Doom 64

🎮 Steam ⏳ 9 hours ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5/5)

Dark Atmospheric Remaster #

This particular Doom title is a faithful remaster of the 1997 Nintendo 64 classic, brought to modern systems by Nightdive Studios, a renowed studio when it comes to these kinds of adaptations. Rather than a simple port, the game received visual enhancements, smoother controls, and QOL improvements like widescreen support and quick saving. It retains the gritty, hellish atmosphere that set it apart from other classic Doom entries, with a darker, more oppressive tone reinforced by moody lighting and eerie sound design. Particularly this is one of my favorite Doom entries simply because of it’s atmosphere alone, very different from it’s predecessors, this is also the reason why I like the hated Doom 3, I feel both of them have the very same proposal when it comes to the feeling it tries to provoke from the player.

Maze-Focused Combat #

The gameplay remains tight and responsive, preserving the series’ hallmark fast-paced combat and maze-like level design. And even though the previous entries also had similar formulas, the level of “maze-like” is very high on this this one, starting from the first few levels, and never changing until the last level, which can be a bummer for some. The levels are more puzzle-oriented than in Doom or Doom II, which gives the game a slower, more methodical feel, which not everybody is a fan of, so I would only play this one if you can enjoy both approaches. Weapon feedback is satisfying, and combat retains its classic rhythm without feeling outdated.

Expanded Epilogue Content #

A notable addition is the new “Lost Levels” campaign, which acts as an epilogue and ties into the lore of Doom Eternal, making this version more than just a nostalgia trip. Critics and fans alike praised the remaster for its atmosphere, improved visuals, and the care put into updating it for PC. Particularly I was not interested in playing this part of the content, but I advise fans don’t skip this section. However, some noted that the game can be excessively dark by default, requiring manual brightness adjustments, which was also a thing in the original game, but more easily fixed on this remaster. A few quirks from the original remain, but they don’t detract significantly from the experience.

Challenging Yet Essential #

I would also advise trying to play the secret levels, in order to make the final one way easier, this way to unlock some secrets that makes the final boss less challenging, and it can be very challenging, unfortunately for me I didn’t followed my own advise. Another standout for me is that this one feels harder than other Doom titles, at least for me, even while not playing at the highest difficulty level, you can easily die at least once on every single level. Overall, Doom 64’s 2020 release is a strong, atmospheric shooter that respects its roots while feeling polished on modern hardware, it is a must play for fans of FPS titles in general, even more so now that it is more easily playable on modern platforms, no excuse to skip this one.