There is no doubt that there will be comparisons between other first person shooters such as Halo 2, Chronicles of Riddick, and eventually the upcoming release of Half-Life 2. Even though they share the same genre, they actually differ in style. Halo 2 is more of an action game, where as Chronicles of Riddick is more of an adventure game. With Doom 3, there is much more emphasis as it tries to be like a survival horror game. Combined with the nice lighting effects in a dark environment and amazing audio, id sure has done a good job at trying to capture this feel. While you never have trouble finding ammo, you will feel the pinch every now and then as you run low on some of the more favorable weapons which adds to the tension of the experience. Another nice aspect that helps add to the atmosphere is being able to play the game while listening to the PDA log recordings rather than having to wait through each one before you continue on. You can also play these at any time or just not listen to them at all.

As you can expect, some corners have been cut in order to bring the game to the Xbox. Despite a reduction in lighting and geometry of the models, the end result is a faithful recreation of the PC experience. You would really have to go through and make an effort to start putting down the visuals in comparison. Vicarious Visions has also included progressive scan and widescreen support which has the game running at a solid, smooth 30 fps that rarely dips even in the heat of action.

The Xbox version certainly excels when it comes to audio. Doom 3's usage of Dolby Digital 5.1 audio is easily some of the best usage of positional and ambient sound to date in any game. The audio is loud, clear, and makes great usage of the discrete channels to help create the atmosphere and keep you on your toes. I can't stress enough of how impressed I have been with the audio in this game.

Doom 3's controls are spot on and responsive enough that you can easily aim exactly where you want in the heat of battle. They should be familiar to anyone who has played a FPS before, but there is one addition that I thought was extremely useful in the control scheme; the addition of a quick save button. I can't express how nice it is to be able to hit a button to do a quick save rather than having to navigate through menus in order to save your game.

While Doom 3 is an amazing port of the PC counterpart, that also means it has inhereted the problems that existed in the original game. One of the biggest complaints is somehow you have the inability to hold a flashlight while holding a gun, let alone find a way to attach one. Since the game has a rather dark setting, you will find yourself switching between your flashlight and weapons constantly. In fact there are times where you will swap, see your target, and then swap back to shoot in the dark. While this may have simply been a design decision to make the game more intense, it seems rather silly. Another issue is that the game doesn't have a whole lot to it as it is mostly a straight up shooter with minimal straying and a little variation. Some might find that this can be rather repetitive and uninteresting especially when compared to other games in the genre.

Multiplayer online may also lack what many fans of the genre are used to. Due to the nature of the tight corridor level designs, there is a restriction of only four players at a time. Competitive modes include Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Last Man Standing, and Tournament. Tournament is interesting in that it creates a virtual arcade where players will play one on one matches while spectators waiting in line to play watch. Whoever wins stays in and plays the next spectator in line. However, other than these four modes, Doom 3 doesn't offer much for competitive play. The one shining part of online play is the addition of being able to play through the game cooperatively with a friend.

With all that being said, Doom 3 is an excellent port of a solid shooter set in a great atmosphere. For those wanting the full experience, the Limited Collector's Edition includes full versions of Ultimate Doom and Doom 2 with split screen multiplayer play, behind the scenes footage, interviews with id software team, and concept art. It may have its flaws and it may not be the best first person shooter on the Xbox, but for those unable to play it on a PC or wanting to experience the Xbox exclusive co-op mode, then this port won't disappoint. Add in being able to easily sit on your couch with the lights out playing on a huge screen with amazing audio, playing it on the Xbox can even be considered worthy enough of an experience even if you have played it on the PC.