DOOM II (Classic) (Switch) review "Hell on Earth made heavenly"

Way back, playing one of the old-school Doom titles on a console proved to be a risky venture. You usually had to accept the notion that certain aspects had been nerfed, dialed back, or outright sacrificed just to get the game to run on a certain platforms. Typically, this meant worse music, wonkier play control, or a gutted save system. However, having played Doom II on Switch, I'm pleased to announce that things haven't changed much, except that you don't have to sacrifice nearly as much of the experience as you did before...

Granted, my introduction to “retro Doom on consoles” came via the SNES edition of the first installment, which entertained me about as well has having all of my fingers broken one at a time. Thanks to that port, I remained too skeptical to check out the PlayStation iteration (which surprisingly earned a solid reputation) or pretty much any other release.

We've got to bear in mind here that eons have passed since the franchise kicked off and the series no longer represents the pinnacle of shooters. I mean, you can run them on just about any electronic device now, from phones to microwaves. Technology and hardware have advanced to the point that it's hard to believe my first computer burned itself out trying to boot the original entry.



That being the case, you know Nintendo Switch easily handles Doom II. The game runs smoothly, almost never slowing or hiccuping, all while providing intuitive play control. If you've taken on your share of first-person shooters on console via dual analog sticks, you know what to expect here, sans the ability to look up and down. That might sound like a drag to younger players who are more accustomed to having to point reticles directly at their targets, but this series offers a fair workaround. As long as your crosshairs line up vertically with an opponent, your gun will automatically send a bullet its way. For instance, if you find an imp perched on a balcony above you, all you need to do is aim directly below him and fire.

This feature will stick in some folks' craws because they're used to precision-based mechanics in their FPSs. Doom isn't built like that, though: id Software crafted the title to emphasize fast, frenetic action with a light touch of survival-horror. Early in the proceedings, the campaign comes across as nothing more than a rote shooter affair. You gun down weak zombies, plug bullets into fireball-spewing imps, and pretty much dance your way to the exit. Predictably, your arsenal becomes stronger as you advance, eventually graduating from a pistol to a shotgun to a chaingun. Before you know it, you've got a rocket launcher, a plasma rifle, and finally the glorious BFG. Though you become well-armed, obtaining these powerful weapons should also concern you. Why would the game be loading you up with massive firepower just to bump off weak ghouls and demons?

And that's where it gets you. It lures you into not only a false sense of security, but also tricks you into thinking you're a god. So you run recklessly through a level, gunning down the undead and save scumming while snatching up all manner of goodies, from blue orbs that bolster your health as high as two hundred percent to green spheres that bestow temporary invincibility. Eventually, you creep into dark corridors or slip into tiny rooms or voyage into wide open clearings that make you feel a tad vulnerable. That's when you hear an ungodly screech or monstrous roar that about removes you from your seat. You turn to find giant skeletons firing homing rockets, anthropomorphic goats lobbing green balls of poisonous gunk, bariatric monsters with cannons for hands, or naked humanoids that summon explosive fire. Your early-game hubris took you off guard, and now you have to contend with the vilest things Hell has to offer, scrambling to find a weapon strong enough to fell them quickly.



Oh, and it gets worse, too. You might initially bump into a “cacodemon” or two, but it isn't long before you enter rooms and get waylaid by whole armies of various beasts. Zombies rush forward to act as meat shields for larger predators, leaving you to question if it's time to brandish the BFG and cough up vast chunks of your power cells to clear the room quickly. You could do that, or you could ready a different gun, keep on the move, plug as many bullets as possible into whatever stands in your crosshairs, and just pray that you don't inadvertently back yourself into a corner or careen into a projectile.

That's the Doom experience in its rawest form. You don't have to worry about scoring headshots or making sure every bullet counts because you often meet swarms of foes in heart-pounding battles. Its mechanics remain as simplistic as always, which mesh wonderfully with the game's fast-paced combat.

And yes, there's more to Doom II than jump scares and fire fights...

These older titles didn't drop you into open worlds. You entered battlefields that id's team carefully designed, taking each nook and cranny into account when placing enemies and items alike. They had to balance item placement to maintain the game's challenge factor while also ensuring you don't run out of bullets unless you're careless. At the same time, they accounted for the best ways to surprise and excite you with adversary placement, all while maintaining fairness. And seriously, Doom II succeeds at such balance more gracefully than its predecessor.



On top of that, each level sports various hidden places for you to visit, prompting you to explore and experiment with various stimuli. You might see an icon on a wall and wonder if it might be a hidden door with an ammo cache behind it. Sometimes, parts of the floor serve as switches that open up new parts of a stage. And hell, sometimes those “new parts” unleash huge hordes of demons to swarm you. However, if you survive that onslaught, you just might see handsome rewards waiting for you where the creatures once stood...

There's just one snag: playing in portable mode isn't as terrific as you would hope. Granted, the game functions solidly in portable mode, but it doesn't hold a candle to playing on your TV, especially with a Pro Controller. The main issue stems from the Joycon analogs, which over-respond when aiming horizontally. On top of that, the screen's presentation becomes too dark in certain situations. While playing in the car, for instance, I had to turn the Switch's brightness all the way up and do the same for the app. Even then, I wouldn't accuse the game of being easy to see. I still had to squint a few times...



Older fans might also be interested in this package because it doesn't only offer the original thirty levels that make up Doom II: Hell on Earth, but also the special Wolfenstein 3D-themed stages and the expansion pack Master Levels for Doom II. And you can select which level you want to play without needing to unlock anything! The whole shebang is open from the get-go, allowing you to skip right to the Icon of Evil, if you so desire.

Doom II (Classic) remains a fantastic, action-packed experience for fans of retro FPS offerings. No, it doesn't provide the complexity, precision-based play, or cover-based elements seen in modern shooters. However, this package still scratches an itch that only the original installments could by giving you a speedy, unpretentious ride into the Inferno.

Staff review by Joseph Shaffer (October 26, 2023) Rumor has it that Joe is not actually a man, but a machine that likes video games, horror movies, and long walks on the beach. His/Its first contribution to HonestGamers was a review of Breath of Fire III.