DooM Eternal has had a great ride so far. Not only has it sold 3 million copies as of March 2020, but it’s also seen a resurgence in popularity thanks to its addition to Game Pass Ultimate. DooM Eternal: The Ancient Gods – Part One marks the beginning of the post-campaign content of the base game.
The Ancient Gods – Part One
After defeating the Khan Maykr and obliterating the reincarnated Icon of Sin, the DooM Slayer makes his way back to Maykr’s realm. New enemies, new weapons and a new story arc promises players more DooM than they can swing a corpse at.
We could go into full details about the game’s plot and compare these points to the vanilla game, but no. This review will focus on gameplay and how The Ancient Gods adds to the DooM Eternal formula. We would, however, highly recommend finishing the DooM Eternal campaign first for lore enthusiasts and completionists.
DooM DLC, Why Not?
The first major difference in The Ancient Gods – Part One is that everything is maxed out. Everything. iD Software really wants to drive home the gravitas of returning to Maykr, and Samuel (DooMSlayer) needs everything he’s learned and acquired so far to keep up.
Secondly, players will also notice a full arsenal with all alternative fire and upgrades unlocked. Alongside all runes to juggle, players can take this opportunity to juggle abilities and think about how to execute their next demonic bloodbath.
Master Cheat Unlocked?
Just because iD Software unlocked everything doesn’t mean gameplay has got any easier. Imagine finding health potions just before a boss battle, this is the same strategy. Hurt me Plenty, the games next to the lowest difficulty is brutal. Players will need to rely on muscle memory built up from DooM Eternal to be in with a chance of beating The Ancient Gods. This is arena FPS at it’s very best.
Load screens provide key points to remember, tactics on taking down various enemies and weapon loadout options to keep players savvy. This information was originally tutorial material for DooM Eternal, which just shows how much the Ancient Gods – Part One has kicked it up a few gears.
In terms of narrative, the DooMslayer NPC interaction feels very UNSC/Master Chief. It seems that iD really wants to put a focus on storytelling with the DooMverse, which is a very welcome surprise. A game franchise that is full of heavenly and demonic butchery is crying out for a lore overhaul.
Demonic Performance
DooM Eternal: The Ancient Gods – Part One’s performance is just as insane as it’s bloodlust. Silky smooth frame rates are present even during the most demanding demonic pile ons, and this is set to be improved on the Xbox Series X thanks to its velocity architecture. It’s beautifully gruesome and it’s hard to put the controller down and not want to jump back into the action.
Composers David Levy and Andrew Hulshult return for some immensely chunky heavy metal OST treats. The launch trailer for DooM Eternal: The Ancient Gods – Part One gently busts open listeners ears with a focus on brutal euphoria:
If this first DLC pack is anything to go by, DooM Eternal fans can expect this ride to get faster and more intense. Players can even enjoy Part one of The Ancient Gods as a standalone purchase or by buying the year one pass/Deluxe edition of DooM Eternal.
Review copy kindly provided by PR
