Nostalgic things that made you smile

Here are a few of mine. I'm about 60% through the campaign.

• The glorious return of the automap, which is very clean, looks good in 3D and can be updated, referencing the automap powerup. The unexplored areas are even greyed out.

• In between missions are satellite images highly reminiscent of the intermission screens from the original.

• Stepping out onto the Martian surface, you can typically see lots of structures out in the distance, which makes you feel like you're in the middle of the intermission screen, and that's just wonderful.

• Baron of Hell is honestly pretty frightening and feels like a real threat whenever encountered.

• Pinky is absolutely the best interpretation of all time. It's been a tricky design, due to its preposterous proportions, but the artists managed to design a very intimidating and grotesque enemy, particularly in regards to its exposed bones over fleshy skin.

• Keycards AND skull keys are back, and are in the original colors and look a lot like the originals in their overall design.

• Doors often look very Doom-y, some in particular obviously resembling the BIGDOOR textures and sometimes using the old sound.

• Mancubus sometimes explodes into a gooey mess that is basically a straight mix between the animation of OG Doom and Doom 64. In addition, the manc's armor reminds me of the D64 manc's chest harness.

• One of the ambient tracks used a goddamn woodblock, something I never thought I'd hear in a modern Doom game, but which was heard here and there in D1/2.

• Commander Keen reference, and quite a morbid one at that.

• The Doomguy collectibles playing a tinny 8-bit version of E1M1.

• Numerous moments where I went exploring and inadvertently found a secret. To actually feel compelled to search every nook and cranny really takes me back to the old days.

• Weapons feel more-or-less Doomy, but in particular, the chainsaw, shotguns, rocket launcher and gatling gun really help sell the idea that the guns are big, loud and powerful.

• Dramatic use of lighting that finds a really nice balance between the slightly-too-dark passages in Doom 3 and the sometimes-too-bright areas in OG Doom.

• Layouts are meant to look functional, but they sometimes become slightly abstract, as they are designed first and foremost to be interesting to play through. Ends up reminding me a lot of the original game's design philosophy.

seeing the decorative doors in Hell with the goat heads and skulls brought back a warm fuzzy feeling for me

Oh boy if you haven't played The Necropolis yet, just wait for some pure nostalgia

Near the beginning of the Titan's Realm level, down the demon throat, up the stairs and across the bridge is a short pillar with a beating heart on it.

I noticed something similar in an earlier level. There's lots of little touches like that, where you can tell the sprite was direct inspiration.

ahh yes, i remember seeing the heart and remembered that from the original! i was really hoping to find the crazy smiley faces or whatever they are called somewhere too. those always stood out for me in the original.

BluePineapple72 said:

Oh boy if you haven't played The Necropolis yet, just wait for some pure nostalgia

My nostalgia for upside down unaligned textures was fullfilled to the fullest!

chubz said:

Spoiler

Dead Simple!

:-)

Also the thing that you see when walking into the final area

BluePineapple72 said:

Also the thing that you see when walking into the final area

Ahh yes, that too! LOL, no idea how I didn't think of that first.

The imps took a note from DOOM 64, too.

chubz said:

Spoiler

Dead Simple!

:-)

Actually, to me it also has some

tuo said:

Actually, to me it also has some

Spoiler

Tricks and Traps

Yes, for sure!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2U9pPMXqlA8

E1M5 throwback =)

I remember hearing a few ambient bits that brought Aubrey Hodges to mind =) That E1M5 cover is fucking cool.

I started tearing up when I went through the first Hell level. The aesthetics of the map calling back to the original Doom, the way the doors looked, witnessing the first Baron of Hell tearing up those Imps in that huge pit, and then the reprise of Sign of Evil...brought a tear to my eye.

Just thought of a few to add:

• The way your keycards are shown on the HUD
  
• End-level statistics that are quite reminiscent of the original's (still wish there was a par time, though!)
  
• Being able to repeatedly fire weapons like the shotgun and rocket launcher by holding left-click (instead of clicking constantly)

GoatLord said:

• Commander Keen reference, and quite a morbid one at that.

Hold up, where's this at? Did we get a repeat of the hanging Keens?