The DOOM franchise was always characterized by over-the-top action with its concept of slaying demons in style, and the weapons that are used for these deeds are just as iconic as the game itself. As the imminent release of DOOM: The Dark Ages approaches, we are taking a look at some of the best weapons in the entire franchise.

Please note that this is an ordered list, starting from the bottom and reaching all the way to the top.

Pistol – DOOM (1993)

The original DOOM didn’t just hit the right notes in terms of its heavy metal riffs but also nailed it with its suite of weapons. The starting pistol is not something that you would pull out against bigger demons, but it is most definitely an important tool to have in your arsenal. The sound effects have the proper weight to it, and it’s pretty effective at chipping away health points.

As per the listing, the collection is going to have one additional game that the PS4 and Xbox One releases of the compilation did not have- namely, DOOM 64, which got ported to modern consoles in early 2020. In addition to that, the package will also supposedly include DOOM, DOOM 2, DOOM 3, and DOOM (2016). Its release date is mentioned as September 2 on the Best Buy page, at a price of $49.99.

An official announcement for this collection’s Switch version hasn’t yet been made by either id Software or Bethesda, but with QuakeCon 2021 kicking off imminently, it’s possible that we’ll be hearing something about this very soon. Either way, stay tuned, and we’ll keep you updated on any new details that come our way.

In a new Xbox Wire post, Microsoft has announced 20 games from Bethesda Softworks that will be added to Xbox Game Pass today. With a few exceptions, many of these titles will be playable on Xbox consoles, PC and the cloud. Even though The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim Special Edition is already available for console owners, subscribers on other platforms will be able to play it as well.

The full list is quite extensive and includes the following titles:

• Dishonored Definitive Edition
• Dishonored 2
• Doom (1993)
• Doom 2
• Doom 3
• Doom 64
• DOOM Eternal
• The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind
• The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion (Console, PC)
• The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim Special Edition
• The Elder Scrolls Online (Cloud, Console)
• The Evil Within
• Fallout 4
• Fallout 76
• Fallout: New Vegas (Console)
• Prey
• RAGE 2
• Wolfenstein: The New Order
• Wolfenstein: The Old Blood
• Wolfenstein: Youngblood

Prey and Fallout 4 will be returning to the service after exiting last year, though the latter is the base version and not the Game of the Year Edition. Dishonored Definitive Edition and The Evil Within are new entries while Dishonored 2 makes its return after leaving last September. It should be interesting to see if Dishonored: Death of the Outsider and The Evil Within 2 arrive on Game Pass at some point.

A roundtable discussion is currently on-going between Xbox Game Studios and Bethesda team members – find out more about that here. Microsoft has also confirmed that some future titles from Bethesda will be exclusive to Xbox and PC. Stay tuned for more details in the coming days on which ones.

#5. CYBERDEMON – DOOM 3

DOOM 3 catches plenty of flak from many series fans because of how different it was from its predecessors, with the game adopting a slower survival horror approach as opposed to the bombastic, in-your-face action DOOM is otherwise known for. And while many of those criticisms are fair, there’s still a lot to love in this game- sadly, the final boss fight against the Cyberdemon is not one of those things.

The fight against this beast does not do justice to it intimidating physical appearance. Though it’s equipped with a rocket launcher that can do devastating damage if it hits you, avoiding those hits is actually pretty easy- you just have to make sure you stay on the move, keep out of its line of sight, and use the spires around the Hell Hole for cover.

Keep killing the little enemies that spawn while doing so, and turn around every once in a while to fire off the Soul Cube- rinse and repeat just a few times, and the boss fight is over. Cyberdemons have appeared as major enemies in DOOM games quite a few times over the years, but this encounter in particular has to be one of the most disappointing against one of them.

#4. ICON OF SIN – DOOM 2

The Icon of Sin has a special place in the hearts of DOOM fans for many reasons, the primary being that John Romero’s head is literally the final boss in DOOM 2. But though the boss has a strong legacy and remains a popular one among the DOOM fanbase to this day, the actual fight is not the most difficult- if you play your cards right.

The biggest threat this encounter poses is not actually the Icon of Sin itself- it’s all the other demons that spawn around you. From Arch-viles to Pain Elementals to Revenants, there’s quite a bit that you have to contend with, so staying on the move and staying alert is pretty important. It’s just a little disappointing that the boss itself doesn’t pose too much of a threat itself.

