Released on the N64 in 1997 and now 23 years later it's finally on PC and other current gen platforms. The game took me roughly 5 hours to complete ( I did follow some guides for the secret levels and Unmaker weapon though, so it would most likely take a lot more time if you had to figure them out on your own. This is definitely one of those games that has enough replay value for another 20+ hours for mods and learning how to speedrun it, so you're getting a lot of value out of it.


TLDR: DOOM 64 is often seen as one of the weirder DOOM games along with DOOM 3 because of how it doesn't focus as much on the action but rather more on the atmosphere and puzzle solving. It's got a darker more moody OST that can definitely give you the creeps at moments and some of the puzzles can be quite challenging even for a 23 year old game. The visual redesigns of enemies and environments have aged really well and in my personal opinion out of all of the DOOM games, this is the one that has aged the best. If you're more of a fan of atmospheric FPS games like Half Life and Quake, DOOM 64 will resonate with you more than some of the other old DOOM games.

THE GOOD:

+ Atmosphere
If there's one thing that I think I'll be left with years later after playing DOOM 64, it would definitely have to be the atmospheric environments. No other DOOM game achieves it quite so effectively (even DOOM 3 overdoes it with cheap jumpscares)

+ Puzzlesolving:
Puzzlesolving is really fun! You can definitely tell that this was a focus as a lot of Nintendo fans generally enjoy games with puzzlesolving elements. I was especially impressed by a lot of the secret level challenges and a certain puzzle on Level 9, which involved obtaining a yellow key.

+ Visuals and Enemy Design:
I've always liked the designs of enemies in most DOOM games but I think of the old games, this one strikes a really nice balance of being faithful to the original designs, while also bringing them to a real 3D space. There are also 2 new enemies in the game (1 of which is a boss, so not sure it counts) The levels themselves are very different than DOOM 1 and 2, as they go for a more Quake-like gothic look, something which I've noticed echoes across in some of the DOOM Eternal levels (as I'm currently playing that too)

+ Replay Value:
This is the type of game I'd definitely go back to with how many different levels and challenges there are, even after clearing through mostly all of it. They're just that damn fun and even though I didn't play DOOM 64 back in the 90s, I can confirm I'll be having nostalgia for this game several years down the line and will be getting an itch to replay it. The secret and lost levels are especially fun and it's very cool that they have a mechanic tied in with the actual game, by letting you upgrade the new Unmaker weapon (though it does get quite OP by the end of the game once you have it fully upgrade. It practically shreds the final boss in seconds xD)


THE BAD:

- Story:
So I know these old DOOM games never had much of a story to begin with but this game practically has none. The devs tried to tie it in with DOOM 2016 and DOOM Eternal with a final cutscene that was added in this remake and there's I believe one other line of text towards the final levels, but other than that there isn't much here. Even DOOM 1 and 2 had sort of an explanation at several stages throughout the game that kind of give a hint as to what's happening. You even had a map that you tread across that shows your path from level to level, but there's none of that here. AGAIN, it doesn't really matter, but I did want to mention for those of you reading this coming from the era of newer DOOM games that now have lore and more of a story.

- Fights:
Though this DOOM game excels at puzzlesolving and atmosphere, it's weak point compared to other DOOM games is definitely the combat. Even at higher difficulties there aren't many enemies in the levels and you breeze through them fairly quickly, left with then solving the puzzle of discovering the secrets and the way to the exit. As I mentioned previously, it wasn't as much of an issue for me but I can see it being a problem for DOOM fans looking for intense fights in rooms filled with enemies, like in the other games in the franchise.


Summary: I'd give this game a hard recommend especially for the price. I don't think you need to be a hardcore oldschool DOOM fan for this one, especially with the differences in its gameplay and design. With the current wave of retro 3d shooters like DUSK, this feels right at home! Also if you own DOOM Eternal and you get this on Steam, you get a cool skin ;) (It's currently as of writing this the only Steam DOOM release that has skins as DOOM 1 and 2 aren't integrated with the Bethesda account thingy)