DOOM 64 Review

DOOM 64. The forgotten one. Well, sort of. It’s not the black sheep- that’s DOOM 3. But, because it was a Nintendo 64 only game until 2020, it’s easy why DOOM 64 slipped through the proverbial cracks of DOOM fandom for many. Which is a shame because this game really has a lot to offer and is pretty legendary in it’s own ways. It feels like the polished classic DOOM sequel we would’ve eventually gotten on all platforms had the 90s been longer. It also, to it’s credit, does a great job of bridging classic DOOM to modern DOOM tonally. This isn’t a continuation of pure classic DOOM, this is an evolution. The monsters are darker and scarier, the environments are also…darker and scarier, and the music is a whole different vibe that is, once again, darker and scarier. It feels like they finally found the horror game they were trying to make this whole time.

Of course, that brings us to one of the interesting facts about DOOM 64. It wasn’t actually made by id Games. No, this was made by a company called Midway Games, specifically Midway San Diego, under supervision from id Games. But honestly you can’t really tell and if you can it’s probably a good thing. DOOM 64 is the most consistent classic DOOM game and perhaps some of that could be attributed to the veterans at Midway and their collective knowledge. It’s a more even keeled and is a stable experience that feels like it was made by people who know how to execute a presiding vision across a full length release. This isn’t a criticism of id, per se, but it is a reflection of the talent of Midway Games.

DOOM 64 toes the line between sticking with what works and pushing the franchise forward. It doesn’t abandon the fast paced shooting of DOOM or the dynamic level design, or the spooky undertones. Instead, it fine tunes and enhances these things, pulling them gently in new directions that show off the strength of their good ideas while heavily negating any of what might be considered bad ideas. That’s not to say this game is perfect- there’s one gaping annoyance I can think of. But overall, it’s a very strong game that deserves more appreciation thatn it gets and with Doom: The Dark Ages right around the corner, there’s no better time to talk about this game.

To start with, let’s get to the meat and potatoes- the gameplay. DOOM 64 frankly, plays the exact same as the other games from a gunplay perspective. You still can’t look up, you have all the same weapons, though some look a little different or have different sounds. The Super Shotgun is broken again, though this time it’s because it fires at the same rate as the normal Shotgun. The Plasma Rifle feels a little useless at times and the Rocket Launcher really isn’t that good either. There’s a new weapon, the Unmakyr, which is really powerful (but there’s a catch.) The BFG is worse. The chaingun is much better, as is the chainsaw. Overall, it’s business as usual, but it’s not the exact same business.

Many of the same enemies return but not all. There’s no Archviles, no Revenants or Chaingunners in this game. The enemies all look different too. There’s also some new enemies- the Nightmare Imp (a transparent Imp) and the Mother Demon, which is the new final boss. Many of the returning enemies have been yassified in some way, whether it’s the increased size of the imps, the new brown color palette on the Cacodemon, or the EXTRA MOUTH!!! on the Pain Elemental. I mean, who the fuck did that? An extra mouth? On the worst enemy in the game? It’s an enemy that spits out enemies and now it can spit out two at once.

DOOM 64 isn’t particularly hard, but it’s really fun and when difficulty arises, it’s usually more interesting than other classic DOOM game challenges, which often amount to “Here’s a bunch of shit in a contained space.” DOOM 64 offers more open-ended and complex tactical situations. The level designs perfectly balance the corridor shooter style of parts of earlier classic DOOM with the more open style of DOOM II: Hell on Earth.

DOOM 64 starts out like many DOOM games do-on a UAC base, heading for an entrance to a Hell portal. Usually these are pretty straight forward introductory levels- but in DOOM 64, they’re somewhat gritty and honestly much more interesting than you would expect. One of the cool things about the new graphics in this game is that the dread of an isolated space base overrun by literal demons comes across much better. These levels are darker and more atmospheric than anything in the previous games. They’re also a little more unique. Levels such as MAP 02: The Crusher and MAP 04: Holding Area all have some sort of interactive gimmick that stands out. Whether it’s glow in the dark flooring, a massive mining machine that opens up half the level, or a series of switch pillars that you can use to platform, there is some element in most of these starting levels that is unique.

