For the sheer thrill of (very) old PC gaming, there is no game I would recommend over Doom 2. Period. The middle child of the old Doom franchise is by far the best, even though it's merely a clone of the original Doom. Only for reasons unknown, Doom 2 plays better, is more furious, and more satisfying than its siblings. Perhaps it is the added double-barreled shotgun, or the game's creation itself, coming at a time ripe for progress. Firing up your old Compaq to play Doom 2 is a no-brainer. Games started going wrong after Doom 2. The original Doom series has many things going for it, several of which seem to have gone out of style as of late. Although two of these three points may seem trivial, I hope I leave you wondering why these video game features have disappeared from many modern games. The first and most important point is network connectivity. Doom is from 1993 and could still do multiplayer games over a network. The concept of multiplayer was born from Doom, which is remarkable since this was before Yahoo or Google, much less MySpace or Facebook. In 1993, if you were affluent enough to have a network and multiple computers on that network, up to four players could play the game together. The networking in Doom 2 made possible something that I miss terribly from video games: full, uninhibited, co-operative play. If you could gather four players on your network, you could not only have a deathmatch, but you could play the entire game, level for level, monster for monster, with your friends. Why has this feature disappeared from most modern games, especially from the PC world? The current console generation is at least scoring some points, while Valve seems to be the only true pioneer of co-op PC games. Co-op does not seem that difficult a concept, especially since the idea is 15 years old. My final point is level design. Since Doom 2's engine technology is virtually the same as the original Doom, id Software was able to work long and hard on Doom 2's level design, and the hard work shows. Doom 2's level design is of a quality rarely matched in today's world of high definition graphics. When the visual is over-emphasized, level design usually suffers. Each level in Doom 2 is specifically designed so that the par time (the designated time the game designers expect it will take to beat a certain stage) is not only passable, but integral to the game, as one must beat the par time in order to finish the level at the highest difficulty. Doom 2's labyrinth of tunnels, hidden doorways, and secret shortcuts are all specifically designed with the highest difficulty in mind. If you know the secrets and the par time, you can accomplish one of the most impressive feats in all of gaming, beating Doom 2 on Nightmare. Even though each difficultly level of Doom is progressively harder, you can still be victorious if you are skilled enough*. Yet, despite being difficult, the game anticipates every contingency. For example, it's possible to finish every level starting out with only a pistol, because the weapon placement throughout the level will allow the player - with great difficulty - to overcome any enemy on the map. You don't see level design like that anymore. Hell, you rarely see that kind of level freedom anymore, at least, not in first-person shooters. So, if you are thinking about firing up your old computer again, Doom 2 is a classic that is unrivaled, and still widely available to play on new computers. Doom 2 is one game where the age of the graphics does not diminish the game's overall greatness. This franchise from 1993 is still worthy of being on your 2009 rig. *If you think Doom's Nightmare mode is dauntingly difficult, this video shows that someone has defeated the setting. Each stage is unfolded and completed in the video, demonstrating the perfect level design.
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