The Icon of Sin is literally a giant head on a wall, and it doesn’t take too many shots to bring it down- just three shots with the rocket launcher, that’s pretty much all that’s needed. Sure, the other demons do make things a bit more complicated, but by and large, this fight can be dusted off with ease pretty quickly.

#3. MOTHER DEMON – DOOM 64

Unlike the Icon of Sin and the Cyberdemon, DOOM 64’s Mother Demon can be a pretty tricky boss encounter. For starters, she’s got some impressive attacks up her sleeve, from a flame trailer to her homing rockets, and both of these can be pretty devastating if they hit you. If you don’t manage to successfully dodge these, you’re toast.

Thankfully, keeping your distance from her is a good strategy that makes those dodges pretty easy to pull off. It doesn’t take a lot of shots with the Unmaker to kill her- of course, that depends on you having received all three Demon Keys beforehand, without which the Unmaker is unusable.

If you do find yourself in that situation, relying on the BFG 9000 is your next best bet, because even with more powerful weapons – like the rocket launcher – it can take quite a lot of shots to take the Mother Demon down. It also doesn’t help that she’s quite agile, which just makes the fight that much trickier.

#2. SPIDERDEMON – DOOM

The Spiderdemon was the perfect intersection between ingenious visual design and solid execution of mechanics. Visually, its weird, twisted form was horrifying to behold, and the actual fight against it did complete justice to how threatening it looked. It might not be the toughest boss fight in the series, or even the game itself, but it posed more than a semblance of challenge.

Its chaingun attack is nearly impossible to avoid, especially at close range, which means keeping your distance and keeping on the move is almost crucial in this fight, something that the ledges on the edges of the battlefield come in very handy for.

Defensively, the Spiderdemon isn’t the most formidable foe out there. Weapons like the BFG, the rocket launcher, and the Plasma Rifle are particularly effective against and, and it doesn’t have a ton of health, so if you know what you’re doing, you can actually get through the battle pretty quickly.

#1. SPIDER MASTERMIND – DOOM (2016)

DOOM (2016)’s final boss fight against the Spider Mastermind is an amazing tribute to the original game, and not just for the obvious reasons- it also excels as an actual boss fight in more ways than one, from its visual design to the context surrounding this encounter to the actual mechanics of the fight itself.

The Spider Mastermind has a pretty big pool of health, which means that it takes a hell of a lot of shots from multiple weapons to bring it down. Switching out your weapons constantly and making smart use of the ammo at your disposal to attack its weak points is key. Meanwhile, the fight also requires players to keep moving around, thanks to the Spider Mastermind’s own mobility.

And it’s not just a bullet sponge- it has plenty of deadly attacks of its own that keep you on your toes. From being able to electrify the ground to sweeping at you with its legs, from launching deadly projectiles at you to firing off a barrage of lazers, from using spike bombs to raising up pillars from the ground, the Spider Mastermind has more than enough up its sleeve to give you a very quick and painful death if you’re not paying attention.

Spooky’s Jump Scare Mansion

Come on – it’s literally the name of the game. You traverse from room to room, waiting for the inevitable jump scare. Most of them are pretty harmless though, consisting of cut-outs of bread and other lame thing. Of course, you eventually encounter the sinister notes…and then the monsters. And suddenly things aren’t so lame.

CYBERDEMON

One of the deadliest demons in the entire series, the Cyberdemon has been tormenting players since the very first DOOM, and appeared repeatedly over the course of the mainline series. With a behemoth’s body that can take a startling amount of punishment before going down, the Cyberdemon inspires fear in the hearts of people not only with its appearance, but also with its combat capabilities.

Cloud Strife – Final Fantasy 7 to Final Fantasy 7 Remake

The iconic Cloud Strife from Final Fantasy 7 will be making his return soon in the remake. However, the process behind his iconic look is interesting – the spiky hair was meant as a contrast to antagonist Sephiroth but also to keep the polygon count low. Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children – and by extension Crisis Core – saw Cloud have a realistic design for the first time with defined hair and facial features. Numerous models were used to capture different expressions and Cloud’s general attire combined elements of his old outfit with a darker, more contemporary look. The overall aim was to showcase how much time had passed in the world and how the guilt of losing Aerith weighed down on him.

In Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Cloud once again sports a more realistic look in keeping with the game’s high fidelity approach. His hair and facial expressions are more defined; the overall outfit has a darker look in keeping with Advent Children; and several elements like the waistband, baggy pants and boots are toned down to look more proportionally accurate. Regardless, this is Cloud Strife through and through.

