First person shooters really started with the humble Wolfenstein 3-D created by Id Software in 1992. It caught on among PC gamers and started the craving for the new genre. Gamers, as they tend to do, wanted more. In late 1993, Id followed up with the now historical DOOM. DOOM is widely recognized as the game that really started the first person shooter revolution. It featured more of everything that made Wolfenstein 3-D a success and then some. The speed, graphics, gameplay and environments were revolutionary in 1993. People bought new computers jus to play it. DOOM took over people's lives and bogged down corporate networks. Companies banned DOOM... the government wanted to ban it and gamers couldn't get enough of it.

DOOM is the purest form of a first person shooter. Storyline is kept at a minimum as you take up the control of the now famous 'Space Marine', blasting through the minions of hell and zombie remains of your comrades who already met the business end of a fireball. This is how it works: If it moves, it needs to die. Simple as that. How can you not like that? This game was the practically the sole source of stress relief for my early college years. DOOM was not about the story, it was all about the action, and what wonderful action it was.

The DOOM engine added a lot to Wolfenstein 3-D's established concepts. First, there was now dramatic lighting effects in the game. DOOM featured indoor and outdoor levels with varying degrees of lighting, as well as dynamic effects such as flickering lights along a corridor. Also added were walls that didn't have to all be 90 degrees as they were limited to in Wolfenstein 3-D. Different height levels for the ceilings were also now possible, allowing for multi-tiered levels in addition to textured floors and ceilings. Of course the overall graphics and sound took a leap as well.

DOOM on the GBA is very close to the classic PC title. Very little was lost in the translation. First, and obviously, the resolution is less on the GBA than on the original PC classic. There are also a couple skipped levels which isn't that big of a deal. I miss a couple of the baddies though, mainly the cyberdemon, however this isn't the only game system version to not have him in it. You can also choose 'Dynamic' or 'Static' lighting, which effects the smoothness of the game. Static lighting just keeps the light levels constant in the levels, freeing up a few clock cycles for less slowdown and higher framerate. I haven't had a problem with playing on the Dynamic settings though. You can also adjust the brightness of the screen which can be a huge help.

I know that the FPS genre has progressed so much since 1993, and even the lowly GBA has its fair share of newer styled shooters such as Dark Arena and the soon to be released Duke Nukem, but DOOM just has a special place in my gaming heart. I just love the fact that I can carry this game around in my pocket and blast away a few Imps as I take a break during an annoying day at work. DOOM is a classic, plain and simple. I'm not sure what else to say about it really. You just can't beat throwing it into god mode and smashing through the hordes of hell when your feeling a little stressed out.

DOOM on the GBA works surprisingly well. I would definitely recommend it to fans of the classic who would like another shot at a Demon with a chain saw. You can't go wrong with this if you own a GBA. Now we are in a generation of gamers who may have started later in the FPS genre and might think that DOOM is just antiquated and boring, and they would be right. DOOM on the GBA will obviously not compare to the current Quake games, but, obviously it isn't meant to. DOOM on the GBA is an awesome stroll down memory lane for a lot of us, and for the rest of us it is a chance to see what started it all.

Compared to what else is out there, you might find a 'better' game elsewhere. I purchased DOOM for classic nature of the title. It's the grandaddy of them all. (Oddly enough though, Wolfenstein 3-D was released months after DOOM was on the GBA). DOOM, as a game, history aside, resides in the middle of the current crop of available first person shooters on the GBA. It isn't the worst, yet it won't be the best, just because it isn't going to be a new game all of the sudden. I really feel you can't go wrong with this title if you are itching for a FPS on the go, but your milage may vary.