DOOM MODS you have to try

Blood, demons, danger, and high-octane entertainment. These are the best set combination of words you can use to describe Doom. Soon enough, we'll be blessed with a new release of Doom as Doom Eternal. But until that day comes, why not treat ourselves with a little nostalgia peppered with modding?

Ah, Doom. The FPS game that redefined the mechanics of 3D gaming, set untouchable standards in the FPS genre, and spawned countless Doom clones since the year 1993, eventually leading to beauties like Duke Nukem 3D and even inspiring another milestone in FPS history, Halo: Combat Evolved.

What isn't there to love about this franchise? The menacing and powerful demons, the fast-paced action, stories that hold very little significance to the gameplay, the arsenal of devastating weapons at your disposal to rip and tear demons, the music, the beautiful gory and blood-boiling sound effects, the impressive hellish atmospheres, the overkill power-ups, the glory kills, etc.

After the wide-spread and unquestionable success of Doom 2016 under Bethesda and id Software, Besthesda announced that they will release a sequel to Doom 2016 in 2019, Doom Eternal. With much hype and with much hope, fans all around can't wait to grab a BFG 9000 and vaporise some demons with it while headbanging to the stellar heavy metal compositions of Mick Gordon again in a new fashion.

Sadly, until November, we won't be able to get our hands on another new Doom release. Bethesda did so well in hyping up Doom Eternal, people will be racing to get a copy like over-zealous Pinkies. Till then however, painful as the wait maybe, we'll have to keep our patience till its day of release.

Meanwhile, why not relive this beauty of a franchise with the modded versions of Doom (1993) and Doom 2? That should give you a nice blast from the past in a new and fresh way?

Before I list off the mods you can play, let me tell you what you'll need to run the mods first. First you will need to download copies of both Doom and Doom 2 for the registered .wad files. Then you'll have to download GZ Doom to run your desired doom mods. Afterwards, download the .pk3 files of the mod you'd like to play. Drag the desired pk3 file to the GZ Doom executable file and you'll be good to go.

Brutal Doom

What would be a list of Doom mods without Brutal Doom? More blood, more gore, polished graphics, improved designs, new sound effects, etc. in a 16-bit experience of an 8-bit game. The selling point of this, of course, is the heightened details of the agony of the demons you rip apart, as well as being able to play in a much higher level of difficulty and being able to aim vertically as well instead of the archaic horizontal-only aiming ability.

There are some tweaks to the gameplay too, like enemies dropping a +5 health pack when you have 20% or below health left, new weapons like the machine gun, the revenant shoulder-mounted rocket launchers, the SMG, etc., possessed soldiers being able to go into a last stand, and so on. Oh, and did I mention that this mod as been constantly updated since its first release in 2010.

Ashes 2063

Tired of waiting for Doom Eternal? Tired of waiting for Cyberpunk 2077? Well you can have an 8-bit bite of both these game on this mod, with a slight hint of Duke Nukem 3D.

This mod has a touch of RPG-style gaming when it comes to its inventory system, trading and characters found within this mod. It also has a story to follow as well. The combat is tight, you can use a motorbike to get around in the larger maps, you can melee bad guys by clicking a button instead of having to switch to a melee weapon to use it, etc. This is not one of your ordinary Doom reskins.

This mod is supposed to have 32 episodes, but so far only 9 levels have been released.

Doom 64: Retribution

Originally a port of Doom for the Nintendo 64 in 1997, this version of Doom was considered to be the best version of Doom because of its fluid gameplay, good looks and redesigned sprites. This mod brings that masterpiece of a port into the PC under GZ Doom.

The levels in Doom 64 are arguably more challenging than the original Doom, the graphics don't make you feel dizzy after prolonged gameplay, the sound design sounds smoother, etc. Certainly worth a try if you're into map exploration.

Valiant

By far the most beautiful mods I've ever tried, Valiant gives a fresher look into Doom II with its completely and carefully redesigned maps and monsters. This mod also makes the player put more emphasis on the most overlooked weapons of Doom: the chainsaw and the pistol. The enemies in this mod also fight differently than in the original, so be prepared and don't be shocked when you see them fight "differently".

The game is so differentiated from the original that it requires to be distributed as a "megaWAD" extension. Definitely worth it.

Pirate Doom

This is a reskin that shows that the makers have put a lot of effort into it. The gameplay is mostly similar. The difference is that everything, including the enemies, sounds, the weapons and the maps, are pirate-themed. It consists of 18 redesigned levels, and though it plays almost the same, it's no doubt fun enough to spend some idle time in shivering some demon timbers.

Hearts of Demons - Baron

Again, a reskin, but this time you get to play as a mega-baron of hell. You fight to regain your honour by ripping and tearing across hell with your green energy blasts, giant blocks of rocks, and your bare claws. Worth a shot for a quick play.

Until Doom Eternal comes out, these modded version are what we can use to kill time with. Fingers crossed for it living upto its hype.

Aka is a tiny bleep on the world's radar, and he finds peace in knowing it. Ruin his peace by poking him on akaaraf@hotmail.com