Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8917 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: ACTIVISION
• Released on: 2006-06-29
• Rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
• ESRB Rating: Adults Only
• Platform: Windows XP

Amazon.co.uk Review
The long awaited release of Doom 3 sees it claiming two of gaming’s highest accolades: that of having the best graphics ever seen and of being the scariest video game ever made. The question of graphics seemed a pretty open and shut case from the moment the game was announced--this is the first new title from legendary developers iD Software since Quake III: Arena and as such it features completely new graphics technology.

The reason the game is likely to win the Dr Who award for behind the sofa gaming is in the way it chooses to use its awesome new graphical power. The game’s storyline is a loose remake of the first Doom game (from way back in 1993) but the style of gameplay is actually radically different. This is more like a first person Resident Evil than anything else, with corpses lunging out at when you least expect it and monsters scattering their innards all over the place whenever you introduce them to the business end of your shotgun.

In actual fact though it’s not the graphics that are the most disturbing aspect of the game but the sound, with every unknown noise ratcheting the tension up so much that by the time a monster actually does appear it’s almost a relief to tangle with them. Doom 3 is not for the faint hearted and that’s not a warning to be taken lightly--anyone keen on wearing oversized women’s shirts will have a coronary within minutes. But for everyone else this is exactly what the doctor ordered. --David Jenkins

Manufacturer's Description
Science has unlocked the gates to the unknown. A Sci-Fi horror masterpiece, DOOM 3 is like nothing you've ever experienced. Dramatic storyline, pulse-pounding action, incredible graphics, and revolutionary technology combine to draw you into the most frightening and gripping first person gaming experience ever created.

Customer Reviews

A disaster in Mankind's Martian base and all of Hell breaks lose
I have only just started to play this game as my old 1.2GHz PC with 4x AGP graphics card just couldn't handle the action (there aren't enough in-game controls for reducing graphics requirements for such an old machine). Now we have an Nvidia 7950 graphics card and AMD-2 5000 PC this game has finally come to life. Game play, monsters and locations are pretty much as the original 1993/4 Doom I & II series, and as before you mostly just keep killing very nasty things until there are none left. However in Doom 3 the graphics quality, AI, and story development are in a different league, and you do have some interaction with other characters and droids.

The story is set in the year 2145 at the Union Aerospace Corporation (UAC) research centre on Mars. Dr. Malcolm Betruger and his team have discovered many artefacts of an ancient and long gone Martian race. Trying to recreate their transportation technology, the team finds that the transportation isn't as instant as it should be. It turns out that the portals are passing through somewhere very unpleasant, and it's not long before all Hell breaks loose. You, a Marine, arrive on the Mars base just as things start to go awry. It's not long before you are on your own, and soon after you wish you still were. As the power starts to fail you become increasingly dependent on your torch to see what's lurking the shadows, and you have to quickly change over to a weapon if it looks particularly unfriendly, as hitting an attacking demon with the torch doesn't get you very far. Occasionally you have to brave the Martian atmosphere with a respirator, but mostly you are wandering around the decimated base, picking up PDA's and data discs left around by the hapless UAC staff. These provide emails, voice recordings and reports that are essential information for your mission [to kick a lot of Demon b*tt]. The radio transmission of dying comrades, cut scenes of demon attacks and the eerie silence, with occasional loud machine noises from automatically operating plant, add to the creepy game-play, although most of the tension comes from the gloom and darkness. Plus [sadly] there's no stealth mode, so you can't hide in the shadows - as that's where 'they' lurk. The game has many levels: e.g. Mars City Underground, The Alpha & Delta Labs, Communications, Central Processing, The Monorail, and even a brief jaunt into Hell itself, before you have to face.........aargh! There are all the old weapons plus a few new ones: grenades, a machine gun and a mysterious alien artefact.

And the game play is very scary, plus you need a fast gaming PC to respond in time when attacked or it's all over. It took me a few weeks to complete the game, as towards the end it gets a bit too hard (I ended up using health and ammo cheats then). It's also easy to get stuck on the odd level looking for the way out - I needed an online walkthrough guide for one. You can save at any time for difficult sequences. So overall it was a very enjoyable, if rather creepy, game - it's not for preteens though. Highly recommended if you have a very fast PC, and now at a bargain price. There's also the expansion pack (Resurrection of Evil) available that's really worth getting now it's also going cheap. If you enjoy Doom 3, do try Thief III: Deadly Shadows - it's the exact opposite of doom 3 in a way as it's based on stealth and stealing and is set in a rather surreal medieval age, but it also has superbly atmospheric and tense game play (if not quite as slick as Doom 3) and it's more suitable for youngsters [rated 12+] as you can play without harming anyone.

Sounds scary
The old ones are the good ones and this runs very nicely on 32 bit vista (there is a patch online). I won't quibble about not being able to use the torch and aim a gun at the same time because I'm too busy being scared by this game. The daft thing is - it's obvious where the scares will come from and despite that the game still makes me jump. It's dark, gory and must be played in the dark wearing head phones. The sound in this game is amazing. This is a classic that should not be missed but I bought a second hand copy for only £4 and that makes the enjoyment sweeter.

We're all Doomed!
This game uses graphics and sound to create a genunely scay enviornment to play in. The puzzles are not too difficult and there's the usual range of weapons.

What let's it down for me is the repetition of the gameplay, shoot a monster, go through a door, shoot a zombie, go through a door...etc., etc.

Some of the creatures that appear in the later levels are just too tough to fight without either Spiderman's reflexes or us eof a cheat. I also lost interest in fighting demons from hell - the aliens and zombies were enough!

Perhaps they need to look at creating this kind of atmospheric world beyond the confines of corridors and rooms?