DOOM + DOOM II (Nintendo Switch) Review

This isn't a remaster, this isn't a remake, a refurbishing, a polishing job, a reimagining or whatever. This is the good old, straight from the '90s, fantastic piece of software called DOOM, and its younger, neat, although not as impressive brother. So, nothing has changed? Well… yes and no. This offers exactly what could be found within the ports that have graced Nintendo Switch for some time now. There's a somewhat unimpressive vault full of leftover sprites and additional behind-the-scenes info, but a quick look on YouTube can provide much better dives into ocean that is the history of the franchise. No, the new ingredient that has been thrown here is the plethora of extra settings. This won't go into detail on what has been included. Just know that there are plenty of buttons and levers to push that can customize the DOOM experience to your liking.

Many visual options the likes of FOV and more, text-to-speed and speech-to-text for multiplayer, accessibility options like modern fonts, additional languages, an enhanced, cross-platform deathmatch experience for up to 16 players, a weapon carousel for faster weapon switching, and, last but not least, the inclusion of both the original MIDI OST, as well as the modern IDKFA one crafted by Andrew Hulshult - now with new tracks for DOOM II included, with many of them being simply fantastic.

In terms of content alone, right next to the 1993 and 1994 classics, this offers many of the official mods, such as the notorious TNT: Evilution[i] and [i]The Plutonia Experiment (which are… somewhat tough recommendations), the mixed bag of goodies that is Master Levels for DOOM II, as well as modern additions the likes of Sigil (or SI6IL for true believers), and No Rest for the Living. Apart from many new deathmatch maps, the only true addition here is the brand new Legacy of Rust, which is a new episode built in collaboration by id Software, Nightdive Studios, and MachineGames.

A 16-level mapset broken into two eight-map episodes, Legacy of Rust is… a mapset. It's nice, far better than Final Doom, although nothing that will make most longtime DOOM fans jump from joy, simply because… well, DOOM fanatics have been spoiled by over two decades of fan-made WADs that many times rival the originals. The map quality goes from decent-to-good, and occasionally from mediocre-to-bad, like when it gets way too switch-hunty or throws dozens upon dozens of monsters at the player. Speaking of which, there are a few new baddies here (some of them using discarded sprites), and like with the mapset itself, they are alright. Visually Legacy of Rust is honestly somewhat boring to look at. Again, the one writing this has been spoiled by a gazillion of custom maps… but it's not only that. Compared to, say, Sigil, which has captured the feel of early DOOM, this looks fan-made (in the bad sense), and that - mostly - extends to the new midi OST as well.

In the end, the most important element of this bundle is the support for community-published work. Its BOOM Source compatibility makes it possible for many, many, many different WADs to be tasted, with some simply adding more levels to try out, while others offer total conversions that show how powerful the ancient DOOM engine still is. There are only a few mods to choose from right now, but the number increases with each passing week. Furthermore, if you already have purchased the DOOM duology, then this can be acquired for free! All is perfect? Sadly, no.

There are two issues here: firstly, bugs. This is in no way the perfect, definite port that it should be, as it has a couple of (minor) bugs, as well as a serious, game-crashing one that's not exactly that rare, as it has happened about three times in two days. Secondly, other than mod support, this doesn't really have much meat on its bones, making it a weak recommendation. Do you have the previous Switch ports of DOOM and DOOM II? No need to buy this brand-new bundle. You have a PC/Laptop? Then everything else pales by comparison, due to over two decades of community content, including source ports that are 10 times better than the official stuff. So, buy only if new to the franchise, or if a DOOM fan.