Move over DUSK, Strafe, and HROT; I think Venturous qualifies as my favourite fuddy-duddy FPS now. I was planning to mention this free, standalone Doom 2 total conversion in the current A2Z, but recent experiences in Egyptian tombs and Tibetan monasteries have convinced me it warrants its own post.
To machete-slice straight to the chase, ignoring the music – which I felt wasn’t sufficiently Williamsian – I adore absolutely everything about this eighteen-level retro romp.
PixelFox’s level design and art are marvellous, his enemies and weapons gloriously varied and entertaining.
Naturally, the nefarious Nazis and their Japanese pals are meddling with things that ought not be meddled with, and the game’s Fedora-wearing protagonist is out to stop them.
Play the five chapters chronologically and the bloody globetrotting starts in bejungled Mesoamerica and, after action in Egypt, Greece and Atlantis, finishes in blizzard-blasted Tibet.
The trailer below is somewhat misleading. While, yes, you may find yourself embroiled in breathless high-headcount fracas from time to time, Venturous‘ clashes tend to be small-scale affairs with ample time to think, weapon switch, and manoeuvre. In fact, the game’s signature experience – warily advancing down a gloomy passage with a firearm in one hand and a flickering/throwable torch in the other – involves no violence whatsoever.
I’m sure someone that works for Valve must be a regular here. Hi that someone, could you change the frustratingly inaccurate and inelegant ‘boomer shooter’ tag to ‘fuddy-duddy FPS’ please. Ta.