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I would have liked the package to include the original, non-BFG edition (which is the one I've completed in the past). Also GOG have set the default to download and install Galaxy too, which is rubbish if you don't want to use it. Galaxy shouldn't be added to any standalone game files. If you want it, you'll install it separately; if you don't want it, you don't want it.
Otherwise it is Doom 3. Jumpscares, monster closets, silliness, slightly too long, annoying that bodies disappear in front of your eyes (Doom 1 was better for that). On the other hand, it has some tense scenes, some shooting action, and is a form of Doom.
I played Doom 3 when it came out on the original Xbox several months after the official PC release, and eventually got a PC copy of the game and its expansion pack when it made its way to Steam later on, and had a better computer. Needless to say, the switching between the flashlight to gun aspect, while it can be argued that it adds challenge, it also seemed like an unnecessary gameplay mechanic, as having the flashlight attached to your head does not really ruin the challenge aspect, as it has its own meter anyways.
Another big thing I see others complain about is the fact that the ammo supplies and such are supposedly more ample than the original, thus claiming that it undermines the challenge aspect of it. Well, honestly, that is what the nightmare difficulty is for. If you really want to be challenged, that's why those difficulty levels exist in the first place. One more thing I need to address is that the textures were not enough of an improvement to some, and lighting is different, and I'm going to stop you right there. The game originally released in 2004. Of course the graphics are not going to look as if it were made in 2012, and a proper widescreen feature was much needed, as I tried to toggle it on my original copy of Doom 3, and delivered a stretched picture.
I picked up the game on PS3 when it was released under the BFG Edition, since at the time, my machine wasn't powerful enough to run the PC version, but it seems that now that I got a hold of the PC version after upgrading to a gaming PC, I must say that I'm extremely impressed, especially with all of the one-star reviews I've seen throughout this page. This is a major upgrade in two ways from the PS3 version. Since I've got a gaming laptop, and a gaming desktop, I can take the experience with me anywhere, and the saving and loading screens are seamlessly fast in comparison to the PS3 release with frame rate options, and the awesome Lost Missions pack for the first time on PC! Its worth it!!
The *original* Doom 3 + Resurrection of Evil are now included. I have not tried the GOG version yet, but will update my review (via contacting Support to ask them to edit it) when I do. Just wanted to let people know the originals are now here.
Doom 3 did not quite stand up against its predecessors, and a relative lack of mods for it reflects that, but it still offers a highly enjoyable experience that I have personally played through multiple times. Whereas the preceding games (and even Doom 2016 that follows) focuses on raw action, challenges based on how many enemies can be played on a map and their locations, Doom 3 goes a different route, it is not the same genre of game. Doom 3 oozes in horror and sci-fi elements that lack in the rest of the series. The quiet moments are broken rather suddenly and often effectively with monster encounters.
Due to the change in genre and style, Doom 3 rarely features hordes of monsters, instead focusing on small encounters of up to 5 monsters at a time. The player's health is more rapidly depleted and the monsters are tougher to make up for it. On the latter two difficulty modes, this game is sure to give you all the challenge you could hope for :-)
On the BFG Edition: It is a largely faithful representation of the original Doom 3 release. A few areas are very subtly brightened up, the flashlight is no longer a separate 'weapon' (opting more for a Half Life style), and some extra ammo is added around the maps (I never had problems with abundant ammo in the original release anyway, but still, there's even more here). It includes a brand new expansion to whet the appetites of old fans, at least.
BFG Edition, sadly, is incompatible with mods for the original Doom 3, and that will be the majority of mods you will find on the internet. The original Doom 3 really needs to be sold on GOG or included as a bonus with this version, in my strong opinion.
The Doom series of first-person shooters is often a go-to for me and many others, but although many are enamoured with the oldschool genre-defining smashes of Doom 1 - Final Doom and Doom 64 and the mega-blockbusters of the new trilogy My personal favourite aside from The Dark Ages is the darker, edgier, and terrifying horror-themed oddball Doom 3.
UPDATE: They added the original version now. So now my earlier review has been invalidated. Now you should go for this and play it, because the original version, with the Dhewm3 source port, is an amazing horror-themed FPS with a dark Sci-fi atmosphere, intense gameplay, cool takes on the iconic weapons, impressive graphics, and some truly intense scares that I think will catch first-time players off-guard. Turn off the lights, bolt up the door and crank the volume up for this one, because it is unlike anything else in the Doom series and a must-play.