Doom Marine/Slayer – Doom 1 to Doom Eternal

Though mostly represented as the gun mowing down demon hordes, the Doom Marine or Doomguy had a distinctive design. A helmet covering his entire face, save for a visor over his eyes; chest armor with short sleeves; and the signature green shade adorned the entire set. It was iconic and meant to represent the Marine as a human facing overwhelming odds. Doom 2 didn’t make any major changes to this design. The older games emphasized sprites over full 3D models and this was reflected in whatever we saw of Doomguy.

In Doom 3, however, the human aspect of the Marine was emphasized more, showcasing his face fully. The clothing is more distinct from the armor (he now wears a separate t-shirt below the same); the ab window below the chest plate is covered up; and the pauldrons are more accentuated. All of this to reinforce the Marine being prepared but not overwhelmingly powerful, perfect for the game’s survival horror approach. The Marine was packing an estimated 4400 to 5000 polygons and id Tech 4 allowed for real-time light computation, MegaTextures and shadow volumes to bring the world to life in a creepier way.

With DOOM in 2016, id Software made significant changes to the protagonist. Known as the Doom Slayer now, he had full-body armor with more plating, weathered textures, darker shades of green, and a significantly taller build. It fit well with the Slayer’s motif of being an unstoppable badass that could shred entire armies of demons. The game was developed on id Tech 6 which sported physically based rendering, SMAA and TSSAA anti-aliasing, bokeh depth of field and HDR among many other features, with the aesthetic feeling more heavy metal and visceral than previous titles. Ample amounts of gore and hellish landscapes never looked better.

DOOM Eternal takes the same design, bulks up the Slayer further and adds new weapons like the shoulder mounted cannon and arm-blade. There’s also a return to the classic short sleeves worn by previous Marines.

Jill Valentine – Resident Evil to Resident Evil 3 Remake

An abject professional at heart and in stature, Jill Valentine was designed by director Shinji Mikami and designer Isao Oishi as an anti-thesis to overly sexualized characters. Sporting tactical boots, gloves and a beret, Jill is as no-nonsense as they come. It’s interesting to note that her outfit in Resident Evil 3 received some criticism at the time for going against Mikami’s initial philosophy.

In the HD remake of Resident Evil 1, Jill’s likeness was based on actor/model Julia Voth. This likeness would define Jill’s look for a number of titles including Resident Evil 5, which saw her undergo the most radical change in design yet. Though the shock value of Jill’s return was palpable – especially with the set-up for her apparent demise – many fans reacted negatively to her form-fitting outfit and blonde hair. Resident Evil: Revelations would see Jill adopting a wet-suit in keeping with the infiltration of the Queen Zenobia cruise ship while retaining aspects of her original design. Perhaps the most surprising bit was seeing her with a ponytail instead of the trademark cropped hair.

In the upcoming Resident Evil 3 remake, Jill’s design has changed once again. Model Sasha Zotova provides her likeness, offering a harsher touch to Jill’s expressions. While the clothes have been kept casual, the darker colours, combat boots and tactical gloves reinforce Jill’s status as a former special ops soldier. The RE Engine also provides more freedom for additional details like dirt, grime, cuts, bruises and sweat. How Jill’s demeanor and overall character will change remains to be seen but so far, the design is in keeping with her original approach.

Master Chief – Halo: Combat Evolved to Halo Infinite

It’s easy to underestimate just how many changes Chief’s attire has gone through in the years. This is explained in-universe as upgrades to the Mjolnir Armor. Master Chief was first designed by Bungie developer Robert McLees, art director Marcus Lehto and concept artist Shi Kai Wang. After receiving some more muscle, the Chief would receive his trademark green shade and we got the motorcycle helmet-esque wearing marine in Halo: Combat Evolved.

Halo 2 saw the armor gain much more definition, both in terms of details, texture quality and polygon count. Instead of bright green, Bungie opted for a darker shade. This was carried over into Halo 3 where the armor looked more singular as opposed to a variety of armor sections. Improvements to lighting gave more definition to all of the details, and it felt like the Chief had truly made a generational leap. Then 343 Industries took over the franchise with Halo 4 releasing in 2012.

If Master Chief wasn’t a space marine before, it was heavily reinforced this time. His armor was highly detailed with several more components and looked to have Kevlar weaved into the mesh. Eventually, this gave way to a more streamlined design in Halo 5: Guardians. The overall tone felt less busy and seemingly a combination of the designs in Halo 3 and 4.

