Doom

DOOM is a series of First Person Shooter games created by iD Software for PC platforms, then later ported to multiple home computer and console platforms both commercially and by loyal fanbase of programmers. The early games are considered extremely influential in the popularization of the FPS genre, as well as being a significant milestone in the industry's move towards three-dimensional environments, multiplayer gaming and user made content. Products in the DOOM video-game series include:

• DOOM
• Ultimate DOOM
• DOOM II: Hell on Earth
• Master Levels for DOOM II
• Final DOOM
• DOOM 3
• DOOM 3: Resurrection of Evil

Doom and Half-Life

Half-Life owes much to DOOM for popularizing the basic mechanics of the genre it inhabits. As the prototypical Mid-90's FPS, DOOM was also the mould that Half-Life was specifically engineered to break out from. This is seen in everything from its non-monosyllabic name to its emphasis on story-telling and scripted sequences that set it apart from the simplistic run-and-gun mechanics of the DOOM clone.

Nevertheless, Half-Life has many points of similarity. The basic storylines of Half-Life and DOOM are identical: a Portal to another dimension inhabited by malevolent creatures is opened and must be closed after fighting to its source. Both games are also strictly adherent to the First Person Perspective, and progression through the game is gradual and logical, excepting teleportation events common to both.

Released several years before Half-Life, the early DOOM games are seldom seriously discussed in comparison with the Half-Life series. DOOM 3 and Resurrection of Evil however, are often compared with Half-Life 2, and usually unfavorably. Critical response to DOOM 3 was not just lukewarm when compared to Half-Life 2, it specifically referenced what Half-Life 2 was doing with the genre and condemned DOOM 3 for not doing anything to move the genre along (even though DOOM 3 appeared several months before Half-Life 2 was available to purchase). Certain features were felt to be archaic, such as the use of 'Monster Closets' and an extremely limited multiplayer option. Whereas Half-Life was praised for being far more than another 'DOOM clone', DOOM 3 was condemned for being a 'Half-Life clone'. This situation was compounded when Resurrection of Evil became the first game since Half-Life 2 to feature a Gravity Gun-esque weapon called the 'Grabber'.

Despite comparatively low review scores, DOOM 3 was felt to be a decent game and has been praised highly for its realistic and highly atmospheric lighting engine. On most counts, the iD Tech4 engine used in DOOM 3 was reckoned to be the most graphically advanced of any game at the time it was released. Despite this, iD Tech4 was not adopted by many third-party developers if compared with Source, or especially when compared with Epic Games' Unreal Engine 3.

A number of Valve Software's employees learned their trade by making and sharing custom content for the early DOOM games, and some, such as Final DOOM level designer Dario Casali were hired by Valve specifically on the strength of that content.

As a franchise, DOOM enjoyed some early success with many versions of the game released on a diverse number of platforms. There were a number of DOOM novels released as well, but popularity of the series was eventually eclipsed by ID Software's own Quake and later, Half-Life and Halo. Nevertheless, the DOOM brand was considered significant enough for Universal Pictures to release a DOOM movie in 2005 (And it currently remains the only major FPS property to have made the jump from game to film).

In August 2007, the DOOM series and other iD Software titles were added to Valve Software's Steam application after continuing good relations between the two companies.

Doom and halflife2.net

Whilst the early DOOM games are almost universally revered for their contribution to gaming, the recent title, DOOM 3, was received less favorably. As a competitor to Half-Life 2, DOOM 3 was endlessly compared and usually concluded to be unsatisfying. Usually, it was felt that Half-Life 2 simply provided a less frustrating brand of gameplay, but certain 'innovative' features in Half-Life 2 (Facial animation, characterization, physics manipulation) were felt to give Half-Life 2 the edge.