"The other shape, If shape it might be call'd, that shape had none, Distinguishable in member, joint, or limb; Or substance might be call'd that shadow seem'd; For each seem'd either; black it stood as night, Fierce as ten furies, terrible as Hell, And shook a dreadful dart; what seem'd his head The likeness of a kingly crown had on. Satan was now at hand; and from his seat The monster, moving onward, came as fast With horrid strides; Hell trembled as he strode." -- John Milton
DOOM
You're a marine, one of Earth's toughest, hardened in combat and trained for action. Three years ago you assaulted a superior officer for ordering his soldiers to fire upon civilians. He and his body cast were shipped to Pearl Harbor, while you were transferred to Mars, home of the Union Aerospace Corporation. The UAC is a multi-planetary conglomerate with radioactive waste facilities on Mars and its two moons, Phobos and Deimos. With no action for fifty million miles, your day consisted of suckin' dust and watchin' restricted flicks in the rec room.
For the last four years the military, UAC's biggest supplier, has used the remote facilities on Phobos and Deimos to conduct various secret projects, including research on inter-dimensional space travel. So far they have been able to open gateways between Phobos and Deimos, throwing a few gadgets into one and watching them come out the other. Recently however, the Gateways have grown dangerously unstable. Military "volunteers" entering them have either disappeared or been stricken with a strange form of insanity-babbling vulgarities, bludgeoning anything that breathes, and finally suffering an untimely death of full body explosion. Matching heads with torsos to send home to the folks became a full-time job. Latest military reports state that the research is suffering a small set-back, but everything is under control.
A few hours ago, Mars received a garbled message from Phobos. "We require immediate military support. Something fraggin' evil is coming out of the Gateways! Computer systems have gone berserk!" The rest was incoherent. Soon Afterwards, Deimos simply vanished from the sky. Since then, attempts to establish contact with either moon have been unsuccessful. You and your buddies, the only combat troop for fifty million miles were sent up pronto to Phobos. You were ordered to secure the perimeter of the base while the rest of the team went inside. For several hours, your radio picked up the sounds of combat: guns firing, men yelling orders, screams, bones cracking, then finally, silence. Seems your buddies are dead. It's up to you. Things aren't looking too good.
You'll never navigate off the planet on your own. Plus, all the heavy weapons have been taken by the assault team leaving you with only a pistol. If only you could get your hands around a plasma rifle or even a shotgun you could take a few down on your way out. Whatever killed your buddies deserves a couple of pellets in the forehead. Securing your helmet, you exit the landing pod. Hopefully you can find more substantial fire power somewhere within the station. As you walk through the main entrance of the base, you hear animal like growls echoing throughout the distant corridors. They know your here. There's no turning back now.
DOOM II
Back at last.
After days of hard fighting in space, you've returned home on well-earned leave. When the alien invasion struck, you were first on the scene. You stopped the invasion, saved the Mars base, and became a war hero. You're going back home now, millions of miles away from the bloody, gore-ridden underworld on Mars. Your drop pod lands with a crunch. You open 'er up, and look out.
Damn! The city ahead is on fire.
The invaders are all over. Billions are dead. Some people have been transformed into flesh-eating mutants, but a few are still alive, and fully human. The wise ones of humanity have built enormous ships to carry the remaining people into space, safely away from the ruined world.
Unfortunately, Earth's only ground spaceport has just been taken over by the demons. They've instituted some kind of force field over the port; no ships can land or take off. You must go back into action. Only you...and your awesome array of weapons...stand between hope and horror.
GOOD LUCK.
