Doom (1993)
| Doom | |||
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| Doom logo from the sales box (designed by Don Ivan Punchatz) | |||
| Studio |
 id software
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| Publisher |
GT Interactive cdv Software (Germany) Atari Activision
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| Senior Developer |
John Romero Tom Hall |
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| composer | Robert Prince | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
MS-DOS: December 10, 1993 Sega 32X: November 21, 1994 Atari Jaguar: November 28, 1994 SNES: September 1, 1995 Windows: August 20, 1996 PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Android: July 26, 2019 |
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| platform | Windows , MS-DOS , 3DO , Atari Jaguar , Game Boy Advance , Linux , Sega 32X , Super Nintendo Entertainment System , PlayStation 3 , Xbox 360 , iOS , PlayStation 4 , Xbox One , Nintendo Switch , Android | ||
| Game engine | id tech | ||
| genre | Ego shooter | ||
| Subject | Science fiction | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Keyboard , gamepad | ||
| system advantages preconditions |
MS-DOS:
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| medium | CD-ROM , originally 3.5 ″ floppy disk , download | ||
| language | English | ||
| Age rating |
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| information | Indicated from 1994 to 2011, USK classification followed. | ||
Doom ( ger .: , doom ' , , destruction' , , Doom , , doom ' or , evil fate' ) is a first-person shooter and the first track of the same series . It was released on December 10, 1993 by id Software for MS-DOS . The player controls a soldier who, after a failed research experiment on the Martian moons, has to fight hellish creatures. Because of the 3D graphics and the commercial success, the title is considered a milestone in the field of computer games. In Germany, the title was indexed from May 1994, but after a re-examination in August 2011, it was removed from the list for media harmful to minors and received a new age rating for the entertainment software self-check . Over the years the title has been ported to numerous platforms. In 1994 the successor Doom 2: Hell on Earth was released .
action
Teleportation experiments carried out by the Union Aerospace Corporation (UAC) on the two Martian moons Phobos and Deimos inadvertently open a portal to Hell . Demons occupy the research facilities and the employees are killed or turned into zombies . The player takes on the role of a space marine who is armed only with a pistol on the moon Phobos at the beginning of the game . In the further course, the arsenal expands to include chainsaws , shotguns , rocket launchers , Gatling , plasma rifles and the fictional BFG 9000 (according to the developers, the abbreviation for Big Fucking Gun , or Bio Force Gun in the Doom film ). After the player has reached the experimental portal on Phobos, he teleports himself from there to Deimos. However, this second Martian moon is no longer in the orbit of the planet, but in the hell dimension from which the attacking monsters originate. After he has freed the facilities there from the demons, the player goes straight to hell to find the originator of the demonic invasion.
Gameplay
The player guides his character freely through a set sequence of levels from the first person perspective . These are divided into three thematically consecutive episodes ( Knee-Deep in the Dead , The Shores of Hell , Inferno ), each of which can be selected independently of one another from the start menu. The aim of the game is to find the exit in the levels, which are often nested like a maze, and to kill the attacking monsters. The monsters designed as zombies and demons have different attacks. At the beginning of each episode, the player only has a relatively weak pistol and his fists at his disposal to fight the monsters. In the further course he collects more powerful weapons that can be found in certain places within the level and (like all objects in the game) are picked up by running over them. The player can use a total of seven weapons with different modes of action (e.g. shotguns, rocket launchers, energy weapons). All weapons collected remain in the player's inventory until the end of the episode and can be freely selected. In addition, ammunition, armor and small first-aid boxes to refresh the life energy are distributed in the area. Unlike in the previous game Wolfenstein 3D, there are no longer any standard ammunition, but different types of ammunition (bullets, shotgun shells, rockets, energy cells) for individual weapon groups. This makes managing ammunition types a new element of the game.
With the help of a dedicated key function ( use key ), the player can open doors and use switches that usually unlock other doors or activate lifting bridges. In addition, there are color-coded security doors, for which appropriate keys have to be found in another area of the level. With the help of these simple key and switch puzzle tasks, most levels are broken down into different, initially inaccessible areas. When the player has unlocked and crossed all areas, he gets to the exit in the next level. Additionally, blank areas discover hidden ( secret areas ) as well as per episode per a second hidden output leading into a secret level.
