# I played Doom III!

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [November 20, 2002, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800 "2002-11-20T21:06:50Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/21 "2002-11-22T02:05:32Z")

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I hope Doom III is single player only. As pretty as Q3 was I was totally disappointed that it was essentially DM only. I wound up playing RTCW much more then Quake 3 because of this.

I mean, deathmatch is great. In fact I rate my very first DM on the Doom (I) shareware in 1994 (with my bought just for the occasion $150 14.4K modem) as one of the coolest experiences ever!

But in the long run I vote for quality over quantity. IOW I much prefer the long slow campaign over the ‘race for the rocket launcher’ that DM always becomes.

And speaking of Duke Nukem 4… Is this game still even a going concern?! I loved Duke 3 and played the shit out of it. But Duke 4 is what, going on **five freakin’ years late?!?!**

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**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/22 "2002-11-22T02:15:09Z")

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Duke 4 is vapourware. Doom 3 will have 4 player deathmatch/maybe co-op. It’s definatly going to be a single player centric game – iD aren’t worrying about netcode that much, hence the 4 players max.

Again, this is all stuff I’ve read off Slashdot, I don’t have any special insight :).

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**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/23 "2002-11-22T03:30:21Z")

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Aw, crap, I have to upgrade/replace _all_ the computers on my LAN now.

That means I’m either going to have to get a real job, or turn to a life of crime. I can see the headlines now: [ul]**LOCAL MAN KILLED IN  
CLANDESTINE  
METH LAB ACCIDENT**  
Needed to support “Frag” habit,  
says grieving family.

“Frag” is believed to be powerful new combination  
of amphetamine, cocaine, and LSD, according to  
VPD Constable Anne Drennan…[/ul]

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**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/24 "2002-11-22T03:42:40Z")

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So when is the final version expected to be available to the public?

I too am one of those single-player people. Ain’t never deathmatched no one.

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**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/25 "2002-11-22T03:42:49Z")

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ROFLMAO

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**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/26 "2002-11-22T04:18:37Z")

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**Dantheman** , there’s no comparison between single-player & deathmatch… even the best AI never convincingly gives you the impression that it’s panicking, or evening out a grudge, etc…

When you have a bunch of people in the map, all as _insanely_ armed as you are, with different styles and strategies… Maybe teaming up to take down a particularly hard target, etc. Sweeeeeeeet.

The winter that Quake came out, I still had a dial-up connection, and I racked up some serious overtime charges playing online. You never want to stop playing when you’re down, and it’s impossible to stop when you’re winning.

A coupla years later, I found the joy of LAN parties. It’s one thing to see one of your opponent’s avatar turn into a fountain of gore, but it’s so much more satisfying when you can hear his scream of shock and frustration. (Or malicious elation, when it’s the other way around.) Mwahaha!

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**Author:** ![Badtz\_Maru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e36b37/32.png) [@Badtz\_Maru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Badtz_Maru)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/27 "2002-11-22T07:50:36Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Hail Ants \*  
> \*\*I hope Doom III is single player only. As pretty as Q3 was I was totally disappointed that it was essentially DM only. I wound up playing RTCW much more then Quake 3 because of this.
> 
> * * *

RtCW single player was alright, and a lot better than the reviewers said. I think the main reason why it’s single player campaign was attacked so much was that everyone had already played the multiplayer demo and knew how great multiplayer is. RtCW is one of the best multiplayer games at encouraging teamwork - it awards players for helping each other, it delays respawns so that you are almost always spawning with someone else, and many of the maps are designed so that it would be nearly impossible for a solo player to accomplish the objectives. You really should give online play a shot.

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**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 10:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/28 "2002-11-22T10:23:16Z")

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That’s great, Larry, but for those of us who don’t have LAN connections or high-speed Internet, or who don’t have friends who are into it, single-player is the way to go.

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**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/29 "2002-11-22T11:09:06Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> It won’t look as good. John Carmack has gone on record as saying they’re going to have to scale the graphics back significantly to make it playable on the Xbox. Got that from Slashdot.

