Between nowadays archaic Wolf3D and over the top, cinematic driven New Order there is RTCW, reboot of the series from 2001. While story begins almost the same as old Wolf3D, it quickly goes its own way. Instead of traversing endless mazes, you will visit titular Castle Wolfenstein, catacombs, bombarded city, secret labs, villages... Secret hunting, however, it still there. Game encourages stealth approach. Some guns can be equipped with silencers, and by not alerting Nazis you can easily kill them one by one, instead of all at once. Sometimes stealth it's mandatory, but most of time you can play in all-guns-blazing style if you prefer. Enemies are varied, despite being limited by story setting: from Third Reich troops through zombies to Ubersoldaten. Graphically, game aged rather well - locations look realistic, as well as weapons and especially soldiers uniforms. And last, but not least - orchestral music composed by Bill Brown perfectly matches gameplay. It easily steals the spotlight and holds up even today. However, RTCW is not perfect. This is probably the only FPS where I wish there were less weapons: pistols, Thompson and Snooper are almost never used. Explosive weapons are also underwhelming, Nazis will run away from grenades every time. SS Female Guards appearance steps into weird leather fetish territory, which I feel does not match rest of the game. Also I wish enemies spoke proper German, instead of English with German accent with couple "jawohls" here and there. Subtitles aren't THAT scary :) And lastly, RTCW won't run on modern OS at all unless fanmade high-res patch is applied. While I understand that GOG wants to preserve game as it was released, but additional checkbox for patch during installation would be nice :) Despite being nitpicky in previous paragraph, I consider RTCW the best game in the series. I recently came back to it after many years and I was surprised how well it has aged. Highly recommended.
I really don't like writing negative reviews - especially when some aspects of game are really well made, like graphics and music. But it is a computer game after all, and if bare bones of gameplay are faulty then even best gfx and sfx won't help. Below I wrote list of issues I encountered when I was playing Linux version of Armikrog: - Some reviews pointed out that system mouse cursor is displayed instead of custom one. Well, in my case game displayed BOTH. - After pressing ESC and opening main menu during gameplay, you cannot go back to your game. What about some confirmation dialog? - You cannot control volume of sound effects, music or speech. - You cannot see what's in your inventory. - At some point music and some sound effects stopped playing. Reopening game helped. - Sometimes overwriting saved game does not work. I used new save slots each time afterwards. - Some puzzles can be easily solved by clicking blindly. - For one character, subtitles appeared AFTER he stopped talking. - Leaving rooms is very bizarre: if main character just enters room, and you click on opposite edge of screen to leave it, he will turn around and come back to previous room! You must move cursor a little bit and then click so he will walk where you want to. - I reached dead end in the middle of the game. Animation of main character, crucial to move story further, looped itself for first second and didn't play further. I uninstalled the game shortly afterwards. Mind you, I'm not a adventure games veteran - I had played Neverhood when I was a kid and a couple ScummVM supported games more recently, but that's it. But even I can spot some bugs or weird UX quirks, which old games had ironed out long ago. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend Armikrog to anyone.
Strife tries to be more than just generic FPS. Non-linear hubs instead of episodes appeared previously in Hexen, but this time player has different objectives to achieve instead of endless switch hunting across multiple levels. Player can talk to fully-voiced NPCs and obtain quests from them. Some levels require stealth approach - enemies won't fire first, but if you would make too much noise alarm would be turned on and enemies would start firing on sight. RPG-like leveling is introduced, albeit in limited form. And lastly, multiple endings are available to achieve. Truly, Strife was a game like no other at the time, mixing FPS with adventure and role-playing genres. Interesting story setting and comicbook-like art also help the game stand out of the crowd. Unfortunately, Strife has some flaws. Weapons are hard to use, especially before upgrading accuracy. Hitting anything which is away from you is next to impossible. Grenades are clunky, rockets are ridiculously slow and crossbow quickly becomes obsolete. Level design varies from nicely detailed, realistic maps (village) to bland mazes (sewers). A lot of them are symmetrical, which quickly start to look like a lazy way to extend gameplay. Enemies are mostly either indistinguishable mechs or cloned acolytes. It looks like devs were more focused on uncommon features, while paying less attention to FPS basics. Nightdive's work on this remake is splendid: lighting effects and bloom do wonders with dated original gfx. Quality of life improvements are also welcome: modern controls are enabled by default, damage indicator shows from which side you are attacked and modified automap now shows indicator where you should go. Strife is an experiment where not everything went 100% well, and later games extended its basic ideas - but it's still enjoyable game. Personally, I started to enjoy it after defeating Programmer (~1-2 hours of gameplay). It may be not for everyone, so consider downloading shareware version first.