With this combination of combat, exploration of the environment and simple puzzles, Doom established the basic structure of gameplay for the classic first-person shooter in the 1990s .
development
technology
The game engine was originally developed by id Software on the NeXTStep operating system , but then ported to the respective platforms. At the time, it set new standards in the field of 3D graphics, but did not use polygons, instead relying on raycasting techniques to create a three-dimensional impression . Textures, objects and enemies continued to be based on two-dimensional graphics (including sprites ). Compared to id Software's previous first-person shooter Wolfenstein 3D , the engine was no longer only able to visualize right-angled surfaces, but also enabled the creation of different high and round rooms, which enabled new design options for the level design. With Binary Space Partitioning (BSP) it was possible to display large levels smoothly, even for 386 PCs . Doom also has a multiplayer mode, in which the player could compete against up to three other players over a network or act in a team, which contributed significantly to the popularity of the game.
Another port to Windows 95 was done free of charge by Gabe Newell , who was working for Microsoft at the time.
music
The background music for the game was composed by Robert Prince . These are MIDI sequences that are largely based on pieces of music from the Metal genre, such as Rise by Pantera and Behind the Crooked Cross by Slayer .
Publications
The first part of Doom was released on December 10, 1993. In addition to the regular sale through game stores, the first episode ( Knee-deep in the Dead ) of Doom was distributed free of charge according to the shareware principle. The second and third episodes ( Shores of Hell and Inferno , which is set in Hell) were only included in the commercial version. The German distribution was carried out by cdv software and by Pearl Agency . At that time, Pearl Agency also published the shareware version in an extra edition of DOS-Trend magazine at a price of DM 14.80 .
A new edition of Doom was later released under the title Ultimate Doom , which contained an additional episode ( Thy Flesh Consumed ). This additional episode is still available for free as a patch for the normal three-episode version.
After ZeniMax Media acquired id Software in 2009 , Doom was re-released across multiple platforms, including Xbox Live Arcade for the first time for the Xbox 360 game console . This version offers new four-player modes via split screen .
reception
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Reviews
“Doom is really nothing more than a maze game. Or does it? Perhaps the game is - once again - the pioneer of a new generation of computer games. The virtual environment graphics already give a foretaste of what the often misused term 'virtual reality' could one day become. "
Popularity enjoyed Doom also speed runners , whose goal is to play through games in the shortest possible time. The record for the highest level of difficulty is currently around 20 minutes.
Indexed 1994-2011
In Germany, after its publication, Doom was indexed by the Federal Examination Office for Writings Harmful to Young People (BPjS) due to the violence depicted. This was announced in the Federal Gazette No. 100 of May 31, 1994. In the justification for the indexing of the committee, the “poor framework” was interpreted in a way that sometimes clearly differs from what is described in the manual for the game or what is shown in the game itself. So the scenario of the military research facilities on Mars was described and then the further course was described as follows: "Captured by madness, researchers and test subjects go on to bloody attack on each other." This is neither described in the manual for the game nor seen during the game itself .
The human-like opponents appearing in the game are u. a. characterized by glowing red eyes and grunting noises as non-human, zombie-like monsters. In the manual of the game they are as Former Humans thus described, former humans. Regardless of this, the justification for the index only mentions “armed men” or “human uniforms”. The demons, clearly named as such in the manual and represented accordingly in the game design, are interpreted as "ape-like" or generally "animal-like monsters". In accordance with this point of view, the examiners came to the conclusion that Doom is about the “quick-reacting, careless killing of human or animal-like counterparts”. The killings would be "largely realistically staged."
Incorrect information about the course of the game was also given, for example that it was not possible to evade: “There are no possibilities to evade or similar non-aggressive conflict solutions.” In fact, the evasion of enemy projectiles, which is possible due to the high agility of the character, is one of the essential tactics in the Game. It is even possible to master Doom in speed runs without killing monsters (so-called pacifist style ).
Since a review and possible re-evaluation is possible ten years after the indexing, the rights holder was able to apply for a resubmission of Doom to the BPjM in 2011. With the time lag of around 18 years from the initial publication, the examiners came to the conclusion that, from today's perspective, Doom could no longer be classified as harmful to young people. This was justified, among other things, by the fact that the game, with its meanwhile long outdated graphics, gives the "impression of abstract and thus too clearly recognizable as fictional and unrealistic descriptions". Doom is now more of historical interest and is no longer particularly attractive to young people who are now used to much more realistic computer graphics. In August 2011, the deletion of the list was announced in the Federal Gazette No. 131 of August 31, 2011.
The level command control originally contained a spatial structure that has the shape of a swastika when viewed from above . From version 1.4 (beta version of June 28, 1994) this detail has been changed so that the swastika is no longer included.
