The game designers at id Software throw you into the fire early on with Doom Eternal. You can see that in this video of my gameplay of the first 21 minutes or so of Bethesda’s big game, which debuts on March 20 on the consoles, Stadia, and the PC.
You have to learn how to get competent with a shotgun early, and you learn the leveling system for improving your weapons, your firing modes, and how to collect resources.
In Doom Eternal, there’s no camping or hiding or stealth play. You have to run into the open and keep moving. Sometimes you’ll see resources lying on the ground. But you mainly collect what you need — different types of ammo, armor, chainsaw fuel, and health — by killing demons.
And you have to remember to mix it up. If you use your chainsaw on a demon, it will drop ammo. If you kill it with a Glory Kill (melee) while it is staggered (or stunned), then you can pick up the health it drops. If you fire your flame belch at a demon, it will drop some armor. And when you kill that demon, it will drop even more. And if you do a Blood Punch, or melee after you’ve had a Glory Kill, you can get fuel.
If you can remember to always keep changing how you kill the demons, you’ll fare well in Doom Eternal. If you run out of one of these resources, you’re dead.
There’s a good tutorial system that shows people (yes, even players like me) how to learn to fight. But it’s also got a lot of action and you get a sense for the urgency of your mission at the same time. Overall, it’s a fine beginning. Check it out.
