Doom Episode 3: Inferno

Finished up the original Doom level set tonight. I talked up episode 2 quite a bit in my last post, but 3 is a lot better than I remembered. It's probably my favorite of the classic 3. The aesthetic is a little more Hell focused, but still interesting. The fights mostly feel fair, and even when Id just throws 40 odd demons at you it stays fun (a bit issue with a lot of later level sets). Ammo scarcity felt about right, I was consistently relying on my shotgun where I'd have preferred to use something else, but I had just enough rockets/plasma when things go rough. Bullets were really tight, and I never felt like I had enough. I could've been a little more spendy with plasma. Rockets turned into my "back up" ammo at a few spots, which kind of screwed me when I had none to hit the secret exit (first rocket jump in an Id game! They'll be a way bigger deal in Quake.) Fortunately, the ol' push the switch from the other side of the wall trick worked. Good secret level. It's basically the first level of the episode with a boss fight in the middle and an extended side section. Hits better playing the whole episode in one evening, so I'm glad I did that.

I talked a little about the Baron corpse on the Cyberdemon level, but I missed out on a similar bit of atmosphere in the form of this texture:

This signals Barons in Episode 2, and will continue to (mostly) do so in episode 3.

Beyond that, not a lot of new content. The Spider Mastermind is the only new monster, a final boss that's slightly less scary than Episode 2's (but with a better level). The BFG9000 is the only new gun. You don't even have one for the Spider Mastermind fight, which feels like kind of a miss. It'll play better in Doom 2.

Beyond that, some new level design tricks (the first wide open levels, some good fake walls, an okay switch-combo puzzle.

I do have a couple quibbles. There's a few spots you're locked out of backtracking. Doom doesn't do this a ton (I think once or twice in Episode 1 and none in Episode 2) so it was a shame to see if here. The levels are also kind of slime heavy. They're pretty good about giving you enough slime suits, but it can be a pain when you're exploring, looking for secrets, etc.

Debating between jumping to Doom 2 next (since it came out first) or sticking it out and finishing Episode 4 (which is a later expansion).