Like many, I was skeptical when Sony announced PlayStation Experience. With so many PAX shows across the US, not to mention international shows such as Gamescom, Rezzed, PAX Australia and Freeplay, it felt as though another show that was entirely focused on one platform would be a waste of time.

This year I made the trip out to San Francisco (some 27 hours of travel from my country) to see what the fuss was all about. When I arrived, I found a show with a very distinctive feel, a show that wasn't about pushing big release dates, or competition for the latest greatest innovaton. Instead I found a show that was a celebration of a platform that has been around for twenty years, a platform that started championing indie development on home consoles, a platform that gamers are content to call home.

PlayStation Experience 2015 was definitely for the gamers. Two floors of the bustling Moscone Centre was filled to the brim with upcoming and just released AAA power houses, not to mention a healthy slathering of intriguing indies. The line to play Nuclear Throne was just as long as people lining up to play some Star Wars: Battlefront, and to see Devolver Digital and Double Fine have a booth that rivalled the size of World of Tanks was a testament to just how far indie development has come in the past decade.

The big standout of the event was PlayStation VR, which was a force to be reckoned with. The second floor of the centre was littered with VR stations which were showing off full games, not just tech demos. For the first time ever at a convention, the prospect and reminder that VR is a real thing that is going to be happening very soon, began to sink in. People were lining up for hours to sit in the pilots chair of a mech in RIGS, or to jump into a combat sortie in EVE Valkyrie. Everyone that I asked at the show said that one of the VR games was their standout experience, that they were a believer in our virtual futures, and that Sony had more than sold them on the concept.

Perhaps the most important thing about PSX was the community spirit. Everyone I met was there for one reason - their love of PlayStation. I met fans where were rocking classic 1995 PSX shirts, others who had worked on the PS2 development teams before moving on to other companies, and people who picked up their first gaming console with the PS3 or PS4. There were even some hardcore Vita fans (albeit not too many), and they were just happy to have an event to call home. An event that celebrated a platform that has been there for most of their lives.

The skeptic in me wants to run screaming that PlayStation Experience is nothing more than a marketing scam, a way for Sony to sell their wares to the masses. That may be somewhat true, especially when planting the seed for VR amongst their biggest supporters, however I feel it's more than that. It felt like a genuine attempt for this larger than life corporation to touch base with their fans, to share a moment, even just for a weekend, to reflect on the year that has been, and what lays ahead for their platform.

A few weeks ago I finished reading Masters of DOOM, and while I question the validity of what is presented as fact, I was surprised that this account of the "two Johns" brought up a real nostalgia hit for my connection to id Software. Thinking back, Wolfenstein 3D was one of my first gaming experiences, right alongside Mario and Castlevania. This studio has been a part of my gaming life for as long as I can remember, and now they are moving forward without two of their founding key figures, rebooting a franchise that at one point, was the coolest game I had ever seen.

DOOM 3 is the only DOOM game I have never finished. Back when it was released, my PC wasn't able to run this monster of a game. At the time I was hardcore down a Day of Defeat rabbit hole, so the janky frame rate thanks to my budget GPU meant that I only spent a handful of hours with the game.

Fast forward to today, I decided that I'd begin streaming a run through of DOOM 3: BFG Edition, so I picked it up on Steam and waited for it download. Thinking back on the game, I distinctly remembered two things - never having enough ammo, and the damn flashlight. I remember my friends who did play a lot of the game, constantly complaining about them having to put away their precious weapon to use the flashlight to see down the darkened corridors of hell. I remember the scathing comments on weird message boards I used to frequent. I remember thinking "why the hell would they do this in a fast-paced shooter like DOOM?" scoffing at the thought, and returning back to the front lines in DoD.

So I set up the stream, booted up the game, and started the campaign on Veteran difficulty. The first thing I noticed was the obligatory post-Half Life interactive walking tour section, which is painfully slow in this day and age. Then the gameplay started, and I realised that DOOM 3 can seriously kick my arse. While I used to have the reactions of a fierce keyboard warrior, the grunts and Imps were taking me by surprise and smashing my face into oblivion. For a game that is quite old (yes, I know BFG edition is updated), the action holds up remarkably well. Running, shooting, dodging and killing has never felt so satisfying. Pulling off a quick dodge of flying fireballs from a rogue Imp always feels amazing.

What I did notice was the nuance and care that DOOM 3 put into its surroundings. Despite the chaotic combat and the constant run and gun action, the sound design of the various machines, the artificial air, the growls and grumbles of the isolated station is terrifying. The flickering lights, the labyrinthine corridors, the abandoned nature of Mars - all of this builds to create a sense of foreboding that is uneasy during the best of times.

Yet the BFG Edition of DOOM 3 addresses the need to switch from weapon to flashlight by replacing it with a shoulder-mounted light that can be flicked on or off. It makes sense in one aspect - the gun play is fast and furious, unrelenting, and makes it feel more like a classic DOOM title. However, I can't help that it's inclusion is a major flaw in the overall design of DOOM 3.

Yes, the need to switch the flashlight in and out was a burden to those seeking a balls-to-the-wall thrill ride of shooting excellence, but now I can't help but feel that the terrifying ambiance of the game is less so, because I can always see and defend myself at the same time.

Hiding in a corner, swinging your flashlight as a weapon to survive, scrounging for ammo may not have been very DOOM, but it sure did make for one hell of a game. Now it's gone, part of me wishes that id stuck to their guns.