Hank Leukart's DooM FAQ 6.666

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CHAPTER [3]: What makes DOOM different from Wolfenstein 3-D?
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[3-1]: Texture-Mapped Environment
=================================
        DOOM offers the most realistic environment to date on the PC.
Texture-mapping, the process of rendering fully-drawn art and scanned
textures on the walls, floors, and ceilings of an environment, makes the
world much more real, thus bringing the player more into the game experience.
Others have attempted this, but DOOM's texture mapping is fast, accurate,
and seamless.  Texture-mapping the floors and ceilings is a big improvement
over Wolfenstein 3-D.  With their new advanced graphic development
techniques, allowing game art to be generated much faster, id brings
new meaning to "state-of-the-art".

[3-2]: Non-Orthogonal Walls
===========================
        In other games (such as Wolfenstein 3-D), walls were always joined
at ninety degrees to each other, and were always eight feet thick.  DOOM's
walls are at many angles, and of any thickness.  Walls have see-through
areas, like windows.  This allows more natural construction of levels.  If
you can draw it on paper, you can see it in the game.

[3-3]: Light Diminishing/Light Sourcing
=======================================
        Another touch adding realism is light diminishing.  With distance,
your surroundings become enshrouded in darkness.  This makes areas seem huge
and intensifies the experience.  This also creates some amazing effects;
sometimes the lights go out, and you'll have to look for a light switch or
light amplification visors.  Light sourcing allows lamps and lights to
illuminate hallways, explosions to light up areas, and strobe lights to
briefly reveal things near them.  These features make the game
frighteningly real.

[3-4]: Variable Height Floors and Ceilings
==========================================
        Floors and ceilings can be of any height, allowing for stairs, poles,
altars, plus low hallways and high caves-allowing a great variety for rooms
and halls.
        In DOOM, monsters can be shot on levels that are higher or lower than
you are.  All you have to do is aim horizontally, and DOOM will do the rest!

[3-5]: Environment Animation and Morphing
=========================================
        In DOOM, the world reacts to you.  Many surfaces animate.
A glowing wall-plate may change in appearance when you touch it. Radioactive
ooze could seethe and bubble.
        In earlier versions of the FAQ, I talked about environment animation
and morphing.  id Software removed information terminals, access stations,
and wall weapon damaging.  DOOM does include "crushing ceilings," however.

[3-6]: Palette Translation
==========================
        In earlier versions of the FAQ, I talked about many different
types of palette translation.  Most of the palette translation has been
removed from DOOM.  The only palette translations that are currently
implemented in DOOM are for multi-player mode (other players are in
different colors), invincibility mode and a few other special effects.

[3-7]: Multiple Players
=======================
        Up to four players can play over a local network, or two players
can play by modem or serial link.  DOOM v1.2 supports modem play.
You can see the other player in the environment, communicate with him or her,
and in certain situations you can switch to their view.  This feature, added
to the 3-D realism, makes DOOM a very powerful cooperative game and its
release a landmark event in the software industry.  This is the first game to
really exploit the power of LANs and modems to their full potential.  In
1994, id Software fully expects to be the number one cause of decreased
productivity in businesses around the world.  See Chapter [8] for more
information on multi-playing.

[3-8]: Smooth, Seamless Gameplay
================================
        The environment in DOOM is frightening, but the player can be at
ease when playing.  Much effort has been spent on the development end to
provide the smoothest control on the user end.  And the frame rate (the rate
at which the screen is updated) is high, so you move smoothly from room to
room, turning and acting as you wish, unhampered by the slow jerky motion of
most 3-D games.  On a 386DX, the game runs well, and on a 486/33, the normal
mode frame rate is almost as fast as television.  This allows for the
most important and enjoyable aspect of gameplay: immersion.

*3-9*: New Monsters and Artificial Intelligence
===============================================
        Wolfenstein 3-D is basically made up of a lot of closed rooms.  When
you open a door, the guards get a chance to see you and opening the door
connects your sound area to the revealed room's sound area, so a gunshot will
be heard in both places. Guards in both places will respond to this kind of
action.  In DOOM it's much more complex.  DOOM isn't made up of a bunch of
rooms; it's a cohesive world.  You might blast your shotgun and the sound
could travel through a window or slime-river tunnel to another entirely
different area and alert some monsters.  Then, they'll come looking for
you!  Opening doors, going down stairs, wading through slime, etc.  You are
still able to get the drop on them from behind, just like in Wolfenstein
3-D -- but you have to be sneakier about it.
        There is a huge amount of enemies in DOOM and DOOM II.  Here is a
list:

        FORMER HUMANS (dudes in filth-covered combat suits):  Just a few days
ago, you were probably swapping war stories with one of these guys.  Now it's
time to swap some lead upside their head. They are the weakest of all
enemies.

