Beware the Ides of March! And, of course, beware the one-hit wonder. So I completed my campaign in DOOM (2016) yesterday. It's been great getting my game on again. I'm very pleased at the recovery of my hand and elbow, as I can now withstand lengthy play sessions once again with little difficulty. I had a really great time with the game throughout. It had a lot of the original DOOM to it without that being a burden. In keeping with the original concept, if not execution, I especially appreciated the setups for combat that forced you to go Rambo instead of being able to kite monsters around to kill them individually. And the environments were incredible. The vast Martian foundry complex and the Hell levels were amazing. But I will say it is frustrating that the game doesn't always follow its own navigation rules since a key element is hunting for secrets. There are plenty of objects and barriers you should be able to access or traverse, only to encounter invisible walls. On the other hand I loved the ability to go back and scour for secrets you missed as part of your ongoing campaign. It gave a clever diversion from progressing the main campaign at times. I played the whole way on Ultra-Violence, stubbornly fighting through the fact that my reflexes are not what they once were (not that I was never a very exceptional player to begin with). I'm not a big achievement chaser, but I was disappointed there wasn't one for the difficulty level. In the end I would have gotten the same achievement for completing the campaign on the easy mode. The whole experience was great enough that I am disappointed there is no DLC, which I guess is an outgrowth of the whole SnapMap dealie. DOOM Eternal seems like an entirely different game, so I'm trying to decide if I'll play that next.

Obituary: Model Jeff Thomas Dead By Suspected Suicide at 35.

Doomed Round-up
Thanks Ant and Neutronbeam.

Breakfast Link

• Zack Snyder Teases Darkseid Announcement.

Story

• Coming soon to Florida beaches- Massive, messy and maybe record mounds of seaweed. Thanks Cannibella.

Science

• NASA Wants to Build a Special Spacecraft to Destroy the ISS.
• Bright new comet discovered zooming toward the sun could outshine the stars next year. Thanks Acleacius.
• Meet the dinosaur with a record-breaking neck longer than a school bus.

Media

• World's Strongest Magnet.
• Machine Gun Integrated into Robot Dog. Terrifying. Thanks VideoSift.

Auction

• Thrifter stunned by ‘Antiques Roadshow’ appraisal on ‘mystery’ $6 gold necklace- ‘The best thrifted thing of all time.’

Follow-up

• "Dune" Part Two: To Visit More Worlds.