The level design itself also contributes to this sense of progression. Each map resembles what is described in the title for the most part and feels different from the previous one. A lab looks like a lab, a tech center like a tech center and each of these areas use the level design and texture palette to highlight these differences. I never felt like the levels were off and out of place. They fit together well and flow smoothly into one another while still maintaining their own identity. This I attribute to the more professional hand of Midway Games as opposed to the traditional Id team. Those guys were really talented, but when they missed, sometimes they whiffed hard. In general, DOOM 64 is pretty consistent throughout.

One of the biggest contributors to the game’s tone is the soundtrack. Going away from the MIDI infused style of other classic DOOM games, DOOM 64 opts for this weird ass ambient thing that is…highly effective. It’s scary and ethereal and leans into the horror angle that was always an undercurrent in these games. The sound palette is denser and larger, but the music in general is sparser and less structured. Synth stabs, random ambience, weird drones…it’s genuinely unsettling. Famously, one of the tracks even samples a baby crying.

The sound design in general in this game is great. Guns sound bigger and better, the chainsaw sounds more unhinged and rabid and the demons sound more menacing. Even the mundane things like doors and switches carry a newfound weight in the sound department. It’s really a beautifully engineered work in this regard.

Eventually, around MAP 9, you get to Hell, and from here on out, this is where the game takes place. The Hell levels are a little less unique, but they are nonetheless excellent and cohesive. Dark and shadowy Hell Castles, weird, unknowable structures, eerie temples and dungeons, overall it’s a good mix. I found some concepts to be slightly redundant, but overall the level design is rock solid. The concepts and game design elements might iterate and mimic each other in some ways, but no level feels “generic”, so to say.

But, though we’ve established that DOOM 64 is very very good, it should be noted that…it’s not perfect. It has one gaping flaw and it’s actually a pretty big one. So, DOOM 64 has this superweapon, the Unmakyr, that you can find. It’s like an ammo efficient BFG that allows you to quickly dispose of individual mobs. You can “upgrade” this weapon by collecting these things called Demon Keys, which are only found in secret levels. But here’s the catch- the last level, MAP 28: The Absolution, has a mechanic/puzzle that basically REQUIRES those keys. Which, in the Internet era, is maybe not so bad if you research first, but back then…oh man that must’ve sucked. Because these secret levels are not easy to find and some of them are quite difficult. It’s honestly a pain. I’m glad that no other game I’ve played does this.

Other than that though, it’s hard to find a real dent in this game. Perhaps you could argue it doesn’t innovate enough gameplay wise, but I think there’s a good argument that it really didn’t need to. The 90s wasn’t exactly a time where you could be overly versatile with your engines or mechanics, certainly not the way we can now. People bought DOOM and expected DOOM adn they got DOOM. I don’t see how they could’ve changed too much without fundamentally altering DOOM as people at the time knew it. Look at Doom 3- they over-innovated and it was not a great outcome.

DOOM 64 may not reinvent the wheel, but it’s full of moments. The Terraformer in MAP 2, the weird ass cannon things that shoot from the walls in MAP 15: The Dark Entries, of course, the Cyberdemon (which looks great by the way) in MAP 17: Watch Your Step and perhaps my favorite, the gauntlet that you encounter in MAP 24: No Escape. There’s a lot of memorable encounters and areas that are underpinned by rugged consistency. It’s one of the things that I like about this game as opposed to DOOM II, which felt memorable but also wildly inconsistent.

For years, DOOM 64 was the odd one out of the franchise. Not because it was bad, or weird (though it is a little weird), but because you couldn’t buy it. It wasn’t for sale. But now, with the 2020 re-release, everyone can experience it and it’s really brought to light how good this game really is. I think it’s probably my second favorite classic DOOM title and for good reason. It’s graphically and sonically sharper and most importantly, more consistent across it’s levels. It refines things like gunplay and monster design in ways that move the game’s aesthetics forward while maintaining the classic gameplay loop that is addictive to this day.

I think if you’re a DOOM fan, this is a must play. It’s especially important now as the new Doom: The Dark Ages follows it and connects it to the newer entries, but it was always a great DOOM game. If you’re just a gamer in general, with $5 who wants something great to play, this is also a good one to pick up. But make sure you find out how to get to those secret levels. And most importantly of all, have fun.