When “DOOM” reinvented itself from 2016, many were not sure whether the series could go back to the old days, especially since “Doom 3” was recently very story-heavy and relatively slow. “DOOM” nevertheless managed to link new and old, was praised by the press and was also extremely well received by fans. “Doom Eternal” now builds on where the predecessor left off and brings more of everything – more action, more weapons and more gore, but also more story that, if you want, can be completely ignored. You can find out in our test how “Doom Eternal” is doing and whether hell can be an attractive place to stay.
Story or action, your decision
“Doom Eternal” starts almost two years after the events of “Doom”. After teleporting to an unknown location at the end of the game, the Doom Slayer is now back near Earth, which has been overrun by demonic hordes. It is now up to the doom
Slayer to save the earth and humanity from total extinction, sending as many demons as possible to a deeper hell.
“Doom Eternal” has significantly more history than its predecessor, there are even real cutscenes this time – even if the story itself plays more in the background and is absolutely optional. If you want, you can neglect all background information, skip the cutscenes and devote yourself entirely to the action. If you want to know more, you can also use the flavor texts that are hidden in the world and learn more about opponents, characters and their backgrounds and thus get the most out of “Doom Eternals” history.
Well-tried and still good
Doom Eternal’s basic gameplay has remained the same. The biggest advantage of the Doom Slayer is its high speed. The mobility that the Slayer shows is also urgently needed, because opponents deal a lot of damage. If you stop for a short time or are pushed into a corner, you can literally see how armor and life melt away. Also new in “Doom Eternal” is the vertical gameplay, a kind of small innovation in the series.
The Slayer can swing through steel pipes through the area and, in combination with double jumps, gain significant height and cover great distances, while the hordes of demons are always under attack. Another new skill the Doom Slayer gets from his dashes, with which he can cover short distances with a forward thrust. However, both double jumps and dashes are limited in their usefulness. After a double jump or two dashes, the skills have to regenerate, which only happens on solid ground, which means that you have to be proactive in fights so as not to maneuver yourself into the corner.
So that you don’t lean back and kill opponents only from a distance, both healing items and ammunition are a real rarity. If you urgently want full HP and bullets, you have to plunge into the action. Because when enemies have taken enough damage, they start flashing – then it’s time to do a glory kill, which will give you HP, among other things. If you run out of ammunition, you can dismantle enemies with your chainsaw, causing them to explode like pinatas in an ammunition rain. In general, however, you do not have to fear that you will eventually be without balls, as the chainsaw gradually generates new fuel. However, it can happen that you run out of opponents, which is particularly bad in situations in which you are faced with a boss type and use up two or three fuel units of the chainsaw, which you then often do not have. Thinking with you when using the chainsaw is also a good idea – maybe you should only use the chainsaw to get rid of one of your big opponents immediately, even if it uses up all your fuel and then turns to all the small things.
Turn up is the order of the day
With the grenade launcher, blood strike and flame thrower, the Slayer also has even more new skills at their disposal. The blood stroke is filled up by glory kills and unleashes an AOE attack through a regular melee attack, which can knock out small enemies immediately while the flamethrower sets them on fire, causing them to drop extra armor. The grenade, on the other hand, serves more as a ranged weapon that throws or freezes enemies out of balance.
You get even stronger with upgrade points, which can be found in both the game and the new hub world, the Slayer Fortress. Upgrade points give you more HP, Armor or lower ammunition reserves. Coins found in the world allow upgrades to the suit. B. can swing faster on steel pipes or take no more damage from exploding barrels. Weapons can also be equipped with two different modifications that give each weapon secondary attacks. With the Shotgun you can e.g. B. shoot grenades or pump the entire ammunition fully automatically into an enemy.
The modifications to each weapon also have upgrades that can be unlocked with weapon points. If all upgrades have already been purchased, another upgrade will be activated, which presupposes that you have to meet a challenge with the respective modification. In the Slayer Fortress you can also see all of his collectibles. Objects found in the levels are displayed here as decorations and can be viewed at any time. Using energy cells, you can help the Slayer Fortress to its old glory and supply cut sections with energy again, which unlocks further upgrades and new skins. In the so-called Rippertorium, the prison of the fortress, you can even compete against demons that have already been fought and thus familiarize yourself with the different strengths and weaknesses of each.
Hellishly beautiful
Graphically, “Doom Eternal”, like its predecessor, is really impressive. The game comes out razor-sharp and runs mostly at 60fps, even if there are sharp drops in some corners that can be reproduced again and again. If you want to see for yourself how the FPS gets to your knees, you just have to look for an invisible wall in the game world and jump up and down. Why exactly at these points is unclear, but also not very sad, especially since everything goes smoothly in the actual battle.
Musically, “Doom Eternal” is, as always, very heavy metal. There are guitar riffs and throat chants that dynamically emphasize the gameplay. The special touch of Doom 2016 is audible again and so the weapons are in tune with the music. The weapon practically becomes an instrument in which every volley is a note – an inconspicuous but beautiful effect that never becomes too intrusive.
Multiplayer in new ways
After the very classic multiplayer of Doom 2016, “Doom Eternal” tries something new – simply on the grounds that classic deathmatch is out. In “Doom Eternal”, two players compete as demons against a third player who takes on the role of the Slayer. The goal is of course to defeat the other side. Different skills are available to the demons, which can be improved during the match. Demons can also spawn smaller enemies and steal the Slayer Loot Drops. However, if you play as a slayer, you simply have to rely on your enormous speed and kill both demons within 20 seconds. If there are more than 20 seconds between the demonic player’s eliminations, the player who has already been eliminated may re-enter with half HP.
Unfortunately, how this mode plays cannot be said. While we were able to get into a match during the test, a third player who would have taken on the role of the Slayer was never found. Maybe because there are still too few players or nobody wanted to take on the role of the Slayer. How the mode will perform in the long run and whether it will be better accepted by the community than the traditional multiplayer from Doom 2016 will still be shown.
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Summary
“Doom Eternal is crammed with so many and hellish features that you almost get dizzy. Even the upgrades of the upgrades still have upgrades. At first glance, the new movement options of the Slayer may be a bit much and look overwhelming, which can lead to that old fans may not be able to come to terms with it right away, but you cannot deny that these options bring even more speed into the game, which has always been one of the basic principles of Doom. Doom Eternal is therefore a very successful sequel that only so brimming with features and with a huge scope. If you love fast FPS games that also look crisp and come around the corner with a little nostalgia, DOOM Eternal is a real stroke of luck. ” 9
Summary
“Doom Eternal is crammed with so many and hellish features that you almost get dizzy. Even the upgrades of the upgrades still have upgrades. At first glance, the new movement options of the Slayer may be a bit much and look overwhelming, which can lead to that old fans may not be able to come to terms with it right away, but you cannot deny that these options bring even more speed into the game, which has always been one of the basic principles of Doom. Doom Eternal is therefore a very successful sequel that only so bristling with features and with a huge scope. If you love fast FPS games that also look crisp and come with a little nostalgia around the corner, DOOM Eternal is a real stroke of luck. “
