The one thing I didn't like about Doom is the surreal look both of the artistic and map layout. e.g. no space ship or space station would ever be designed like that (it is the same with Star Wars Death stars... did no one think of putting up a guard rail?).
It is one of the reasons I liked Duke Nukem 3D a lot more as a teenager.
The map does look cool but it doesn't have that real space station feel.
> no space ship or space station would ever be designed like that
Doom isn't set on a space craft or (orbiting) space station. It's set on Phobos, one of Mars' moons. Given the likely terrain and challenges of building a base there, it's entirely conceivable the layout could be like that. As to the surreal look, well it felt good enough and immersive enough for me when I first played it back in 1994; especially late at night where it'd give me the willys.
Carmack later stated that it was "silly" to set the game on Phobos given the moon's size and gravity. I believe he said that around the time of the Doom 3 release - which is set on Mars, not Phobos.
I'd guess the reason the level layouts are not "realistic" is simply to offer better gameplay. Level layouts in modern games (even bland ones like CoD) don't make much sense either, but they're better at hiding it.
> Level layouts in modern games (even bland ones like CoD) don't make much sense either, but they're better at hiding it.
Modern games usually feel waaaaaaay less realistic to me because they fall right into the uncanny valley.
You'll have some photorealistic landscape, or some crazy fantasy landscape that looks real enough to touch.
And then the realism falls away because half of the simple doors in the village can't be operated by your character (even though he's strong enough to fight a 50-foot dragon with his bare hands) and there's a 2 foot high fence you can't jump over even though your character is a literal superhuman. And all the characters look "real" but move like slightly creepy photorealistic mannequins.
That always feels a lot less "real" to me than something like Doom that's just the right level of abstract.
The levels in Doom don't feel realistic (compared to any place that exists in reality) but they feel real in the sense that they are tangible, understandable, consistent environments.
I feel stronger levels of immersion where I can do anything I can think up with the environment rather that it just looking really good.
If that means having less objects to interact with but I can interact with them all, then it feels like I have real control and consequence in the world.
Moving my laser gattling gun in Fallout 4 up onto a table feels immersive. Not being able to navigate a small rock barrier breaks that.
I imagine for me that it is easier to suspend my disbelief when the world feels real rather than when it looks real.
I'd rather play Doom I on Phobos than Doom III anywhere...
In all seriousness, though, complaining about gravity not being right when you're fighting demons and your health is a percentage number? Gravity is the least of the 'real-world' concerns. It's just a gameplay device like any other.
Has there ever been a hospital drama where the doctors are frantically running around saying things like "Quick! This man is down to 12% health and falling rapidly!"?
One thing I'd really love game designers to do when designing levels - focus first on what it is, and then only on how it plays. E.g. if designing a space station, first consider how a space station would look like, what facilities it needs, what would be the optimal placement, etc. Only after that add the puzzles, enemies and stuff.
In other words, I'd like game designers to pay more attention to details in world building.
The problem with that is that space stations and whatnot aren't designed to be fun as you go through them. Games are supposed to be fun. It would be incredibly misguided for a game designer to design the level around a real-world location first and then add the puzzles and enemies. Do you have "fun" walking through the halls of your doctor's office or through your local water treatment plant? There's a reason why they don't do exactly what you're suggesting.
Different people have different tastes. Yes, I do find it interesting to walk through unfamiliar buildings in real life, and I'd find it more fun to go through a realistically designed level even if that meant e.g. the pacing was a bit uneven.
I think there's a flaw in this want, which is that you don't know what "realistically designed" means. I've never been on a large space station, and aside from academic or artistic ventures, one has never been built.
The same is with wastewater treatment plants, etc. And, if you're targeting realism, size might be an issue.
That said, there are games that are thoughtful about this, such as doorkickers or heist.
Doom originally tried that, with Tom Hall doing a lot of design. Then they figured out that it sucked, and decided to go with more abstract playspaces instead.
Even in Half-Life 2 and things the current industry practice is to "box in" the playspaces to get the flow correct and then skin them to look like actual locations.
If you want a game with some actual attempts at realistic spaceships look at System Shock 1/2 or Dead Space. Even in those cases it's pretty clear that they have taken great liberties with what would make sense.
I agree that too often, the layout of levels does not look real, as the space they represent (living quarters, warehouse, reactor, office, prison...) don't look like they could fulfill their function. Sometime they just feel like "game space".
And it impacts negatively any kind of immersion.
So I think it would be beneficial for level to be a little more believable in that regard, as it would improve the games.
Of course it only apply for games where such things are important and for players who dislike this break of immersion.
I feel the same way about Halo. I love the games, but all the buildings and spaceships are just huge hallways and useless empty rooms with nothing in them.
It is one of the reasons I liked Duke Nukem 3D a lot more as a teenager.
The map does look cool but it doesn't have that real space station feel.
I guess you could argue hell alters the layout.