Doom

The Good
Man, where do I start. When Doom was released, the graphics were a quantum leap over the already impressive graphics of Wolfenstein 3D, with variable ceiling and floor textures, different height levels, stairs, lighting effects, detailed and varied enemies and weapons. The sound and music is pretty impressive too, and all the weapons have a burly sound to them. The levels are all pretty large, and all are very well designed. I remember when I first played this game, I was throughly impressed, and horrified at the same time, the game scared the crap out of me, and is still good for a chill when you play it late at night with the lights low. The game was a technical marvel for its' day, the impressive visuals moved along smoothly on a lowly 386, with little slowdown. The weapons were very cool, my favorite being the BFG-9000, and a big step up from the pixelized guns in Wolfenstein 3D.

The Bad
Although there is a lot to like, if you're not a big fan of the FPS genre, the repetitive pace of the game can be annoying. A few more enemies would have been nice, as would including the double barreled shotgun in the first version, rather than just in Doom 2.

The Bottom Line
This title, along with the earlier, but just as significant Wolfenstein 3D, built the foundations for the wealth of FPS games existing today. If you've been living under a rock your whole life, and haven't played this game, you should do so immediately. The gameplay and graphics hold up fairly well, even in todays glitzed-over games market.