🎮[REVIEW] DOOM Eternal is the MOST Action Packed FPS Ever

DOOM Eternal is the awaited sequel to DOOM 2016. The game that brought back the father of all fps to the modern era and honored the Slayer by showing how brutal our protagonist is.

While I was curious about how id Software was going to top this. They did an amazing job in making DOOM Eternal even better than the prequel by taking everything that made it great and doubling down on it.

If you thought DOOM 2016 was peak action, you will find that Eternal is nothing more than a mind-numbing brutally fun title that refined and polished the action and combat of the franchise and left it squeaky clean.

You will also notice that it has many familiar features from the previous game, like:

• Weapon Mods
• Suit points
• Runes
• Glory Kills
• Maps
• Platforming (even though there is WAY more of it now)
• Collectibles

However, they didn't just add more of the same. They also gave us many new features that improved some of the most important parts making it one of my favorite FPS titles of all times.

Currently, you can get DOOM Eternal on Steam and the Epic Game Store, but before you buy it, I want to share with you a few details about its campaign and DLCs.

Stating with the lore.

📖The Story

While DOOM 2016's story was more direct and lacked depth, it was good enough since gameplay was its main focus.

On the other hand, DOOM Eternal showed us the origin of the Slayer's power and even introduced us to new characters and factions, like the Knight Sentinels, their world Argent D'Nur, the Khan Myker, the angels, Heaven, and the Father ultimately adding more depth to the lore.

But before we get to see any of it, we are first introduced to an Earth that's being devastated by the demons and the only way to stop them is by hunting down the three Hell Priests who are doing the Khan Myker's bidding.

To achieve this, you rampage between, Hell, Heaven, and Earth making short work of the demons, finding new allies, and beating a few bosses until you not only stop the invasion, but you also defeat god.

As you go through the story, Eternal will constantly remind you that our protagonist is not just a soldier, but the DOOM Slayer, the one thing they fear, and it do it via cutscenes, audio logs, and broadcasts.

It shows you the impact of your actions, how the UAC is attempting to deny the Slayer's existence, and the effect he has on regular humans.

These things gave more depth to the DOOM Slayer because now he is more than just a "big green man too angry to die" he is now a warrior and a hero and I'm all for it.

However, the exposition of the story would not have had the same impact if the gameplay didn't deliver, and I'm so glad it did.

🎮Gameplay

Just like DOOM 2016, Eternal has a brutal fast-paced gameplay where you mow down hordes of demons who would love nothing more than to tare you to shreds. Fortunately, the Slayer is armed to the teeth with enough firepower to rip and tear every last one of them.

Your entire arsenal consists of:

• Shotgun
• Super Shotgun
• Chaingun
• Plasma Rifle
• Heavy Cannon
• Ballista
• Rocket Launcher
• Chainsaw

The BFG also makes a return and we get three new ultimate weapons – the Unmaker, the Crucible, and the Sentinel Hammer. The last one being from the Ancient Gods DLC.

However, id Software also added a few more things that enhance the gameplay and make you more lethal.

• A flamethrower - to burn enemies and get armor
• Frag Grenades - for crowd control and AoE damage
• Ice bombs- to immobilize enemies and get health
• A Dash - to get away from enemies or maneuver while in the air
• The Blood Punch - to break enemy armor
• Enemy weak points - to reduce the combat effectiveness of enemies

All these additions make the combat more dynamic since now you have to actually think instead of doing the traditional "shoot it till it dies". Not only that but now you have to pay attention to which weapons you are using when dealing with specific enemies.

For example:

Instead of shooting the Mancubus until it stops breathing, you can use the Heavy Cannon to take out its arms cannons so it cannot use its flamethrower and reduce the speed of its missiles.

This is specially useful when you also have to deal with other heavy demons who are demanding more of your attention.

You will also quickly find out Eternal is not going to hold your hand and you will have to use your entire arsenal to beat every fight.

This will be more apparent in the Ancient Gods DLCs because they will add an extra layer of difficulty to an already challenging game. From new enemies that require specific techniques to beat them, to arenas with more environmental hazards.

For upgrading the Slayer, we now have the Sentinel Crystals (which work similarly to the Argent Cells of the first game) and Sentinel Batteries, which let you unlock different secrets areas.

