Doom 3 Ships.

[BTs_Mysterio]

The mac version has begun shipping to stores near you. Or in typhy's case, stores far away from you. Expect it "everywhere" by march 19.

Based on report by MacNN.

[Typhy]

Just finished playing about 90 minutes of Doom 3.

The graphics are phenominal, as are the physics. The game play can get a tad tedious, since it seems to be the same things over and over, but can also be very intense. Several times it made me jump back.

I'm running a 1.5GHZ Powerbook G4, 1.25GB RAM, 128MB ATI Radeon 9700. 800x600, no shadows, graphics on low.

For the most part, it was playable, I had some issues when I'd get into firefights ( with the Marine zombies ). Probably a high of about 35 FPS, a low of around 10, average of maybe 20.

Definently a good game to play if you've got a high end system.

Sound is a must. If you've got a good sound system, grab a copy of Doom 3, turn all the lights off, crank your sounds up, and prepare for some heart attacks!

One last note: I would NOT recommend playing this on a machine any LESS powerful than mine. This is really a game for G5 owners. Even with low settings, there were some points where it was right on the edge of being playable.

[BTs_Mysterio]

<rolls on ground> I think that last guy jumping out of the shadows from the floor may have shaken me a tad. I love this game... just not right now.

[NiKLoT]

i running a g5 powermac 1.8 ghz, 1.25 gb ram and a geforce 6800 GT (258 Vram) and im playin doom 3 on ultra high resolution. Only one comment ITS FUCKING GREAT!!! This game is a must for every egoshooter freak. A little typ of my part play it when its dark and play it in a dark room at home if possible while no one is in ur house cuz then u will flipp out for sure!

PS: i got banned for 2 days damn Evill i think its one of his favourite sports: Ban NiKLoT

[BFG]

I wanna see i wanna see - ive spent so much damn time reading about the graphics engine etc etc all i want to bloody do is see it for myself... just one little problem: 500Mhz

Doom wants: 1.5Ghz G4 minimum
I have:  1.0Ghz x2   

Now ive got more ram, and ive got a hell of a lot more interms of GPU .... but question is do u guys think i can get it running or is this a no hoper? .5 sounds tiny... but when i think back to when we had top of the range 500mhz G4's... well its actually qutie a lot!

[Civrock]

Doom 3 Mac Edition Performance Tuning:

http://www.barefeats.com/doom3.html

[BFG]

ta civic.

More robust and modern OpenGL implementation on OS X. The fact that OpenGL is engineered from the ground up on OS X to be accessible from many applications at once is wonderful for the rest of the world, but does have a performance hit for games. Sharing GL with the rest of the system invokes a small overhead that Windows doesn't have, since Windows can basically assume GL is just in use for one application.

A touch ironic isn't it - we are using a more robust and modern implementation of openGL on a more advanced system, and because of it games suffer!   ... but to be honest i couldnt give a damn, i'll trade in Game performance for a better System ANY day of the week 

[NiKLoT]

woha im just back of 2h doom 3 playing. damn that game scares!! if i wouldnt have a G5 yet i would buy one, just to play this game!!

[Typhy]

A few statistics from Time Demo's:

1.5GHZ Powerbook G4, 1.25GB RAM, 128MB ATI Radeon 9700.

Medium graphics, all advanced options on, inclulding shadows, no FSAA: 18 FPS.

Ultra High graphics, all advanced options, no FSAA: 9.8 FPS.

Ultra High graphics, all advanced options, 16x FSAA: 6.8 FPS.

[BTs_Mysterio]

If this is any sign how UE3 will run, I suppose I should get a new graphics card. 9600 can manage around 20 in that time demo (med graphics all advanced on except FSAA and some other sync thing).

[Typhy]

I wanna see i wanna see - ive spent so much damn time reading about the graphics engine etc etc all i want to bloody do is see it for myself... just one little problem: 500Mhz

Doom wants: 1.5Ghz G4 minimum
I have:  1.0Ghz x2   

Now ive got more ram, and ive got a hell of a lot more interms of GPU .... but question is do u guys think i can get it running or is this a no hoper? .5 sounds tiny... but when i think back to when we had top of the range 500mhz G4's... well its actually qutie a lot!

Decompress your .pk4 files, put everything on low, and take a shot at it.

[Civrock]

if you decompress the .pk files you won't be able to join servers anymore that still have these compressed. you get a "files are not sync" error or so...

[Typhy]

So what? Doom 3 multiplayer is horrible.

Besides, given the "slightly similarity" in all of our CD keys. . . Multiplayer is out of the question anyway.

[Civrock]

So what? Doom 3 multiplayer is horrible.

true... only 5 MP maps where you can play with 4 players only. you can't even call that MP yet...

