“They are rage, brutal, without mercy. But you. You will be worse. Rip and tear, until it is done.”
In 1993 id Software effectively created the first-person shooter genre with DOOM by refining many aspects present in first person action games at the time. The next evolution of this formula, 2004’s DOOM 3, was a response to the evolution of technology and was intended to lay the groundwork for what players wanted from the modern FPS. In spite of all the significant leaps DOOM 3 made for the genre and what was possible technologically in videogames, its success was shrouded by Valve’s Half-Life 2 just a few months later, a game that also pushed the boundaries in ways DOOM 3 hadn’t.
Development on DOOM 4 started almost straight after DOOM 3’s release, but id wanted the game to be as instrumental as DOOM 3 in propelling the genre forward, if not more so. The resulting game would go through years of development hell, meanwhile the shooter genre rose to mass popularity in the late 00’s with the rise of online multiplayer on consoles and titles like Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, and Halo 3. Gritty realism was in, and despite DOOM 4 intending to bring the same flavour of DOOM 3 combat to Earth it would ultimately never see the light of day because of series co-creator John Carmack’s belief that a gritty and more realistic done simply didn’t align with what the series represented.
DOOM 4 would spend twelve years in development until it eventually released as yet another reboot of the original game. Simply titled DOOM, this third reboot of the series followed in the footsteps of Wolfenstein: The New Order and intended to bring the fun back to the franchise as well as showcasing what could be technologically possible with DOOM on modern hardware.
Depending on how closely you want to look, DOOM 2016 (as I will refer to it from here on out) either has barely any story, or the most detailed lore present in the DOOM franchise to date. You are the Doom Slayer, an ancient warrior resurrected by Samuel Hayden, director of the UAC mining facility on Mars. Following a number of experiments with Argent Energy gathered directly from Hell, demons have begun crossing between dimensions and have overrun the facility. You are the only one capable of stopping the forces of Hell and closing off their dimension from ours.
That’s really all you need to know, but DOOM 2016 does offer up a wealth of lore that not only gives depth to the story of this game, but also recontextualises the chronology of the entire franchise.
What I really enjoyed about DOOM 2016’s story is how easily I could dip in and out of it as and when I wanted to. If I wanted to know more about what I was doing and what was going on, I need only do some digging for some codex entries or audio logs hidden in the levels and I could find out everything I wanted to know. But if I just wanted to plant my shotgun firmly in a demon’s mouth and pull the trigger without a second thought then I never felt like I was missing out on anything.
In 1993 id Software effectively created the first-person shooter genre with DOOM by refining many aspects present in first person action games at the time. The next evolution of this formula, 2004’s DOOM 3, was a response to the evolution of technology and was intended to lay the groundwork for what players wanted from the modern FPS. In spite of all the significant leaps DOOM 3 made for the genre and what was possible technologically in videogames, its success was shrouded by Valve’s Half-Life 2 just a few months later, a game that also pushed the boundaries in ways DOOM 3 hadn’t.
Development on DOOM 4 started almost straight after DOOM 3’s release, but id wanted the game to be as instrumental as DOOM 3 in propelling the genre forward, if not more so. The resulting game would go through years of development hell, meanwhile the shooter genre rose to mass popularity in the late 00’s with the rise of online multiplayer on consoles and titles like Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, and Halo 3. Gritty realism was in, and despite DOOM 4 intending to bring the same flavour of DOOM 3 combat to Earth it would ultimately never see the light of day because of series co-creator John Carmack’s belief that a gritty and more realistic done simply didn’t align with what the series represented.
DOOM 4 would spend twelve years in development until it eventually released as yet another reboot of the original game. Simply titled DOOM, this third reboot of the series followed in the footsteps of Wolfenstein: The New Order and intended to bring the fun back to the franchise as well as showcasing what could be technologically possible with DOOM on modern hardware.
Depending on how closely you want to look, DOOM 2016 (as I will refer to it from here on out) either has barely any story, or the most detailed lore present in the DOOM franchise to date. You are the Doom Slayer, an ancient warrior resurrected by Samuel Hayden, director of the UAC mining facility on Mars. Following a number of experiments with Argent Energy gathered directly from Hell, demons have begun crossing between dimensions and have overrun the facility. You are the only one capable of stopping the forces of Hell and closing off their dimension from ours.
That’s really all you need to know, but DOOM 2016 does offer up a wealth of lore that not only gives depth to the story of this game, but also recontextualises the chronology of the entire franchise.
What I really enjoyed about DOOM 2016’s story is how easily I could dip in and out of it as and when I wanted to. If I wanted to know more about what I was doing and what was going on, I need only do some digging for some codex entries or audio logs hidden in the levels and I could find out everything I wanted to know. But if I just wanted to plant my shotgun firmly in a demon’s mouth and pull the trigger without a second thought then I never felt like I was missing out on anything.
I love the way DOOM 2016’s story is so tongue in cheek and self-referential. Subtle nods to ‘having done all this before’, linking this DOOM to previous titles as well as acknowledging the status the game holds as yet another a reboot. As well as elements like interacting with objects is done using the melee button, and the subsequent animation often being aggressive or outright violent. This Doom Slayer isn’t here to mess around and he doesn’t answer to anybody. He’s here for one job and that’s to kill every demon he sees and close the portal to hell. Nothing else matters to him, and his general disregard for the lives of UAC employees and their equipment just fills me with such glee. As far as he is concerned, this is the UAC’s problem, so he’s going to destroy all their stuff and make sure they can’t do it again.
