes of killing off any remaining demons. Initially it was successful, however something survived the exposure. The extreme radiation blocked the military's sensors and allowed something to slip past them undetected. Now the demons have returned, their corpses revived and strengthened. Hell's forces have been rebuilt and are stronger than ever. A Marine strikeforce was ordered to contain the advancing armies of hell but was mercilessly slaughtered within moments. You, the sole survivor of the last invasion, managed to slip past hell's guards. Once again, it is you versus the legions of hell and this time, it is time to finish it once and for all.Development
Midway's original title of the game was "The Absolution", but the name was changed to "Doom 64" for brand recognition. ("The Absolution" was reused as the name of the last level of the game.) Midway wanted to include every demon from the original games, as well as a few extra levels, into the final product, but deadlines and memory constraints of the small capacity of the N64 cartridges made them scrap the levels and leave a few demons off the game (Former Commando, Revenant, Arch-Vile and Spider Mastermind). The music and sound effects were done by Aubrey Hodges, who also did the original sound and music for the PlayStationPlayStation
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console first released by Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan on December 3, .The PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of consoles and handheld game devices. The PlayStation 2 was the console's successor in 2000...
port of Doom two years earlier. The original Doom 64 team was working on a potential Doom 64 2 not long after the first game was released, but decided to scrap it due to the "Doom engine looking dated", and players' attention focusing on Quake and other, more modern 3D shooters.
Reception
IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave Doom 64 a 7.4 out of 10 overall, despite little criticism of the gameplay, stating the game lacked the ability to look up or down, crouch and jump, and lacked a multiplayer mode.