Doom 3: Phobos

On 12/4/2018 at 2:23 PM, Boilers! said:

Was path of the UAC employee, that used PC with order of cat poster, intentionally set up to make him unexpectedly appear behind player while he reads that order?

Nope, unintentional consequence of his AI path. It will be fixed in future versions.

I'm not against story in my shooters. I love the bonkers storyline in the new Wolfenstein games. I just need the story to have some impact, and I'm not feeling like it's up to an acceptable standard to be worth interrupting the slaying mechanic of Doom. I'm only half way through chapter two, so I can't really pass judgement, but that's what I'm feeling about what I've seen so far.

Finished it, and what can I say that hasn't been already said about it, though if I may suggest something it's the ability to skip the cutscenes, you know the ones where you're talking via the communication device or in your Room, I found the story kind of uninteresting to be honest. the outdoor area in the Train ride section looks awesome I'd love to be able to explore it, maybe in future episodes?

This room in Chapter 3, I didn't know I was supposed to climb through that hole, apparently you have to stop the gas leak to be able to climb through it, but I did that before reaching the Room so I didn't know that's where the gas leak was. I tried jumping to it 2 times but I got blocked by a physics object so I was unable to climb through it and assumed it was the wrong way, I spent about 15 minutes running around the map thinking I missed a spot or something until I eventually went back to that Room and retried and suddenly I hear ladder climbing sound, maybe give a hint to the player to climb there? like an objective or something more than the character saying "This must be why the alarm was set off"

There are a couple of areas I've found you can go into, usually with the flat glass blocking them off. There are the shops at the beginning of Chapter 2, and the basketball court (complete with physiced-up basketball!). You have to strike the glass several times with your hand to break the glass, then you can crouch and enter some of them. Others don't allow access even if you crouch. 

1 hour ago, tempdecal.wad said:

maybe give a hint to the player to climb there?

I thought the conveniently stacked boxes and the big hole in the ceiling were enough of a giveaway ;)

I got stuck twice because of a physics object like I said, I was unable to climb through it and assumed it was the wrong way, I don't know maybe remove that physics object altogether to avoid such cases.

As of right now I have finished Phobos E1 twice so it might be the time to share some of my impressions. Good but flawed is probably the best way I can describe it at the moment.

I really like the mix of fast-paced action and slower exploration / storytelling bits. To some it might seem a bit jarring but I enjoy and appreciate that very much. There's something really interesting about having some of those scenes from the past and such - the contrast between the violent action and peaceful scenes with down-to-earth problems. The final scene is intriguing and I hope there'll be more of that in future episodes. I'm really interested in the story behind the whole thing. I'm already kind of trying to figure out if there's anything I might have missed about it and thinking about what might happen later.

With that said I gotta say I'm not a fan of all of those references to everything that ever inspired you. I don't like it when creators do that because it somewhat makes their work feel a bit fake which doesn't do wonders to immersion. In mean, I can't agree on Life is Strange but SOMA is freaking amazing so I can see where you're coming from. But you already kind of reference it anyway through the plug-in / plug-out communication with Miles so all those names and quotes feel unnecessary to me. Not a huge deal of course, just something I noticed.

I have to echo the complaints about writing and voice acting though, especially when it comes to the protagonist. A lot of his dialogs and reactions feel really unnatural, "read this line and act really surprised" kind of thing. A lot of it sounds like nothing anyone would ever say. I think the best part was actually the very final scene which felt the most natural out of the whole mod.

I also don't quite understand what is the deal with Miles. She can get really emotional when talking to the protagonist but since we don't know anything about their relationship it just makes it look kind of weird. She doesn't really sound like a special agent she's supposed to be.

Visuals are one of the strong points of Phobos. Most of it feels like a more "civilized" version of areas from D3 - they look different, sometimes maybe too different, but overally that gives them their own personality - they're not just more of the same like Lost Mission, for instance. I really like all the little details scattered around desks and such (though apparently none of the employees clean after themselves), it makes the place feel more real and, for me, kind of fills the space left by the absence of audiologs.

