Review: Doom Eternal is an outstanding shooter, maybe even the best of all time
The latest entry in the legendary first-person shooter series absolutely blew me away.
Doom Eternal is a game about killing demons. Violently. | Image: id Software
Doom (2016) was my favourite shooter of all time. The soundtrack, weaponry, atmosphere and level design all made for one of the best gaming experiences I’ve ever had. Having said that, Doom Eternal is twice as good. It takes the first-person shooter formula that the developers at id Software pioneered with the original Doom (1993), and perfects it. It challenges your skill level at every turn, enriches Doom’s lore with aplomb and throws you into spectacularly-designed arenas with some of the most jaw-droppingly detailed environments in all of gaming.
“There is only one dominant life form in this universe, and it carries a steel-barreled sword of vengeance.”
This sequel takes everything Doom (2016) did right, and throws away everything it did wrong. More weapons, more demons, more environments, a deeper story and the best first-person shooting money can buy - all densely packed into a 20-hour campaign for the ages. And it has a multiplayer mode, too!
Where we last left off…
Hell has arrived on Earth, but fortunately for us all - so has the Slayer.
Before we get to the ripping and tearing, let’s set the scene first. Doom Eternal picks up two years after the bloody events of Doom (2016). Hell has arrived on Earth, despite all of the Doom Slayer’s previous attempts to stop them on Mars and in hell itself. 60% of humanity has been utterly wiped out, with the rest either fighting to survive or already in the midst of being overrun. The Slayer hears their cries for help on his Fortress of Doom (not joking) and cocks his shotgun, teleports to Earth and gets back to doing what he does best: blasting demons to bloody bits.
Every cutscene in this game is short and sweet, and never betraying the tone of the franchise - pushing players from one level to the next organically while making them feel like the biggest badass in the universe. Players can pick up codex entries throughout the game, which serve to inform them on the lore of the world - such as who governs hell, what the Makyrs are, and how the Slayer got so strong in the first place. That works nicely for both types of Doom players - the ones who just want to make demons explode like meat balloons, and the ones heavily invested in the games' lore.
The Slayer resides in a hub called the Fortress of Doom, which you're taken to in between missions. It's a great place to explore - containing several items, upgrades and... familiar skins. Wink, wink.
All this is to say that the story is fantastic. It's intricately detailed, expanding on the lore of the classic games - from 1993's Doom to 1997's Doom 64 - in surprising ways. The story, though it appears minimalistic at first, is rich in flavour, told in its environment as much as it is in cutscenes. You'll find yourself asking more than a few intriguing questions as you rampage through the campaign, and the answers that come won't disappoint you.
The fun zone
Combat in this game is absolutely excellent, and one of a kind among its first-person shooter peers.
While talking about Doom Eternal, game director Hugo Martin at id Software made frequent mention of ‘the fun zone’. Doom (2016)’s core gameplay loop of running around and killing demons was a lot of fun, but it got tiring by the end due to a lack of enemy variety. The game's biggest issue was that it wasn’t pushing players enough to try different things. Trying different weapons and making full use of the environment during intense combat encounters feels satisfying and challenging. That’s the fun zone.
Doom Eternal has a very specific and unique combat loop that you won’t find anywhere else, which pushes you to be as tactical as possible without sacrificing that fun factor. Ammo is much more limited this time around, but you can chainsaw enemies for more ammo. Demons hit harder, but you can use your Flame Belch ability to replenish armour. Enemies may overwhelm you - but glory kills will give you a steady stream of health. Combat feels drastically different, and by that I mean much, much better.
Your weapons come with a host of upgrades. You can make your shotgun fire rapid-fire rounds for example, or have it shoot sticky bombs at enemy weakpoints. You can even swap between the two on the fly!
The early levels of Doom Eternal will definitely take some adjusting to if you’re coming in fresh to the series - or even if you’re jumping on right after Doom (2016). Many things have changed, and the combat has become much more cerebral as a result. You’ll constantly have to keep an eye on your ammo and resources, while getting one up on every enemy around you during fights. In the beginning, this might seem frustratingly hard. Soon enough however, it will become satisfyingly challenging.
One of the major selling points of this series is that it allows you to shoot things and feel like a god while doing so. No other game does this better than Doom Eternal. Sure, it makes you work for it, but by doing so it makes you feel like you’ve truly earned every victory you claim over the demons. It never feels unfair even in its most challenging moments - because you’re just learning how combat works with every death. The game even gives you generous amounts of extra lives to mitigate that!
The Doom formula, perfected
Combat arenas are really well-designed, providing you plenty of different ways to approach fights. If you ever stop moving in this game, you die - and Doom Eternal's level design is built to accommodate the speed of its gameplay.