id Software's next title after Doom does not diverge far away from it predecessor. It's once again action-packed FPS with excuse plot "one hero against army of monsters". But Quake is scarier game than Doom due to new true 3D engine. Not only it allowed more creative architecture and replaced sprites with 3D models, but also because of limited color palette sense of dread is emphasized. Quake has dark ambient soundtrack, which fits overall atmosphere, but I find it not as memorable as Hexen or Blood OST. Level design is uneven - while techbase maps are boring, levels taking place inside castles and dungeons are filled to the brim with nasty traps and creepy monsters. While levels are more abstract than maps from Build engine games, they are indeed very fun to play. This release also has two mission packs. One of them, Scourge of Armagon, is much better than the other. Level design is better than in base game: techbase maps are more challenging (due to new monsters), and Black Cathedral is the best map in whole pack. New weapons and powerups are nice addition, but they don't change gameplay much. Dissolution of Eternity looks less polished. Many new monsters are reskinned versions of already existing models. New guns are really overpowered. But DoE also have its strengths: maybe to compensate powerful weapons, final boss is the most difficult monster in whole series. Maps are also well-designed and sometimes uniquely themed. This package contains original DOS and Windows binaries. Kudos to GOG for releasing game with soundtrack (as CD image), because some re-releases do not contain music! I recommend using some more modern source port, like Quakespasm. It's more stable on Windows and also supports Linux & Mac. To sum up: Quake isn't perfect. But atmosphere and gameplay are so good, that they will make you forget about game's issues. It's influence and modding community also can't be overlooked. If I could, I would give 4,5/5 - so I will round score up to 5/5 :)
This review concerns only source port, since all content is the same as in Shadow Warrior Classic Complete (base game plus both mission packs). This is a solid remaster of old DOS classic. It has essential features you would expect from modern source port: mouselook, high resolution support... However, I would expect something more: maybe additional episode or optional graphical effects. For now, main difference between Classic and Redux versions is usage of either DosBox or native binaries. Comparing to cheaper Strife: Veteran Edition, which has extra sidequest and slight graphical overhaul (and not mentioning Doom with plenty of free source ports) makes Redux look like a low effort release. Don't get me wrong: I would pick Redux over Classic any day. It is stable, easier to configure, bug-free and it also has Linux support. I just wish that it had some extra features over free Classic version to justify its price tag. Retro FPS fans should add this to their wishlist and wait for discount :)
First contact with Doom 2 might be disappointing, since it looks exactly like its prequel: the same engine, monsters, weapons, SFX and GFX assets... Doom 2 introduces only new soundtrack, one new weapon, one new power-up and seven new monsters. Looks like a cheap sequel made for a quick buck, isn't it? Well, it would be if gameplay wasn't so addictive! Those additions are not huge, but greatly extend combat. Maps are also designed with more crowded battles in mind. All of this results in a familiar, but endlessly fun experience. I spent years playing Doom 2 and still have a blast running like a madman, avoiding projectiles and killing hordes of demons. But wait, there's more! In this package there are two standalone map packs (TNT: Evilution and The Plutonia Experiment, collectively known as Final Doom) and Master Levels for Doom 2. - TNT is a fan-made mappack made official: some maps look professional, while others are amateurish. Still worth playing, though. - Plutonia is crafted with experienced players in mind: even first maps pose a great challenge. You should beat D2 and TNT before on Ultra-Violence difficulty level before you attempt playing Plutonia. - Master Levels are bunch of single maps which need to be loaded during game startup. Some of them are rather easy, some are very hard, but all of them are well designed and worth your time. To sum up, whole package contains an astounding number of 117 maps to beat! And don't forget about thousands of user made maps and mods floating on the web for years. Even if Doom 2 looks like more of the same for a first glance, it's definitely worth buying - even more than Doom 1.