In terms of gameplay I think Phobos does a decent job at making D3 more fast-paced with the inclusion of a rapid fire pistol, a better shotgun (even though the ultra-fast fire rate looks bizzare and the shotgun reload animation isn't very good) and unlimited stamina - though you could have added an always run option because there's hardly any reason to go slowly during combat (unlike for exploration). But I don't understand why did you completely remove recoil from the machinegun. It feels really weird compared to all the other weapons because it's unnaturally stable and the screen doesn't shake at all when firing. Levels themselves are fine, I had fun moving around and exploring, there's enough diversitiy to keep things fresh and exciting. I obviously wish we had more of them but it is what it is.

Regarding sounds, I don't know if it's just me but it seems like either the gun sounds are too loud or the dialogs are too quiet because I constantly had to fiddle with the volume slider depending on whether I was in combat or listening to conversations.

I kind of like it that some of the monsters are faster this time around - it works with the the more powerful shotgun, faster movement and unlimited stamina. It takes a few moments to get used to it but in general it does a good job at increasing the pace of combat. I do however have mixed feelings about the 'classic' features such as glowing red eyes on Imps or a pinkish tone of the Demons. I mean, it's nothing too extreme but that's like a very very mild version of what id did with DOOM Eternal by bringing back the original monster designs. It just feels unnecessary. Other than that it's pretty cool. I'm looking forward to when more powerful monsters appear in future episodes.

Not sure why people complained about the difficulty. Once you realize that you have to be more aggressive, run around more and such it really isn't excessive. I guess maybe some folks were caught off guard because Phobos throws a lot more enemies at the time than D3.

As I said before I enjoyed the ending. The new Pain Elemental looks really cool (definitely better than the cartoony abomination from Eternal), too bad the fight is kind of easy - if you pull out the Chaingun you can kill everything very quickly so it doesn't really feel like a final fight at the end of a chapter. The final scene was probably my favourite out of the entire mod so far though.

There are some technical issues as well. The game doesn't save my video settings, there's this game-crashing button in the second room (how did that even make it there?). There are some smaller things like the fact that when you break that classic DOOM lamp the light still remains. In general I'm really happy that this thing is finally out and that it's not lost forever because it'd be a huge waste if that project was cancelled. I enjoyed it, there are some questionable decisions and elements there but what can you do. I'm personally looking forward to the rest of the mod so congrats on the release and hopefully the other episodes come out in a not too terribly distant future.

We made it to top 100 as the only Doom 3 mod in Mod of the Year over at moddb.

Now we just need to make it to top 25! So please vote for us again, here:

https://www.moddb.com/mods/phobos

Voted. And the review is coming too, I just need to stop procrastinating.

Holy shit, I just finished it.

So after all these years of development, I can safely say that it was well worth the wait.

Gameplay-wise, this is definitely leaps and bounds above vanilla Doom 3. It actually manages to speed up the action with slight adjustments in gunplay and the monster behavior. Some of my favorite details include the overall improved shotgun as well as the chaingun now becoming this outright death machine, while the enemies (such as the Z-Sec and Imps) have now become just as dangerous as you are (especially on harder difficulties where one well-placed fireball or one full volley of machine gun fire is enough to kill you). As a result, you've got an experience that manages to be truer to the original Doom while keeping it somewhat grounded and adding a tactical flavor without devolving into the "modern shooter" plague that had taken over FPSes in the early new tens. 

As for the visuals, I must restate this, but HOLY SHIT. Based on what I've seen alone, they manage to fit the Doom 3 aesthetic perfectly while the levels themselves have their own visual flair. In fact, they actually improve upon Doom 3's aesthetic, even with hints of Doom 2016. Not only that, the environments manage to tell a story that would have otherwise needed to be filled in with audio logs. As you can tell, visual storytelling is one of the best things any developer can do, and it's difficult to get right, but you've managed to absolutely nail it. The opening level especially is extremely gorgeous and it's basically what the original Mars City should have been like (especially given how Doom 3's art direction was supposedly inspired by the likes of cyberpunk works and anime). 

