why cybernatic demon??

[keithktam]

Hey guys. this is probably one of those questions, though knob, but i bet most of you have this question gone through your mind.

why in doom 1,2 and 3, we have the all mighty demons choose to merge with our technology?? why cybernetic demons? i know in doom 1 and 2, they weren't made to make sense, just simply looked really cool, and really fun to play. but there had to be a reason.

you tell me....

[Jello]

Because most demons don't come default with a rocket launcher that can fire a three missile salvo, or use a chaingun or a plasma cannon. I would say it's just a design choice, they were a bunch of guys who figured demons with cybernetic enhancements would be cool enemies. I never read too far in to it, aside from the fact that a giant goat demon with a metal leg and a rocket launcher for an arm was awesome.

[Vaporizer]

.

[Maes]

Because once there were demons in the base, and John Stalvert came along and the demons said "He's gonna kill us" and then John was a zombie.

[PRIMEVAL]

"And on the 9th day, God said 'Let there be cybernetic enhancements on all Demons,' and they came to be, and God said it was good.' -- Romero 3:12

[Sharessa]

Because you will be kill by demons with rockit lunchers.

[Mr. Freeze]

Gameplay-wise, having a lot more meless enemies would be boring. Cybernetics allowed ID to go crazy with not only monster design, but gameplay needs.

[General Rainbow Bacon]

@PRIMEVAL: Well, what happened on the 8th day??? We were only up to 7 last time i counted.

[StevieWolfe]

Danarchy said:

Because you will be kill by demons with rockit lunchers.

This.

[Technician]

I remember Romero's justification when this topic was brought up was if humans can harness technology, then why can't hell.

[Chow Yun Thin]

They weren't content with killing people with fire and lightning and whatever the hell the barons and knights threw, so it was a nice change of pace to kill with bullets, buckshot, plasma and rockets.

[magicsofa]

HWGuy said:

whatever the hell the barons and knights threw

huh - I always thought of thier projectiles as nukage but that wouldn't really make any sense :D

[Vaporizer]

.

[Stupid Bunny]

Vaporizer said:

Barons & HKs throw plasma.

Not to be confused with palsma, which is what arachnotrons shoot.

I always liked the notion that Hell would go beyond demonic mysticism and into the realm of technology in creating destructive power. Between enemies like archviles and barons, which derive their strength from dark magic, and enemies like arachnotrons and cyberdemons, which get their power from technology, it's clear that Hell can do a lot with both.

[myk]

Barons hell and hell knights hurl greenish flames or energy. The stuff is neither like plasma nor slime. The FAQ, I think, says "plasma" but that's not the only error in there.

Mr. Freeze said:
Gameplay-wise, having a lot more meless enemies would be boring.

Yeah, I'm glad the youless ones predominate instead, and there are a few usless ones, as well, even though they are a bit pointless. Themless ones were first implemented in Quake, though.

[magicsofa]

Vaporizer said:

Barons & HKs throw plasma.

yup, and so do imps and cacodemons

(also mancs and arachs but they shoot :P)

myk said:

they are a bit pointless

None of the monsters are eyeless

[myk]

magicsofa said:
None of the monsters are eyeless

Except imps, when they die :p

[Vaporizer]

.

[Gez]

It just makes sense. The demons are subverting UAC installations and merging the dimensions. See how the Phobos base is transmogrified, with green stones, gargoyles, marble, wood, overgrown with vine, etc. You can bet the space station wasn't built that way originally! So just like the invaded base is transformed by the demonic presence; the demons' nature is affected by their conquests.

You'll notice that chronologically, the tech demons are later additions, originally reserved to the bosses (E2M8, E3M8). It's a twist in the story, too. In episode 1, you triumph over the demons and zombies with the magic of superior firepower. A good old pump-action shotgun reveals itself more efficient for exorcism than all the prayers and holy waters of the world. And blam! Suddenly, the one thing that leveled the field between one single marine and unlimited hordes of fiends is removed. Now demons have rocket launchers and chainguns, too.

