Monday, August 12th 2024

The Original DOOM and DOOM II See Relaunch on Windows with Crossplay and 4K 120 FPS Support

The original DOOM and DOOM II were relaunched as a package deal by ZeniMax late last week. This sees the two games wrapped around a new Windows executable that includes high resolution texture remasters (though it still looks quite blocky), along with online multiplayer, Crossplay support, and a 16:9 viewport that supports 4K resolution with 120 frames per second. This wouldn't be the first such "re-launch" by Bethesda, the parent publisher of ZeniMax, the company re-launched DOOM and DOOM II as separate games on Steam and Microsoft Store in 2019, with a modern Windows executable with WASD controls, a 16:9 viewport, "HD" textures, and the original MIDI background score pre-rendered as PCM. Both the 2019 and this new 2024 re-releases are fully compatible with the latest Windows 11, and don't need any emulators.

The 2024 re-launch includes all episodes of DOOM, DOOM II, all public mods, and a new first-party DOOM episode called "Legacy of Rust," created by community members who worked at id Software. This episode also includes some new weapons, such as a flamethrower. You also get a new Remixed background score. You can select between this, a pre-rendered original soundtrack, a pre-rendered Yamaha OPL3 FM synth soundtrack, or get the game to use a MIDI device. The DOOM + DOOM II 2024 release is available on GOG, Steam, EGS, and Microsoft Store for $9.99.
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30 Comments on The Original DOOM and DOOM II See Relaunch on Windows with Crossplay and 4K 120 FPS Support

#26
Scrizz
so people are complaining about free content.... got it
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#27
kondamin
Shame I can no longer play these games without getting carsick.

i enjoyed playing when I was a kid
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#28
Synthwave
Dr. DroIf someone truly cares about authenticity when it comes to DOS games, they're keeping a 486 or Pentium with DOS 6.22/Windows 95 around :D
No, if you are speedrunning (especially slaughter maps) and/or playing a lot of limit removing, Boom or MBF/MBF21 content. ;) You know, if you are not just nostalgic for the IWADs every now and then, but actually seriously playing the game with 3rd party WADs frequently.

Got a P233 MMX though, but I wouldn't want to do any of the above on that. Even much less on my 486 DX-40. Well, I couldn't, even if I wanted to. There's a bare minimum of hardware specs when you play maps with complex geometry and/or thousands of monsters.
QuietBobFor that authentic 90s look & feel you should be playing it on a 386 machine in DOS on a 14" CRT monitor in 320x200. Aiming with the keyboard at 5-20 fps on low detail :roll:



And this is precisely how I first completed both games! Seriously though, I doubt even Doom veterans would like to play it that way nowadays. The original release lacked many features we take for granted in an fps.

Doom is still playable today with a few tweaks, the core gameplay is there. I beat Sigil on Ultra-Violence and had a ton of fun doing it. Yet I think people who have never played the original game won't be buying the re-pack because of how terribly dated it looks, even with these slight improvements.

Incidentally, I just checked my GOG account where I had purchased the games previously. Indeed, I received the current suite for free, so no complaints there. But as a standalone commercial product published by the world's richest company, this re-release of a re-release is still disappointing. Doom deserves much better than this.
There are absolutely beautiful 3rd party WADs out there (Ancient Aliens, AUGER;ZENITH, Zeppelin Armada, Eviternity, Eviternity 2 etc.). Something looking really nice is so much more than pixel(/polygon) count, baked high-resolution textures and special effects. Shapes, colors, contrasts, simulated lighting, general art direction and atmosphere are much more important imo.
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#29
Paganstomp
Some screenshots for your enjoyment. To my understanding It's "free" for those that have it already on GOG, Steam... etc.
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#30
Tartaros
PaganstompSome screenshots for your enjoyment. To my understanding It's "free" for those that have it already on GOG, Steam... etc.
Yeah, it is free, I don't understand at all the nagging in this thread about cashgrab this or "the purity" of Doom that. You still can get the wads on the installation folder and use in some other sourceport if that's how you roll.

How about let people play however they want in peace?
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