Doom 3 BFG Edition 'not a rehash', id not a fan HD collections

Doom 3: BFG Edition developer Tim Willits has explained to VG247 why the new version of its 2004 shooter is more than just an HD re-pack. The developer has also made the distinction between his game and HD compilations.

Speaking with VG247, Willits explained, "We’re doing more with Doom 3 BFG than just re-releasing the original. We’ve actually put a heck of a lot of Rage tech into the Doom 3 engine to kind of modernise the game."

"For instance", Willits added "we have the Rage input control, checkpoints, we’ve updated the lighting so it’s brighter, we changed the flashlight, tweaked ammo, we’ve put the Rage network layer in to make it run faster at low latency, and we added 3D support, multi-display support for PC."

"Then we went through every single level of the original and things that were really frustrating or not fun, we made them more enjoyable," Willits continued, "so it is really kind of cool for us – especially as we all love the Doom franchise – to go back and rework the game in such a way."

"We’ve done a handful of small things that really have a big impact to kind of re-introduce the franchise to our fans, and to really say hello to some new fans because everyone’s heard of Doom, but you’d be surprised at just how many people haven’t actually played it." Willits concluded.

On the issue of lay ports, slack re-releases and HD collections, Willits stated, "that’s what I’m keen to talk to all of the reporters about, because you’re right – a number of publishers have put together compilation packs and said to people ‘oh hey, three old games for 20 bucks, this is great!’ But we’ve really worked hard to make this version of Doom 3 more than just a re-release."

Doom 3: BFG Edition launches October 19 on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. You can read our full interview with Tim Willits later this week.