Doom Eternal plunges the you into a dire future where the forces of Hell have invaded Earth. In the powerful suit of the "Doom Slayer," you embark on a sprawling quest across ruined cities, burning hellscapes, other worlds that seem gothic and ethereal. Your goal is to slay the three Hell Priests that are controlling the invasion on Earth. To do so, you'll have rip and tear your way through myriads of hellish enemies--everything from lowly zombies to ginormous Tyrants. Each level grants you more power in the form of weaponry, abilities, and powerful artifacts. Eventually, you'll become powerful enough to confront more powerful entities responsible for all the chaos, and if you survive, you'll become a savoir for mankind.
The game resembles 1994's Doom II in many ways, most especially in regards to your weapons (the Super Shotgun is back!), the types of enemies you fight (many were seen in 2016's Doom, but the Pain Elementals and Archiviles are back), the plotline that brings Hell to Earth, and having the Icon of Sin as the final boss (and this time, he's not just a wall you shoot at--as originally intended, he's rendered as a colossal giant comparable to Godzilla). And yet, Doom Eternal offers a whole universe of new possibilities. As you progress through each level, you're thrust into a mythology that extends far beyond what was shown in previous games--there is a vast history now that details entire worlds that had waged epic war against demons. The lore extends to pushing a stronger identity on the Doomguy (now immortalized as the Slayer), whose backstory is bridged into the growing mythology.
Against such a detailed backdrop, the game is stuffed with more enemies (including, for the first time, Doom Hunters and Marauders), more power-ups (including a 1-up system, where you collect extra lives and use them upon death instead of restarting at a checkpoint), and more ways of fighting and killing (you now have a shoulder-mounted flamethrower and grenade launcher, and you eventually gain an energy sword that can instantly kill most enemies). Each level includes a small wealth of secrets that'll keep you exploring and revisiting areas for a short while--such secrets include collectables, batteries that unlock secrets in the Doomguy's fortress, extra lives, upgrades, and hidden combat arenas.
Despite all these weapons, secrets, upgrades, and power, the game is hardly a cakewalk. Even seasoned Doom fans have struggled with this one as the game relentlessly plunges you into insane fights with constantly escalating threats. It does require a lot more to stay alive--running and gunning will not be enough, and the game itself offers few hints for your survival. The trick, aside from staying in constant motion, is to manage your enemies in a careful, strategic way. When you run out of ammo (and you will constantly), you must whip out that chainsaw to farm some out of the lesser enemies. If you've blown them up already, then you're just out of luck. If you're always running low on health, maybe it's time to whip out that flamethrower to pick up some armor. When you desperately need health, glory kills are your best friend. These mechanics are essential to staying well-supplied in a fight, but it's easy to overlook, forget, or mess up your progress if you approach the fights wrong or just don't bother with them.
Each level is laid out as a kind of jungle gym--you now have the ability to leap off of monkey bars, dash into walls, and climb things. And you will have to platform this way often, even through hazards and obstacles. This is where the game feels even more tedious and punishing (and I've never been a fan of timed switches--there are at least several in this game). Falling to your death won't take away from your lives (unless you have no health left), but it's still a pain when you miss your mark, overshoot a jump, or make other slight mistakes on account of complex platforming.
If you can manage these few issues, then you will be rewarded with an impressively epic campaign full of satisfying rewards and combat. Given the way the levels are laid out, the mythology, and the sheer power you must use, it's taken on proportions that feels less like a classic shooter and more like a God of War game.
If it's multiplayer you yearn for the most, the game currently offers a simple two-on-one feature. You can either team up with another player and become demons, or you can play the Doom Slayer and fight for your life. Playing a demon takes some substantial getting used to, but the game offers abilities that try to escalate the challenges against the slayer and make it more balanced. Playing any mode will unlock a small wealth of customizable icons, models, and such. In the future, there's supposed to be a feature in which other players can invade your campaign and muck things up.
All of this is rendered in gorgeous video quality, with fluid frame rates and sharp resolution. Lighting effects are vivid, the textures are impressive and sharp, and the models look spectacular. I often had to stop in mid-game to gawk at the hellscapes and ruins--they are that well-rendered. Sound quality is sharp and punchy. Controls felt great to me and were never confusing (even with added platforming). All of it is accentuated with Mick Gordon's heavy metal score--the man assembled a team of metal vocalists especially for this game, and their chants are downright chilling.
This comes close to being my favorite Doom game of the whole series. Fighting Marauders and platforming makes it quite a pain, and the campaign has the distinct disadvantage of starting you off weak to the point where it feels insurmountably hard. I found it a lot easier as it went on, but the game has ways of throwing wrenches in your progress and making you feel like a noob all over again. Regardless, I am awestruck by the experience.
9/10
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