DOOM Eternal: The Ancient Gods - Part One Reviews
A frankly terrifying exercise in pushing Doom as far as it can go.
Like most DLC it doesn't introduce much in the way of new ideas but if you enjoyed Doom Eternal you're going to love these new levels and their uncompromising challenge.
With Doom Eternal's The Ancient Gods Part 1 Part 1 DLC, the best and worst of id Software's latest are on full display.
If you're desperately looking for more Doom Eternal, The Ancient Gods – Part One will give it to you.
The Ancient Gods Part 1 is a fantastic piece of DLC partly because of those narrative implications, but also for how it wonderfully continues and expands upon the base game’s legacy. Seamlessly dialing up the difficulty leads to more rewarding combat, especially with the banging metal soundtrack and horde of new hellspawns. Environments divulge from the typical Doom template, but are undeniably Doom and beautiful regardless. Part 2 has a lot to live up to, but if it’s anything like Part 1, it shouldn’t have a problem shattering high expectations .
DOOM Eternal: The Ancient Gods - Part One is so much more of the PS4's best first-person shooter. It doesn't do anything dramatically different from the base game, rather letting its phenomenal gameplay loop revel in new environments and against new enemies. Difficulty spikes present more problems than we'd like, though, to the point where casual players might feel like giving up. Nevertheless, bring on Part Two.
Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods - Part One is a solid, meaty, and strong piece of DLC for Doom Eternal. It removes some of the chaff, cutting needless exposition, and makes some strong steps in gameplay. However, strange inclusions like enemies that kill the pace of combat, as well as even more ultra-precise platforming sections can throw off the whole "Doom" feeling of Doom Eternal. Also, and this is more of a subjective gripe, it's just too difficult right out of the gate with some combat sections feeling like they last forever.
Doom Eternal – The Ancient Gods Part 1succeeds in its goal: to give the fans more action, gore and fun. If we put aside the small step backwards made with the soundtrack, this DLC will undoubtedly appeal to all those gamers who are still not satisfied with Doom's adrenalinic gameplay loop.
Review in Italian | Read full review
The Ancient Gods - Part One is just the thing that you are expecting: more of Doom Eternal.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
The Ancient Gods a great addition to DOOM Eternal. Gameplay is still very nervous, fast and its difficulty makes it more exhilarating than ever.
Review in French | Read full review
These new enemies aside, it’s more or less business as usual in The Ancient Gods. While the pace can be a little slower this time thanks to the way the newcomers have to be defeated, for the most part fans of the main campaign will be perfectly happy with another roughly 5-8 hours of gameplay to rip and tear their way through. Just don’t play it without taking on the main game first.
Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods – Part One is an excellent continuation of the main campaign on Switch for the most part. Some areas don't reach the heights of the previous chapter, but the gameplay is still as satisfying as it was before. A few new enemies added into the mix ensure that you are constantly on your toes, and all of this is complemented by yet another fantastic musical score. The Nintendo Switch version isn't the best way to experience the game by any means, but it is still very much playable for those who want a great FPS title on the go.
So much of the success of this expansion hinges on the second part, so we're cautiously optimistic. The story is building to interesting things that we would like to see, it just depends on how well they capitalize on the momentum. As for the content we did see, it's basically more of the main game, so if you want to fight even more intense waves of the same seven or so enemies, you'll love this expansion, whereas those who struggled with the base game will likely be underwhelmed.
Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods – Part One does a great job of setting up some genuinely intriguing plot points while also committing to the aspects that I loved so much about the base game. In the process, it’s bound to frustrate some players – it’s bloody difficult, has more platforming elements and the Marauders just keep on coming – but it’s still more of Doom Eternal and that’s hardly a bad thing.
When I've been presented with DLC for action/arcade/adventure games in the past, I've often faced a concern of whether or not the DLC itself is a "New Game +" or an actual expansion to the game. Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods Part 1 (TAG1) walks a very fine line between crafting a new narrative versus providing players with more to do beyond KILL ALL THE DEMONS!!1 There will be moments where you find yourself in brand new environments and in an entirely different story, but there will also be moments where you'll think you're playing a "New Game +" kind of scenario, where you're immersed in end-game encounters comprised of waves of demons that you would also find at the end of Doom Eternal. The difficulty feels harder, to boot. You should expect TAG1 to take you around 6 hours or so (more if you like to be a completionist and find all of the secrets). You will enjoy this if you played Doom Eternal, but you'll be left with a cliffhanger at the end that prepares you for what's to come...
In short, we reiterate what has already been said in our technical analysis already presented on our pages, because in essence there are no differences whatsoever and those who had faced the doomguy adventure to the maximum detail know well what kind of experience to expect from this first part of the DLC, which pushes on the accelerator and gives players a content with a high challenge rate and at the same time gives yet another confirmation that the brand is in shape , in excellent hands, and in the midst of a new youth.
Review in Italian | Read full review
DOOM Eternal: The Ancient Gods - Part One offers a meaty expansion that doesn't dramatically differ from the base game, and despite a crushing difficulty and dodgy platforming sections, it's an essential purchase for those clamouring for their next DOOM fix.
Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods – Part One is an addendum to the base game experience.
Spewing larger-than-life encounter after larger-than-life encounter The Ancient Gods - Part One can get a bit on the repetitive side, but it's easy to forgive it for this minor misstep, since more DOOM Eternal is never a bad thing. Don't let the low level count fool you. The three available maps are fairly large, and the high challenge will manage to keep you on your toes, especially due to how some new demons affect the battlefield. As a whole, and while a bit more variety would be more than welcome, the first DLC is very enjoyable, looks great, carries some new, and pretty neat tunes, and finally leads the narrative down a pretty intriguing path. Can't wait for Part Two!
Ancient Gods is not necessarily a bad expansion pack, but the original DOOM Eternal was so good and even small changes in the wrong direction can hurt the experience. In Ancient Gods case, the uneven difficulty and confusing story seem to be those wrong changes that topple DOOM Eternal from the top a little bit.
Review in Persian | Read full review