The skinny:
Crap meets whirring fan from the get-go in the third edition of Doom, the game that changed almost everything about 3-D games when it debuted in 1993. You are a space Marine sent to Mars to relieve some fellow troopers from their posts. Unfortunately, some dicey research conducted by the Union Aerospace Corporation has resulted in hell, literally, coming to Mars. You have to pick your way through the shadowy bowels of a space station alone and outnumbered by marrow-sucking demons and the reanimated corpses of former Marines. On the upside, you have a flashlight and a PDA. We only say this because we saw MacGyver euthanize himself with nothing more than a couple of D-cells and a Blackberry. We dream about Richard Dean Anderson a lot, so what?

If you liked this game, you'd like:
Call of Duty, The Suffering, going to a good old-fashioned tent revival just to feel normal again

Hours to complete:
Although the game revolves around bringing heavy artillery to bear on your enemies, Doom 3 ain't a run-and-gun. You need to conduct a little careful exploration from time to time.

System alert:
Since this game is using next-generation graphics, it may play choppy on the high-quality setting if you have less than 1 GB of RAM. You can counter this by either playing on the more than adequate medium-quality setting, choosing something other than the full-screen option, or stealing a supercomputer from NASA. If anyone asks questions, tell them it's for your own personal mission to Mars. (Well, it is.)

Tantalizing tidbits:
Most of the levels will give you the heebie-jeebies. Even if you didn't have to worry about ambushes by Imps and commando zombies, the dark environments should be enough to creep you out. The game is pure science fiction, but the structures and equipment seem plausible. Weapon management is key to your survival. Instead of wasting all your chaingun ammo on a horde of crablike trites, you might want to conserve bullets and just haul ass. You also might think of doing a little volunteer work every once in awhile. It looks good on your résumé.

Buy, rent or run away screaming?
If you have ever played a game on your PC, buy Doom 3 immediately.