In Doom II, they have become commonplace, and are used for middle-tier monsters (fatso, arachnos, revenants) so the effect is lessened. Doom II also shows you just how pervasive demontech has become, with the huge skullswitch in Circle of Death and what may be the culmination of hellish engineering, the life support installation for Old Brainy in the Icon of Sin.

[dontbotherwithmyname]

i think that ,in the case of the arachnotrons and spider master mind, they use cybernetics because they have no natural form of defense (eg. tooth,claws,fire balls etc...) and they have to use the hands for locomotion

[Dark Demon]

could it be that cybernetic demon's could be hell's forms of our tanks, or even the demon's stole our technology? tbh I think doom wanted you to use your own imagination.

lol Christ hates technology

[Use]

keithktam said:

why cybernetic demons?

Because it's cool? I'd like to think that was the goal behind much of Doom's design.

[Jannak]

The Demons are just simply merging Hell with our reality or their simply rewriting it (since they turned Demios from a Planet to a huge floating island and Space itself into a large Hellscape).

[40oz]

I never really understood it either but it certainly makes them look more fortified and frightening. I think all of Doom 2's new monsters had some kinda of technological advantage with the exception of the Pain Elemental, and the Archvile (I think). Also Doom's progression (in terms in the order each monster is encountered from the start of Doom 1 to the end of Doom 2) involved mostly primitive all demonic monsters and slowly moved on to monsters that were more robotic but still inherently monsters.

I think I read somewhere that Imps have metal spikes protruding from their skin though, I don't know if that has anything to do with being cybernetic though. I guess that's up to interpretation as many of Doom's features are.

[lupinx-Kassman]

It is too bad you never see any demons that look quite like the ones in the box art. Cybernetic barons of hell would have been neat to fight.

[Gez]

Eriance created some for Demon Eclipse. You can also see them as mid-bosses in Thunderpeak. Though they're grey rather than red. You can see them here.

[printz]

Dark Demon said:

lol Christ hates technology

Yeah, indeed, Doom (especially Doom 3) is a highly religious game hitting on the perils of over-technology and over-ambition. More on it on a more appropriate thread.

[keithktam]

PRIMEVAL said:

"And on the 9th day, God said 'Let there be cybernetic enhancements on all Demons,' and they came to be, and God said it was good.' -- Romero 3:12

Super ROFL!! i bet god would say "Oh, yeaaah!" like Duke Nukem would!

Gez said:

It just makes sense. The demons are subverting UAC installations and merging the dimensions. See how the Phobos base is transmogrified, with green stones, gargoyles, marble, wood, overgrown with vine, etc. You can bet the space station wasn't built that way originally! So just like the invaded base is transformed by the demonic presence; the demons' nature is affected by their conquests.

I think this is inspirational indeed, i think it makes sense. I would quote the faq for the guardian demon from the book i was reading: the making of Doom3.

here it goes:"I wanted the guardian demon to look pre-historic, like the demon would be worshiped in the age of dinosaurs!" so the GD end up looking like dino, just as in the age of the Bible, the people in the story were medieval or before that, so no wonder the demons chose to appear with what we learned from the Bible.

so in the age of space and robotic, and UAC of course, they would choose a new avatar to scare us! or could be the fact that the dimensions are merging!

then from the design stand point, these Cybernetic rocket armed demons are now iconic to Doom and become a new sub genre.

Geiger would be proud!

[DuckReconMajor]

Gez said:

It just makes sense. The demons are subverting UAC installations and merging the dimensions. See how the Phobos base is transmogrified, with green stones, gargoyles, marble, wood, overgrown with vine, etc. You can bet the space station wasn't built that way originally! So just like the invaded base is transformed by the demonic presence; the demons' nature is affected by their conquests.

Except that the Spider Mastermind "Masterminded" the invasion, and with a pointed metal leg, led the demons into the portal to Deimos base.

[Stupid Bunny]

I always wondered whether the Spider Mastermind originated as some sort of immobile, gigantic brain being, and later had itself affixed to its robotic platform with autoshotgun as a means of providing mobility and self-defense. This, of course, is the same question as whether there are any 100% organic, base mancubi, arachnotrons, cyberdemons,etc.