iPhoney Doom

The boys (and girls) over at ID software and Escalation Studios have brought Doom Resurrection to the iPhone which on the surface looks very much like Doom 3 running on a low end p.c. This is quite impressive for a handheld device, nevermind a mobile phone. So you are thinking - where have they had to cut back - and this is the issue. Doom Resurrection on the iPhone is an 'on rails' shooter like House of the Dead or Time crisis. Before you get all pissy and complain that 'Doom should never be on rails' this actually works for the iPhone.

Now anyone with a jailbroken iPhone should know that a ported (but still full) version of Quake 3 has been out for some time albeit with no sound and awkward controls. So we know that even the 1st generation iPhone is capable of running Quake 3 rather well but the greatest issue to address is the controls. The iPhone is not designed to be able to control first person shooters as well as we would like - a dedicated keyboard and mouse. But Doom Resurrection with it's cutbacks and simplified controls is an example of how shooters can be done right for a mobile device.

Once you get into Doom Resurrection and start blasting away you soon realise how much of Doom 3 they have managed to cram into 79MB. All of the classic enemies (for as much as I have played anyway) - check. Creepy lighting - Check. Classic weapons including chainsaw - double check. The expected tension is missed because the rails gameplay but even so - its running on an iPhone for heavens sake!

All in all I'm quite impressed with Doom Resurrection on the iPhone. I just wish my battery would hold out so I can play it more!