GBA Doom Review?

[TheNerdTurtle2]

So I just got Doom on my GBA after deciding it was worth the money. However every review online of the game seems to be made by a non doomer who says: "looks just like the pc version in every way" So I'm wondering if you guys want a typed out review of the game that really features the differences between this and the PC version. I'm not going to do it if there is no interest in it

[Use]

I think that would be a fun read. Though most of this stuff is already fairly outlined at the wiki, it would be ok with your spin on it.

[TheNerdTurtle2]

Use3D said:

I think that would be a fun read. Though most of this stuff is already fairly outlined at the wiki, it would be ok with your spin on it.

Didn't know that existed haha, well I already started making the review so I'll be sure to post back here in a few days my opinion and whether or not this port is good IMO

EDIT: I took a look and I can go much more in depth than the wikia goes

[Edward850]

TheNerdTurtle2 said:

wikia

*AHEM* http://doomwiki.org/

[TheNerdTurtle2]

Edward850 said:

*AHEM* http://doomwiki.org/

Thank you hahaha and even though this goes more in depth it still doesn't have that much information, I already started typing up a ton of differences so I think I'll continue to do that :P

[VGamingJunkie]

It's more based on the Atari Jaguar version, except with GBA instrumental music (Oddly placed up a level) and disappearing corpses. And, of course, green blood to get a T rating. The GBA version of Doom 2 is more or less based on the PC version with green blood and disappearing corpses but it's a different game engine.

[Quasar]

MetroidJunkie said:

It's more based on the Atari Jaguar version, except with GBA instrumental music (Oddly placed up a level) and disappearing corpses. And, of course, green blood to get a T rating. The GBA version of Doom 2 is more or less based on the PC version with green blood and disappearing corpses but it's a different game engine.

The music order seems to be inherited from the Jag, as the first song that Jag would play, in the intermission after E1M1, was the music for E1M2.

[Darklordrobert]

The music in GBA Doom sounded like it was remixed, or was put through a cheap midi convertor or something. Some songs like Demons on the Prey and Nobody Told Me About ID sound almost nothing like their PC counterparts.
Doom 2's music on the GBA is much more faithfull to the PC version even though most songs are shortened a bit.

[40oz]

GBA Doom is a port of Jaguar Doom, which means there are a few areas in some of the maps that are chopped from the game, there are no middle textures (like fences and vines) and E3M1 is an entirely different map (which may be a good or a bad thing depending on how you feel about it)

things that suck is that the music isn't assigned to the right maps. It seems off by one, the first level uses D_E1M2, level 2 uses D_E1M3, etc. which is a little annoying. Red blood has been sloppily pallete swapped to green, monster corpses dissappear after a second or two, E2M8 and E3M8 have been axed from the game, which means there is no cyberdemon or spider mastermind at the end of the two episodes. Nightmare is the same as Ultra Violence. Frame rate gets choppy (but not unbearable) in large areas, especially with "dynamic lighting" on (which just means there can be light and dark areas as opposed to "static lighting" which is the equivalent of wearing Light Amplification Visors)

Other than that its surprisingly close to PC Doom and very nice to have portable doom on the go. Even though theres a few things that suck, the game is pretty well preserved and very fun to play, as is regular Doom.

[hardcore_gamer]

Biggest problem with GBA Doom is that seeing things from a distance is extremely hard. Another problem is that beating Doom 2 is almost impossible because it's so much harder than Doom 1 and dying means having to restart the whole level. I never made it past the first 8-12 levels in GBA Doom 2 for this reason T_T

[TheNerdTurtle2]

Yeah I'm typing a whole review on this port and reading lots on the wiki to make sure everything I find is correct, I've also found many more differences than the wiki points out :) I'm having fun

[VGamingJunkie]

One thing I found interesting was that, unlike the BFG Edition, Doom II GBA didn't lazily strip out all the detail textures in the Wolfenstein levels. Instead, swastikas are replaced with eagles and Hitler's replaced with some other guy. The SS Guards aren't even changed. This is the proper way to censor. Hell, if they just straight up couldn't use the German voice, there's a perfectly fine English one from the SNES port of Wolfenstein 3D.