Adaptations
Source code release of the engine and ports
Even decades after its release, the original Doom , on whose engine the successor titles Doom 2: Hell on Earth , Final Doom , Heretic , Hexen and other independent games were based, still has a large fan base. The source code of the engine - except for the actual game data, such as B. Graphics and Levels - was first released in 1997 under a proprietary license. In 1999 the release license was changed to the GNU General Public License . Since the release, various projects have taken on the program, e. B. to bugs and limitations of the graphics engine to remove. By publishing the source code, the game could be ported by programmers to other platforms, e.g. Amiga , iOS , Atari ST / TT / Falcon , * BSD , Dingoo , Dreamcast , GP2X , GP32 , macOS , OS / 2 , Palm OS , Symobi , Pocket PC , Nintendo DS , N770 , PlayStation Portable , S60 - mobile phones , S80 Nokia Communicator and various MP3 players under the Rockbox project.
Some ports implemented OpenGL and DirectX support, so the graphics could keep up with later titles. These further developments continue to work with the original graphic and level files (WADs), but the Sprite graphic can optionally be replaced by polygon models as used in the titles of the Quake series.
Comic
The Doom comic is a sixteen-page comic book , which was written by Steve Behling 1996 and Michael Stewart and drawn by Tom Grindberg and colored. It was produced by Dana Moreshead for Marvel Comics as a promotional item for a video game fair . The story is based on the plot of Doom and Doom 2 and revolves around a soldier who is looking for a strong armament to defeat a cyberdemon .
There are two known editions of the comic. The first was the original print as a promotional gift, the second version was produced for the id Anthology collection.
Novels
Between 1995 and 1996, four novels about the game were published that were officially licensed by id Software. They were published in German translation from 2005. The author of the novels is Dafydd from Hugh , who was already known in the Star Trek scene through book publications. While the first two parts of the series are still very much based on the classic games, the last sequels go completely new ways.
- Dafydd from Hugh, Brad Linaweaver: Doom - Knee-Deep in the Dead , Volume 1, Panini Verlag , ISBN 3-8332-1207-1
- Dafydd from Hugh, AB Hugh, Brad Linaweaver: Doom - Hell on Earth , Volume 2, Panini Verlag, ISBN 3-8332-1208-X
- Dafydd from Hugh, Brad Linaweaver: Doom - Hellish Heaven , Volume 3, Panini Verlag, ISBN 3-8332-1209-8
- Dafydd from Hugh, Brad Linaweaver: Doom - Endgame , Volume 4, Panini Verlag, ISBN 3-8332-1346-9
literature
- David Kushner: Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture , ISBN 0-375-50524-5
- Friedemann Schindler, Jens Wiemken: DOOM is invading my dreams - Why a violent game achieved cult status , in: Handbuch Medien: Computerspiele , BpB 1997, ISBN 3-89331-302-8 ; Online version
Web links
- Doom at MobyGames (English)
- Doomgate.de - site that is dedicated to classic Doom in detail (German)
- DoomWiki (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Valve Corporation - Better Late Than Shitty , December 20, 2017
- ↑ Music ( Memento of the original from April 25, 2005 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .
- ^ The Doom tracks .
- ↑ Doom
- ↑ a b Doom: The original PC games test from 1994 now for reading - Update: Complete solution
- ↑ Doom
- ↑ Doom
- ↑ Doom
- ↑ Doom
- ↑ Doom 32X
- ↑ Doom
- ↑ Doom at speeddemosarchive.com
- ↑ a b c d e f Reasons for the decision to index the video game Doom by the BPjS 1994. Text in excerpts
- ↑ Handbook for the retail version of Doom, id Software 1993. Web link to the scanned version
- ↑ Archived copy ( memento of the original from April 17, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. "Pacifist style is finishing a DOOM level in Ultra-Violence without harming any monster."
- ↑ BPjM decision No. 5847 of August 4, 2011, published in Nundesanzeiger No. 131 of August 31, 2011.
- ↑ "Doom" removed from the list of media harmful to minors. (PDF; 80 kB) (No longer available online.) In: BPjM-Aktuell 3/2011. Federal testing agency for media harmful to minors , archived from the original on October 18, 2015 ; accessed on October 17, 2017 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Report on gamesaktuell.de
- ↑ http://www.schnittberichte.com/news.php?ID=2918
- ↑ http://www.schnittberichte.com/schnittbericht.php?ID=3262
| Main series |
Doom • Doom 2 • Doom 3 • Doom (2016) • Doom Eternal |
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| Offshoot |
Final Doom • Doom 64 • Doom RPG • Doom Resurrection • Doom 2 RPG • Doom VFR |
