Final Doom
Encyclopedia
Final Doom is a first-person shooter
video game that uses the game engine, items and characters from Doom II
. It consists of two 32-level megawads (level files), The Plutonia Experiment by the Casali brothers
, and TNT: Evilution by TeamTNT
. Final Doom was released in 1996 and distributed as an official id Software
product. In addition to the PC
versions, Final Doom was also released for the PlayStation; that version included a selection of Final Doom and Master Levels for Doom II levels combined into one game.
The PC version is widely considered to be significantly more difficult than Doom or Doom 2.
Dario Casali addressed the difficulty level of the Plutonia episode in an interview on Doomworld, stating "Plutonia was always meant for people who had finished Doom 2 on hard and were looking for a new challenge. I always played through the level I had made on hard, and if I could beat it too easily, I made it harder, so it was a challenge for me."
, a group of WAD
-making hobbyists who were active on the advanced Doom editing mailing list
. Just days before it was to be released as a free download online, the project was acquired by id Software
, and finished in November 1995.
Brothers Dario and Milo Casali, who had contributed four level
s to TNT: Evilution, were assigned the task of creating what became Plutonia after having sent an 8-level WAD they had created to American McGee
and managing to impress him along with the rest of the id Software crew. They created 16 levels each for Plutonia in four months time, and submitted them in January 1996. Unlike their contributions to TNT: Evilution, which were edited after submission (four were also rejected due to being too large to run on the computers of the day), these were the final revisions of the levels, and Dario Casali later commented about the fact that no changes were requested, "Thank God because I was ready to throw my computer out the window at the time". Final Doom is the only Doom game to ever be advertised.
once again are intent on developing and experimenting with dimensional gateway technology. They set up a base on Io
, one of the moons of Jupiter
, with a solid detachment of space marine
s for protection. The marines do their job well: when the first experimental gateway is opened they annihilate the forces of Hell
. Research continues with more confidence and all security measures turned at the gateway.
A few months later, the yearly supply ship comes ahead of schedule, and looks strange and unusually big on the radar. The lax radar operators decide that there is nothing to worry about. The personnel of the base go out to behold the terrible truth: it is a spaceship from Hell, built of steel, stone, flesh, bone and corruption. The ship's enormous gates open to unleash a rain of demon
s on the base. Quickly, the whole facility is overrun, and everyone is slain or zombified.
The main character, the nameless space marine (who was revealed to be the marine commander on the moon) has been away on a walk at that time and thus escapes death or zombification. After being attacked by an imp
, he rushes back to the base where he sees the demonic spaceship still hovering above it and realizes what has happened. Then he swears that he would avenge his slain troops and sets out to kill as many demons as possible.
In the end, the marine defeated the Icon of Sin and the game describes "something rumbles in the distance. A blue light glows within the ruined skull of the demon-spitter."
After Hell
's catastrophic invasion of Earth
, the global governments decide to take measures against any possible future invasion, knowing that the powers of Hell still remained strong. The UAC
is refounded under completely new management (the old trustees and stockholders were all dead anyway) and aims at developing tools that would prevent demonic invasions.
The scientists start working on a device known as the Quantum Accelerator that is intended to close invasion Gates and stop possible invasions. The experiments are carried out in a secret research complex, with a stationed detachment of marines. The work seems to be going well but the creatures from Outside have their attention drawn towards the new research. A Gate opens in the heart of the complex and unnatural horrors pour out. The Quantum Accelerator performs superbly: the Gate is quickly closed and the invasion is stopped. Research continues more boldly.
On the next day, a ring of 7 Gates opens and an even greater invasion begins. For one hour the Quantum Accelerators manage to close 6 of the Gates, but the Hellish army has become too numerous and too strong. The complex is overrun. Everyone is slain, or zombified
. The last Gate of Hell remains open, manned and guarded by a Gatekeeper: a powerful, enormous and ancient demon that has the power to open Dimensional Gates and control or protect them.
The government, frantic that the Quantum Accelerator will be destroyed or used against humanity, orders all marines to the site at once. The player, the nameless space marine, was on leave at the beach. He was also closest to the site and gets there first. There he discovers that there is much demonic activity (howling, chanting, machine sounds) within the complex; the Gatekeeper is obviously working on something, and his work would soon reach some awful climax. He also realizes that when the marines arrive, they would not be able to penetrate the heavily infested complex, despite the firepower and support they will have. The marine decides to enter the complex and stop the Gatekeeper alone.
Also, as in the original PlayStation edition of Doom, many of the larger levels from the original PC title were removed, due to technical constraints. Another noticeable feature was a change in the music, where as the more traditional rock tracks featured in Doom were replaced by a creepier ambient music track by Aubrey Hodges, who later did music for Doom 64.
