First released in 1994, Heretic took DOOM’s DNA and put a dark fantasy twist on it. A year later, Hexen took the reimagining further, opting for less linear level design, and sprinkling in a bit of RPG flavour by offering the player three different classes to choose from — warrior, cleric, and mage — each with their own strengths, weaknesses, and weapons.
As its name bluntly suggests, Heretic + Hexen bundles the two together, as well as their expansions, multiplayer, and two brand new chapters, which are lovingly crafted and blend right in.
It also introduces a wealth of visual, audio, control, and accessibility options, and even boasts an optional new soundtrack for players who want to listen to something fresh while they also listen to exploding spells and screaming monsters.
Jokes aside, when it isn’t culminating in a maddening din, the sound design here is crunchy and characterful — much like the sprite work, which still looks great 30 years later — and very helpful to boot, allowing you to better sense enemies and occasionally find hidden doors, of which there are many.
Both titles see you traversing labyrinthine, enemy-packed levels in search of ways to progress, be it keys, switches, portals, or puzzle items, and this is another area in which improvements have been made, especially in Hexen.
Levels have been tweaked to be less obtuse, objective markers have been added to the map, and some weapons and enemies have been rebalanced. True to fashion, though, all of these changes are completely optional, so old-school purists need not fret.
Despite all of its new bells and whistles, Heretic + Hexen is unapologetically itself — which is to say, a fairly rudimentary, sometimes monotonous, oftentimes unfair blast from the past — and although it certainly won’t be every modern player’s cup of tea, those who have an existing or budding appreciation for its retro, “you had to look up cheat codes for this game in a magazine back in the day” appeal will find themselves beyond sated. There’s also a gallery full of assets and concept art for your perusal, which is a nice inclusion.
