Sure thing. Here’s a re-imagined version of your article:
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Okay, so here’s the thing about “Heretic: Shadow of the Serpent Riders” from 1994 and its, let’s say, intensely brooding sibling, “Hexen: Beyond Heretic” from ’95. These games pretty much opened up a whole new dimension for first-person shooters. And guess what? You can dive into them all over again now, thanks to this wild id Software and Nightdive Studios team-up. Yup, they’re bringing that Raven Software magic back for today’s players.
Oh, there’s a video too—though I’m not gonna lie, I got more interested in what the snacks on my desk were doing. Anyway, they’ve got a handy YouTube clip for you to check out, if you’re feeling curious.
Now, back in the day, these games… how do I say this? They were mind-blowing. Brian Raffel, one of the OG brains behind Raven Software, seemed kind of blown away himself at seeing Heretic and Hexen getting a fresh coat of paint. These games came alive using some modified version of the Doom engine. (Remember Doom? Of course, you do.) They threw in character classes, some wild inventory antics, and other stuff that made one wonder if the folks at Raven had a secret time machine.
The cool part? They had backup from id Software, working with legends like John Romero and John Carmack. That combo kinda feels like a fantasy league for game development nerds. Brian says there’s just something special about seeing these old worlds still making waves today. Isn’t that neat?
Imagine trudging through dark halls filled with monsters big enough to keep you up at night—game night, that is. Mike Rubits from id Software, who’s kind of an FPS wizard, talked about how back then, the gaming world was obsessed with war and aliens. Meanwhile, Heretic and Hexen were like, “Nah, let’s throw in some maces and magic.” You’ve gotta love a little chaos!
And, speaking of chaos, Hexen decided to play mix-and-match with shooter and RPG elements. Seriously, character classes in an FPS? That was a game-changer—literally.
I almost forgot—the new and old features. Split-screen, online multiplayer, a soundtrack by Andrew Hulshult, and stuff like behind-the-scenes peeks in the Raven Vault. There’s new stuff too. Exciting, right? I’d say it has everything except a magic coffee machine.
They’ve even added new episodes. “Faith Renewed” for Heretic and “Vestiges of Grandeur” for Hexen. These episodes? Made on the original tech, but with all the memory their creative brains could muster. Hearing Xaser Acheron talk about it was like listening to someone describe a wild weekend. Turns out the folks designing this content were super fast… like they drank espresso for breakfast fast. I mean, Samuel “Kaiser” Villarreal already had maps ready before anyone even said, “Go!”
Oh, and Not Jabba? Dropped in some enormous maps, because why not? In short, they were a force of mapping nature.
Whether you’re an old fan or tripping into Cronos for the first time, the crews at Raven, id, and Nightdive have this thing ready for you. I’ve gotta say, hats off to the fans too. Keeping the legacy alive with mods and memories—pretty darn cool, if you ask me.
And oh, hey, it’s out now for PlayStation 5 and 4. So, go have a blast in that pixelated fantasy world. Catch you on the flip side!
