Summary
- Modern Doom games feature nuanced storytelling, hidden badass moments that fly under the radar.
- Doom Eternal introduced the BFG-1000 & the Marauder, changing the game dynamic significantly.
- The series' cool moments include the arch-vile's ability, finding John Romero, Daisy's fate, and the Doomslayer's subtle storytelling style.
Though originally lacking a proper story due to simply being the product of an era when stories in games just weren't a thing, the Doom series sure did catch up. Even before Doom: The Dark Ages, all Doom games that came out in this millennium feature their own stories, and, despite them being far from classic sci-fi masterpieces, they all come with one or many extremely badass moments, most of them featuring the Doomslayer himself.
Five Years Ago, Doom Eternal Put the Pedal to the Metal
Doom Eternal is now five years old, and it continues to be a showcase of how developer iD Software is not afraid to take chances.
Though seemingly slim on the plot side of things, the modern Doom games feature some surprisingly nuanced takes on storytelling that fly under the radar of many players, so let's give the most iconic moment in the Doom series a look.
10 Using A Gun As A Means Of Transportation In Doom Eternal
Not Even GTA Lets Players Do This (Yet)
DOOM Eternal
- Released
- March 20, 2020
WHERE TO PLAY
The BFG 9K, which stands for "Big F...riggin' Gun" is both one of the most iconic and the most powerful guns in video game history. Doom Eternal, like the big mega sequel that it is, needed to make things even more ridiculous, so 2020's fantastic sequel introduced the BFG-1000, a weapon seemingly made not to obliterate every enemy in a room, but on an entire planet.
Five Years Ago, Doom Eternal Put the Pedal to the Metal
Doom Eternal is now five years old, and it continues to be a showcase of how developer iD Software is not afraid to take chances.
The Doomslayer, probably uninterested in such an easy conclusion to the story, opts instead to use the BFG-10000 not to shoot a deadly round into the heart of the enemy, but rather to propel himself like a cannonball, though that's actually probably the most lethal round anyone could fire in the Doom universe.
9 Doom 3's Ending
It's Just Very Cool
DOOM 3
- Released
- August 3, 2004
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ due to Blood and Gore, Intense Violence
- Genre(s)
- FPS
The ending to Doom 3 isn't the true final conclusion of the story, as it would only end with the Ressurrection of Evil expansion, but it would've served as an excellent ending anyway.
Doom 3 is as close as the series has ever gotten to exploring pure horror territory, and the ending to Doom 3 closes the curtain brilliantly. No true final triumph against the forces of Hell is achieved, and players are even treated to finally seeing the true form of the main bad guy, which looks really cool, by the way.
8 The Marauder Joins The Battle In Doom Eternal
The Doomslayer's Most Daunting Enemy To Date
The first half of Doom Eternal teaches players that it is possible—and preferable—to solve all of their demon-related problems through hyper-violence. The Marauder's entrance changes that, as this quasi-Soulslike opponent forces players not just to deploy their vast arsenal, but to do it wisely. The Marauder's entrance completely changes the tone of the game, making it much harder than its predecessor.
The Marauder serves as an antithesis to the Doomslayer, an enemy that demands players use their brains and quick reflexes to dodge fire and look for openings if they want to emerge from their confrontation unscathed.
7 Witnessing The Arch-Vile's Powers For The First Time In Doom Eternal
He Acts Like The Retry Button, But For The Enemies
The rule of thumb for enemies in Doom games tends to be pretty straightforward. The later they show up in the game, the more dangerous they become because of their bigger guns and/or claws. Any player coming in contact with the Arch-vile, a new kind of enemy unique to Doom Eternal, should absolutely try to obliterate it ASAP.
Instead of featuring superior firepower, despite being no slouch in the offense department, the Arch-vile's main weapon is the ability to revive every enemy that the Doomslayer had previously downed in that room. It's like a reverse BFG; in other words, a total pain.
6 Finding John Romero Inside The Icon Of Sin In Doom 2
The True Final Boss?
