The newest entry in the classic Doom franchise. The god father of the first person shooter.
To be put simply, the game is about one thing, slaughtering demons. But This newest game takes the art of slaying demons and elevates it to an art form. A ballet of death, It is fast and brutal. The graphics are sharp and clean and every stage has a very different aesthetic so nothing really looks the same from level to level. There is no reload buttons or aiming down the sights. This game encourages and even rewards aggression. If you try to hide or take pot shots at enemies you will get over run by charging monsters.
I fondly remember playing Doom 2 on original PlayStation and Doom 64 on the N64. These were the more classic doom format with the pixelated demons and 2D sprites. Those games were dark, and filled with puzzles that tasked the player with finding colored keys and using switches and platforms to get through the levels. That basic structure is still here but This new game is much more detailed and has more modern movement options like a quick dodge and jumping. The basic mechanics of just laying on the trigger are still present and battles usually don’t stop till everything in the room has been defeated. Some enemies pop up through out the level but certain areas are literal death zones where enemies just spawn till you wipe them all out. The games music ramps up with heavy metal guitars and industrial drums gaining intensity. Once this starts you will die quickly if you don’t keep moving.
The core loop of Doom: Eternal operates on a pattern of shooting enemies to kill them, using the chainsaw to make enemies spurt a shower of ammo, burning enemies to replenish armor, and performing “glory kills” which reward you with a bit of health. The frantic pace of the battles means alternating between these functions at your will, or in some type of pattern. Most enemies have weak points that you can exploit as well. This makes each battlle a literal puzzle of deciding which enemies to take out first and with what weaponry, whilst keeping track of your health and armor and ammo. You find pickups for all of the above but the best method for keeping stocked and staying alive is by using all of the various killing techniques at your disposal. All of this culminates into a delectable dance of death and mutilation. shooting, stomping, tearing, smashing, burning, slicing, and otherwise annihilating anything that moves other than yourself. The speed and grace with which Doomguy decapitates lesser demons fits his persona. He doesn’t take his time and it often times is just a show of brute strength. After you fell all of the enemies in an area you have a sense that everything was just trying to rip and claw it’s way to you and you moved through them like a hot knife through butter.
I liked the care that went into this new game, for it describes the setting and how thing got the way they were. You can find pages of lore that explain why demons attacked earth and they give a bit of backstory to the Doom guy and kinda personify him. It’s not the clearest plot line or narrative but definitely interesting to read and explore. The main character of Doom has always just been a marine in a green suit but this game gives the silent protagonist a bit of backstory. There are tons of easter-eggs from previous games and other action titles as well. There are lots of collectibles which include models of the enemies and music tracks from other popular games made by the developer, ID software. Any fan of action games or doom specifically will definitely catch them during a playthgouth.
Between slaying demons there are some light platforming puzzles and some hidden items that you actually have to explore to find. Nothing was super difficult to get through and kept the pace nicely. There were no parts of the game (other than one particular enemy) that really get you stuck. The auto map pretty much shows you everything you need to see as well as any secrets. you just have to uncover the paths to uncover them. I thought the puzzles were thoughtful and didn’t detract from the flow of the game. Also the game gives you a fast travel function at the end of any level so you can teleport around and collect stuff that you may have missed during a chaotic fight or difficult area. Definite re-playability .
There is a multiplayer online mode called “Battle mode” which pits human players against each other in a 2 v 1 style match up. one player takes the role of the Doomguy and the other two players assume the roles of Demons who can summon other lesser demons and must work together to defeat doomguy in an arena type setting. These matches are fast and chaotic. I haven’t quite gotten the gist of this mode yet, or I haven’t practiced enough to really tell if I’m doing well or not, or even helping my team mate if we are the demons. I’ve lost an equal number of rounds as I’ve won simply because one of the players probably didn’t know what was going on quite yet. Still fun regardless and I will be eager to play this mode more or see if it progresses at all. Either way the battle mode keeps the same feel and frantic pace as the campaign action. It’s a nice break from the single player level type campaign.
This game has a lot of satanic and demonic imagery. People who are sensitive to this stuff may not like the environments and enemies, or even subject matter. However Doom is an unflinching action game from beginning to end. I highly recommend it to anyone who fancies a trip to hell to slaughter the minions of evil. A great game to mash through during quarantine. A classic game design in a modern format. A definite must play if you consider yourself even a casual gamer or fan of first person shooters.