The DOOM series has been around for close to 30 years. Since 1993, we have seen countless reiterations and revivals. Fast-paced gameplay, recognizable design, and a paper-thin plot all contribute to what gives DOOM that special flare. However, through the years, the underlying gameplay remained mostly the same. The series is the poster boy for violent, gory first-person shooters and has rarely departed from that mantra. Enter Mighty DOOM—Bethesda’s bizarre offshoot that takes everything great about the franchise and turns it into a top-down, roguelike shooter for iOS. Mighty DOOM brings a very new perspective to a very old idea and absolutely knocks it out of the park, with a few caveats.
Rip and…Tap?
Mighty DOOM is advertised as a “single-touch” shooter. Truthfully, it’s a few buttons shy of what many would consider an auto-battler. The controls are simple: press and drag with one finger to move around, and tap with another finger to unleash special abilities. Besides that, all of the firing in this shooter is automatic. There is no aiming, reloading, or anything of the sort. On paper, that may sound dreadfully boring to play. But in practice, it’s a different experience entirely.
Without having to worry about aiming, most of the gameplay holds a strong focus on movement and positioning. Each room you enter is cramped and packed full of hellish monsters and traps, so your ability to survive depends entirely on avoiding hits. I was skeptical at first, but the game showed me just how much fun it can be to walk around.
Dopamine, Dopamine, Dopamine
Mighty DOOM doesn’t need flair or pizazz to woo the player. Instead, it refines the core elements of what makes the DOOM franchise fun and immediately throws them at you in the most satisfying way possible. Every time a shot is fired or an enemy is killed, Mighty DOOM surprises you with unapologetically gory, in-your-face, explosive reactions. The game has a reward mechanic where, each time you level up, you get to select one of three random power-ups. Think of it as a slot machine, but for killing demons. After each boss stage, you’ll spin a wheel for a chance to win an item to help you survive the next ten levels.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the sound design is absolutely killer. The music takes heavy inspiration from Mick Gordon’s work with Bethesda, which means that every track has an insane, over-the-top, kill-everything-in-sight attitude to it. Despite the game’s cartoonish design, the soundtrack makes me feel just as hyped as I do playing any other DOOM game. And the comically intense narrator brings an extra level of excitement to this absolute murder party.
But Does it DOOM?
Mighty DOOM brings a lot of excitement and fun from DOOM’s previous installments to its gameplay. However, there are some design choices that definitely fall flat. The first and most glaring example of this is how the game looks. It is advertised to be cute, which means all the creatures appear as caricatures of themselves. Unfortunately, that actually translates to a lot of the game looking a bit like warm clay. That applies not only to the characters but to the stages, too. Unfortunately, none of the maps looked even remotely similar to previous DOOM games and lacked the same dark, gritty feel that defines the franchise. Not only that, but all of the bosses are merely larger versions of stock enemies with significantly more health and power, so the gameplay looks a little repetitive after a while.
The last and most crippling aspect of the game is the hell of microtransactions outside of actual gameplay. There are a nauseating number of upgrades, drops, loot boxes, and other resources locked behind a paywall. It’s almost impossible to find a mobile game that doesn’t feature some form of monetization, but it’s a shame that it ends up detracting from the experience. Levels become increasingly difficult, often to the point where it feels necessary to open up your wallet to progress further. And that’s a tragedy for a game that, at its core, holds so much potential. That being said, Mighty DOOM still offers a unique angle for the franchise and for top-down roguelikes. If you can look past some of its flaws, it’s absolutely worth downloading.