But you don’t come to DOOM 2016 for the story, you come for the gameplay, and I can guarantee that’s what will keep you sticking around. Similar to the original DOOM games, DOOM 2016 is fast and frantic. You must keep moving and keep shooting at all times, utilising every weapon in your arsenal, and exploring every possible space of a combat arena to ensure your survival. But unlike the original DOOM games, you can explore fully 3D environments, jump, and the game utilises a number of upgrade systems to allow for continual improvement over the course of the game.
The upgrades are what keeps DOOM 2016 from becoming stagnant too quickly. Hidden in levels are collectibles to upgrade your suit (such as manoeuvrability and damage resistance), upgrades to your health, armour, and ammo capacity, and new firing modes for your weapons. The more you explore and the more enemies you kill the more weapon upgrade points you’ll earn, meaning that you can improve those weapons even further. DOOM 2016 provides a constant drip feed of upgrades to your abilities so even when the combat encounters become significantly more difficult, you never feel totally outmatched.
Another great aspect to combat is the ability to earn health, armour, and ammo back from ‘glory kills’. These gruesome executions require you to be strategic with how much damage you’re dealing to enemies, as well as how close you are to them in order to pull of these moves. Succeed and you’ll be rewarded with the ability to live another day. This means that DOOM 2016 actively discourages you from putting too much distance between you and your targets at any given time. If you try to pick them off from afar you’ll likely get destroyed by powerful enemy projectiles, and if you allow yourself to get surrounded you’ll be dead in seconds. But being right in the thick of the fight and keeping yourself moving all the time will ensure that you’ll receive a steady drip feed of health, armour, and ammo to be able to keep fighting.
But you don’t come to DOOM 2016 for the story, you come for the gameplay, and I can guarantee that’s what will keep you sticking around. Similar to the original DOOM games, DOOM 2016 is fast and frantic. You must keep moving and keep shooting at all times, utilising every weapon in your arsenal, and exploring every possible space of a combat arena to ensure your survival. But unlike the original DOOM games, you can explore fully 3D environments, jump, and the game utilises a number of upgrade systems to allow for continual improvement over the course of the game.
The upgrades are what keeps DOOM 2016 from becoming stagnant too quickly. Hidden in levels are collectibles to upgrade your suit (such as manoeuvrability and damage resistance), upgrades to your health, armour, and ammo capacity, and new firing modes for your weapons. The more you explore and the more enemies you kill the more weapon upgrade points you’ll earn, meaning that you can improve those weapons even further. DOOM 2016 provides a constant drip feed of upgrades to your abilities so even when the combat encounters become significantly more difficult, you never feel totally outmatched.
Another great aspect to combat is the ability to earn health, armour, and ammo back from ‘glory kills’. These gruesome executions require you to be strategic with how much damage you’re dealing to enemies, as well as how close you are to them in order to pull of these moves. Succeed and you’ll be rewarded with the ability to live another day. This means that DOOM 2016 actively discourages you from putting too much distance between you and your targets at any given time. If you try to pick them off from afar you’ll likely get destroyed by powerful enemy projectiles, and if you allow yourself to get surrounded you’ll be dead in seconds. But being right in the thick of the fight and keeping yourself moving all the time will ensure that you’ll receive a steady drip feed of health, armour, and ammo to be able to keep fighting.
DOOM 2016 also looks fantastic. Running at a smooth 60FPS on PS4 and Xbox One, the game rarely dips in performance. Environments have incredible attention to detail and demons have gloriously gruesome models. Shooting demons will literally tear the very flesh from their bodies and so they will deteriorate over the course of a fight, and get in close enough with a powerful weapon and you’ll be able to blow them to bits that fly everywhere in a shower of blood. The design of everything is considerably more fun than DOOM 3’s grim and gritty interpretation of the material. The UAC facility is a mix of shiny chrome and glowing lights that looks super futuristic. Meanwhile Hell is a series of meandering labyrinths with plenty of places for demons to lurk in wait. It’s not scary, but the original DOOM games never were, and whilst I certainly enjoyed that more horror centric approach to DOOM 3, the way DOOM 2016 handles its gothic themes puts fun at the forefront of everything with its brighter colour palette and more grandiose architecture.
Mick Gordon has also composed one of the greatest videogame soundtracks of all time mixing heavy metal and electronic music together for something sci-fi in feel yet brutally DOOM. When the music kicks into gear and the demons start raining down all hell, it’s tough not to kill to the rhythm of the powerful drums and stinging guitar riffs.
For many DOOM 2016 signalled the return of the classic old school shooter, but personally I feel that started long before with 2011’s Bulletstorm and continued with Wolfenstein: The New Order. DOOM 2016 makes a quite literal translation of the original game into the modern era. What if DOOM were made with modern development tools and sensibilities? Well, DOOM 2016 is the answer. It’s not my favourite entry in the franchise, but it certainly is a bundle of fun especially once you get into your killing rhythm.
Mick Gordon has also composed one of the greatest videogame soundtracks of all time mixing heavy metal and electronic music together for something sci-fi in feel yet brutally DOOM. When the music kicks into gear and the demons start raining down all hell, it’s tough not to kill to the rhythm of the powerful drums and stinging guitar riffs.
For many DOOM 2016 signalled the return of the classic old school shooter, but personally I feel that started long before with 2011’s Bulletstorm and continued with Wolfenstein: The New Order. DOOM 2016 makes a quite literal translation of the original game into the modern era. What if DOOM were made with modern development tools and sensibilities? Well, DOOM 2016 is the answer. It’s not my favourite entry in the franchise, but it certainly is a bundle of fun especially once you get into your killing rhythm.