[BTs_Mysterio]

Doom3 demonstrates how limited Quake 4 will be. Hopefully they will implement even slightly damageable environments or else Unreal Engine 3 will blow them out of this game generation.

Oh yea I forgot UE3 also owns it in having: more detailed environments, nearly 100 player MP, Multi-processor support, PPU support for future advances, and of course vehicles.

[c| Lone-Wolf]

The game is quite playable on a 1Ghz, 64 MB graphics card, 1GB RAM 15" Powerbook, OS 10.3.8  You just have to turn -EVERYTHING- off.  And i mean everything.  There are some places where you get hammered real hard because you get .25 FPS and cant hit crap except by luck, but for the most part you should be alright.  The biggest slowdown causers for me are when you get into a firefight with marines, Imps (going from their name in Doom 1) take a flying leap at, and hitting you, or those monstrous dog-things back you into a corner and start wailing on you.  I will agree with the whole 'tedious gameplay' thing, but just remember what the original Doom was like.  So now it is wildly better graphics (if you have a Dual 2+ G5)  and some semblance of a storyline, however thin it may be. I would call that a step up from Doom 1, wouldnt you? 

I just got into the Delta Labs and re-started the reactor core, and now, after clicking 'post', i intend to go back into the game and share some of my chainsaw lovin' with the zombies.

[Typhy]

The game is quite playable on a 1Ghz, 64 MB graphics card, 1GB RAM 15" Powerbook, OS 10.3.8  You just have to turn -EVERYTHING- off.  And i mean everything.  There are some places where you get hammered real hard because you get .25 FPS and cant hit crap except by luck, but for the most part you should be alright.  The biggest slowdown causers for me are when you get into a firefight with marines, Imps (going from their name in Doom 1) take a flying leap at, and hitting you, or those monstrous dog-things back you into a corner and start wailing on you.  I will agree with the whole 'tedious gameplay' thing, but just remember what the original Doom was like.  So now it is wildly better graphics (if you have a Dual 2+ G5)  and some semblance of a storyline, however thin it may be. I would call that a step up from Doom 1, wouldnt you? 

I just got into the Delta Labs and re-started the reactor core, and now, after clicking 'post', i intend to go back into the game and share some of my chainsaw lovin' with the zombies.

You need shadows on to really experience Doom 3. I dunno, it seems to me that it's a bit of a watse of time if you can't at least have your graphics up to medium and have shadows on. Then again, I'd be saying the exact same thing as you, Lone, if I still had my old Powerbook.

[c| Lone-Wolf]

Well, I fully intend to re-play the game with everything turned up to the max once spring break is over, and i return to my Dual 2.5 G5, which faithfully awaits me back at my room at college.  Though I may skip some of the more boring levels (alpha labs, anybody?)

For now though, it's just something to keep me busy during the break, and to give my PB one last huzzah, before it is no longer useful for much else but Folding @ Home and IM programs.

[BTs_Mysterio]

The dual 2.5 with anything less than a X800Xt or NV6800U wouldn't handle it. Even those are not recommended not being 512 MB.

[c| Lone-Wolf]

***WARNING*** - Very minor spoiler ahead.  (Not that there is much plot to spoil in the first place...)

So, after completing the game I hoped there would not be a sequel or expansion to Doom 3, because that would be seriously stretching the plot further than I thought it could possibly go (considering the way the game ended, which to me screamed no sequel, period).  I mean, you sealed up the gate, killed everything, and thoroughly vanquished all the nastieness that wanted to eat your brain.  However, to my dismay there apparently will be an expansion pack, with the premise that two years later the UAC goes back to Mars to investigate a 'beacon' buried underneath the surface of the planet.  And of course, things will get opened up again, and all kinds of pissed off demons come out of the gate and kick some human ass. 

If iD wanted to persue the title, and continue making money off of a game they probably knew would be very successful, why not just follow the original Doom storyline?  The general plot went, if I remember correctly, something like this:  Doom 1, all hell breaks loose (pun intended) on Phobos and Deimos, the two Martian moons.  You kick some serious demon ass, but the invasion of Earth commences anyway.  All that work for nothing, bummer.  So then Doom II is you going on to kick even more ass on Earth. 

If Doom 3 followed this general idea, I think it leaves a whole lot of room for expansion of the storyline in almost every direction they could possibly want or imagine.  Not only storyline development, but advancement in the aspects of the game, like actually interacting with people, a friendly AI that helps you in the game, plentiful vehicles to ride in and shoot up, and very engaging environments, both indoor, outdoor, and underground. 

But no, we're going back to the same place we already blew to high heaven and back again, to do it...again.  Bah I say.  I will still get it though, because I feel, as a gamer, compelled to do so (like everybody feels compelled to see the new Star Wars movies, even though they suck).

-Lone