clueless1 wrote on 2022-08-19, 10:41:
...Will be checking out some DOS RPGs this weekend too. 😉
Looking forward to hearing what you play this weekend, and thoughts/impressions!
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I had 20-30 minutes free between work and boxing, so I played
Wolfenstein 3D
This is a nostalgic classic from my younger years, and I remember this as being sort of a killer app for PCs. It was an action game that the consoles simply could not match at the time, as simple as it was (this would be repeated with DOOM of course). I never bothered revisiting it because it just seemed so simple compared with even DOOM... but this game is really quite excellent even now.
Yes, the levels are just giant mazes. Here's the thing: due to the engine limitations, you can use the good old "pick a wall and keep following it" trick to easily solve the levels. Without having to draw (or memorize) level layouts, it just becomes a really fun action game, almost arcade-like.
What make this game work are many of the same elements that make DOOM (and Quake) work so well. Enemies have different behaviors but they are simple enough to understand immediately. Enemies also have unique "barks" so you can tell right away what enemy has spotted you without even seeing it. The sound effects are very satisfying overall (ESPECIALLY the various treasures). Finally, even the weakest enemies can be lethal up close, and yet even the strongest enemies aren't really damage sponges. Enemies die after what seems like just the right amount of shots.
The game is a bit more challenging playing keyboard only, but not impossibly so. It quickly becomes second nature holding the ALT key to strafe left and right in open areas to "dodge" enemy attacks (although most if not all attacks seem to be hit scan) or peek into rooms. It seems very basic at first, but there's some depth in the same way that a good arcade game has depth.
I'm still on Episode 1, but nearing the end. My previous best was getting to the boss of Episode 2 and being unable to defeat him, so I hope at least to get to Episode 3 this time around. I feel like the game plays too fast on my P133 (thought not ridiculously fast), so I'll disable both caches next time to bring it to high end 386 speed.