What made you fall in love with Doom?

[Mraka]

I guess this is more specifically directed at the hardcore fans, however more casual fans are obviously welcome. Although i am not sure if this has been asked before.

What made you like Doom enough that you'd invest in a forum, play more than one game, or maybe buy the merchandise and so on?

 

With many sharing their experiences i figure i should share mine.

My exposure to Doom was very casual, i had a GBA and had the GBA Doom port. Later on i discovered Doom 64 for the PC and loved it, but that's about it for a while, casually playing the ports simply because emulators and roms are easy to come by, and because dead demons go brr. I think what kick started my love and appreciation for the series and community is when i found out about Brutal Doom, and surprisingly it could run on my toaster. That was also a rough time period for me, so all i did was put on my headphones and blast music while playing. After that i was pretty much hooked. It was/is sort of my go to after a rough day. Years later and here i am, a total Doom fan and even learning how to mod Doom. For a community full of people who rip and tear, they treat you like family. I hope to give something back to this community that continues to give so much.

Edited January 28, 2021 by Mraka

[CivilianM91]

The tone, for starters. I’ve always been a massive fan of schlocky horror so Doom just hit a sweet spot with me. At least, initially.

 

What kept the interest alive was more the rich history behind the series, id themselves, and the way it lent itself to learning things about game design. 
 

It’s one of the few series I try to own on every platform and has remained at least a semi-annual play through for the better part of the last two decades. I came into it past it’s “peak” (like ‘04- being born in 91 kinda barred me from really breathing in that Doom mania back then) but I’m so glad the series is still going, and as well as one could hope for such a game in the modern era.

Edited January 28, 2021 by CivilianM91

[Maximum Matt]

The whole shooty-shooty thing

[Doomkid]

The gameplay, the music and the atmosphere it sets, the cool designs of the enemies, the "somewhat difficult, but not unfair" nature of Doom1 and Doom2.. All the distinct elements come together to make a whole greater than the sum of it's parts.

 

They would have already cemented themselves as some of my favorite games on their baseline merits alone, but the online community in the late 90s and glut of excellent (and FREE) extra content being made by fans just made it crystal clear that Doom is the game that keeps on giving. Being inspired by the work of others and getting into level/sound/graphic/music editing for myself just sealed the deal that this would be a hobby spanning several decades.. Not to mention the excellent pvp multiplayer that is, imo, an unparalleled thrill.

 

Doom just gets it all right, and anything you think it doesn't get right, you can go in there and change for yourself until it IS right. I can't think of any other game where that's true, and has been true for well over 20 years. It's honestly stunning Doom didn't make the entire "Triple A" market crash and burn - I legitimately do not see the point in 98% of the video games that have been made, why even bother when there's still more Doom mods to play??

 

(That last sentence is partially sarcastic. Partially..)

[lokbustam257]

the shotgun and super shotgun

Edited January 27, 2021 by lokbustam257

[Diabolución]

The rest of games bores me like there is no tomorrow. Doom does not do so, it is different. Smooth gameplay, minimalist gameplay, cool exploits, no lame cinematics, no convoluted story, superb music, cool weapons, variety of foes, replayability, ultra-customisable... It feels to me like a bespoke game, simply fucking awesome. Perhaps, too fucking awewome...

 

In my family I am somewhat infamous for playing always the same game exclusively in each and every platform...

 

[xX_Lol6_Xx]

the music, especially the SNES version of e2m2 and e2m8. Those tracks sound even scarier

[DRM-MAN]

It being a shoot shoot game, as well as pissing off typical politicians, and also being a edgy 15 year old when doom 2 made it's way into my hands.

[Pseudonaut]

The gameplay mechanics and the limitless possibilities for using those mechanics interestingly in custom content. The existence of stuff like Sunlust, Ancient Aliens, Sunder, and many more.

[Hawk of The Crystals]

It being a 90's fps game, that's all.