        FORMER HUMAN SERGEANTS (dudes in black armor, also filthy):  
Same as above, but much meaner and tougher.  These walking shotguns 
provide you with a few extra holes if you're not careful!

        IMPS (brown thorny hominids):  You thought an imp was cute 
little dude in a red suit with a pitchfork.  Where did these brown 
bastards come from?  They heave balls o' fire down your throat and take 
several bullets to die.  It's time to find a weapon better than that 
pistol if you're going to face more than one of these S.O.B.s.

        DEMONS (pink horrors, vaguely humanoid):  Sorta like a shaved 
gorilla, except with horns, a big head, lots of teeth, and harder to 
kill. Don't get too close or they'll rip your fraggin' head off.

        SPECTRES (vague, half-formed shapes):  Great.  Just what you 
needed.  An invisible (nearly) Demon.

      + LOST SOULS (flying skulls): Dumb.  Tough.  Flies.  On fire.  
Flying skills with a hot temper.  They like to go for a screaming 
head-on collision.

      + CACODEMONS (gigantic floating one-eyed heads):  They float in the
air, belch ball-lightning, and boast one Hell of a big mouth.  You're toast
if you get too close to these monstrosities.

        BARONS OF HELL (you'll know `em when you see `em):  Tough as a dump
truck and nearly as big, these goliaths are the worst thing on two legs since
Tyrannosaurus Rex.  Watch out for the green plasma they fling at you.

      + CYBERDEMON (rocket shooting colossus):  When you get to the end of
the second episode of DOOM, you'll know.  Get ready to see this guy a 
lot more often in DOOM II.

      + SPIDER MASTERMIND (huge robotic chaingun shooting spider):  It 
will make you wish you never were playing DOOM in the first place.  
Watch for it at the end of the third episode of DOOM, and numerous times 
in DOOM II.

      # HEAVY WEAPON DUDE (overweight sergeants with chain guns):  These
guys are probably the first new enemy you will encounter in DOOM II. 
They are more disgusting looking that sergeants, and are also more 
deadly due to their chain gun.

      # HELL KNIGHT (brown colored Baron of Hell):  Slightly easier to 
kill than our friend the Baron, but appear in larger numbers.

      # ARACHNOTRON (toddler version of the Spider Mastermind):  Smaller 
than the Spider Mastermind, and a lot harder to kill, but there are a 
lot more of these guys.  Watch for its BFG9000-like green plasma.

      # PAIN ELEMENTAL (even more disgusting huge Cacodemon-like blobs):  
Watch out for these guys, they fly around and fire Lost Souls at you.  
If you don't kill them quick enough, the Lost Souls will eat you for 
lunch.

      # REVENANT (skeletons with a bad temper):  These huge skeletons 
are just cruel.  They punch and kick the life out of you, and also enjoy 
launching flaming rockets into your torso.

      # MANCUBUS (overweight walking blob with guns for arms):  He is 
fat, ugly, and like shooting enormous fireballs into you from his arms.

      # ARCH VILE (flaming spirits):  Not only does he summon the fire 
elementals to watch you go up in flames, he revives already dead demons 
while he's at it.

+:  Not found in the shareware version of DOOM
#:  Only found in DOOM II


*3-10*: Weapons
===============
        Here's a list of weapons that are in DOOM.  Don't try using these at
home. :)

        (1) Fist
        (2) Chain Saw
        (3) Pistol
        (4) Shotgun
      # (5) Super Shotgun (double barreled)
        (6) Chain Gun
        (7) Rocket Launcher
      + (8) Plasma Rifle
      + (9) BFG9000

+: Denotes a weapon not implemented in the shareware version.
#: Denotes a weapons found only in DOOM II.

[3-10-1]: What does BFG9000 stand for?
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        Being the most powerful weapon, the only thing BFG9000 could stand
for would be "Big Fraggin' Gun." :)