MangleMan25

Corridor 7 is an interesting obscurity released by Capstone Software. Many might write it off as shovelware DOS trash, but I think there's a few things noteworthy about the game and that it's among the better games on the Wolfenstein 3D engine.

For one, Corridor 7 might just be the very first FPS game to have dedicated deathmatch maps. Doom came out before Corridor 7, and it had multiplayer deathmatch, but it only originally used re-purposed campaign levels as arenas. Corridor 7 does not do this and instead has arenas specifically made for PvP, which I'd argue is pretty above and beyond what anyone would have reasonably expected for a Capstone game or on a Wolfenstein 3D engine game releasing after Doom. The game also incorporates a radar system which allows you to anticipate where enemies are around corners, and if you hunt for it you can find a full map of the level which exposes every enemy's location. Levels themselves are fun to look at, giving off heavy retro futuristic vibes full of neon lights moving on the walls and such. Enemy designs are also creative, my favorite probably being the flying eyeballs with gun turrets on their sides. And in practically every level, there is an outer rim corridor encircling the entirety of the map which can be used as a shortcut to access other parts of the level quicker. You can pretty much always guess that the secret walls it'll be hidden behind are going to be right on the edge of the map, so this is a shared secret trait of all the levels which makes exploration a bit more fun.

Game ain't perfect though, obviously, it's a Capstone game at the end of the day. Hunting around every level for every single enemy to be able to move on can be ludicrously tedious when you're running out of enemies to find and haven't found the map that points out where each is on your radar, and this is a borderline unfairly difficult game. Most enemies are hitscanners who can nearly instantly turn you into swiss cheese, melting your health down in mere seconds. Be mindful of where you place mines as well, because if you aren't careful you'll trap yourself behind an explosive which'll instantly kill you. Corridor 7 can be an exceptionally frustrating experience if you're not in the right mood, so I recommend playing it with a guide for the most seamless experience.

All-in-all, I like Corridor 7, enough for my ADHD to make it one of my hyperfixations for a bit there, but it's not for everybody, and that's an understatement. But if you have a stomach for some retro FPS b.s., you might just end up thinking C7 is actually pretty okay.

The first Witchaven I have a soft spot for as a curiosity piece of first-person action games from the mid-90s, among the earliest of any games released to use the Build Engine later made famous by Duke Nukem 3D and refined to near perfection by Blood. I feel many of its shortcomings, the original's I mean, are excusable due to its time of release in 1995, before 3D Realms would revolutionize not only FPS games but also 3D game design in general with Duke Nukem 3D, and because no other game was really trying to do what it was doing by mixing first-person, real-time action heavily based in melee with magic and some very light RPG elements. For what it was, Witchaven is an enjoyable little time if you go in with the right frame of mind. This courtesy I cannot extend to Witchaven 2.

Witchaven 2 came out after Duke Nukem 3D did, when the bar had been set much higher than ever before, and it came out on the same engine no less. Despite that it suffers from many of the same problems as the first game while gaining new ones in the process. Firstly, levels still do not feel distinct from one another. They still have the issue of running together and lacking anything in manner of setpieces or interesting environmental design. This is particularly egregious versus the last game because, unlike the first Witchaven, this has Duke Nukem 3D as a reference point yet still fails at making levels interesting, which should be a top priority for any retro FPS of the time. DN3D had buildings collapsing in massive explosions, it had you witness the quaking of the Andreas Fault, escaping prison and infiltrating a submarine, all that in just the first episode. No such variety exists in Witchaven 2. And on the topic of poor variety, the enemies in Witchaven 2 are so much more boring than the first game. The first game had this breadth of beasts, a wide menagerie of monsters that made the game actually feel somewhat fantastical. Witchaven 2 features mostly boring human enemies lacking anything in ways of creativity. The combat hasn't seen any improvement, which is unfortunate. And largely speaking, Witchaven 2 is way, way buggier than the first, much to its detriment. Undoubtedly a byproduct of Capstone's seeming inability to stop pumping out their games at breakneck speeds and take their time on one for once. Really, there isn't any charitable way of putting it, Capstone phoned it in with Witchaven 2, and predictably, they couldn't keep competing. When you put Witchaven 2 side-by-side with games like Shadow Warrior, Blood, Duke Nukem, what have you, it quickly collapses under the weight of scrutiny. More boring enemy variety than the first, failing at all to build on the first game's ideas, it's a pathetic sequel.

Capstone is infamous, and rightfully so for the most part. But Witchaven is honestly not really that bad relative to the time it released. It released before Duke Nukem 3D truly showed just what the Build Engine can do and is distinct enough in its gameplay setup to stand on its own in 1995. It takes a more melee heavy approach to combat than any other game in the engine, and it works... alright. Hit detection is mostly fine, but there aren't a ton of reliable ways to defend yourself in close quarters with an enemy unless you have a shield. This is made up for with the wide array of magic you have at your disposal and some weapons which can be thrown. And I honestly had a good bit of fun mowing down enemies after picking up a "Hero Time" power-up. Level design is serviceable, but pretty inferior to most other Build Engine games I've played, and that's including Redneck Rampage. There aren't many setpieces throughout or any super noteworthy/interesting environmental details, it is wholly just crunchy, 90s PC game-looking fantasy, lots of browns and greys. Even TekWar did levels more interestingly in some ways with its vast, realistically designed cityscapes and near-complete nonlinearity. Witchaven does not do this. The levels all end up just kinda running together. All that keeps me going when playing is the interesting, if wonky, take on fantasy melee combat in a Build Engine game. And oh yeah, the music is really good though, probably better than this game necessitates.

Overall, it's a fine little game, and it's on Steam, so buy it there if you're curious about it. Just don't go in comparing it to later, inarguably better Build games because you'll be disappointed if you do. If you go in with tempered expectations and moreso looking at it as a curiosity piece, you'll have a much better time.