Game:

Doom 64 (1997)

Duration: 9:19

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"The Absolution" or "Doom 64" is one of several games within the "Doom" series, and different from most ports/adaptations of the first few Doom games of the time, being quite a bit different from Playstation/Saturn ports of the time which mainly were just combinations of Doom, Ultimate Doom, and Doom II. Some differences or additions in the game included "32 Exclusive New Levels", new (and larger) sprites for pretty much everything, a darker than dark tone to enhance the creepiness factor, a few removed enemies (due to time constraints and costs), booby traps, new textures and additional parallax scrolling, eerie ambient music (similar to what was present in the PSX game since the same composer, Aubrey Hodges, did it), more usage of Satanic imagery, and more advanced weapon physics such as weapon recoil. The story is basically same-old, with our space marine going back to clean up the remaining demons after the conclusion of the original Doom(s).

While this game could've been more than what it was and is criticized for being a primitive FPS due to lack of multiplayer modes, 2D enemies and limited features overall, it is largely faithful to the original Doom titles and was quite impressively done on the N64, so props should be given to Midway. The visuals are AMAZINGLY crisp for an N64 title; easily amongst some of the cleanest-looking titles on the system-- there's hardly any fog or anything to be seen anywhere and the game maintains a smooth framerate; games like GoldenEye 007 and Perfect Dark don't even look THIS CLEAN (but their gameplay and depth is superior... maybe PD is about as clean). You would have to play many N64 games in an emulator with numerous graphics plugins/settings to make them look as crisp as D64 does by default. The game is VERY dark... even turning brightness to max in the game and having average brightness/contrast settings on your T.V. would make things pretty hard to see, though you can (for the most part) get around it. The soundtrack is different from the rock present in the original Doom, but it's adequate.

The gameplay is largely classic Doom with a few adjustments. If you've ever played a FPS, you should get the idea. Doom is all about finding key cards, discovering secret passageways, and killing demons. D64 is "technically devoid" of some of the luxuries of newer id Software games like Quake, such as jumping and looking up/down, but it's okay (you can, through a secret, acquire the ability to "Jump", but it doesn't serve much purpose and can get you stuck if not used properly). There are a few levels where you can't gain 100% secrets (which is a little annoying) but the game is challenging and good nonetheless, though there are a few things which make completing the game REALLY frustrating... I'll leave it to the players or those curious to find out on their own. This is a video of the first level (and for the curious, we take a secret exit to the really hard "Hectic" level). Enjoy.