DOOM is a first-person shooter video game developed by id Software and published in 1993 that marked a before and after in the history of video games.
The plot revolves around a space marine, popularly known as Doomguy, who is sent to a military base on Mars where teleportation experiments are conducted between the moons Phobos and Deimos. These experiments accidentally open a portal to Hell, allowing hordes of demons and hellish creatures to invade the facility. The player assumes the role of this soldier and must make his way through labyrinthine levels filled with monsters, traps and secret passages with the sole objective of surviving and stopping the demonic invasion.
The gameplay is presented in a first-person perspective that was revolutionary at the time, as it offered simulated three-dimensional environments that gave a great sense of immersion. The player roams corridors, rooms and open areas in search of keys, switches and exits, while fighting enemies with an arsenal of weapons that became iconic in gamer culture: from the simple starter pistol to the shotgun, the heavy machine gun, the rocket launcher and the mythical BFG 9000. The action is frenetic and is accompanied by a dark and oppressive atmosphere reinforced by an energetic soundtrack with influences of metal and electronic music.
The enemies that inhabit this world include zombified soldiers, lesser demons known as Imps, huge floating creatures called Cacodemons and terrifying bosses such as the Barons of Hell. Each confrontation requires quick reflexes, ammunition management and terrain awareness. The level design combines exploration, intense combat and the search for hidden secrets that reward the player with additional resources.
DOOM's cultural impact was enormous. Not only did it push the first-person shooter genre forward, to the point that for years similar games were known as "doom-like," but it also fostered the creation of modifications and custom levels thanks to the openness of the code and tools provided by the community. This gave rise to a very active mod scene that kept the title alive for decades and directly inspired the evolution of later sagas within the genre.
Today DOOM is considered an absolute classic, a technological and cultural milestone that not only introduced new ways to play, but also defined much of the visual and gameplay language of modern video games. Its legacy remains in the continuations of the saga and in the memory of generations of players who experienced for the first time the adrenaline of facing legions of demons in an immersive and unprecedented digital environment for its time.