When Doom Eternal was announced, all I really wanted was Doom (2016) with new levels. This game is so much more than that - but at the same time, it really is just the first game perfected to a tee. Each level is breathtakingly beautiful, and an absolute treat to explore. Id Software’s exemplary level design is made even better with the introduction of several types of collectibles to find all over the game. You’ll be rewarded for every bit of poking and prodding you do, whether it’s with a music track from Quake II or a cheat code for infinite lives.
Doom (2016) consisted of just three different locations, which made for some fairly repetitive gameplay towards the end of its campaign. This game however, is almost impossibly bigger. It feels like each level is constantly fighting with the last to outdo it in every way, and all of them succeed. There is an awe-inspiring amount of environmental variety on display here, and it makes the Slayer’s long and chaotic journey feel that much more epic.
I 100%'d pretty much every corner of this game, snagging every collectible the game had to offer. There's always a reason to explore, whether it's to find classic music tracks or to play the original Doom and Doom 2 in their entirety in the Slayer's office room.
Doom Eternal’s gunplay is phenomenal. Each weapon in the Slayer’s arsenal plays its part in battle perfectly, and are all a joy to use regardless of what your favourites might turn out to be. The Super Shotgun is a classic, and watching it turn demons’ insides into outsides at close range will never get old. Other weapons like the Chaingun and Ballista tear through demons like they’re nothing, and fantastic weapon feedback lets you feel that in the most satisfying way.
Speaking of demons - id Software really nailed it this time around. Not only do they look fantastic, but they're all purpose-built to spice up combat in unique ways. The Marauder for example, has proven to be rather controversial due to his difficulty. Personally, I adored the character and the fights I got into with him. Whenever he showed up in battle, it brought something new to the arena - and so does every other enemy. That's how special the enemy design is here. The feel of combat can change drastically depending on who you're fighting - which allows the game to get away with throwing so many demons at you and never feeling repetitive while doing so.
The Marauder is awesome - but I can see players getting frustrated at how his encounters change up the flow of combat.
Driving the Slayer through all of his murderous mayhem is Mick Gordon’s absolutely phenomenal soundtrack. Doom (2016) already had such an incredible heavy metal/industrial fusion of head-banging music that fit the tone of the game so well, but it feels like Gordon was really let loose this time around. Just when you get into another massive combat encounter and feel like you’ve had enough, that awesome thumping music kicks in - and you’re ready for another go.
Side note: release the soundtrack already, Bethesda!
What on hell on Earth is Battlemode?
Battlemode is a lot of fun, but it demands much more skill from the Slayer than it does the demons.
Id Software has engineered an all-new multiplayer mode for Doom Eternal, titled Battlemode. This asymmetrical multiplayer mode pits the Slayer against two player-controlled demons in various combat arenas. The Slayer is equipped with all of his weapons and upgrades, whereas the demons have various powers and abilities in combat to use against him.
I played through Battlemode quite a bit for the purposes of this review, and I liked it a lot - but a lot less than the story campaign. While I admire id Software for making as competitive and dramatic a multiplayer mode as possible, it does have one glaring flaw. On a casual level, the game is much, much easier for demons and much harder for Slayers. It’s unbalanced - but it’s very much meant to be that way.
Battlemode can often feel incredibly unbalanced. Demons will more often steamroll a Slayer than otherwise, purely because the Slayer has a harder job to do here.
Demons can work together, spawn endless hordes of other AI-controlled demons, block the Slayer’s loot and use various other abilities against him to win. The slayer on the other hand, only has himself - and an intimidating arsenal of guns as backup. This means that Slayer players have to be highly skilled to beat the demons at their own game, while the demons have to be strategic to outplay the Slayer.
Battlemode doesn’t seem like a lot of fun for Slayer players due to its difficulty, unless they have the will to… well, get good. A good multiplayer mode should keep you coming back for more, but I can see a lot of players either solely playing as demons, or quitting the mode entirely after a few matches. At the very least, it's a lot of fun to play the demons and regardless of its issues, Battlemode is still a good enough companion to an outstanding campaign.
Verdict
Come for the sights, stay for the slaying.
Doom Eternal is brilliant. It has the most gorgeous environments and well-designed levels to navigate in a shooter, hands down. The setpieces on display here are often jaw-dropping, and levels drip with atmosphere wherever you go. The boss battles are often showstoppers. Some of them even become dime-a-dozen enemy types later, making it all the more satisfying to crush them under the Slayer’s boot when they pop up.
The sound design - from the explosions of bloody viscera to the pulse-pounding soundtrack underneath it all, is pitch-perfect. Combat encounters are challenging, but each one is a joy to overcome. Besides a sure-to-be-controversial multiplayer experience, the core mechanics of Doom Eternal solidify it as one of the greatest shooters of all time - and by far, the best Doom game ever made.
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