[Danfun64]

I agree that using the GBA textures and the SNES voices for the SS would have been a better way of censoring than what was done for Doom 3 BFG. Even better, doing things that way wouldn't have resulted in desyncs or incompatibilities with custom levels...

*sigh*

[LGN-76]

MetroidJunkie said:

Instead, swastikas are replaced with eagles and Hitler's replaced with some other guy.

Sorry to be anal, but that "other guy" (according to Wikipedia) is Deathshead from the modern Wolfenstein series. The pic would've been from Return to Castle Wolfenstein to be exact...

EDIT:
Just looked at the vid and that does look like Deathshead in the pics. Also, if you look really closely, the banners where the swastikas were replaced with eagles, those aren't eagles. That's the new Wolfenstein logo. I always did think that the GBA secret levels were re-designed partly as a tie-in to RTCW...

[Da Eediot]

40oz said:

E2M8 and E3M8 have been axed from the game, which means there is no cyberdemon or spider mastermind at the end of the two episodes.

The GBA has limited capabilities. Because of that, it doesn't have space for larger sprites and the ability to see things far away.

[Jayextee]

Da Eediot said:

The GBA has limited capabilities. Because of that, it doesn't have space for larger sprites and the ability to see things far away.

And yet Doom II on GBA had both of these things.

[Da Eediot]

Jayextee said:

And yet Doom II on GBA had both of these things.

40oz said Doom 2 on the GBA didn't have those levels.

[Jayextee]

Da Eediot said:

40oz said Doom 2 on the GBA didn't have those levels.

On the one hand, no he didn't. He said, correctly, Doom (1) GBA lacks Tower of Babel and Dis, which it does.

However, you asserted that the GBA couldn't handle large sprites nor open areas AND YET Doom II has Gotcha! -- a map featuring this impossible triad of openness, Cyberdemon and Mastermind.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nX1E4CdTjHE

[Da Eediot]

Jayextee said:

On the one hand, no he didn't. He said, correctly, Doom (1) GBA lacks Tower of Babel and Dis, which it does.

However, you asserted that the GBA couldn't handle large sprites nor open areas AND YET Doom II has Gotcha! -- a map featuring this impossible triad of openness, Cyberdemon and Mastermind.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nX1E4CdTjHE

Really? Huh.

[VGamingJunkie]

In fact, the only two levels that the GBA couldn't handle as they were on the PC (They were split in half on the GBA) is the Industrial Zone and Chasm. All other levels are completely intact and, save for disappearing corpses, seemingly no concessions were made to make that happen.

[Quasar]

MetroidJunkie said:

In fact, the only two levels that the GBA couldn't handle as they were on the PC (They were split in half on the GBA) is the Industrial Zone and Chasm. All other levels are completely intact and, save for disappearing corpses, seemingly no concessions were made to make that happen.

Not true. Several maps are modified to limit lines of sight and reduce detail. For example, walls were added in MAP03 which reduce the line of sight distance from the lift leading up to the blue key area. The Crusher is similarly modified, as a wall is present in front of the lift leading down, preventing a line of sight from that lift to the far wall.

Either there are static limits to the drawable objects in the Southpaw Engine, or there is a hard limit on draw distance. Either way, the levels are NOT pristine.

[Da Eediot]

It's still impressive for a GBA game.

[betabox]

Yeah I'm looking forward to that review. It's really neat comparing the PC originals to the console (and handheld) versions, especially when taking into account each one's development history.

[TheNerdTurtle2]

buttspit said:

Yeah I'm looking forward to that review. It's really neat comparing the PC originals to the console (and handheld) versions, especially when taking into account each one's development history.

Thanks :) That's really nice of you to say you're looking forward to it, I'm about 45ish% done with the cold hard facts, then I'm going to write my personal opinions