I know we were still playing DOOM from time to time at these get-togethers for many years after its release. Everyone owned it, and it would run on almost anyone's computer. At the first LAN parties I went to, DOOM was a staple. We'd spend hours there, fragging each other relentlessly, or teaming up for campaign runs. A friend of mine worked in a computer lab, and these college labs, networked together for file and print sharing, were perfect for DOOM. Those first few levels of DOOM were enough to hook me, and countless others became addicted as well. Since it would take days to download games with your modem, shareware was effective, and many titles were available for you to pick up almost anywhere. Shareware refers to short trial versions of a game or other software, which would hopefully entice consumers to buy the whole thing. Akin to the demos that we have today, shareware was quite popular back when a 14.4 modem was smokin' fast. My own first experience with DOOM came in the form of the shareware version of the game. Would modern networks such as Xbox Live, the Playstation Network, and Steam exist without DOOM? Probably, but certainly DOOM took significant steps that eventually led us to modern online gaming. Playing DOOM gave us all a glimpse of what, eventually, the internet could be. Couch co-op had been around forever, but to be able to team up with a friend over a distance to mow down demons with a BFG was an amazing experience. Now only did DOOM support play over a local IPX network, you could even dial up a friend, and eventually, just play over the internet. Playing with or against others in a distant location was new and exciting. Services like AOL and Prodigy were the norm. In 1993, most people had never heard of, or even dreamed of, the internet. But without a doubt, the most meaningful innovation of DOOM was the network play. The variety in weapons and powerups was staggering. The graphics were impressive for the time, particularly the lighting. For years, similar games were known simply as DOOM clones. It was not the earliest first person shooter, but it was certainly the most popular early FPS. When discussing a game as iconic as DOOM, it's difficult to know where to start. A technical marvel, a violent, intense atmosphere, awesome level design and downright scary foes, all wrapped up in a co-op package, make DOOM one of the greatest co-op games of all time. This game spawned hundreds of clones, and almost singlehandedly birthed an entire game genre, the first person shooter. Today, we move on to what many consider to be the most influential game ever. Double Dragon and the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles arcade game are on most people's list of classics. For the past few Co-Op Classics columns, I've been trying to hit some of the key co-op games of the past.
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