Doom

Doom for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a console conversion of id Software's influential first-person shooter, developed by Sculptured Software and published by Williams Entertainment in 1995. Programmer Randy Linden created a new Reality engine for the cartridge, which uses the GSU-2 processor commonly known as the Super FX 2 chip.

The story remains that of the computer original. An unnamed space marine becomes the sole survivor of a unit sent to investigate a demonic invasion on Phobos, where experiments by the Union Aerospace Corporation have opened gateways to Hell. His route leads through military installations, the lost moon of Deimos and infernal strongholds filled with possessed soldiers and monsters.

Play combines rapid first-person combat with the exploration of maze-like levels. The marine searches for coloured keycards, activates switches and lifts, discovers secret areas and gathers ammunition, health and armour while fighting enemies with fists, a pistol, shotguns, a chaingun, rocket launcher, plasma rifle, chainsaw and BFG 9000. Five difficulty settings are available, but access to later episodes depends on the selected setting, and passwords allow progress to be resumed.

The SNES edition contains 22 maps selected from all three episodes of the original Doom, including their boss and secret stages. Considerable compromises were necessary to make the game run on Nintendo's 16-bit hardware: the action appears in a reduced display window, floors and ceilings lack textures, enemy sprites are not shown from multiple angles and animation is less fluid than on a contemporary PC. Even so, the maps remain recognisable and the soundtrack rearranges Bobby Prince's music for the console's audio hardware.

This version cannot reproduce the speed, visual detail, multiplayer or user-created WAD support of the DOS original, yet placing such a technically demanding game on the SNES was an impressive programming achievement. Contemporary assessments were divided between admiration for the conversion and criticism of its low resolution and uneven frame rate. It is therefore best understood as a reduced but remarkably ambitious adaptation rather than a replacement for the computer game; players seeking the expanded four-episode release can turn to The Ultimate Doom.