Doom Eternal Review

Developer: id Software

Publisher: Bethesda Softworks

Composer(s): Mick Gordon

Platform(s): Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Stadia, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch

Release: PC, PS4, Stadia, XONE - March 20, 2020 / Nintendo Switch TBA 2020

Genre: First-person shooter

Mode(s): Single-player, Multiplayer

Links to Purchase

PC: https://amzn.to/3d2H0LY PS4: https://amzn.to/2wjQLVv Xbox One: https://amzn.to/2IVSao3

Nintendo Switch: https://amzn.to/3b4gakJ

Doom has always been a white knuckle, hold your balls, and wreck shit type of franchise since it’s inception in 1993 and when the series decided to reboot itself in 2016 with the self-titled DOOM, it brought all of that insanity right back cranked up to insanity with a Metal to the core headbanger of a soundtrack by Mick Gordon that got the blood pumping and blood-lust flowing! There was simply no title that was like Doom 2016 and for the last 4 years we’ve seen that entry ported to the Nintendo Switch with some downgrades in performance and visuals but it was still DOOM none the less. And here we are in 2020 with a sequel to one of the best games of 2016 with DOOM Eternal that seeks to up the ante of its 2016 predecessor and raise the bar to a new high. Can DOOM Eternal be one of the definitive games of 2020 or will it fall to the wayside the way many sequels like Wolfenstein II did? Let’s find out!

Story

DOOM Eternal picks up some months after the conclusion of DOOM 2016 with the Doom Guy aka Doom Slayer having conquered the Hell army on Mars with Dr. Hayden having teleported him off to some mysterious location of which he eventually ends up on Earth to continue the fight to send Hell’s army back where they came from and beat their asses like they owe Doom Guy money, BETTA HAVE HIS MONEY!

While the demons of Hell are most certainly evil, the reality is that the real enemies are the humans, more accurately the UAC, and the tone of the story is decidedly more serious even with all it’s ridiculousness with subtle commentary on things such as propaganda and moral ethics, censorship of language and society, and much more. It’s all expertly done and not to the extent and failure of Wolfenstein II and NewBlood and is social commentary done right. For the most lore, you’ll need to deep dive into the codex to deepen the already deeper narrative.

Gameplay

If you thought DOOM 2016 was intense then DOOM Eternal is going to tell you to hold it’s beer as it at times get’s bat shit crazy with how so much is going on at once with not only the enemies the game throws at you but with a stronger emphasis on platforming and exploration that gives it a much different feel from the original.

Exploration in the 2016’s entry was not as much emphasized on as you could explore different areas to find small Doom Guy collectibles and Praetor coins to gain points to upgrade your weapons but always felt linear with clearly defined invisible walls. In Eternal the landscape is so different with how you get around and with how you have not only the double jump upgrade from the start but also a new maneuver in dashing (up to two times) and the climbing mechanics that will make you climb up a wall then jump and double dash to another area to use monkey bars and add in the twitch heavy combat then you’ve got some fun in store for you! The rhythm of exploration, combat, traversal, and back again is done leagues better than it was in the last game as before it felt like you run to a room, clear out enemies, and then run to the next room with little less reason to explore whereas in this game the variety flows perfectly.

You have your standard Doom weapons from shotguns, plasma rifles, ballista’s, chainsaws, rocket launchers, and your fists and more to create as must carnage as possible and RIP N TEAR! New to Eternal are several weapons including the Crucible Sword giving you new ways to go about your slaughter with more ferocity to slice and dice your enemies! Returning are Glory Kills which feel ever more glorious than before especially with the new weapons available and some of the new animations for your brutality.

You still have the upgrade system from before as well as the ability to upgrade Doom Guy’s armor as well as equip runes for various buffs and stat boosts. The difficulty of Doom Eternal is fair even on the higher difficulties as no matter how many swarms are thrown at you the game is expertly balanced and rewards smart gameplay and strategy.

Whats new is the Fortress of Doom where you can unlock new stuff using the sentinel batteries as well as find and display your collectibles and more!

Theres also a multiplayer component – Battlemode- that’s available but at the time of this review I wasn’t able to play it because it wont be available until launch so for this review we are ignoring it at the present.

Oh and also, do you remember Cheat Codes? Well Cheat Codes are BACK!

Graphics

Graphically speaking the game looks amazing running on consoles like the Xbox One or PS4 runing at about 900P on Xbox One and 1080 on PS4 and on the beefier consoles like Xbox One X and PS4 Pro running at 4k 60FPS and for the best experience you can run it on PC and if you’ve got a GTX 1050 and up and especially with a RTX you can get what many may consider the true way to play DOOM Eternal.

The enemies look similar to how they did in the 2016 release with ever sharper details to make them look even more menacing than what they did in the original and Doom Guy has more details in his armor. Environments look downright stunning from the Hellscaped Earth to the dimension warping areas and the blood thats everywhere and more all look absolutely gorgeous.

Audio

From the revving of a chainsaw to the popping off of shotgun slugs to plasma rounds and the meeting of sword and flesh all sound orgasmic to the ear. If you loved Mick Gordon’s pulse pounding metal as fuck soundtrack in the 2016 entry then get ready to be treated to another round of unapologetically metal music that will get you in the mood to make those denizens of hell pay for getting in Doom Guy’s way.

Downsides

So with all the praise I’m heaping on this game what could possibly be the downsides? Well like 2016’s Doom you could possibly get tired of the same run here, shoot this, grab that, explore here, rinse and repeat. The formula is great but like all things you could get tired of it. There are some enemies that can be downright frustrating that carry shields that are just bullet sponges.

The Wrapup

I’m going to just say it: DOOM Eternal is the first MUST OWN/MUST BUY game of 2020 hands down bar none. iD Software came back to let it be known that not only is DOOM back but that it’s clearly UNTOUCHABLE in the realm of white knuckle shooters. Controls feel perfect no matter If you’re a mouse and Keyboard kinda gamer or a controller user as it’s simply a smoother and insanely fun experience that just feels intuitively natural. The plot is deep and has social commentary that doesn’t delve too deep and graphics are a step up from the previous entry and if you love visceral gaming or just a game that grabs you and has you coming back for more then DOOM Eternal is a game YOU NEED in your library.