A new Doom has been a long time coming. We haven’t seen anything new from the franchise in more than a decade, since Doom 3 was released in 2004. But in two weeks, we’ll see the demon hordes unleashed upon the world, with only your trusty shotgun and chainsaw to defend it and it looks like a good time.
Really, looking at the footage, it looks like it plays like Doom with a few modern tweaks; shoot demons, get ammo, find secrets, repeat. Mostly what’s changed is the graphics, which lovingly depict demons exploding into giblets, and the ridiculously gory takedowns you can do: When an enemy flashes orange, you can go all Mortal Kombat on them. You can even take them out while jumping, which is more or less an R-rated goomba stomp.
The biggest change is that the leveling system is built around exploring and pulling off different feats in combat. The more you poke around and look for goodies, and the more creative you get with the kills, the more points you get to upgrade your suit and weapons. Also interesting is how vertical the game is. Our Space Marine climbs on platforms and leaps down into pits like Nathan Drake. Granted, it leads to some odd moments; at one point in the demo, you use a chainsaw on an enemy and ammo comes pouring out. But overall, it looks like May 13 will be a fun throwback to the classics.
(via YouTube)