[Mraka]

8 minutes ago, Doomkid said:

The gameplay, the music and the atmosphere it sets, the cool designs of the enemies, the "somewhat difficult, but not unfair" nature of Doom1 and Doom2.. All the distinct elements come together to make a whole greater than the sum of it's parts.

 

They would have already cemented themselves as some of my favorite games on their baseline merits alone, but the online community in the late 90s and glut of excellent (and FREE) extra content being made by fans just made it crystal clear that Doom is the game that keeps on giving. Being inspired by the work of others and getting into level/sound/graphic/music editing for myself just sealed the deal that this would be a hobby spanning several decades.. Not to mention the excellent pvp multiplayer that is, imo, an unparalleled thrill.

 

Doom just gets it all right, and anything you think it doesn't get right, you can go in there and change for yourself until it IS right. I can't think of any other game where that's true, and has been true for well over 20 years. It's honestly stunning Doom didn't make the entire "Triple A" market crash and burn - I legitimately do not see the point in 98% of the video games that have been made, why even bother when there's still more Doom mods to play??

 

(That last sentence is partially sarcastic. Partially..)

I couldn't have said it better myself. Call me a Doom addict, but if a game allows you to change it to your liking, that's a game I'll be playing for many more years to come. And with all the mods out there, games like cod are very easy to emulate in Doom. Get yourself some weapon mods, a map pack and maybe reskin the enemies and you're done. But most of all, no game can rip and tear like Doom did and can.

[Chopkinsca]

I have a rare disorder where I cannot at all explain why I like the things I like. I feel like Doom chose me instead of me choosing Doom.

[Dubbag]

The greatest art is that which offends us then draws us back in. When I was a child all I had played was cutesey Mario, Bomberman and Megaman. Then, I played Doom 64 in 1999 and was scared shitless. Nowadays to me it's an artistic atmospheric masterpiece in gaming and even though I love Doom and Doom 2, 64 will always have a special place in my heart as number one.

Edited January 28, 2021 by Dubbagdarrel

[maxmanium]

The moddability.

[dei_eldren]

For me, it's everything about the original game, and the way all the elements come together.  Quake and Heretic come close second, but they are second, and others are far behind (i guess from 8bit computers, games like Jet Set Willy, Manic Miner (funny thing is, i like Matthew Smith the same way i like Romero), and Ultimate Play The Game -games are on same level as Doom for me).  Even if Doom was just the 90s releases and Si666il i'd still play it.  (As a matter of fact, the reason i got back to Doom was finding out about Si666il, trying it out and then i found DW - i had no idea people making levels was such a thing before).  Even without Romero's new levels i would've got back to it sooner or later.  It never left my mind really.  i tried Doom3 when it came out but it didn't really do it for me.

 

So everything else except the base games are extra for me, which is nice, but even without them, i'd love Doom and play it.  Of course, without them, i wouldn't be making levels and composing music for it...so DW has certainly deepened my experience with Doom.

Edited January 28, 2021 by dei_eldren
grammar and typo

[Yumheart]

I love how it doesn't play like modern shooters, which I could never get in to, also the complete ridiculousness of the setting. I also really like the focus on traps and light trolling, less so in the original games, more so in modern maps. I dunno, I just enjoy that kinda stuff.

[Snark]

Evil Dead 2 + Speed Metal + Cybernetic Flesh hell.

 

In the 90's...

[DiR]

I initially picked up doom because of how it ran great on my crappy computer paired with the art style, and then came back to it a few years later because of it's moddability. It's really quick and easy to make weapon mods and custom maps for it along with the vast amount of community mods and resources that there's probably tons more content than I will ever get through.

 

Also, shooting the SSG for the first time. *chef's kiss*

[Yandere_Doomer]

I first played Doom on Dosbox on my dad's computer when i was little. but my Obsession really began when i was introduced to Brutal Doom. I love that it can run on Potatoes, it has a lot of content for it, and that it is really violent.

And recently i just passed the epic milestone that is beating Doom 1 and 2 on UV. 