Doom 2
- Released
- October 10, 1994
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Violence
- Genre(s)
- FPS
The final confrontation of DOOM 2 pits the player against the Icon of Sin, the leader of Hell, whom players also get to fight once again at the end of Doom Eternal. In Doom 2, however, players with a knack for sleuthing will be able to come across an Earth-shattering discovery.
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It turns out that if a player takes the Doomslayer inside the head of the Icon Of Sin, they'll find the (smaller) head of none other John Romero, the legendary Id co-founder responsible for the level design in the early games in the Doom series, as well as for coining the term "Deathmatch."
5 Doom (2016) Reveals The Doomslayer Isn't Unstoppable
Samuel Hayden Is No Joke
DOOM
- Released
- May 13, 2016
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language
- Genre(s)
- FPS
A thousand dead demons' worth of progress into the masterful Doom reboot from 2016, players meet up with Dr. Samuel Hayden. Hayden is no man, nor is he a demon; rather, he's a cyborg.
Though he's likely one of the least menacing entities players will come across in the entirety of the Doom series, Samuel Hayden has the ability to completely prevent the Doomslayer from moving, something not even the entirety of Hell had been able to do up to that point. Sadly, Hayden's plan gets cut short even before the start of the sequel, but this sinister robot sure would have made for quite an opponent.
4 Dealing With The Soldier Trying To Stop The Doomslayer In Doom Eternal
Unstoppable Force Meets Just Some Guy
As soon as a man gains a reputation for being a badass, ten other men will rise to deny such allegations. In Doom Eternal, a poor UAC guard is caught, well, off-guard, by the Doomslayer as he tries to deny the main character passage.
Unsurprisingly enough, the Doomslayer goes on to prove this man wrong in the most subtle way that the Doomslayer can muster: by slowly acquiring the guard's weapon. It's a genuinely funny scene in a game that's often more fun than funny.
3 Daisy's Death In The Ultimate Doom
The Doomslayer Has A Heart; A Broken One
The Ultimate Doom
- Released
- December 1, 1995
- Platform(s)
- MS-DOS, PC, Xbox 360, iOS, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One
Few players would imagine it, but the very first version of the Doomslayer used to be a happy pet owner. Key phrase: "used to be." The Doomslayer owned a pet rabbit named Daisy, which players learn had a very unhappy ending during the third episode's cutscene in The Ultimate Doom.
Though this scene can be seen as either a dumb joke to throw at edgy gamers who imagine the Doomslayer being beneath the idea of having pets, it serves as both that and a surprisingly dark moment in the series.
2 The Doomslayer Pushes A Story Console Away in Doom (2016)
Brutish Or Brilliantly Subtle?
Right after escaping captivity, the Doomslayer is given the chance to get up to speed regarding the plot of the game he's living in. All the Doomslayer has to do is pay attention to a screen that'll inform the him—and the players—about the story up until that point.
Instead of engaging with the lore explainer, however, the Doomslayer pushes the screen away, beautifully setting the tone for a game that's less about telling, and more about just murdering demons as they appear. Now this is a silent protagonist done right.
1 The Doomslayer Is The Danger In Doom (2016)
One Of The Best Ways To Kickstart Your Game
Despite being a shooter first, every game in the Doom series is also technically a horror game. 2016's Doom pulls a twist on the formula, however, as the player is no longer the one who's supposed to have anything to fear. In a scene that plays out like the classic Hollywood moment where a bunch of fools barge into a crypt containing an insurmountably evil force, Doom (2016) opts to show the inhabitants of hell instead unwittingly unleashing the Doomslayer, the only creature capable of instilling fear into the heart of any demon in existence.
"The Only Thing They Fear Is You" is the name of one of the coolest tracks in the game's spectacular soundtrack, and it's definitely the best-titled one.
DOOM: How to Play the Games in Order
DOOM is one of the longest running video game franchises of all time. As such, some gamers may be unsure about the best order to play the games in.