I gotta see a link, because every article I’ve read on the subject has Carmack on record saying that the Xbox will have D3’s “full graphical fidelity”…

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**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/30 "2002-11-22T11:10:12Z")

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And Dantheman… you don’t have broadband? I coulda sworn I saw someone using the handle “dantheman” in a server for Counterstrike…

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**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/31 "2002-11-22T12:44:56Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Frankd6 \*  
> \*\*Nope, single player only.
> 
> Slortar, your version of Slige must be later than the one that I once had. It would only do one level at a time, with no boss level capability. I thought Slige levels were OK, but very linear. Since the puzzle factor is as appealing as the carnage, Slige was a little lacking in my view.
> 
> For my money, Eternal is the best set of WADs ever. \*\*

Sounds like it was a much later version–the most recent one came out early last year, I believe. If you wanted you could get it to generate 32 levels at once, with secret levels hidden at intermittent areas. Of course, the levels would all look vaguely similar, but it was a good tool for honing your skills–you really never knew what was coming, and the random number generator has NO mercy…

I never really noticed much of anything resembling puzzles in Doom–mostly just switches and minor timed events. Even in the later versions, Slige mostly only does minor puzzles (e.g. grab key, unlock door, high tail to other end of the map, press switch, jump off platform, etc). Mostly I like Doom for its ability to swamp you under armies of demons–Slige did that admirably well. I believe there was a switch you could set at the command line which would make the levels more or less convoluted based on your preferences.

As for actual human authored wads, I was fond of Laz Rojas’ Wolfenstein conversions. Those were a heck of a lot fun.

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**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/32 "2002-11-22T14:39:33Z")

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I enjoyed the single player, until I played Q3 on the net. IMO nothing beats 20 people in DM gibbing each other 50 times a second. After 2 years of yelling at Verizon, I finally got a 1.5mps connection, and my 600 ping is now 15. Doom 3 does sound like a must buy though.

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**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/33 "2002-11-22T15:14:46Z")

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Nah, not me, SPOOFE. Not that I wouldn’t want to do DM someday, but I do enjoy the single-player a lot. Killin’ is great, but I also like to discover along the way…

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**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/34 "2002-11-22T15:20:32Z")

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Nothing beats discovery AND saving your buddy’s ass from cacodemons.

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**Author:** ![NicePete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ee7513/32.png) [@NicePete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NicePete)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/35 "2002-11-22T15:22:01Z")

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Puzzles is probably the wrong word. Problems requiring strategic/tactical thought is probably more accurate.

I also like DoomII because it’s simple, it’s easy and it runs well on my old machine. So the graphics aren’t up to date. So what. They’re good enough for me.

And I downloaded the latest version of Slige last night. The site said you need to have a node-builder like BSP, the link to which was broken. I used to have BSP and it may still be on my computer after several re-formats, but if you have a link to it, that would be mucho helpful.

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**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/36 "2002-11-22T15:30:52Z")

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Actually, just email me at home (there should be a link on my profile) and I’ll see if I still have a copy to forward to you.

You have a point about strategic/tactical thought–a random number generator just can’t match a wad author who wants to kill you. 🙂

If you have a good video card (voodoo2 or better), you might want to try the jdoom source port. Very purdy–opengl acceleration so you can run it at 1600x1200x32 if you want, with hardware lighting, lens flares and other tasty goodies.

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**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/37 "2002-11-22T15:31:41Z")

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Go here, Frank.  
[http://www.mousetrap.net/~mouse/doom2/slige.html](http://www.mousetrap.net/~mouse/doom2/slige.html)

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**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/38 "2002-11-22T15:37:31Z")

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I like the old stuff, too. Just got a copy of the old Dungeons of Daggorath for the old TRS-80 (circa 1982) that’s been ported Windows. You talk about a precursor to Doom . . .

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**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/39 "2002-11-22T17:59:28Z")

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Wow, “Wolfenslige”? Well, screw Morrowind. I know what _I’m_ doing tonight… 😃

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**Author:** ![NicePete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ee7513/32.png) [@NicePete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NicePete)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2002, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-played-doom-iii/137800/40 "2002-11-22T18:35:14Z")

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Thanks for the links. I run Zdoom, and tried a ZdoomGL port, but my vintage '97 video card is just not up for it.

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