Scattered throughout the stages you will find:

• Secret Encounters - These are similar to the Gore Nests of DOOM 2016 but instead of getting waves of enemies, you get a small group of demons you have to kill under a time limit.
• Slayer Gates - A series of colosseum fights where you have to face a few waves of enemies and some of them have demons you are supposed to meet later in the story.

It is entirely your choice whether you do them or not. But if you do all the Slayer Gates, you'll get access to the Unmaker and the Secret Encounters give you weapon points to improve your arsenal.

The Slayer also have a space base called the Fortress of DOOM. It's where he goes to prepare for the next fight. If you know about DC Comics, you can think of it as the Justice League Watchtower but more gothic, cool, and with very little room for an actual team.

You can also find things like:

• The Slayer's private room – to see your collectibles
• The Ripatorium – a prison where you can train against captured demons
• Master Levels – special levels that are harder than their regular versions
• Cheats – overpower upgrades for some chaotic fun
• Music Albums – the soundtracks of previous DOOM games

I appreciate that the devs added this space base. Being able to learn more about our silent protagonist, listening to older albums, having a place to practice, use cheats for some chaotic fun, and have a way to increase the difficulty shows that id Software thought about everything.

🎨The Design

The look and design of the stages, the demons, the weapons, to even the Slayer himself is one of the things id Software nailed in the previous game, but in DOOM Eternal they stepped up their game.

The environment is more grotesque in the Earth stages with all the blood and guts and there are sections where we see the torment the captured humans are going through nailing the savagery of the demons. In the hell stages, we can see the remains of the Sentinels' mech armor after their war against the demons which is a really cool detail.

Speaking of the demons. Some got a rework, others were brought back from the classic DOOM games, a few new ones were added, and they all look great.

Also, whoever had the idea to make demons lose chunks of their bodies when we shoot them deserves a raise because this is a great way to tell the player how much damage we are doing and makes the combat more visceral and immersive.

The music also got better. I thought it couldn't go harder than in DOOM 2016, but it was even more aggressive than before. Mick Gordon outdid himself this time and created one of the hardest OSTs in gaming.

Everything in DOOM Eternal looks and feels great and this wouldn't have been possible if either the music or art design were not as good as they are.

😐The Negatives

If it isn't obvious at this point, I love this game in many ways. However, there are a few things I don't particularly like. They aren't game-breaking stuff, and I might be nitpicking a bit, but either way, here they are.

• It has skins and weekly challenges that look like a Battle Pass. This doesn't look like something that should even be in a DOOM game. It breaks the immersion, and it feels like an artificial way to try to increase player numbers.
• You need to read the Codex Entries to learn the whole lore. I'm not a fan of hiding important bits of lore in texts we need to collect as we play because you can easily miss them. Since there are far more codex entries than before collecting all of them feels like a chore. I wished Eternal took a more show don't tell approach with its lore.
• You need internet connection and a Bethesda account to play. The fact that we need to be constantly connected to the internet and create an account on another platform to play a single-player game we already paid for will never make sense to me and can lead to some problems.
• You'll have to get the DLCs to get the whole story. DOOM Eternal gives you a lot of content, but The Ancient Gods DLC Part I & II seem to be the real ending of the series. So to get the complete experience, you might need to get them.

These are the only issues I have with DOOM Eternal.

They don't break the game so they aren't a problem for me, but someone with internet issues might not get a good experience because of the account requirement. That seems to be a problem some players mentioned in DOOM Eternal's Steam page, so it is something you need to think about before buying it.

⭐Final Verdict 5/5 - Must Play

DOOM Eternal is the perfect sequel to DOOM 2016. It's faster, more brutal, and it does everything it cans to show you that the DOOM Slayer is a force of nature while also keeping you on edge during combat.

The lore rose the stakes. Now you are not fighting for a personal vendetta against Hell's denizens, but for the survival of the entire human race.

While it seems the community's is quite divided about the DLCs, I certainly enjoyed every second of it, and if you liked DOOM 2016, I think you will have a blast with DOOM Eternal and the Ancient GODS Part I & II.

DOOM Eternal

Hell’s armies have invaded Earth. Become the Slayer in an epic single-player campaign to conquer demons across dimensions and stop the final destruction of humanity. The only thing they fear... is you.

REAP AND TEAR!