Marty Stratton, executive producer of the game, said that it begins just outside of an outpost on Mars at the beginning of a demon invasion. He said there's more to the story, but that was all they were going to disclose at this point.
First off, I can confirm that what we were shown was NOT a pre-recorded demo, it was real-time game play that an id employee was playing on stage. As for the basics, I can't confirm or disconfirm whether there was regen health. I don't recall him picking up a lot of health, and the player HUD was mostly obscured by the head of the person sitting in front of me. There was a weapon wheel graphical display on the screen of the player helmet, and the HUD also notified him of things like atmospheric changes and on one occasion, a 'detected threat' (an enemy that had already come into view.) No cinematics at all from what I saw, with the possible exception of the very end of the demo (more on that later). There were a couple points where the control was briefly taken from the player, such as when he was hoisting himself up onto a ledge that he'd jumped up to grab. Most of the classic weapons made appearances: the pump shotgun, the double barrel, the plasma rifle, rocket launcher and chainsaw.
Graphics wise, it was mostly comparable to what was seen in the teaser. Some of the particles seemed a bit unfinished, but there were so damn many of them flying around at once that it made it pleasing to look at. Texture resolution is definitely a big step above what we've come to expect from id Tech 5, although since Marty said they're now onto id Tech 6(66) it definitely seems they've made tech changes. Much more specular maps and reflective glimmers on surfaces than in Rage or Wolfenstein.
The player started off in one of those old airlock rooms, where he did this fancy little tossing and catching of his space helmet in his hands before putting it on. ****ing splendid animation right there. Great animation all around in the rest of the demo too. The player walks out into this vast cavernous area, and below him is a huge pool of either lava or molten steel. He was walking on a series of walkways that seemed to network to a central hub. Basically, think of a sci-fi type installation set inside Mount Doom. Design of the space installation was very reminiscent of the incredibly detailed intricate geometry from Dead Space, and the dank corridors from Aliens. Also reminded me of the final level from Rage, as far as the high tech sci-fi detail and designs went. This design integrity was pretty consistent throughout the demo, coupled with
some more industrial type areas, and beautiful alien terrain. All in all, gorgeous environments.
So after maybe a couple minutes of quietly wandering around the walkways, he starts encountering enemies, in the form if possessed marines using weapons and Imps that seemed even more acrobatic and reflexive than in Doom 3. Overall, combat in the game seemed challenging, and not just because of the number of enemies, but because of how spaced apart they were. The multi-leveled nature of the outdoor environment, coupled with the many large crates and other props later on, made it easy for enemies to attack from many different angles. All the enemies that made appearances have already been detailed, so I won't waste any time talking about those. They were easily recognizable without being anywhere close to mirror copies of the originals or the ones from Doom 3. Overall, the enemy designs were closer to Doom 3.
Don't remember how much deformable geometry there was, but procedural damage on enemies was abundant. As mentioned, the player was able to perform 'finishing moves' on enemies, mostly Imps, which involve head stomping, limb tearing, innard gouging, and probably four or five beautiful executions with the chainsaw, during a segment where he tore through a line of Imps. Shotgun and double barreled shotgun could blow chunks off enemies, and in one case, blew an Imp right in half.
All this makes it sound like endless combat, but it wasn't. There were quiet, tense moments as well, such as a sequence where the player has to open a biometric scanner. He does so by tearing off the arm of a nearby corpse and scanning it. This leads me to believe there will be puzzle solving here, at least on some level. Objects of importance were not highlighted or anything either, which was good.
There was another sequence where he walked through a decimated corridor with walls caved in and wires and pipes hanging everywhere, with holes and gaps in the floor. There were bodies and pieces of bodies dangling everywhere, among glowing pentagrams. No enemies, just ominous atmosphere here.
Speaking of atmosphere, it seems like they're going with a mix of soundtrack and ambient industrial soundscapes here. A bit reminiscent of Doom 64.
I don't remember there being no reloading, not sure where that came from.
There was a certain strange feeling I had during the demo, like something was out of place. About halfway through, I realized what it was: I NEVER see a game with this type of visual realism where the player can move and maneuver at this speed. Make no mistake: the fast guy from the id Tech 1 games is back, except his freedom of movement is closer to Quake 3 Arena. (No, this is NOT a parkour game, and the movement is not that exaggerated or overpowered, I'm just using the comparison to give you a better idea.) The enemies are faster too, but the player is faster still. The player speed and the type of graphical realism are like two different things your brain is not used to processing together in modern games, or at least that was my thought on it.
The end of the demo happened when the player opened a big door to see the cyber demon from the teaser, which grips the door frame as it leans into the camera and roars. Cue the fade back into the Doom title screen.
The only things I didn't really like was that there were ammo and item pickups spraying from enemy bodies that were highlighted (the only instance I can think of where items were highlighted.) I bring that up because it was the only thing I saw that really seemed out of place to me. The player's visor display would sometimes highlight enemies, which I didn't really care for, seemed too Crysis to me. Certain elements could use work, sure, like some of the sounds from enemies being given a bit more variety. The only major graphical elements that I could think of that were missing were things like lens flares and crepuscular rays from clouds(both a bit understandable, given the environment).
So what are my overall impressions? If this demo is indicative of anything, we've got a pretty spectacular game coming. There were times during the demo where I was just saying '****, ****, HOLY ****', and I have the feeling I'll be doing it again when I play it.
