Comment on Doom (2016) now DRM free on GOG
jsomae@lemmy.ml 3 weeks agoIt’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.
Poopfeast420@discuss.tchncs.de 3 weeks ago
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.
jsomae@lemmy.ml 3 weeks ago
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.)