(This review was written in 2020 on GG)
DOOM (2016) was a really fun reboot to the series with high octane, never-stopping action. I had a really good time with it, but I couldn't be bothered to do anything more than beat the main story. Once it was done, I was done. DOOM: Eternal takes the simple core of its predecessor and improves upon it in every aspect.
The entirety of DOOM 2016 took place in a space station on Mars. While it was an interesting environment at first, it very quickly became bland, only ever taking short pauses to takes us to the realm of Hell. DOOM: Eternal however takes you to environment after environment. You'll go from an apocalyptic Earth city to a medieval castle to a futuristic arctic lab, even the DOOM version of heaven which is... still run by demons apparently. There's a lot more color and vibrancy, with locations somehow maintaining a consistent look while also being incredibly varied. My favorite place to hang out in is DOOM: Eternal's hub world.
With the integration of The Fortress of Doom, The Doom Slayer's space station that acts as a hub world for the game, players can easily go back to a level and complete the remaining collectibles and side missions. Maybe the previous DOOM also had a way to backtrack, but I didn't find it and like I said after I beat it once I couldn't really be bothered to go back. The Fortress of Doom is a nice pause in the action to catch your breath and look at what you've done, as every weapon, toy, and music album you collect is then placed into the Fortress for your viewing pleasure. The Fortress' aesthetic is beautiful, mixing DOOM's futuristic tech with gothic architecture with heavy metal posters from your music albums haphazardly posted about its halls. Doomguy also has a personal office with a triple-monitor gaming PC and some sick guitars hanging on the walls. Also hidden in the Fortress are unlockable skins for Doomguy, and while they're mainly meant for use in the multiplayer Battle Mode they will also be used in every cutscene of the game which is really fun.
Enough about aesthetics, it's time for action which is just as kinetic and fast paced as the previous DOOM. Runnin' and gunnin' is the name of the game, and you need to think quick because ammo, health, and armor is surprisingly sparce. Thankfully you unlock tools to help you acquire more. Chainsawing an enemy can give you ammo while glory killing an enemy can give you health, and if you use Flame Belch on an enemy it will light them on fire and cause them to start puking out armor. It's an interesting concept that adds split second strategy decisions to DOOM and adds complexity to the game mechanics' simplicity. Scattered around levels are parkour sections where you swing off bars and climb up walls while jumping great distances with a boost/dodge movement upgrade. This parkour is also added to the battle arenas, where you can use swing-bars to escape being cornered at times.
I think another reason I like this game is because it's more goofy. I mean it's not like a Borderlands where everyone's meta and making jokes constantly. DOOM: Eternal uses seriousness to hide a layer of fun inside of itself. DOOM (2016) kinda did this, having every character in the game act like this is a serious situation except for Doomguy who just rushes in and smashes shit up. In DOOM: Eternal everyone else in the world feels a little bit more "in on the joke." Maybe it's because the world is a bit diverse now instead of just when you were on Mars stuck talking to the same 2 bland assholes throughout the whole game. The robot guy is back by the way but it does feel nice to have some connection to the previous installment. Animations in DOOM: Eternal feel more kooky and certain demons have been redesigned to have goofy looking pupils. There's even some cartoony sound effects hidden amongst the gore.
Composer Mick Gordon returns with his awesome heavy metal score, just as blood-pumping as his last bout into this hellscape. I saw a video showing off Mick Gordon's "Heavy Metal Choir" where he brought together different screamers from assorted sub-genres of Metal to add some extra gusto into Eternal's score. While I was super excited to hear them, I felt it was under utilized. Maybe I was getting too into the action to notice but I heard the choir very little. I'm hoping when the score drops on spotify I'll be able to hear them more.
All in all, DOOM: Eternal is insane fun. If fast paced, first person shooter gore-fests are your kinda thing thing, then this is a must buy. As of right now this is my game to beat for the year which I guess isn't really saying much yet, and I doubt it will be my game of the year when we've got Last of Us Part II, Cyberpunk 2077, and (hopefully) Psychonauts 2 on the way. Nonetheless this game is something you'll be hooked on during this coronavirus quarantine.
