i haven't actually played in a while and even then i didn't play much—really because i just wasn't feeling its new ammo and weapon switching system. i don't want to worry so much about all that when i'm playing doom and i'd even say it's such a departure that perhaps it should've been the basis of something entirely new. after having seen some videos of high difficulty play and the way it encourages a rhythm of avoidance and then diving in for kills and refills... well, that sounds like fun, and maybe it would be if i simply committed myself to the more hectic feel of it, but i really felt like the flow of the 2016 game was more satisfying—less stressful.
another thing: the amped up goofiness is fourth wall breaking and video game-y in a way i find really offputting. this may seem to be neither here nor there, but i want to compare this to machinegames' wolfenstein: the old blood, where a silly moment is cleverly crafted to inspire dramatic tension while also making you laugh. instead of describing it, a link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QU6tQY3eMLM
(literally posting this review because i was chatting with friends in irc about how i chose to pick up some polish sausages for dinner, and that every time i have a hot dog now i remember that line: "ja... ein 'hot dog'." it brings a smile to my face.)
all of this is to say that while doom 2016 was a fine game and i appreciated the decision to go for a fairly minimalistic narrative, i think that especially after eternal i can say the wolfenstein revival has been far more successful. in fact, it dismays me to see how those games seem to have been so thoroughly cast aside among backloggd regulars in particular. in terms of taking an oldschool fps with a supporting narrative even more basic than the original doom's, i feel they're wildly successful at extrapolating a world and a story populated by fully rendered and emotional human characters—even when it also goes for the absurd, over-the-top HUGENESS of its action, its horror... and its heart. doom eternal, meanwhile, lets you collect funko pops.
another thing: the amped up goofiness is fourth wall breaking and video game-y in a way i find really offputting. this may seem to be neither here nor there, but i want to compare this to machinegames' wolfenstein: the old blood, where a silly moment is cleverly crafted to inspire dramatic tension while also making you laugh. instead of describing it, a link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QU6tQY3eMLM
(literally posting this review because i was chatting with friends in irc about how i chose to pick up some polish sausages for dinner, and that every time i have a hot dog now i remember that line: "ja... ein 'hot dog'." it brings a smile to my face.)
all of this is to say that while doom 2016 was a fine game and i appreciated the decision to go for a fairly minimalistic narrative, i think that especially after eternal i can say the wolfenstein revival has been far more successful. in fact, it dismays me to see how those games seem to have been so thoroughly cast aside among backloggd regulars in particular. in terms of taking an oldschool fps with a supporting narrative even more basic than the original doom's, i feel they're wildly successful at extrapolating a world and a story populated by fully rendered and emotional human characters—even when it also goes for the absurd, over-the-top HUGENESS of its action, its horror... and its heart. doom eternal, meanwhile, lets you collect funko pops.