There are several noticeable alterations to the presentation of Final Doom on the PlayStation compared to the PC original. The simplistic title screens featured in the PC version have been replaced by a more elaborate title screen that features the animated flame-filled sky texture from the original PlayStation version of Doom. Also, many of the levels' sky textures have been replaced by different ones- some levels' skies are replaced by sky textures seen in previous Doom games, whereas others now feature a new, previously-unseen starry sky texture. Finally, due to the complexity of many of the maps featured most of the levels are simplified similar to many other ports of previous Doom games and the frame-rate of the game is often lower than it was in the first PlayStation Doom game. This is due to many of the original PC levels being designed as more complex than those featured in the original Doom games, because, since the original PC version of Final Doom was released several years after them, potential players of the game had generally upgraded their machines to the point that they could play such levels.
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
video game that uses the game engine, items and characters from Doom II
Doom II
Doom II: Hell on Earth is an award winning first-person shooter video game and second title of id Software's Doom franchise. Unlike Doom which was initially only available through shareware and mail order, Doom II was a commercial release sold in stores...
. It consists of two 32-level megawads (level files), The Plutonia Experiment by the Casali brothers
Casali brothers
Brothers Dario and Milo Casali are best known for creating The Plutonia Experiment, one of two stand-alone megawads for the second and final Doom expansion, Final Doom....
, and TNT: Evilution by TeamTNT
TeamTNT
TeamTNT is a group of mappers who created the TNT: Evilution episode of Final Doom, as well as several free level packs and developer resources for Doom II...
. Final Doom was released in 1996 and distributed as an official id Software
Id Software
Id Software is an American video game development company with its headquarters in Richardson, Texas. The company was founded in 1991 by four members of the computer company Softdisk: programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer Tom Hall, and artist Adrian Carmack...
product. In addition to the PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
versions, Final Doom was also released for the PlayStation; that version included a selection of Final Doom and Master Levels for Doom II levels combined into one game.
Gameplay
Final Doom is a stand-alone game and does not require Doom II to run.The PC version is widely considered to be significantly more difficult than Doom or Doom 2.
Dario Casali addressed the difficulty level of the Plutonia episode in an interview on Doomworld, stating "Plutonia was always meant for people who had finished Doom 2 on hard and were looking for a new challenge. I always played through the level I had made on hard, and if I could beat it too easily, I made it harder, so it was a challenge for me."
Development
Work on TNT: Evilution was started by TeamTNTTeamTNT
TeamTNT is a group of mappers who created the TNT: Evilution episode of Final Doom, as well as several free level packs and developer resources for Doom II...
, a group of WAD
Doom WAD
Doom WAD format is default format of package files for the video game Doom or its sequel Doom II, that are containing sprites, levels, and game data. WAD stands for Where's All the Data?...
-making hobbyists who were active on the advanced Doom editing mailing list
Mailing list
A mailing list is a collection of names and addresses used by an individual or an organization to send material to multiple recipients. The term is often extended to include the people subscribed to such a list, so the group of subscribers is referred to as "the mailing list", or simply "the...
. Just days before it was to be released as a free download online, the project was acquired by id Software
Id Software
Id Software is an American video game development company with its headquarters in Richardson, Texas. The company was founded in 1991 by four members of the computer company Softdisk: programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer Tom Hall, and artist Adrian Carmack...
, and finished in November 1995.
Brothers Dario and Milo Casali, who had contributed four level
Level (computer and video games)
A level, map, area, or world in a video game is the total space available to the player during the course of completing a discrete objective...
s to TNT: Evilution, were assigned the task of creating what became Plutonia after having sent an 8-level WAD they had created to American McGee
American McGee
-Career:McGee began his career at id Software, working on level design, music production, sound effects development, and programming in such games as Doom, Doom II, Quake, and Quake II. In 1998, he moved to Electronic Arts, where he worked as creative director on several projects, including...
and managing to impress him along with the rest of the id Software crew. They created 16 levels each for Plutonia in four months time, and submitted them in January 1996. Unlike their contributions to TNT: Evilution, which were edited after submission (four were also rejected due to being too large to run on the computers of the day), these were the final revisions of the levels, and Dario Casali later commented about the fact that no changes were requested, "Thank God because I was ready to throw my computer out the window at the time". Final Doom is the only Doom game to ever be advertised.
TNT: Evilution
In TNT: Evilution, the UACUnion Aerospace Corporation
The Union Aerospace Corporation is a fictional conglomerate focused on military-industrial research in id Software's science fiction video game series Doom. The corporation is depicted to be involved in advanced weapons development, biological research, space exploration and teleportation. The...
once again are intent on developing and experimenting with dimensional gateway technology. They set up a base on Io
Io (moon)
Io ) is the innermost of the four Galilean moons of the planet Jupiter and, with a diameter of , the fourth-largest moon in the Solar System. It was named after the mythological character of Io, a priestess of Hera who became one of the lovers of Zeus....
, one of the moons of Jupiter
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
, with a solid detachment of space marine
Space marine
The space marine, an archetype of science fiction, is a soldier that operates in outer space or on alien worlds. Historical marines fulfill amphibious roles: ship defence, landing parties, and general high-mobility deployments...
s for protection. The marines do their job well: when the first experimental gateway is opened they annihilate the forces of Hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
. Research continues with more confidence and all security measures turned at the gateway.
