Doom (2016) by id Software

First, a word from the publisher: “Developed by id software, the studio that pioneered the first-person shooter genre and created multiplayer Deathmatch, DOOM returns as a brutally fun and challenging modern-day shooter experience. Relentless demons, impossibly destructive guns, and fast, fluid movement provide the foundation for intense, first-person combat – whether you’re obliterating demon hordes through the depths of Hell in the single-player campaign, or competing against your friends in numerous multiplayer modes. Expand your gameplay experience using DOOM SnapMap game editor to easily create, play, and share your content with the world.“

What Worked For Me:

The moment-to-moment gameplay was visceral and engaging. The game is at its best when it places the player in an interesting arena (with multiple levels, hazards, etc) with a variety of enemies to defeat and numerous options on how to proceed.
Each weapon has multiple upgrade paths, including add-ons (a scope for the assault rifle, piercing bullets for the machine gun, lock-on for the rocket launcher, etc). I never stuck for a single weapon for too long after unlocking the full arsenal; I consider this a testament to the excellent design and functionality each offered.
The game also offered a number of level-specific challenges to encourage the player to engage in new ways. This included everything to finding all of the level’s secrets (which we’ll get back to in cons) and combat challenges (like killing two enemies with a single shot). Though the challenges eventually did get repetitive (e.g. perform 5 different glory kills on increasingly difficult enemies), I still appreciated the “spice” the challenges offered.
The music is basically iconic as the gameplay. It’s hard, it’s heavy, and it matches perfectly with the tone of the game. It also serves as a modern update to “original” Doom’s soundtrack (which featured more “lo-fi” metal tunes).
Having played “Original” Doom as a kid, I appreciated how id software leaned into the silliness and reused some of the older game’s ideas (key cards, skulls as key cards, the super shotgun, etc). It was also fun to see a modernized take on a lot of the assets and ideas from yesteryear.
The game includes multiple difficulty settings, which should allow players of many skill levels to enjoy the game. I also appreciate that the developers pointed out which skill level the game was designed around (“Hurt Me Plenty“).
The game can easily be beaten in a weekend (depending on skill level and difficulty chosen, of course). I appreciate games that don’t bloat their run-time or try to pursue a “games as service” model, and Doom (2016) fits that bill.
The game includes lore for those who want to dig into it, but it is completely optional. As an example: I found plenty of “data logs,” and the game includes an index that houses information on places, enemies, weapons, and more. The player is never required to read these documents to progress, however.

What Didn’t Work For Me:

The game ends on a cliff-hanger. For a game that clearly sets out to empower the player, the ending, which sees the player warped to heaven-knows-where, feels like a downer. Also, they dangle a sweet new weapon in front of the player (the “Crucible,” the giant sword featured in Eternal), but never allow them a chance to use it.
I found secret hunting in the game to be stale at best. Sure, some of the throwbacks to “Original” Doom were fun, but the experience was nowhere near as visceral as blasting through the hordes of demons. This feeling was only magnified for me when I went back after beating the game to try and find the secrets I missed. While it was fun at first to play the starting levels with all weapons unlocked, I eventually ended up disinterested since both the difficulty and novelty were gone for me. These secrets will probably stay hidden, if I’m honest. Also, yes, I know I could go back and play the game at a higher difficulty, but at this point I’d rather move on to Doom: Eternal.
Occasionally, I would end up in a room with a single misplaced enemy. It was a bit deflating to still have the soundtrack blasting in my ears only for it to end abruptly when I murked a random low-level enemy like an imp.
While I enjoyed the movement and verticality of Doom’s (2016) gameplay, I could’ve done without the platforming. These sections were few and far between, however, and were made much easier by the inclusion of rocket boots (aka a double jump). To add insult to injury, these were also the sections I found myself most likely to get lost in. In short, I would’ve been fine if they were left on the cutting room floor.
The boss battles in the game fell flat for me, especially the final boss. Each boss also included a number of frustrating mechanics like temporary invincibility, huge health pools, and multiple stages. None of these mechanics are “bad” in-and-of themselves, but I enjoyed the game more when juggling multiple enemies rather than focusing on a single opponent.
Though the game offers key remapping for players using keyboard and mouse, no such remapping is available for players using the controller. Though this didn’t affect my ability to play and enjoy the game, I could see it affecting the game’s accessibility for players who need more flexibility in their control options.
I never bothered with the multiplayer or SNAPMAP components of the game. I am listing them in the “con” section less because they had issues and more because the game never enticed me to use these features.

Conclusion:

This game is a certified classic for a reason. Fans of fast-paced FPS gameplay are sure to enjoy the meaty combat and frenetic pace. Fans of Original Doom are sure to enjoy all the nods, throwbacks, and nostalgia. If you’ve got a weekend to spare, this one is definitely worth a look.

Check it out here.