[inkoalawetrust]

The fact that my computer is absolutely ancient, I don't remember how "downloading" Doom* came to my mind besides for that reason, but eventually I ended up downloading (GZ)Doom and FreeDoom somewhere around 2017, for some time I was even curious why my Doom looked so different because I'm stupid like that. Eventually I got the original IWADs themselves though, and also somehow found out about Oblige somewhere around that time. So I ended up messing around with a bunch of autogenerated maps and playing through them. After that I basically stopped caring about Doom until some point in 2019 when I came back to Oblige's generated maps for reasons I (You guessed it !) don't remember. And I was curious to see how the maps work, which lead to me finding out about Doom Builder 2, and then I began making some of my own maps and the rest is history that nobody else knows much about because I haven't released the majority of the maps I've made for one reason or another.


As for nowadays I guess I still stuck around because of the ability for me to create my own video game levels and shit, though at several times I stopped due to a lack of motivation and self esteem, though thankfully those 2 issues kind of went away in the past few months. Most recently I decided to finally make and release my own mapset, this being my second attempt doing so, but while working on it some screws must have went loose in my brain because I've gotten mentally fucked up since late Octomber/early November for some reason, which I still have not recovered from**, however I still kept working on the mapset and my other projects like several custom enemies, until about a week or two ago I just kinda lost interest on working on maps, so as of right now I'm just working on custom enemies/NPCs and stuff like that. My most recent project being a functional main battle tank with a seperate chassis and turret in (GZ)Doom, which I'll make a video of sometime tommorow HOPEFULLY. Here's a screenshot of it in the editor, with a Cyberdemon, Spider Mastermind and the player for size comparison:
 

Spoiler

Keep in mind that I didn't make the sprites for it myself, someone else made them for me, though I did have to do a bunch of editing to get them to work properly.

The mapset most likely WILL come out even if next year however, since the custom enemies (They will actually help you in-game.) I've been working on, including the above tank and another smaller tank I made before it, have all been ultimately for the mapset to use***.



*All I knew about Doom back in 2016-2017 only had to do with the original game, I didn't know about source ports and the difference between them and the IWADs.
**And kind of fear I never will since my life and mentall state haven't been the same since then, for example it has been a lot harder for me to really feel happy but whatever this is about Doom not my mind going kaput.
***I may release some of them on Realm667, especially the stuff I've made that doesn't use assets from Realm667 itself, such as the Half-Life inspired armor and health chargers I made entirely from scratch and the two tanks. I eventually want to make a customizable rain spawner as well to submit to R667 that isn't broken like the other one the site has.

[Boy]

Definitely the way the monsters all interact with each other, and the potential for high body counts in some wads. I don't think there's any other game where I can be fighting hundreds of enemies at once lmao.

[GraphicBleeder]

Shooty shooty bang bang gun.

[TheGreenZap]

Back in the 90s I was into computers big time and then along came Doom. Such a fun game and I loved the running around and shooting monsters. The new wads that came out made it even better. I remember when Area 51 came out. Such a cool wad!

I have been on hiatus for some time but recently wanted to play a game where I could just blast things and not have to think much. I was like, wait you idiot, you can play Doom!! So I’m back playing and trying out all kinds of new wads. I love it!

[Mraka]

47 minutes ago, inkoalawetrust said:

The fact that my computer is absolutely ancient, I don't remember how "downloading" Doom* came to my mind besides for that reason, but eventually I ended up downloading (GZ)Doom and FreeDoom somewhere around 2017, for some time I was even curious why my Doom looked so different because I'm stupid like that. Eventually I got the original IWADs themselves though, and also somehow found out about Oblige somewhere around that time. So I ended up messing around with a bunch of autogenerated maps and playing through them. After that I basically stopped caring about Doom until some point in 2019 when I came back to Oblige's generated maps for reasons I (You guessed it !) don't remember. And I was curious to see how the maps work, which lead to me finding out about Doom Builder 2, and then I began making some of my own maps and the rest is history that nobody else knows much about because I haven't released the majority of the maps I've made for one reason or another.


