Unfortunately a bit of a downgrade here.
Doom II is of course just more Doom, but there's enough changes here to warrant a second game, I wouldn't really call this a "glorified expansion" though it is very samey. We've got new enemies, new weapons, a lot more verticality, and generally much larger levels. Despite these new additions, I think Doom 1 is a far superior game, and this mainly comes down to the level design.
Simply put, this game just doesn't have the same flow as 1. In 1 you're generally ripping through levels, just having a blast with the odd puzzle and level scouting that generally doesn't take that long. Doom II on the other hand is ridiculous with this stuff. There were like 5 or more puzzles in this game that were just straight up nonsense, the solution to progress on some of these is to just shoot at a random wall or something along those lines, it's just typical old game being cryptic stuff. It is seriously a flow killer to have to scour the map for 10-20 minutes, find literally no way to progress, then upon looking up a Youtube video the solution is something completely random that the player wouldn't naturally find. John Romero just had quite a bit too many annoying levels on this one for my liking.
As for enemies, they're a welcome edition, there is a MUCH larger enemy count though you the player are stronger, so it all evens out and feels like a fine next-step from Doom 1. Personally I would've liked to see more new weapons, the super shotgun doesn't provide enough variety from Doom 1.
I will also say I prefer the chapter setup from 1, it makes each portion of the game more memorable and stick out. Here all the levels are just put in continuously, sometimes broken up by a wall of text, it all just meshes together as samey. It's only towards the last 5 or so levels where the feeling of dread really ramps up that makes them stand out from the other levels.
I will also say, for a game that takes place on Earth, it definitely does not resemble anything human whatsoever lol.
Doom II is just a tad disappointing as I thought id learned from their level design issues in Wolfenstein 3D and mastered it in Doom 1, only to miss the mark again. With far worse level design, bloat, and not innovating on Doom much at all, I cannot see how anyone can say this is the superior game. Luckily the core Doom systems are still superb, and the aesthetics/music of the game is a joy, pretty much carrying the experience. I would recommend this game, but take your time with it and don't be afraid to look stuff up, chances are you'll need to at least once. Oh also, the Doom 1 soundtrack is far superior :)
Doom II is of course just more Doom, but there's enough changes here to warrant a second game, I wouldn't really call this a "glorified expansion" though it is very samey. We've got new enemies, new weapons, a lot more verticality, and generally much larger levels. Despite these new additions, I think Doom 1 is a far superior game, and this mainly comes down to the level design.
Simply put, this game just doesn't have the same flow as 1. In 1 you're generally ripping through levels, just having a blast with the odd puzzle and level scouting that generally doesn't take that long. Doom II on the other hand is ridiculous with this stuff. There were like 5 or more puzzles in this game that were just straight up nonsense, the solution to progress on some of these is to just shoot at a random wall or something along those lines, it's just typical old game being cryptic stuff. It is seriously a flow killer to have to scour the map for 10-20 minutes, find literally no way to progress, then upon looking up a Youtube video the solution is something completely random that the player wouldn't naturally find. John Romero just had quite a bit too many annoying levels on this one for my liking.
As for enemies, they're a welcome edition, there is a MUCH larger enemy count though you the player are stronger, so it all evens out and feels like a fine next-step from Doom 1. Personally I would've liked to see more new weapons, the super shotgun doesn't provide enough variety from Doom 1.
I will also say I prefer the chapter setup from 1, it makes each portion of the game more memorable and stick out. Here all the levels are just put in continuously, sometimes broken up by a wall of text, it all just meshes together as samey. It's only towards the last 5 or so levels where the feeling of dread really ramps up that makes them stand out from the other levels.
I will also say, for a game that takes place on Earth, it definitely does not resemble anything human whatsoever lol.
Doom II is just a tad disappointing as I thought id learned from their level design issues in Wolfenstein 3D and mastered it in Doom 1, only to miss the mark again. With far worse level design, bloat, and not innovating on Doom much at all, I cannot see how anyone can say this is the superior game. Luckily the core Doom systems are still superb, and the aesthetics/music of the game is a joy, pretty much carrying the experience. I would recommend this game, but take your time with it and don't be afraid to look stuff up, chances are you'll need to at least once. Oh also, the Doom 1 soundtrack is far superior :)
cowboyjosh
7 months ago