[Review] Doom

Developer: id Software Publisher: Bethesda

Release Date: 11.10.17

Doom. This is a quintessential title for anyone who has been gaming. The grandfather of first person shooters has continued in its legacy and has not let us down. I remember huddling around my friend’s computer when I was probably too young to play doom…but never-the-less, we played it and shrieked when the scary monsters got too close.

But we never quit playing.

Now that Doom has made its way to the Nintendo Switch, I think it’s safe to say that no one can complain about Nintendo’s newest gaming system. It is providing something for everyone, and I’m glad that Doom is the first shooter to make its way to us.

Considering I am exclusively a Nintendo gamer, I haven’t played Doom since those secretive days in my friend’s basement. I recall its pixelated goodness and heart thumping music as you turned corners wondering what was going to pop out at you while you attempted to find better weapons and armor upgrades.

As I loaded up Doom, my heart was all ready thumping…but more in anticipation. I was honestly scared…would I love it as much as I remember loving the original Doom? Would I fall in love with it and find myself staying up much later than I probably should so that I can get just a little further?

Yes. Yes. Yes.

At first, I was unfamiliar with the graphics, but as soon as the campaign began I felt the reminiscent flutter in my stomach. “Oh this is gonna be good” I found myself saying as the cut scene shows you bursting out of your chains and squashing a demon with your bare hands. Yea, don’t mind me, I’m just gonna be a bad ass over here.

I have played quite a few games on the Nintendo Switch by now, and I can honestly say that Doom is the first game to fully take advantage of every button on the console. From switching weapons, to melee attacks, to checking your challenges, you will find yourself using everything the console has to offer. I found it to be quite streamlined, so the constant use of different buttons never felt clunky or awkward for me.

From the moment you rip out of your chains, you are met with instant action, and it will remain that way for the rest of the campaign. No shortage of pucker factor as you hope to whatever god exists that you make out of this demon cluster alive.

Doom takes you back to first person shooter roots; your health doesn’t regenerate if you find an alcove to hide in. No, you either have to make a mad dash for a health pack in a corner or glory kill the demon to get health packs. That’s right, make a bad ass final kill and you get blessed with health packs galore.

This isn’t a game you can camp out in. No, you need to run around and stun your enemies, perform a glory kill to get some health before moving on to the next 6 guys trying to kill you. The action is non stop and drool worthy.

While you don the well known Praetor suit, you will find that throughout the game you can purchase upgrades for it. But not only that, you can also upgrade weapons that you find on dead bodies. Many of them offer multiple upgrades that you can quickly cycle through to use the one you most need for any given situation.

You begin the game in a facility on Mars that has clearly been fairly destroyed. Doomguy has been continuing to find his way in to Hell, so you will be doing just that…finding your way to Hell (probably the only time in your life that you will actively do so).

This game runs smoothly on the handheld platform and really, the graphics are just breath taking. While you run around, slaying demons, don’t forget to take a moment to take in the beautifully rendered scenery around you. Take a screencap or two so you can look back on it later and realize that while, yes, you are trying to fight your way in to Hell, you’re really in some very beautiful areas.

When id made this game for Switch, they definitely had it in mind to play as a handheld game rather than a home console game. The game runs at 720p, so it looks incredible when you are playing it handheld. However, when you dock the game the quality is a bit lost. My biggest issue was that playing the game docked on a 55″ TV, I had to squint to read the text. IT was so tiny that I felt it took away a little bit from the experience.

Overall, I am incredibly impressed by Doom. The campaign is incredible, the multiplayer is really fun, and the arcade mode gives it a fun twist. I recommend this game to anyone that has been looking for a shooter game on Switch.