Credit:
id Software
Lose a life and that neat gun disappears — unless you happened to save beforehand.
Credit:
id Software
Difficulty tuning also needs some work. The easiest option, “Can I Play, Daddy” is comically simple for anyone with modern FPS experience: plenty of item pickups and enemies that attack very slowly and deal almost no damage when they do hit. The default “Bring ‘em On!” setting, by contrast, can feel borderline unfair at times, with foes able to strip away half your health from just a few stray shots.
Although a handful of new enemies trickle in once you get past the shareware levels, I didn’t find any of them particularly compelling. After running through dozens of levels I was itching for a genuinely new weapon instead of just “the old weapon with a higher rate of fire.”
Then there are the broader design choices that feel odd by modern standards. Like many arcade-style games of the era, Wolfenstein 3D tracks a numerical score for each playthrough. You’re also given a limited number of lives, and dying strips you of your weapons (earning enough points can grant extra lives).
However, the ability to save at any moment makes those mechanics largely irrelevant for players willing to save-scum the toughest encounters. And while Wolfenstein 3D carries over damage between levels, completing a full episode forces you to start a brand-new game, with no explicit continuity between episodes.
Look ma — one hand
The biggest surprise on my recent replay of Wolfenstein 3D was how well the game adapts to mouse controls. In 1992 I probably barely knew how to use a mouse, let alone aim a virtual gun with it. This time around, I was pleased to discover the entire game can be played effectively one-handed, without touching the keyboard at all.