A few months later, the yearly supply ship comes ahead of schedule, and looks strange and unusually big on the radar. The lax radar operators decide that there is nothing to worry about. The personnel of the base go out to behold the terrible truth: it is a spaceship from Hell, built of steel, stone, flesh, bone and corruption. The ship's enormous gates open to unleash a rain of demon
Demon
call - 1347 531 7769 for more infoIn Ancient Near Eastern religions as well as in the Abrahamic traditions, including ancient and medieval Christian demonology, a demon is considered an "unclean spirit" which may cause demonic possession, to be addressed with an act of exorcism...
s on the base. Quickly, the whole facility is overrun, and everyone is slain or zombified.
The main character, the nameless space marine (who was revealed to be the marine commander on the moon) has been away on a walk at that time and thus escapes death or zombification. After being attacked by an imp
Imp
An imp is a mythological being similar to a fairy or demon, frequently described in folklore and superstition. The word may perhaps derive from the term ympe, used to denote a young grafted tree.-Folklore:...
, he rushes back to the base where he sees the demonic spaceship still hovering above it and realizes what has happened. Then he swears that he would avenge his slain troops and sets out to kill as many demons as possible.
In the end, the marine defeated the Icon of Sin and the game describes "something rumbles in the distance. A blue light glows within the ruined skull of the demon-spitter."
The Plutonia Experiment
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
's catastrophic invasion of Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
, the global governments decide to take measures against any possible future invasion, knowing that the powers of Hell still remained strong. The UAC
Union Aerospace Corporation
The Union Aerospace Corporation is a fictional conglomerate focused on military-industrial research in id Software's science fiction video game series Doom. The corporation is depicted to be involved in advanced weapons development, biological research, space exploration and teleportation. The...
is refounded under completely new management (the old trustees and stockholders were all dead anyway) and aims at developing tools that would prevent demonic invasions.
The scientists start working on a device known as the Quantum Accelerator that is intended to close invasion Gates and stop possible invasions. The experiments are carried out in a secret research complex, with a stationed detachment of marines. The work seems to be going well but the creatures from Outside have their attention drawn towards the new research. A Gate opens in the heart of the complex and unnatural horrors pour out. The Quantum Accelerator performs superbly: the Gate is quickly closed and the invasion is stopped. Research continues more boldly.
On the next day, a ring of 7 Gates opens and an even greater invasion begins. For one hour the Quantum Accelerators manage to close 6 of the Gates, but the Hellish army has become too numerous and too strong. The complex is overrun. Everyone is slain, or zombified
Zombie
Zombie is a term used to denote an animated corpse brought back to life by mystical means such as witchcraft. The term is often figuratively applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli...
. The last Gate of Hell remains open, manned and guarded by a Gatekeeper: a powerful, enormous and ancient demon that has the power to open Dimensional Gates and control or protect them.
The government, frantic that the Quantum Accelerator will be destroyed or used against humanity, orders all marines to the site at once. The player, the nameless space marine, was on leave at the beach. He was also closest to the site and gets there first. There he discovers that there is much demonic activity (howling, chanting, machine sounds) within the complex; the Gatekeeper is obviously working on something, and his work would soon reach some awful climax. He also realizes that when the marines arrive, they would not be able to penetrate the heavily infested complex, despite the firepower and support they will have. The marine decides to enter the complex and stop the Gatekeeper alone.
PlayStation edition
The gameplay of the PlayStation conversion of Final Doom is practically identical to that found in the PlayStation conversion of Doom. Although it had significantly toned down difficulty level from the PC original, thus giving it a level of difficulty that is closer to that title. Many of the harder levels were removed and those that remained often had enemies taken out (most noticeably, the Cyberdemon is removed from the level 'Baron's Lair').Also, as in the original PlayStation edition of Doom, many of the larger levels from the original PC title were removed, due to technical constraints. Another noticeable feature was a change in the music, where as the more traditional rock tracks featured in Doom were replaced by a creepier ambient music track by Aubrey Hodges, who later did music for Doom 64.
There are several noticeable alterations to the presentation of Final Doom on the PlayStation compared to the PC original. The simplistic title screens featured in the PC version have been replaced by a more elaborate title screen that features the animated flame-filled sky texture from the original PlayStation version of Doom. Also, many of the levels' sky textures have been replaced by different ones- some levels' skies are replaced by sky textures seen in previous Doom games, whereas others now feature a new, previously-unseen starry sky texture. Finally, due to the complexity of many of the maps featured most of the levels are simplified similar to many other ports of previous Doom games and the frame-rate of the game is often lower than it was in the first PlayStation Doom game. This is due to many of the original PC levels being designed as more complex than those featured in the original Doom games, because, since the original PC version of Final Doom was released several years after them, potential players of the game had generally upgraded their machines to the point that they could play such levels.