With Halo Infinite, 343 Industries is making a rather interesting return to the Mark VI armor from Halo 2 and 3. The green tint is more vibrant than before and the shoulder pads are more defined than Bungie’s iterations. But this feels, once again, like a natural evolution of Chief’s design from the older games.

Link – The Legend of Zelda to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2

The Legend of Zelda is an amalgamation of timelines, alternate universes and reincarnations. However, throughout it all, the hero Link has always maintained his signature blond hair and green tunic. Designed by Shigeru Miyamoto, Link started out as a simple sprite in a top-down perspective. He gained more detail and colour in Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link, mostly due to the game’s side-scrolling nature, but The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past returned to the top-down perspective with a much more defined sprite with more colours.

From there, Link would see a number of design changes depending on the game. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time saw the hero in full 3D for the first time and, as a contrast to previous adventures, featured an adult version with sharper facial features and a white undershirt and pants. The Wind Waker depicted Link with a cel-shaded style channeling the animated style and energy of the adventure with complex facial expressions and animations. Games like The Minish Cap would channel this style, emulating Link’s bright blond hair. Link’s model was about 2600 to 2800 polygons – this would be quickly surpassed by Twilight Princess, which saw our hero in a mature form right off the bat. His overall outfit was a darker shade of green with more defined gauntlets and even brownish blond hair.

For Skyward Sword, Link was a teenager but his outfit returned to the bright green shades of yore while his gauntlets were replaced by gloves. The overall aesthetic was more fantastical as opposed to the gritty atmosphere of Twilight Princess while borrowing some cel-shading from The Wind Waker. Brighter colours to reflect the game’s emphasis on the sky.

It’s interesting when you look at Breath of the Wild – Link’s design went through a number of changes including variants of the blue tunic that eventually made it in. Cel-shading was applied again, giving the world a more stylized animated feel without going over the top like The Wind Waker. With the upcoming Breath of the Wild sequel, Nintendo seems keen on replicating the same look, with Zelda taking some cues from it as well, perhaps hinting at her being a playable character.

BATMAN: ARKHAM ORIGINS

Batman: Arkham Origins could not have released under worse circumstances, in retrospect. Not only was it developed as a stopgap and sandwiched between two of the series’ biggest games in Arkham City and Arkham Knight, it also came out exclusively for 7th-gen consoles right on the cusp of the beginning of the next console generation. The fact that it was developed by WB Games Montreal while the series’ main devs Rocksteady focused on Arkham Knight did its pre-release hype no favours either, while Warner Bros. themselves have, bafflingly enough, continued to roundly ignore the game in the years that followed. That’s a real shame, too, because with a great story, some of the best boss fights in the series, and the typical strengths in combat and open world traversal that the Arkham games are know for, Arkham Origins did everything series fans wanted it to.

Before DOOM Eternal arrives next year, it seems that Bethesda is collecting all of the previous games into one convenient package. According to a listing by GAME UK, DOOM Slayers Collection will be launching this week for Xbox One and PS4. It includes Doom, Doom 2, Doom 3 and DOOM (2016).

Unfortunately, it seems you’ll need to download the first three games. The listing also indicates that a Bethesda.net account and “persistent broadband internet connection” is needed for online use. Oddly enough, there’s no listing for a Nintendo Switch version, or any mention of whether Final Doom and The Master Levels for Doom 2 are included.

We’ll have to wait for an official announcement for Bethesda. Along with DOOM Eternal’s launch on March 20th, 2020 for Xbox One, PS4, and PC, Bethesda will also launch DOOM 64 for the same platforms. DOOM Eternal pre-orders will receive a digital version of the port for free. Though the former has been delayed indefinitely for Nintendo Switch, you’ll still get DOOM 64 in March 2020 on the platform.

The next installment in the legendary shooter series is coming near the end of the year in the form of DOOM Eternal. It promises a marriage of the old school frenzied shooter with modern tech. But what about going old school with the blood and guts? Interestingly, the original games have been absent from the current crop of consoles. That is, until right now.

As a surprise announcement, DOOM 1, 2 and 3 dropped for all three of the current systems. The releases include all of the original games as well as the expansions and extra levels each came with. Worth noting that DOOM 3 is not the BFG Edition, so it does not include the other two games. You will have to buy each individually.

All three games are available now on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Switch, as well as the PC versions of the games that have always been on the platform. The first two games were also released on iOS and Android alongside consoles. You can see the official announcement below.