DOOM Eternal Review (PS5)
Rip and Tear (the controller out of my hands)
It’s been a while since I’ve picked up a game I genuinely enjoyed or looked forward to playing. I’ve been playing Fortnite as my main game for so long that it’s refreshing to try something new and different, something way out of left field that borderlines on sheer insanity to play.
I’m talking about DOOM Eternal, of course.
DOOM is a successful game franchise that’s been around for some time in the gaming world, and it recently got a solid new update in 2016 for the PS4 and Xbox One series consoles with the aptly titled “DOOM.” When I played DOOM 2016, I loved many things about it.
The set pieces, the gory design of the demons, the Doomslayer would cut through hordes of enemies like it was nothing, and it was all paired with the expertly-composed Mick Gordon soundtrack *chef’s kiss*. But after I got through an exhilarating combat section, I’d find myself in the 2016 version struggling to figure out where to go next on the map.
Eventually, I gave up and ended up consulting YouTube to figure out how to proceed at each level. Unfortunately, that experience of not knowing how to get to the next stage turned me off from the game, and I never ended up beating it.
But now, after receiving DOOM Eternal as a Christmas gift and hearing that it offers vast improvements over the 2016 title, I couldn’t wait to dive in when I had the chance.
So, is DOOM Eternal worth your time? Let’s find out.
Gameplay
If you’ve played DOOM before, you’ll be pretty familiar with the gameplay mechanics. It’s a first-person shooter where you slay demons and attempt to rid the world of demonic corruption in one of the most “power fantasy” games to ever exist.
Playing DOOM Eternal is like executing a delicate, balanced, fully-coordinated dance. Your ammo for each weapon is limited, which forces you to not rely on each weapon too heavily. The only way to replenish your ammo is by using your chainsaw to cut a nearby enemy in half, which also drops a little bit of health.
Setting enemies on fire stuns them and spawns armor pieces, and you have to target specific weak points on larger enemies to disable their weapons while balancing constant weapon switching and “Glory Kills,” finishing moves that give you health.
It becomes a frenzy of you shotgunning, throwing grenades, shooting your rocket launcher, firing your plasma rifle, jumping around the battlefield, quickly executing demons, and setting enemies on fire, all while monitoring your health, armor, and ammo levels.
But once you master this dance, you enter a flow state. It’s unlike anything I’ve played before.
The navigation has been made significantly easier compared to the 2016 game. However, the problem resides in my inability to accurately perform the platforming sections without repeatedly falling down a ravine or not timing my jumps correctly.
I completely get dying a few times when you’re stuck on the same combat section because you haven’t quite gotten down what enemy types there are, where they are, and what kind of attacks they’re throwing at you. But not being able to time a jump or platform effectively led to a lot more frustration than the combat sections.
Final thoughts
I can safely say I’ve played more of this game than the average PlayStation user because the thumbnail image I used for this review came from when I earned the “It’s a Magic Number” gold trophy, signifying I had slain 666 demons, a feat only 43.7% of players have achieved.
The combat sections are so intense and the platforming sections are a little aggravating, so I find myself playing it for a solid hour and then saying ”that’s enough DOOM for one day.”
If I was good at platforming, DOOM Eternal would be a perfect game in my mind. Mowing down enemies is a great way to relieve stress, and the soundtrack immaculately partners with the gameplay.
My brother gifted me a used PS4 copy of the game he picked up at a thrift store for $10, and the PS4 game comes with a free PS5 upgrade. At the time of writing, it’s selling on Amazon for about $25, and for $25, it’s well worth your time and money.