DOOM (2016) was a really fun reboot to the series with high octane, never-stopping action. I had a really good time with it, but I couldn't be bothered to do anything more than beat the main story. Once it was done, I was done. DOOM: Eternal takes the simple core of its predecessor and improves upon it in every aspect.
The entirety of DOOM 2016 took place in a space station on Mars. While it was an interesting environment at first, it very quickly became bland, only ever taking short pauses to takes us to the realm of Hell. DOOM: Eternal however takes you to environment after environment. You'll go from an apocalyptic Earth city to a medieval castle to a futuristic arctic lab, even the DOOM version of heaven which is... still run by demons apparently. There's a lot more color and vibrancy, with locations somehow maintaining a consistent look while also being incredibly varied. My favorite place to hang out in is DOOM: Eternal's hub world.
With the integration of The Fortress of Doom, The Doom Slayer's space station that acts as a hub world for the game, players can easily go back to a level and complete the remaining collectibles and side missions. Maybe the previous DOOM also had a way to backtrack, but I didn't find it and like I said after I beat it once I couldn't really be bothered to go back. The Fortress of Doom is a nice pause in the action to catch your breath and look at what you've done, as every weapon, toy, and music album you collect is then placed into the Fortress for your viewing pleasure. The Fortress' aesthetic is beautiful, mixing DOOM's futuristic tech with gothic architecture with heavy metal posters from your music albums haphazardly posted about its halls. Doomguy also has a personal office with a triple-monitor gaming PC and some sick guitars hanging on the walls. Also hidden in the Fortress are unlockable skins for Doomguy, and while they're mainly meant for use in the multiplayer Battle Mode they will also be used in every cutscene of the game which is really fun.
Enough about aesthetics, it's time for action which is just as kinetic and fast paced as the previous DOOM. Runnin' and gunnin' is the name of the game, and you need to think quick because ammo, health, and armor is surprisingly sparce. Thankfully you unlock tools to help you acquire more. Chainsawing an enemy can give you ammo while glory killing an enemy can give you health, and if you use Flame Belch on an enemy it will light them on fire and cause them to start puking out armor. It's an interesting concept that adds split second strategy decisions to DOOM and adds complexity to the game mechanics' simplicity. Scattered around levels are parkour sections where you swing off bars and climb up walls while jumping great distances with a boost/dodge movement upgrade. This parkour is also added to the battle arenas, where you can use swing-bars to escape being cornered at times.
I think another reason I like this game is because it's more goofy. I mean it's not like a Borderlands where everyone's meta and making jokes constantly. DOOM: Eternal uses seriousness to hide a layer of fun inside of itself. DOOM (2016) kinda did this, having every character in the game act like this is a serious situation except for Doomguy who just rushes in and smashes shit up. In DOOM: Eternal everyone else in the world feels a little bit more "in on the joke." Maybe it's because the world is a bit diverse now instead of just when you were on Mars stuck talking to the same 2 bland assholes throughout the whole game. The robot guy is back by the way but it does feel nice to have some connection to the previous installment. Animations in DOOM: Eternal feel more kooky and certain demons have been redesigned to have goofy looking pupils. There's even some cartoony sound effects hidden amongst the gore.
Composer Mick Gordon returns with his awesome heavy metal score, just as blood-pumping as his last bout into this hellscape. I saw a video showing off Mick Gordon's "Heavy Metal Choir" where he brought together different screamers from assorted sub-genres of Metal to add some extra gusto into Eternal's score. While I was super excited to hear them, I felt it was under utilized. Maybe I was getting too into the action to notice but I heard the choir very little. I'm hoping when the score drops on spotify I'll be able to hear them more.
All in all, DOOM: Eternal is insane fun. If fast paced, first person shooter gore-fests are your kinda thing thing, then this is a must buy. As of right now this is my game to beat for the year which I guess isn't really saying much yet, and I doubt it will be my game of the year when we've got Last of Us Part II, Cyberpunk 2077, and (hopefully) Psychonauts 2 on the way. Nonetheless this game is something you'll be hooked on during this coronavirus quarantine.