Evan has been playing “Doom”
PS4, XOne, PC
Everyone knows Doom, and as a result, they know the smarmy DoomGuy, the BFG 9000, the demons of mars-hell, and that goofy level music. Despite the cultural impact of the original Doom, to the degree of being installed on more computers than Windows 98 (hooray for white bread trivia), there are plenty of people out there now, especially in the millennial generation, that haven’t received the full Doom experience. I know that I could be crucified for admitting this, but my first time playing it, as sad as I am to admit, was on the Xbox Live Arcade release in 2006 when I was a freshman in high school. It’s the same game for sure, but still a measly port and played on a dual joystick controller. Veterans of Mars in their 20’s and 30’s at the time mocked me. Well as it turns out, I’ve already received that experience throughout the last two decades, as ID Software’s original Doom made such an impact on the gaming industry at large that so many shooters to follow it were inspired by it’s ultra-violent glory. So, yeah. Joke’s on you, guy-with-ponytail at a comic con who made me feel like a loser.
So how the hell do you reboot something that? Quite frankly, It’s a miracle that it is balancing the original spirit of the Doom franchise while also feeling like a modern shooter, and entirely packaged in something that feels new to some, and to people like me, a lot like Metroid.
Hear me out, because this game isn’t just your run-of-the-mill first person shooter. It makes you anxious, forces you to think on your toes, and if a screaming demon makes your heart skip a beat, then you just might die. Between the tension caused by a wave of enemies blocking your path, getting lost while trying trying to speedily move your way through a map, on the fly swapping of super-powered weapons and the kind of backtracking that proves itself to be delightful and rewarding instead of a chore, this new Doom campaign surprises me by feeling a whole lot like Metroid Prime. This is a welcome feeling, as it is one of my most replayed and favorite games of all time, and I haven’t had a game like it since 2007. It may be more kinetic, insane and combat based, but the essence of strategy, exploration and isolation are what it shares with Prime. So for the first full priced game I’ve purchased since Metal Gear Solid V, I couldn’t be happier. Now on to the multiplayer. – Evan Griffin
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