I believe that the relaunch of DOOM in 2016 was very important for the videogame industry. This installment developed by id Software helped to change my point of view about classic reboots with more than 20 years. To put it another way, the old games are very different, which is a reflection of the evolution of the medium over the years; The achievement of DOOM, in this sense, is to offer us an optimistic look at what is possible when the original product and the players are respected. Thus, the launch of DOOM in the Nintendo portable console is important because it represents the spearhead of an initiative so that more studies and distributors are encouraged to develop and adapt titles in the platform of this company that, historically, had been abandoned by the thirdparties.
The DOOM version contains the essential experience of the 2016 launch with one slight exception: you will not find the map editor called SnapMap, however, the rest of the content appears unchanged. In the first place, we have the celebrated campaign that shook us with its exceptional rhythm of play that spins the action in an exemplary way through multiple combat arenas. This design resonated because it masterfully captured the essence of the original game and was then successfully transferred to a modern environment.
DOOM is the best FPS in recent years
The current way of reinventing a classic is complemented by a deep and challenging combat system that, in turn, celebrated the highest values to which a true first-person shooter aspires. We refer to the dizzying action of wielding a multitude of weapons and use them to solve combat riddles, while jumping and dodging enemies in a violent and bloody ballet with a peculiar rhythm of heavy industrial-electronic metal. This installment was characterized by a kind of metahistory that throws overboard the traditional conventions to tell a story. Here, the protagonist called Doom Slayer ignores the instructions of other participants and establishes a connection with the player who only wants to tear hundreds of demons apart.
The next component included in this release is the arcade mode, which in turn came as content after the game's release. The objective of this mode is to complete all the levels and meet action challenges to spin executions and obtain multipliers that increase your score. Arcade Mode is the most fun and enjoyable activity of the experience, but not the only one. In addition to the previous modes we find the multiplayer component that was implemented without major changes. In short, a complete delivery under any perspective, even if one element is missing.
At first glance everything looks good
But the lack of graphic quality is noted in dock mode.
There are many questions that concern the performance and quality of the game adaptation to the Nintendo Switch hardware. The Tegra graphics chip of the console is exposed to large graphic loads, where it comes out graceful, however, there are times when the game takes its toll on the hardware, but it is not so serious because the experience remains solid.
The action, in general, is perceived at 30 frames per second, which is an exceptional technical achievement and speaks of the portability of the id Software graphic engine and the ability of the study that performs the adaptation, PanicButton. This fails in action sequences where high concentrations of enemies converge. When the action is violently unleashed in the combat arenas, the graphic graphic natural load applies the post-processing filters, which causes that the count of frames per second falls catastrophically with a small detail and seems a "slow motion" effect where the game engine shows each frame independently of the "internal clock of the title". That is, the action on screen and the game events wait until the next image is ready to be displayed and that gives a different feeling to that of other games that lose frames per second.
On the other hand, the graphic quality decreased considerably. According to my trained eye ;), the adaptation in Switch is perceived as a PC version in the video options in LOW, but with effects of postprocesses and effects in Medium and High. The result of combining a low texture quality with attractive visual effects is, honestly, surprising, especially when the game runs in portable mode because there is a kind of "diminishgreturn" that obfuscates the lack of definition and quality. This, coupled with the limitation of 30 frames per second, does not affect the overall experience.
ADVANCED GRAPHIC OPTIONS ENDURANCE THE GENERAL EXPERIENCE
DOOM looks great on Switch, almost like a console table version or even PC version. The situation changes when you connect the Nintendo console to the dock to transmit the video signal to a large screen. In these instances it is notorious that the graphical load passes bill the small hardware because the falls of frames per second are more notorious. In addition, it appears that the visual quality decreased considerably to accommodate the action on the screen, especially during scenes where the resolution is dynamically reduced. The game, in these cases, simply looks stiff, with plaste colors and pixelated. Honestly, the best way to play DOOM is in portable mode so that these details do not come afloat.
Also, it was nice to find advanced graphic configurations within the options menu. In this version it is possible to adjust the strength of the image or Motion Blur according to the taste of the user. When it is fully active, the action on the screen gives the impression of being a little more fluid due to the nature of this effect and, when it is absent, the graphic quality is fully perceived behind the limited count of frames per second. Finally, the chromatic aberration can be deactivated to print a bit of sharpness to the image; otherwise, the effect tends to blur the image a bit.
Advanced video options personalize the experience
As for the game system, I'm not totally pleased with its performance in the portable console, especially for the limited range of action of the analog sticks and because its size offers little freedom to maneuver. Obviously, there may be factors such as familiarity, which leads me to recommend playing this installment with the Pro Controller.
Until this installment, the DOOM story on consoles had left something to be desired. When we go back to the days of the SNES, the adaptation of DOOM, including Wolfenstein 3-D, showed that the consoles were not on par with the PCs. Even later, when the hardware offerings evolved, DOOM had to be substantially modified to adapt the capabilities of the device where it should be reproduced, which offered us a subpar version of Doom 3 on the original Xbox. DOOM for Switch is a pleasant surprise because the whole experience shows quality.
One of the last details to consider about this version is the price. It seems to us an exaggeration that the version for Switch in our region costs up to 3 times more than those of other consoles. Also, perhaps the best option is to acquire the physical delivery because the DOOM digital format weighs around 22 GB and completely consumes the internal memory of the console in case you do not have an additional storage medium. The physical version requires between 6 and 8 additional GB, which is acceptable given the storage capabilities of the console.
DOOM for Switch is not like other versions; it is inferior graphically and its playability can be compromised by the size constraints of the analog controls, however, it is one of the best deliveries of 2016 and constitutes a technical achievement on its own that looks, feels and plays exceptionally . And the most important is that it establishes a point of reference for future adaptations that dare to reach Switch. Brutal, fast-paced and action-packed, DOOM is a must-have title for the Nintendo notebook.