If anything, I feel that both the visuals and the gameplay are what the original Doom 3 should have been.

Story-wise, it feels pretty good and is actually very intriguing, but there's just something about it that kind of clashes with the gameplay. I mean, you have this rather down-to-earth story that includes some sort of family issues (without going into potential spoilers), only for that to be followed up by grotesque imagery of blood-spattered hallways and splattering zombified security all over the walls. To be fair, this is something that the Machinegames Wolf series does as well, but that does manage to tie into the direct conflict of those games, whereas here, it feels somewhat disconnected (at least at first). However, I can definitely see some foreshadowing to future episodes, which is definitely a nice touch. Plus, the story does establish some good world-building and manages to have a more natural flow in terms of establishing the setting, the characters, and the world. I do enjoy a story that requires patience from the player, and in return treats the player with respect.
On a side note, it doesn't feel quite as tonally dark as the original Doom 3 (no masses of lumpy flesh growing out of the hallways and not as much horrifying imagery), and it feels more R-rated pulp sci-fi rather than just sci-fi horror. This really isn't a complaint though, just more of a casual observation.

I know everyone here has been harping on the voice acting and how it's the weakest link, but given what you guys had to work with, I thought it was perfectly serviceable and did its job for the most part.

As far as nitpicks go, I'm still somewhat iffy on the disintegrating demon corpses, although they can now be gibbed and stay around for a little longer than vanilla D3 (which is actually pretty cool, to be honest). I really can't explain why it's been such a pet peeve for me personally, but it's just been like that ever since the original D3 came out. You really don't have to take the suggestion I'm about to lay out, but perhaps the gibbable demons (such as the Imp and Vulgar) can leave lasting corpses while the larger non-gibbable demons (such as the Pinky) can disintegrate after an extended period of time? Plus, they do appear to have more classic-inspired looks such as the Imp's red eyes and the Pinky's... well, slightly pinker complexion.
It's just that for some reason, I remember this level in OG Doom 3 (Delta Labs Level 2B) where there was a ton of demon specimens in tanks, including a dismembered Imp, another Imp corpse on a dissecting table, and the spinal cord of a Hell Knight, indicating that the disintegrating demon corpses were there purely for technical purposes. As I said, you really don't have to take the suggestion, it was just something I literally thought of during a spur-of-the-moment thing, and this is a more action-packed version of Doom 3's story that includes a higher monster count.

(By the way, I love the new look of the Pain Elemental; it manages to feel fitting within the Doom 3 universe while also maintaining a somewhat recognizable appearance.)

Episode 2 cannot come soon enough. ;)

EDIT: As far as bugs go, there really was one instance where the game actually crashed, but that was more due to me chainsawing several Imp corpses at once in order to gib them. If there's anything else, I will report back.

Resolved issue.

Been playing through it and I'm enjoying it way more than standalone D3. Writing and voice acting can sometimes be cheesy, but the overall story is very gripping and mature. Combat also feels really satisfying and the grabber is put to good use. Love the art direction and the level of detail and interaction.

Can you port this mod on BFG?

As far as I know BFG Edition removed mod support.

2 hours ago, MadGuy said:

Can you port this mod on BFG?

2 hours ago, tempdecal.wad said:

As far as I know BFG Edition removed mod support.

But Classic Doom 3 BFG allows mod support, and now via .dll too like the standard Doom 3.

Nice, so that means modders now have to make versions of their mods specifically tailored to that lol.

A

On 2/2/2019 at 10:40 AM, tempdecal.wad said:

A

 

 

The ominous cubic thing...

Johnny had that mysterious cube in his attic? And then brought it to Mars?

Jk, I'm really looking forward to the next episode.

I'll be honest...I got stuck at the ventilation area where you have to find an alternative way through.

Are there any news? More time passed since the teaser of episode 2 with the cube, than from the release to the teaser. And all mentioned work with code inspires a lot of anticipations.

I admitted myself looking forward Phobos far more than Doom Eternal or, unless Rin will miraculously get her role, even more than WBaWC.