Blood is considered best game using Build engine, and for a good reason. What it lacked in a visuals, it delivered in gameplay and atmosphere. First and foremost - this game is hard, but it's not an unfair challenge. Enemy and weapon roster is varied: you will fight against cultists, zombies, gargoyles and other monsters. Your arsenal consists of shotgun, dynamite, voodoo doll and even a lighter with spray can. You will need to learn not only how you use your weapons efficiently, but also which monster is more resistant to which weapon. Levels are very well designed, despite being complex you won't get lost. The more memorable maps are opera house, burned home near swamp, haunted hotel, funfair, lumber mill turned to people-killing facility... The list goes on. And each map is filled to the brim with secrets and easter eggs (my favourite: jukebox, which instead of music plays screams of murdered people). Sound effects and music are just marvelous. Game comes with two soundtracks (CD Audio and MIDI), and both of them just drip with atmosphere of dread. It's easily the best horror music I've ever heard in retro FPS, only Hexen comes close. Game is filled to the brim with chilling SFX. Graphics, despite using dated engine for a 1997 standards, maintain the gloomy mood. Sprites are detailed, and some of them can be replaced with 3D models made with voxels. So, what about the remaster itself? I've been playing latest version (1.9.10) and experienced no crashes and glitches. However, comparing to work done by Nightdive with Strife, I wish that there was native Linux/Mac support. Thankfully, Wine works great with Blood. Moreover, with Strife devs went extra mile with additional sidequests and eye-candy, which is missing there. Anyway, right now it's stable reconstruction of original game engine. And if you want original DOS version, then it's also included in the package (it used to be sold separately). If you have never played it before, get it now!
Hocus Pocus is a 2D platformer released by Apogee. I loved it when I was a kid, but recently I replayed it... and unfortunately some cracks appeared on my nostalgia glasses. Still a fun game, though. On a technical level, it is really well done. Colorful VGA graphics and cheerful MIDI soundtrack are easily the best part of the game. Both level setting and music changes every two levels (except boss levels), and while halfway through some assets would be recycled from previous episodes, the outcome is always different. You don't finish level by reaching end sign - you have to collect all crystals instead, in any order. I hoped for a more non-linear levels, but some of them are designed in a way that there's only one right path. Also I wish there were more crystals than required - it would make levels worth revisiting. Anyway, level design is competent, with treasures to collect, secret areas to find, puzzles to solve (all of them rely on setting switches up or down in a correct order, unfortunately) and occasional nasty traps. Unfortunately, game get predictable very quickly, because game will show you most of its tricks in a first episode. If there is fire power-up, then for sure horde of enemies would spawn nearby. There are many types of monsters, but all of them are combination of two properties: walking/flying and melee/ranged. Enemy roster pales in comparison with Jill of the Jungle or Duke Nukem 1&2. But the biggest disappointment for me are the boss fights - three out of four are just stationary targets throwing fireballs at you, and fourth just runs towards you. All of them are ridiculously easy, you can defeat them on a first try. Despite my complaining, I had a good time with Hocus Pocus. It's occasionally difficult (I played on Hard), levels are well designed, audiovisual presentation is spot-on... But it just gets repetitive and it lacks something unique among other games at the time. Fans of retro 2D platformers should get a copy.
Jill of the Jungle is one of first games published by Epic MegaGames. It is fondly remembered for a reason, but it's not without issues. You should not get bored: apart from classic run-and-jump levels, Jill can transform into fish, frog or flaming bird. This adds some variety to the gameplay: for example, after morphing into bird, you can visit places otherwise unavailable for Jill. You will also come across some puzzles, and despite most of them relying on switching levers in correct order, they are usually presented in a unique manner. Levels are usually filled with enemies, which can be taken out with either knife or spinning blade. To be honest, enemies are more of nuance than actual threat (with a few exceptions). Game is more focused on platforming and puzzles than fight. Unfortunately, whole trilogy is very short. You can finish all three games in about 3-4 hours, depending on your skill. But even inexperienced players should not have much trouble with beating this game. Technically, Jill tried to surpass Apogee games at the time - and it shows. Game uses VGA 256 color graphics, and while sprites are not as detailed as in, let's say, Goodbye Galaxy, they have their charm. You can save the game at any point. Gamepad is also supported. Music is really catchy, it's easily one of the strongest points of Jill. Instead of using PC Speaker for sound effects, it plays prerecorded samples. Some of them sound a little bit bizarre - for example, during last episode, when Jill throws a knife a lion roar can be heard! Overall, it's a fun little game with some flaws. Try it if you like platform or DOS games. There's nothing to lose, since it's free :) If you enjoy Jill of the Jungle, then go and download Xargon. It's another Epic platformer using modified Jill engine, and which had been released as freeware a couple years ago. It has everything what made Jill good and adds something extra (better graphics, inventory, etc.)
