The original Doom just got released on Xbox Live Arcade. I tried the demo out and realised just how much demos have changed. The original game was released as shareware: the first third of the game was available for free and you had to pay to play the rest. On Xbox 360, only the first level is available for free, and you must pay for everything else.
I can’t say I’m surprised, but I think the new demo is a bit too limited for its own good. You can’t appreciate what makes Doom good from the first level only… The original game became a mega hit by offering a large fraction of the game for free, you’d think this proven success would lead them to repeat this approach…
Strangely, the demo is also quite a bit larger (in file size) than I remember the original game being. I wonder why that is, considering the game is identical.
September 28th, 2006 at 10:01 pm
Size difference = textures are likely all saved as high resolution versions rather than upscaled from the originals on initilization.
Very short demo = You probably wouldn’t buy Doom unless you’ve played it before and know what it’s like. This demo just seems to want to show get you all nostalgic and show you it’s a faithful port.
I agree though. The original 10 levels was very kind of them but at least 2 would have been nicer. The popup during gameplay is new too and something I hope they don’t do in further demos.
Gary
October 10th, 2006 at 11:19 pm
Sorry for the long delay in posting this comment — it was automatically filtered as spam for some unknown reason