At this point we're just in a stretch of "bread and butter" work, getting things to the last stage of development where it all comes together and we implement the voice-over, polish the scenes, the combat etc. April is a bit quiet for us as one third of the team is away and I'm personally regaining my energy and motivation after having put around 30 hours into the mod each week for some time. We're set to kickstart that last long stretch of development on Ep2 in the start of May.

We've also been pouring some work into the rest of the mod so that Ep3 isn't a year away after Ep2.

Hey I know this is random, but I'm sculpting a statue of an Imp from Doom 3, and I was wondering, are any of you all interested in having one? If not, that's all good. Just thought I'd throw it out there. I can post pictures of the in-progress piece if you would like.

21 hours ago, CreecherChuck said:

Hey I know this is random, but I'm sculpting a statue of an Imp from Doom 3, and I was wondering, are any of you all interested in having one? If not, that's all good. Just thought I'd throw it out there. I can post pictures of the in-progress piece if you would like.

Start a new thread with your WIPs and keep us updated. It would be cool to see.

On 6/5/2019 at 10:51 AM, GuyMcBrofist said:

 

Start a new thread with your WIPs and keep us updated. It would be cool to see.

Will do! Thanks man!

I just found this mod and after trying it... it's too buggy for its own good. I had to use the replacement CFG file linked earlier in the thread to get out of permanent 640x480 because it would not change. I'm still not certain it's changing in the menu either. And after that I found saving & loading is buggy. A manual save made in the prologue after waking up on Mars kicks me to the start of the prologue, even with the save screenshot being correct. Trying chapter 2, quicksaving after the comm call, reloading from there works rarely, it usually kicks me into an odd situation where the tram car is sitting sideways on the track with closed doors on either side of it. I can't play this mod if saving & loading doesn't work right.

Non-Steam standard retail version patched with RoE installed. It should be working.

We have some issues with the tram and the save game system in episode 1. They will be fixed when we release episode 2. So for now you will have to restart the prologue or go directly to episode 1 in the menu to skip it. Or you can load the maps directly through the console so that you dont have to start from square one in the prologue. Open the console and write 'map ep1/e1m1_1' to begin the last map in the prologue from the beginning.

When you change display options you need to press the 'reset' button in the options menu in order for them to update. We made this button available so that you dont have to exit the game in order for them to update.

At least the save issue isn't some very weird specific issue i'm alone with.

I did use the reset button, actually, it would never leave 640 x 480 even when the screen itself listed the new res and the CGF listed it too. Visibly nothing would change even after a few resets or game restarts.

22 hours ago, diosoth said:

I just found this mod and after trying it... it's too buggy for its own good. I had to use the replacement CFG file linked earlier in the thread to get out of permanent 640x480 because it would not change.

https://www.moddb.com/games/doom-iii/addons/doom-3-phobos-bad-quality-fix-cfg

Having played through...

I feel when part 2 comes out, the first map should be patched to remove the gap in the fence. It's too obvious looking through it that there's no one standing where the voice is coming from.

So overall it fixes one big problem Doom 3 had- that the entire game, excluding the Hell section, is set in what amounts to a giant factory/lab facility. You have scattered bathrooms, offices and medical rooms but that's all to break up the otherwise mundane design of the place. This answers the issues of living quarters(we never even see any barracks for the on-site Marines in the main game), recreation, civilian areas, etc.

Weapons feel more like traditional Doom in how they function, especially the shotgun being useful at more than 4 feet away and the machine gun being able to hit stuff at a distance. The pistol reload unfortunately slows things down heavily at the start and the second combat map after the elevator has a heavy amount of enemies to deal with using only the pistol. Were the physics on the grabber also changed? Fireballs whipped around while moving, and it's been a few years since I played RoE but it seemed like they just remained straight there, making it easier to aim them.

The Pain Elemental boss was a nice surprise.

Overall once I got past the screen resolution bug, save/load bugs and fought past the initial start where you only have the pistol/grabber, I enjoyed it.