I'd Like to Apologize...

...to DOOM 64

I feel awful.

Up until about a week ago, I thought the N64’s 1997 release of Doom 64 was a straight console port of the 1993 MS-DOS game of the same-ish name. I was incredibly wrong.

I’m here today to set the record straight and apologize to everyone involved.

*taps mic and clears throat*

I love OG Doom. Between Doom, Quake, Wolfenstein, and Unreal Tournament - those were my go-to FPS (first person shooter) games as a kid in the late 90s. I had gotten a copy of Doom from a shareware file (as we all did) and fell in love with the art, sounds, music, and frantic pace that every single other computer-kid did. Nothing new here! I didn’t play Doom 2 until much later (maybe mid 00s?) when I realized there WAS a Doom 2. Information and accessibility were not the same then as it is now and I was, uh, like 10. When Doom 3 hit the original Xbox in 2005, it scared the hell out of me due to its shift in tone from the original game as it went for more of a survival-horror feel. I loved it. I love me some good-scary and that game delivers.

What I’m saying is I love me some Doom. So what happened? Why am I an idiot about Doom 64? 

Doom 3 was a big shift in tone/gameplay for the series

Here is a timeline of Doom releases (up to 3) for context

• 1993 - Doom (MS-DOS)

• 1994 - Doom 2 (MS-DOS)

• 1996 - Final Doom (MS-DOS)

• 1997 - Doom 64 (N64 release)

• 2004 - Doom 3 (PC Version)

It’s confusing that Final Doom is not called Doom 3 and Doom 64 is not Doom 4 but what can I tell you. Video Games. 

Between 1994 and 2005, while I owned a Nintendo 64 and adored it, I never purchased (or had been gifted) a copy of Doom 64 because based on the name, I assumed it was just another port of Doom. I played Doom plenty on my computer, why would I want to play it on that dumb-as-fuck N64 controller? Exactly. At the time, I wasn’t involved with game development discourse and wasn’t savvy to what the game ACTUALLY is. Hell, I didn’t understand there was a Final Doom until recently, either. 

I recently watched Civvie 11’s video on Doom 64 because I enjoy his commentary and never seen footage of the game. I was only a few minutes into the video when I realized how wrong I had been.  

Here is the video:

SIDE NOTE: if you love old FPS games (“Boomer-Shooters” as they are now called), I recommend you check out his channel. Good stuff. 

After watching Civvie’s video, I bought a copy of Doom 64 off of the Xbox Store for my Series X. The remake/remaster pros over at NightDive Studios did an excellent job creating a version that runs beautifully on current systems/hardware (and no N64 controller!). I also recommend you check out their Quake 1 and 2 remasters - I’m a big fan of this company. 

I booted up the game and felt like a kid again and what was old was new for me. It’s a strange feeling to still be impressed by a video game from 1997 and to be reminded about thoughtfulness of game design from another era. 

Published in 1997 by Midway Games and also developed by Midway Games, Doom 64 is an artistic offshoot of the main series. Id Software, the original Doom-developers, oversaw the project and offered consultation. I assume id was busy with Quake 2 and dealing with the aftermath of the internal issues the first Quake brought about for the company during its development (that’s a whole other rabbit hole). With Midway at the helm, they created 28 new story levels (some secret ones too) that, I mean, basically look like Doom levels but have unique touches specific to this version (DOUBLE CHAINSAW, ANYONE?). Doom 64 also had a working title of Doom: Absolution which if kept, might’ve fixed the mix-up I had since the late 90s. Not sure why it was changed other than Nintendo had to put “64” after everything because of BRANDING. 

The plot of the game is more Doom - meaning you are a marine-guy and you kill demons! Works for me. The ending is the interesting part - after defeating the Hell Mother, the protagonist decides to stay in hell to make sure evil doesn’t rise again. Badass. 

But let’s talk about those gameplay differences. 

One of the first things you’ll notice is the music. My lord - the music is UNNERVING in this version. Gone are the freight train metal riffs from the old games and instead replaced with tones similar to what Trent Reznor did for Quake. Aubrey Hodges is the mastermind here and he creates a soundscape for the player that feels more spooky than SHOOT THE FUCKING ROOM UP. I dig it, though. Aubrey would get stuck in some sort of Sports Game music composing loop for the next decade but has recently worked on Gears Tactics! Hell yea, Aubrey! 

Compared to this banger on Doom 2

Lighting and color also play a bigger role in Doom 64 compared to the previous games. Working off the base Doom-engine, Midway created 3 dimensional polygon models and freshly designed pre-rendered sprites for the enemies. So even enemies you’re used to blasting away look a tad different compared to Doom 1 and 2. Early on, there are hallways that are colored based on what keycard you need to access the next area and it feels so alien compared to what a player is used to. 

LIKE WHAT?

Movement and combat are also slower and require the player to be methodical rather than impulsive. It’s not radically slower but it’s certainly not as frantic and the combat scenarios feel thought-out. Not to say previous Doom titles were not thoughtful but Doom 64 asks the player to just think a tad more. 

That is what makes Doom 64 so interesting to play because it is just not what you’re used to in a Doom-game even if at first glance it looks like a traditional Doom-game. I don’t know if I would call it uncanny because that is not the right adjective but it feels…strange. But in a good way! It’s like you’re playing Doom in a dream (or nightmare!) because it’s just a bit left-of-center to what you’re used to.

Of all the development successes there are for Doom 64 (in terms of hardware, that is), it lacked split-screen multiplayer which would’ve fucking ruled. The reasoning Midway gave was that 1.) it caused gameplay slowdown and 2.) Midway was also convinced that no one would care about split-screen multiplayer because you always knew where your opponent was. Shortly after this game’s release, Goldeneye would make that statement the most incorrect statement in video game history. And of course in 2001 we would get Halo and yeah, we love split screen multiplayer. If Midway stuck with the working title of Doom: Absolution and also worked on the multiplayer, this game might’ve had a different history. 

The history of Doom 64 feels forgotten (to me, that is). It came out during a time when FPS games were changing rapidly and the “Doom-shooter” model was about to evaporate from the market for games like Unreal and Half-Life. Gamers and game reviewers were looking forward to the next generation of shooters and so Doom 64 was met with lukewarm reviews. Gamespot notoriously gave it a 4.8 out of 10 which is just wrong in my opinion for so many reasons. It didn’t sell a ton of units but was sorta hard to do on a system geared towards children and not adults (it was a Mature-rated game). But, id Software was so happy with the final product that they gave the job of porting Quake to the N64 to Midway as well. That would introduce multiplayer and would try to be more of a straightforward port but ultimately would look weak against its PC counterpart.  

Why am I rambling on about a game from the 90s that I recently fell in love with? I assume there are others out there like me who would consider themselves pretty well-versed in video games but somehow let this slide by just due to the name. I’m urging anyone who hasn’t played Doom 64 to give it a chance and to feel like a kid again. Pick up the version NightDive Studios put out and give it a shot - it’s only a few bucks for a reminder of how we got to where we are with video games.