As for nowadays I guess I still stuck around because of the ability for me to create my own video game levels and shit, though at several times I stopped due to a lack of motivation and self esteem, though thankfully those 2 issues kind of went away in the past few months. Most recently I decided to finally make and release my own mapset, this being my second attempt doing so, but while working on it some screws must have went loose in my brain because I've gotten mentally fucked up since late Octomber/early November for some reason, which I still have not recovered from**, however I still kept working on the mapset and my other projects like several custom enemies, until about a week or two ago I just kinda lost interest on working on maps, so as of right now I'm just working on custom enemies/NPCs and stuff like that. My most recent project being a functional main battle tank with a seperate chassis and turret in (GZ)Doom, which I'll make a video of sometime tommorow HOPEFULLY. Here's a screenshot of it in the editor, with a Cyberdemon, Spider Mastermind and the player for size comparison:
 

  Reveal hidden contents

Keep in mind that I didn't make the sprites for it myself, someone else made them for me, though I did have to do a bunch of editing to get them to work properly.

The mapset most likely WILL come out even if next year however, since the custom enemies (They will actually help you in-game.) I've been working on, including the above tank and another smaller tank I made before it, have all been ultimately for the mapset to use***.



*All I knew about Doom back in 2016-2017 only had to do with the original game, I didn't know about source ports and the difference between them and the IWADs.
**And kind of fear I never will since my life and mentall state haven't been the same since then, for example it has been a lot harder for me to really feel happy but whatever this is about Doom not my mind going kaput.
***I may release some of them on Realm667, especially the stuff I've made that doesn't use assets from Realm667 itself, such as the Half-Life inspired armor and health chargers I made entirely from scratch and the two tanks. I eventually want to make a customizable rain spawner as well to submit to R667 that isn't broken like the other one the site has.

Thank you for sharing kinsman, that was legit amazing. And i seriously hope you get better, mental health is definitely something not taken lightly. I advise training and meditation, but i am by no means a coach, you do you, what works for me may not work for you. I actually love your ideas and would love to play your maps and mods, if possible, please hit me up whenever you create something or want something tested, I'm always down. I feel there are plenty of us who can relate to having ancient PC's, i mean have you seen the price of gaming laptops and computers today?

[VoanHead]

The game in itself, while not a true masterpiece since there's flaws in it (but it doesn't take away how fucking dope it is), is just really fun to play. The music is pretty good, the various commercial maps partially influenced the map making that is of today, and also because of the countless wads and gameplay mods made for the game that just gives it multiple replay value to whatever wad you play. Note, I never heard of this game up until the mid 2010s, and I never grew up with this game so there's no nostalgia goggles that gives bias towards this game, it's just that fucking good.

[Elzatraz]

It's been said before, but honestly, it's the speed-rewarding gameplay and the communities behind it all that made me fall in love with this series. I played a lot of shooters growing up, from Perfect Dark to Halo 2, and eventually, it all kinda clicked that I grew less fond of hide-shoot-hide style of games, and liked a more...I suppose run-and-gun, arcadey feel to them. Doom perfectly fits that mold for me, and with hundreds upon thousands of mods and levels out there created by the community, I pretty much never have to worry about running out of content, either. This game has been something I've come back to year after year, often times as a destress tool after a long day of work. 

[Mr.Rocket]

In short, initially it was the multiplayer deathmatch that drew me in, and then when I found that I was able to create a level and play DM in that also, that's all she wrote.

I started playing Doom when it was released. There was no other games that I had back then that was able to do such a thing. 

[ketmar]

i was learning programming back then, and when i saw it, it was: "how the fuck did they coded it?! let's play it and see where it will break!"

[Bridgeburner56]

Archviles >:D

[AtticTelephone]

Modding community, since apparently Doom modding was easy to learn and didn't require much effort, at least to make a map. I'm actually quite new to the doom community and haven't been here for even a year yet, but I know why people still love and play this ol game.