Heretic + Hexen Review

Bethesda recently offered retro FPS afficionados a bundle of Doom fun in the form of Doom + Doom II. It’s essentially a port of two games in one, with plenty of upgrades in terms of visuals and options, mod support, and brand-new levels to blast demons in. Great, but not exactly the easiest recommendation to those who already had the previously released ports (each with their own issues, to be honest).

The same doesn’t apply to Heretic + Hexen, as it’s the first time these two have graced Nintendo’s system, making it a much easier sell. Here’s a quick look at the refurbished version of the duo that started the ill-fated Serpent Riders saga.

Heretic and Hexen are two titles from the ‘90s which use the original Doom engine to render a dark fantasy realm of sword and sorcery. They had additional mechanics that weren’t available in id Software’s classic, like usable items, and in the case of Hexen, a hub world from which different maps could be accessed. Heretic offered a more traditional, old-school, fast FPS experience, with a simple series of stages to complete, whereas the more slower paced Hexen tried to be more like an RPG, throwing a lot of its weight in exploration. It didn’t quite work, as the whole thing felt like a long, boring witch hunt, with navigation being aggravating rather than pleasantly challenging. What does this repackaging bring into the table? Nothing that changes the gameplay of the originals.

This is mainly a… refinement, if you will. Heretic + Hexen is port that keeps the old school vibe and visual crunchiness, but in a higher resolution. Plus plenty of different knobs, levers and buttons to push that enable playing with a variety of settings. In a “Today I Learned” moment for this reviewer, he realised that the PlayStation port of Hexen had CGI cut-scenes. These have luckily been included, upscaled and cleaned. Andrew Hulshult has returned to provide a remix of the MIDI soundtrack, too, with the end result being very good. That said, the soundtrack can’t hold a candle to the much more memorable tunes heard in Doom + Doom II. In addition, there’s a vault included – a museum where one can look at numerous alternative and/or unused sprites, as well as early concept sketches.

Heretic + Hexen includes the expansions Shadow of the Serpent Riders and Deathkings of the Dark Citadel, which… weren’t that good. Thankfully, this includes mod support for community published work. There aren’t many maps available right now, but that will likely change after some time. More importantly, two brand new expansions had been added that for many more hours of monster-killing entertainment.

Hexen: Vestiges of Grandeur, feels more of the same. Heretic: Faith Renewed is where the fun is at, with the maps filled with exciting combat scenarios and appropriately labyrinthine, rarely annoying design, with the difficulty being way better balanced by the veteran’s only ordeal of Shadow of the Serpent Riders.

This re-release incorporates a rebalance mod that alters weapon and enemy behaviour a bit as well as plenty of redesigns of the original map structure. Good, bad? Neither, really. It’s an interesting incentive for veterans to replay their favourite titles. All in all, this is a great opportunity for Switch owners who love the retro side of the hobby. Heretic alone provides all the incentive for a purchase, as it’s basically a dark medieval fantasy version of Doom. Those who have played Nightdive’s previous bundle of id Software fun know what to expect. Sadly this is true for a bug as well; one that was present in Doom + Doom II. For some reason hasn’t been fixed yet.