Playing through Doom again has been a little odd.

It’s been 13 years since I last played it, and that, particularly considering the new look made possible by source ports and fan-updated textures and models, SHOULD mean that I don’t remember anything.  I mean, how long can a computer game stick with you?

Apparently, at least that long.

It’s not like I can breeze through the levels with my eyes closed, but I have occasional flashbacks: there are some rooms that I walk in to and immediately remember where the secret doors are, and there’s been a few instances of dodging crushing ceilings without knowing why I was doing it.

Oh, yes, and the very beginning of episode 3, where you have a pistol to kill a Cacodemon?  THAT I remembered. I love the first couple of levels in episode 3 for that, starving you of ammo and giving you just enough to fight your way to a little more, then letting you build up reserves slowly…  It’s great, a complete change-up that makes you play cautiously and strategically while you get yourself requipped.  Much abusing of save / reload during the process. 🙂

One thing I’m pretty sure was completely new was finding one of the secret levels.
It’s possible that I’ve done it before and forgotten, but taking an out-of-the way exit and getting dropped into a room with four Hell Knights, followed by a freakin’ ARMY of Cacodemons?  It was just a wee bit of a shock when it happened and I think I’d have remembered it.