Heretic: Shadow of the Serpent Riders

The year this came out, I was consumed by Dark Forces (the game - I wasn't possessed). Even though I was a fan of Doom and Wolfenstein, I jumped straight from DF to Quake without a second thought - completely missing Heretic and its sequels. Here I am, three decades later, making up for it.

My thoughts?

I LOVE this game! Absolutely love it (please note, I've finished the first 3 levels, but I'm launching from gzdoom, so Steam isn't registering time played correctly). This will probably make 80% of y'all mad, but I actually prefer this over both the original Wolfenstein and the first 2 Dooms. Is it Quake level good? No. Dark Forces? Definitely not. Return to Castle Wolfenstein? Not a chance. But, it's still a blast (pun intended) and there's a lot here to love.

Now, to finish the last couple of levels so I can get at those sequels! Crossing fingers they're just as good (or better)!

I loved this game!!!

For some, it aged like wine; for me, like milk in the sun.

A fantastic old school boomer shooter, the dark medieval fantasy setting is really up my alley. Would recommend using GZDoom to add whole of extra options and to be able to tweak the game and the difficulty to your liking.

An excellent classic. A doom clone, but a good one.

great game for the price. this is a classic.

Excellent Boomer Shooter

The perfect 1st person shoot game in the 90's :D

Great OST, bosses, graphics (with GZDoom).

pretty fun

I keep getting mauled by maulotaurs, I keep getting thrown into tornados by iron liches, I keep getting exploded by medusa looking thing, and I keep dying. Please help. But for real, this game is very fun, play with GZDOOM because the game uses the doom engine, and playing it normally is like playing doom eternal on your microwave, its impossible. Has alot of new weapons which work like the doom weapons but then you use this book and oh crap you have a flamethrower now. Play it.

I played plenty of DOOM as kid, and maybe just as much Heretic. I still enjoy a run-through every now and then, although I think DOOM is still the better overall experience.

Worth playing if you like DOOM but want a different style and setting.

Heretic takes place in a dark fantasy world where you play as Corvus, a surviving Sindhe whose homeland was invaded by the Serpent Riders and their minions. Despite all the odds, you persist through desolate cities, cathedrals, tombs, hallways, towers, domes and dungeons surrounded by darkness, lava or even layers of water. The first three episodes were really good but the bonus two episodes can be somewhat difficult and time-consuming. The music is fantastic throughout the game that fits the atmosphere. The weapons came in a variety and equip different types of ammo (e.g. crystals, bows, orbs and runes) but can be amplified if you use the book of tome. The power-ups were helpful and can be manipulated to your advantage. The enemies range from size, appearance and strength in a similar fashion to Doom besides this game was made with the doom engine with some extra modifications. This game is enjoyable and can be enjoyed by people who love fantasy games or first person shooters. It deserves to be up there with Doom, it's legacy cannot be denied.

Overall Rating: 10/10

78/100

I recommend playing this game using the GZDoom thing. There is a nice, easy to follow guide in the Steam community tab to set you up.

Visually and enemy wise it can get very samey but it's charming and the map layouts are interesting. DOOM without guns.

Very good to remember the old times when I was a kid.

Ignore the playtime. I'm using Crispy Heretic and I couldn't figure out how to have it override dosbox so I could have my hours logged. Anyway, just for the music and art I'm recommending this. So far it's been too easy but I am only on episode 1. Vibes and atmosphere are immaculate. Good job Raven! We all miss you.

Cool doom clone, **** dosbox

Great game, great child memories

Old School!

it's confusing

Its ok

Lovely game :)

first it is winnable

needs a fix to play with wasd
the moving with the mouse right off the bat really throws me off and i dont like it at all
other than that though seems -wicked- fun

1/10 not playable on modern software

old school FPS. played it when it 1st came out on shareware cd.

older generation game based on the original DOOM engine, Still fun to play once you get past the old style graphics

alright doom clone

Again... As I understand it, this is part 3, I didn't find any story as such here again, well, that's okay. 9 hours for such a shooter is certainly a lot of fun...
Well, there's the last part left, I hope at least that one will make me happy because it's very sad

Amazing game. Basically Doom but for wizards

This is one of my favorites from back in the day. I played Doom when it first came out as shareware. Later there was a lot of Doom-alikes, but this game took it to a whole different level. If you like Doom, you should love this.

Doom but it's Lord of the Rings
Have a Doom-like adventure firing scepters, chains, and other magic weapons. It's a bit more heady than Doom, includes inventory, ammo balance, and enemy strategies. Certainly worth a try if you're into the genre.

i palyed this before windows 95 was out.

Very similar to DOOM, but in dark fantasy style and much harder. Great fun.

Great shooter of its time. The fantasy setting combined with usable items and dynamic intense battles make it a great experience.

Reliving my childhood when I only had the shareware version of the game, late in the 90's, played on a Pentium 75Mhz machine with 16MB of RAM.
If you don't mind the use of the same engine as for Doom, with some enhancements, like the medieval fantasy setting, and weren't born yesterday, I do recommend this classic.

nightdive please remaster these i am way too retarded to be able to play them as they are please hurry

It's easy to write Heretic off as "Fantasy Doom" but that would be selling it short. Sure, it's the same engine, the same fight / key / switch / boss battle game-play wrapped in an ethereal setting but several things set it apart (and sometimes above) its Doom roots.

For one, Heretic is more impressive on a technical level. You have an inventory with ten or so deployable power-ups, such as bombs, invincibility and even flight. Maps often feature ambient noise, and even weather effects such as splashing water and high winds (my favorite level in the game has you working your way up and down a series of violent rapids while fending off baddies.)

Also: this is a *Raven* shooter.

These guys know what they are doing. Albeit an earlier entry in their portfolio, you can always expect an above-average degree of love and inspiration from a Raven shooter. Great level design, great attention to detail. There is a distinct polish in the visuals, architecture and sprite-work.

For instance, certain enemies, when defeated, explode apart and their souls can literally be seen departing. This pleases me. The weapons are of course variations on the Doom arsenal while still managing to perform in new and novel fashions (they have secondary fires, for instance). I cannot, however, get over how goofy the chaingun variant is. Called the "power fist", it's basically a glove that shoots hit-scan mana projectiles and whenever I see it at the bottom of my screen I can't help but think of a big hairy **** firing blue piss. Freud might have had something to say about that.

Heretic is also a much more colorful game than Doom. My favorite episode would have to be the one set underwater. You'll know it when you see it. The texture work is commendable throughout but this set of levels in particular gives the impression of being inside a giant underground aquarium and I'm here for it.

My only gripe would be the general tankiness of the enemies, which can cause levels to drag on and overstay their welcome. The monster count skyrockets between the "normal" and "hard" difficulties meaning you'd be forgiven for only being able to palette one map at a time before taking a break. You know: first world problems.

This is the full package, containing the original three episodes (marked by a final boss that goes through multiple phases, how neat is that) and what I assume are two expansions released later on. The first of these additions is a massive ball-buster, containing a series of agonizingly tense combat puzzles and just all around early proof that these were the guys who had what it took to go on to make such works of art as Return to Castle Wolfenstein, Jedi Outcast and Elite Force.

If you are in the mood for an underrated and often unfairly dismissed old-school shooter with flawless GZDoom compatibility and a decent challenge, wrapped in a nifty gore-soaked dark fantasy aesthetic, you can't go wrong with Heretic.