Doom II

Doom II: Hell on Earth is a first-person shooter video game created by id Software. It was originally released on the IBM PC on September 30th, 1994. It is the sequel to the popular and revolutionary game Doom, which was released a year earlier. In 1995, Doom II won the Origins Award for Best Fantasy or Science Fiction Computer Game of 1994. Unlike Doom which was initially only available through shareware and mail order, "Doom II" was a commercial release sold in stores.

Gameplay developments

Doom II was not a dramatically different game from its predecessor. There were no major technological developments, no major graphical improvements, and no real changes in fundamental gameplay. The game still consisted of the player negotiating non-linear levels, picking up keys to unlock new areas, and of course shooting down hundreds upon hundreds of monsters.

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There were several new additions in terms of monsters and enemies. A new zombie, the aptly-named Heavy Weapons Dude, was added (this one wielding a chain gun). New additions for the forces of Hell proper include the following:

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• The Hell Knight, a junior version of the Baron of Hell.
• The Mancubus, a large overweight, blob-like creature with two mega-blasters (in the place of arms) that released huge fireballs.
• The Revenant, a skeletal creature armed with guided rockets. It was also moderately fast and could chase down the player.
• The Arachnotron, a junior version of the Spider Mastermind, though armed with a plasma gun instead of a chain gun.
• Quite possibly one of the most annoying monsters ever created, the Pain Elemental, which could float around and, if not killed fast enough, could spit an endless amount of Lost Souls out.
• The Arch-Vile, a thin demon that had a means of attacking the player (or other monsters) without use of a projectile (similar to "curse" spells in fantasy RPGs), and could resurrect most types of fallen monsters. It was also very fast and could chase down the player.
• The end boss, called the Icon of Sin. It was really nothing more than a giant wall (with a goat's skull visage) with a small hole in the forehead containing its weak spot. Inside this weak spot, as a joke, is the disembodied head of John Romero impaled on a spike. The Icon of Sin could summon an infinite number of monsters to kill the player, and spoke the words "To win this game you must kill me, John Romero" backwards in a demon-like tone.

The SS trooper from Wolfenstein 3D appears in the two secret levels, which are throwbacks in design (and music) to the Wolfenstein 3D game. Also, a hanged Commander Keen figure makes a cameo in the second secret level.

Related Topics:
Wolfenstein 3D - Commander Keen

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Disappointingly, the only new addition in terms of weapons was the double-barreled shotgun, which could fire out 20 pellets instead of the regular shotgun's seven. It was very useful in dispatching Demons, Cacodemons, and any form of medium-sized monster.

Related Topics:
Shotgun - Demons - Cacodemon

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There was also one new item created, the Megasphere, a tan sphere that could give the player 200% armor and health.

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A small change in gameplay was instituted. Instead of the player playing through three related episodes, gameplay takes place over one giant episode, albeit there are interludes for when the story develops. Instead of watching the player's progress on a map (as in the original episodes of Doom), the screens between each level simply show a background. It also meant that the player would not have to start over with a pistol every nine levels or so.

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The level design, much like in Doom, was supposed to mimic the areas the player was going into. Now that the game was taking place on Earth, a real-world look was attempted, with some levels taking place in certain kinds of military installations, and others taking place in residential areas. Some areas do resemble places on Earth (like Downtown), but most simply seem strange. Eventually level designs no longer attempt to appear realistic, but by then the player has reached a place where Hell is merging with our reality so it makes sense.

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In general, Doom II was well-received and went on to sell 2 million copies, making it the highest-selling id Software game to date.

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Elements from the game would be used in Final Doom.

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