Doom (2016) now DRM free on GOG
DOOM (2016)
Doom (2016) just launched on GOG, and it's on offer. I purchased straight away as I really enjoyed this one. Wasn't expecting to see more Bethesda games on GOG after Microsoft purchases Zenimax.
I liked this game better than Doom Eternal
Tell me more, why for you is that the case?
I think doom 2016 does theme/story and just the over all 'fantasy' of being the doomguy WAY better. I really missed it in Doom:E. However I do really enjoy the way they built the gameplay loop into this frantic dance of violence.
Agreed about the story. What I didn't like in DE was the transparently arbitrary gameplay loop. You can't punch enemies to death anymore, and your flamethrower instead of doing damage causes... items to appear. All are obviously in service of a gameplay loop, but they are terribly contrived. I wouldn't say I go into Doom for immersion, but c'mon.
How is Doom 2016 better in that regard? Just because the options aren't there?
You can also still play Doom Eternal like the 2016 version. It's gonna be harder, but I basically did in my first playthrough.
It's been a while since I've played it, but as I recall, melee combat worked very differently and much more intuitively in 2016. It's always there in case you run out of ammo.
I just re-played both games in anticipation for Dark Ages.
Doom 2016 only has pickups and chainsaw kill, with limited fuel, to get ammo. There's also a rune for "infinite ammo," and also the Pistol, with infinite ammo.
Eternal is the same, just that the Chainsaw always refills one charge (and no unlimited ammo rune). That's why you get like half (or less) max ammo in the Eternal, compared to 2016, because you're supposed to chainsaw a demon every 30s or something. Also, probably no Pistol because of that.
The straight-up melee does some damage in 2016, like the old games. You could theoretically punch everything to death.
In Eternal, I think it deals no damage at all, and it's just there for the Glory Kill, but you get a special punch for a big damage AoE melee attack.
Glory Kills (melee finishers/execute) on low health demons are the same in both games, there to look cool and give you health.
BTW, I'm not saying you're wrong for liking Doom 2016 more than Eternal. Some people don't want to do the whole song and dance of jumping, dashing, swing bars, quick switch weapons, flamethrower, grenade, grapple, punch, chainsaw, whatever. I like it a lot, and it makes the game a lot more fun for me, compared to the more simple Doom 2016.
Right, it's the fact that melee does no damage in Doom Eternal which I find aggravating. It worked just fine in 2016 as a last resort. They clearly removed its ability to deal any damage in order to force the player to engage with the flamethrower mechanic, which provides ammo (and also does no damage). It seems to me like clumsy design -- it achieves the desired gameplay loop, but in the most heavy-handed way imaginable. Fun gameplay loop sure, but zero effort to justify it with what's happening visually on screen.
I did enjoy the combat ballet though; in particular, it was fun to be always switching weapons. I just found myself often shaking my head because it's so contrived how it's implemented specifically. I'm sure most people didn't care, but it did pull me out of it.
Also, I couldn't understand the plot in Eternal whatsoever. Am I supposed to be saving Earth? It sure doesn't feel like Doom Guy gives a damn. He's just there to do some kind of prophecy I didn't really find myself pulled into. In contrast, 2016 is punctuated sporadically by plot points I at least understood and felt some amount of motivation for. Take, for instance, the scene where Mr. Glados says "don't dismantle the power generator things! They're really expensive!" And Doom Guy is like: "IDGAF. Demons bad." Best scene in the whole franchise if you ask me. (I'll admit, some of the dialogue moments that lock you into a room are way too long though.)
My biggest issue with Eternal was that it seemed like keeping the story consistent wasn't a priority.
I always liked the idea of doomguy, an absurd character, being grounded in a little lore and just playing around with him decimating any kind of plot a villian was comming up with.
Doom:E seemed to build a bunch of lore that no one was really asking for. Does anyone really want to know "Who was doom guy?" I didn't. I really enjoyed him being barely a character, more a force of nature trying to eridicate demons. Rip & tear!
You're not alone, I loved 2016, but I couldn't finish Eternal. All that platforming diluted the essence that made Doom fun IMO.
