The Ultimate Doom (or just Ultimate Doom informally) is an updated version of the classic Doom and an expansion to it. Developed and released in April 30, 1995 by id Software itself, this first-person shooter brought some enhancements in relation to the original Doom, being the most evident the fourth and, until then, new episode: Thy Flesh Consumed. It was also designed to be the definitive Doom version.
The Ultimate Doom was made as an incentive in the distribution of the boxed game through retail stores and venues, although, to be fair to fans who had previously registered Doom, id provided them with a freely available patch to upgrade Doom v1.9 to this enhanced version.
In The Ultimate Doom, much like the original Doom, the player takes control of an unnamed marine (our good ol' Doomguy) who must battle his way through four episodes, and single-handedly eliminate each guardian of Hell; the twin Barons of Hell (E1M8), the Cyberdemon (E2M8) and the Spider Mastermind (E3M8). The difference here is that he will have to face another Spider Mastermind at E4M8.
In The Ultimate Doom, much like the original Doom, the player takes control of an unnamed marine (our good ol' Doomguy) who must battle his way through four episodes, and single-handedly eliminate each guardian of Hell; the twin Barons of Hell (E1M8), the Cyberdemon (E2M8) and the Spider Mastermind (E3M8). The difference here is that he will have to face another Spider Mastermind at E4M8.
Video
The following video was recorded with The Ultimate Doom vanilla (running on DOSBox) and is in portuguese. But we plan to subtitle it as soon as we can.Plot
In the future, humans started colonizing the Solar System. On Mars, the Union Aerospace Corporation has established a radioactive waste facility and allowed the military to conduct teleportation experiments on the red planet's moons, Deimos and Phobos. Hours ago, the base on Mars began receiving incoherent distress messages from Phobos, while Deimos has disappeared completely. With all attempts to establish contact failing, you and your team have been dispatched to investigate. Upon arrival, you secure the perimeter as the rest of your team enters the facility. As you stand guard, your radio crackles with the sound of gunfire, cracking bones and blood-curdling screams and eventually falls silent. Alone, with no way off the planet and nothing more than your pistol, 50 bullets and a brass knuckle, there’s only one way out: get into the complex of death and face the horrors that await you within. If you plan to get out of here alive you must fend off the hordes of demonic imps, haunting spectres and your undead, former comrades waiting to tear you limb from limb.
Some were already present on Doom II, like namely sector type 17, switches that require keys to activate, and other linedef actions (such as fast doors) were used in the additional levels. John Romero, who also built two of these maps, modified E1M1 with openings into the central courtyard to allow more circulation among opponents on deathmatches.
Since The Ultimate Doom was built while id was involved in other projects, not much thought was put into making it consistent with the previously developed plot of the game (which included Doom II events, which happens occurs after the new episode), they simply concentrated on straightforward action, which was always been the Doom focus anyway. As a result, the locales of the levels are unclear, and one is not certain if the protagonist is still in Hell, already on Earth, or somewhere in between. The final message and screen with Doomguy's pet Daisy arguably reinforces the thesis that the team focused on the levels and not in the background story or any general aesthetic considerations.
Note: This post is like a placeholder. It is still pretty simplified but I plan to enrich it eventually. Any contributions will be appreciated.
Enhancements
Besides the new episode with its new nine maps (seven regular ones, one secret and a boss one), the Ultimate Doom also features some technical enhancements.Some were already present on Doom II, like namely sector type 17, switches that require keys to activate, and other linedef actions (such as fast doors) were used in the additional levels. John Romero, who also built two of these maps, modified E1M1 with openings into the central courtyard to allow more circulation among opponents on deathmatches.
Development
The game's design was led by John Romero with American McGee and Shawn Green. Romero recruited two prominent level designers from the fan community, John "Dr. Sleep" Anderson (who eventually helped John Romero in Daikatana) and Tim Willits (who later became id Software's lead designer). There were also some quick graphic jobs made by the artists.Since The Ultimate Doom was built while id was involved in other projects, not much thought was put into making it consistent with the previously developed plot of the game (which included Doom II events, which happens occurs after the new episode), they simply concentrated on straightforward action, which was always been the Doom focus anyway. As a result, the locales of the levels are unclear, and one is not certain if the protagonist is still in Hell, already on Earth, or somewhere in between. The final message and screen with Doomguy's pet Daisy arguably reinforces the thesis that the team focused on the levels and not in the background story or any general aesthetic considerations.
Trivia
Before The Ultimate Doom was released, its title was supposed to be The Definitive Doom Special Direction. References to such are found in the game's source code. Also, in the MS-DOS installer, the default installation directory is DOOM_SE and features DOOM: Special Edition on the title bar.Note: This post is like a placeholder. It is still pretty simplified but I plan to enrich it eventually. Any contributions will be appreciated.
More
- The Ultimate Doom @ Gaming Room - The original post at our main website, with more info, screenshots and stuff. It's in portuguese, though.
Download
The Ultimate Doom is not a freeware but you can purchase and download it at GOG for a fair price. Besides the game itself, will also get its manual and the famous Doom Bible, the original design document for the document written by Tom Hall in 1992. It's also compatible with Windows
(XP, Vista, 7, 8, 10) and you can use The Ultimate Doom IWAD to play with advanced ports such as GZDoom or Zandronum.
Also, when you buy The Ultimate Doom on GOG, The Elder Scrolls: Arena and The Elder Scrolls Chapter II: Daggerfall will be added to your account for free.
Also, when you buy The Ultimate Doom on GOG, The Elder Scrolls: Arena and The Elder Scrolls Chapter II: Daggerfall will be added to your account for free.
- Windows XP/Vista/7/8/10
- Processor: 1.8 GHz Processor
- Memory: 512MB RAM (1 GB recommended)
- Graphics: 3D graphics card compatible with DirectX 7 (compatible with DirectX 9 recommended)
- Hard Drive: 2GB HDD
- Mouse, Keyboard
Comments
Post a Comment