48. Facing The Cyberdemon In Doom

The Moment

If you’re an avid fan of modern horror games, Doom may seem tame by comparison. But back in the day, the tense atmosphere, bloody violence and horrific demons caused quite a stir.

Back then however, nothing could prepare you for the seemingly unstoppable force of the towering Cyberdemon. The first time you heard its piercing, animalistic roar thunder across the level, combined with the loud stomping of its robotic legs, you knew you were in serious trouble. 

Why it’s great

The manual for the PlayStation and SNES versions of Doom says of the Cyberdemon, “Half unfeeling machine, half raging horned devil. This walking nightmare has a rocket launcher for an arm and will definitely reach out and touch you. Make sure you're loaded for bear before you get to this guy.” Yeah, no shit.

Doom was technically impressive for its time, and it was quite simply the best-looking FPS title around. While the small enemies and demons looked visually impressive, the Cyberdemon’s stop-motion animation made it stand out from the pack.

There’s also a striking sense of dread that washes over you the first time you come toe-to-toe with the Cyberdemon. It moves fast, it volleys off an endless barrage of rockets and it soaks up an incomprehensible amount of ammo before it finally keels over and dies. 

The sense of achievement when you bag your first Cyberdemon is incredible, as you really do feel as if you’ve beaten impossible odds. So feared and respected was the Cyberdemon, that id Software saw fit to make it the final boss in Doom 3.

Although some of its traits had changed – both its legs were robotic, the rocket launcher had changed arms – it was still as powerful and chilling as ever.