... and the result (of gameplay, graphics, sound, ai, ...) was one of the best it's time.
If you wan't to continue this gainful path you have to redesign the "old" feeling (for us old school's) with new, fresh parts to attract the potential customers (old school's as well as 'the others'*1 )

*1)

which makes me think about a remake of unreal 1. same gameplay, same levels, (almost) the same experience... just with up-do-date graphics...

i know it wouldn't be the same experience. not really. but dunno... i think it could be worth a try.

btw, do you remember that unreal had various ways to solve the game? as far as i recall, you were able to go different ways, (which led you to alternate levels at some time) which gave you quite a lot freedom.

correct me if i'm wrong please.

Yes, added affects certainly added to the game play. No doubt about it. However, what happened over time is that "eye candy" became the ONLY thing that was pushing some of these games. And, as a result, many FPS games sacrificed playability for cool graphics. I am certainly not against cool graphics or new graphical features. However, there has to be a balance and game play is king (as far as I am concerned).



There was a good bit of freedom in the first Unreal. For example, in the first outdoor level (right after you left the ship) you could go in a variety of directions to get to the next level. You could take an elevator down and exit beside the river and then go into a cave to eventually make it to the same part of the level that you would have gone to if you had not taken the elevator.

Basically, they did a decent job off giving the player the illusion of freedom, but confining them enough so that the player would not get lost .

that was exactly what i was talking about ^^ i just loved that, you could actually play unreal over and over again, and you'd still be able to find new routes like that. awesome.

and i agree about your point that fancy graphics got more important than the playability. bioshock, for example, got it balanced unbelievably awesome, if you ask me. just my opinion tho

I don't think this is the main/only chink of the newer fps - I think it's the excessive and additive usage of EVERY new technique (I exaggerate ;)) - [i]e.g. teamplay, strategic, advetureing,...[(i] and feature to gain more audience They sometimes miss over and over the K.I.S.S. of a simple (but exciting) shooter...

[edit]
A shooter should be a shooter - max. brain power should be to use the proper switch at the right place.. (*v*)

In fact, I was playing Unreal just last week and I went to some secret area (at least it was secret to me!) and said to myself, "As many times as I have played this game, I do not for the life of me remember this area!" I had found yet another little unexplored place!



I agree!



Well ... maybe a little more brain power . I like when certain weapons are better suited for certain creatures. So you have to think about what you are firing at what enemy. There are many simple things that can be utilized in a game to make a person think about what they are doing. But it does not have to be an overly convoluted task.

Like I said earlier on, an FPS was really just a side scrolling arcade shooter turned into 3D. These days it has left that concept too far behind (imo).

I grew up with games like Doom, Duke 3D, Blood, Unreal.

What I really liked and still like about Doom:
I know how to handle each enemy, I know their strengths and weaknesses. There are places which give you shelter, and secrets which make life easier for you.

Mean traps, weird levels.

And Doom still has those lovely shocking moments where you suddenly start crying because you did not expect this arch vile (or what was the revival guy called?) right behind the door you just opened.

Basically the levels were nonsense, but it was so much fun, and there were so many neat ideas realized with an engine which was so very limited.
A very clever secret passage system where things are shown to you and you simply WANT to get there. You have no idea because the entrance to this secret area could be at the other end of the level, so you automatically started "investigating" each single wall by hitting the space key. Every unaligned or too dark/bright texture was there for a purpose. Never had this in another game again.

The only newer games which come close to this experience are the Serious Sam series. To me they were like bringing back some of the good old times right into the present. Awesome. I have to admit that opposed to the Doom series, Sam shows it's real strength in Multiplayer games. For single player it's a bit too much straight forward - Doom has the better and more clever level design.

My second favorite would be Hexen. It took the Doom game into a fantasy setting and added more complex riddles, making the game a little bit like an adventure. I loved the atmosphere.

I've now played Doom1 and right after Doom3 to get the differences...
(Except the nostalgic thrill with doom1) for me doom1 has a plain/clear level design - the priority is on the enemies and - as Firoball mentioned - the "static enemies".
Doom3 (for example) seems to emphasize on "ambient" (darkness/complex leveldesign) what turns the focus - I like the "clean/predictable" gameplay of doom1 better....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cyHQa5wkTM

That's just insane.

A horrible maze level full of those annoying arch viles which always gave me the creeps. I hated this stage so much....

i'm pretty sure he used god mode. running through that level and killing archviles with bare fists without getting hurt looks weird to me...

anyways, back to topic :P