Windows

DOOM II: Hell on Earth

Even with its darkly entertaining firepower and pleasingly grotesque menagerie, the game has its flaws, like an unrelenting and simplistic soundtrack that gets pretty annoying over time. (Don't worry, though, the game's sound effects are as brilliant as they were in the original, and remain one of its best features.) More bothersome, especially for fans of the first game, is that the repetitious action in this nasty and brutish sequel just isn't as addictive as it was in the original hit. Doom II doesn't build the same visceral or emotional connection because it doesn't enhance the original experience in any original way. Compared to Hexen, for example, which broadens the Heretic legend, Doom II adds little substance and no plot to its predecessor (space marine saves earth by killing monsters isn't a plot).

It's DOOM II, and since Quake is here already ruling the cosmos, I can't sit here and tell you that DOOM II for Win95 is all that great, but if you don't have DOOM II and you've got a Win95 P90Mhz or above, this is the best version to buy! For beginners, it makes loading those .WAD files as simple as pointing and clicking, and setting up a multiplayer game is just as easy. And it's not a ripoff like Final DOOM, because this is really a Win95-native DOOM II!