DOOM Eternal – How To Improve at

Part 1: The Basics

Picking up DOOM Eternal for the first time is a one of a kind experience. A game 4 plus years in the making, and almost a year later I am having just as much fun as I was on the day it was released. Whether you are a returning DOOM veteran or are just picking up DOOM for the first time, this guide should help you perfect your game.

If you are a brand new DOOM player, difficulty is a big factor. For your first play through, I recommend Hurt Me Plenty, as it provides a challenge to the player, but not enough to feel unfair, and not easy enough to feel like a breeze. it’s a good sweet spot for new players. For returning DOOM players and veterans, Ultra Violence is a good standard to play on.

Starting on the first level, the pistol is no longer your starting weapon. You are given a shotgun, dropped in, and basically told “Have Fun!”. You learn real quick how to use the shotgun effectively, and soon after killing a few enemies you are given an upgrade for your weapon. For each weapon, besides the Super Shotgun, the BFG and the Unmaykr, there are 2 upgrades you can choose for your weapon. Obviously, since the shotgun is your only weapon this early in the game, it’s the only gun you can upgrade. Keep in mind, all weapon upgrades are useful in one way or another, but I’m highlighting the best options to keep you alive.

You will also notice early on that you are given a chainsaw. There’s a reason for this, as the devs wanted to add usage to all the guns. You’ll notice that your starting shotgun, the combat shotgun, only has 16 shells. The max number of shells you can have is 24, so it’s not like you can use one weapon for an extended period of time.

Make sure you bind the chainsaw to a convenient key, because you will be using it a LOT. You’ll always have one chainsaw charge refilling, and you can pick up 2 additional charges, or gas canisters, to chainsaw heavy demons, which require 3 charges. Chainsawing fodder demons, like imps and zombies, only requires one charge, which makes them the best targets to replenish your ammo.

Now, when you are given the two options for upgrades for your shotgun, you are going to want to select the sticky bomb upgrade, shown here.

Sticky bombs have multiple uses. They can stick to enemy weak points, like an Arachnatron’s turret or a Mancubus cannon, and they can also one-shot imps, zombies, gargoyles, and other fodder. Be sure to use these in your first few arenas, as they are very useful.

Now that you have your first weapon upgrade and a chainsaw, you are ready for your first arena. You’ll notice you have an HP bar as well as an armor bar underneath. Armor is also very useful for keeping you alive, and there are multiple ways to go about obtaining armor, which we will discuss later.

Now that you have your first gun upgrade, you are ready to face your first arena. Follow the path for a few seconds, and you will notice a wide open area with things like stairs, jump pads, ammo pickups, explosive barrels, and, most importantly, demons. This is where the game introduces you to big arena fights, you will face many of these throughout your play through. Once you get to this arena, be ready to fight, because Imps are an aggressive demon, and will throw fireballs and run at you, clawing you and swarming you. The SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT tip I can give about DOOM Eternal, is to NEVER. STOP. MOVING. Always be moving and traversing the arena, using things like explosive barrels, jump pads, and your speed to your advantage. Contrary to DOOM 2016, you are given double jump when the game starts, instead of having to find it later in the game. This is a very useful mechanic, be sure to utilize it as often as you can. To double jump, simply double tap the space bar.

Don’t worry if you get tripped up and die a few times in this arena, it’s meant to be challenging. The game does take the training wheels off later on in the level, but you are better prepared for that. Once you have finished the arena, you will notice a checkpoint icon on your HUD, meaning you have completed the arena. Find the exit door, and progress.

Now that you have a feel for the combat in DOOM Eternal, each level is very different and will throw new curve balls at you. You will pick up new equipment, weapons and tricks along the way, as well as meet some big frickin’ demons.

Now that you have the basics down, it’s time we really get into the complexity and awesomeness of DOOM Eternal.

Part 2: Tips and Tricks

Before I go on, I should mention this is NOT a full game walkthrough. This is a guide to help anyone improve, regardless of what stage of the game you are at. I am not going to cover each level, I will cover stuff about each level, but not an in-depth guide. Make sense? Good.

Now, this is where DOOM Eternal gets fun. Learning how to use everything to your advantage and dish out the most pain makes it one of the most fun FPS experiences out there. Lets start with keybinds.

I’m sure a lot of you are used to using the weapon wheel, and that’s ok. Whatever you are comfortable doing, keep doing it. But, if you want to increase your DPS and wipe the floor with demons a lot harder and a lot faster, this guide is for you.

Obviously, each person has separate comforts and preferences when it comes to keybinds. Here, I will simply be highlighting mine, as well as giving some other options.

Of course, we must factor in that not everyone has the same keyboard and mouse. Personally, I have a gaming mouse with extra buttons on the side, and a gaming keyboard, which won’t change for most people.

Let’s start with weapon binds. If you want to get good at quick switching, convenient key binds are your best friend. Personally, I use a combination of the scroll wheel and the number and letter keys. Here are my personal keybinds:

Number Key Binds:
1. Combat Shotgun
2. Heavy Cannon
3. Plasma Rifle
4. Rocket Launcher
5. Chaingun

Letter Key Binds:
V: Crucible
C: Chainsaw
R: Flame Belch
X: Swap Frag Grenades and Ice Bomb
F: Swap Weapon Upgrade
MOUSE5: Equipment Launcher
MOUSE4: Swap BFG and Unmaykr
MOUSEWHEELUP: Super Shotgun
MOUSEWHEELDOWN: Ballista

Now, you may be wondering why I have The Super Shotgun and the Ballista bound to my scroll wheel. Simple, they are the best quick switch combo, they can deal out a ton of DPS as well as taking care of heavy demons very quickly. Since the number keys are right above WASD, it’s easy to swap 1-5.

As you play through the game, you will obtain runes. You can have up to 3 being used at one time, providing a big boost to your combat. I personally use 3-4 runes depending on how I’m playing and what difficulty I’m on. The first rune you should get is Air Control, which allows you way more movement in the air and giving yourself more of an advantage. The second rune I choose is usually Equipment Fiend, which means enemies killed by equipment or under the influence of equipment, like Flame Belch and Ice Bomb will decrease the recharge time. There are two runes you can use to get a huge buff for your third slot, and those are Chrono Strike and Savagery. Chrono Strike can slow down time by holding your right mouse button, providing a strategic ability to snipe enemy weak points or evade danger. Savagery makes you perform glory kills faster, which means you can keep the flow of the combat going at a very quick pace. Of course, these are just my preferences, feel free to use whichever runes give you the best advantage.

Your suit can also be upgraded. You will notice a wheel with a number on each of the upgrades, meaning you need that many tokens for that specific upgrade. In my opinion, the fundamentals section should be the one you upgrade first, things like faster grappling and having your dash refilled on glory kills are huge. After that, being immune to explosive barrels is a very convenient one, and can save some accidental deaths.

If you are in a pinch, use the frag grenade and the ice bomb. Both of these can provide a quick escape as well as deal some extra damage. I personally like to use the ice bomb on a large crowd of demons, then fire the grenade into the center, then start firing.

I also have my Dash bound to Shift. It’s a close and convenient key to use for an essential game mechanic. Make sure you utilize your dash as much as possible, you can obtain it in the second level, Exultia.

Flame Belch is a way to get armor quick. Not a full armor boost, but it does provide a good chunk. keep in mind, the more demons you blast with fire, the more armor you will get. Try to find a crowd of fodder to get maximum armor fast.

You may be asking yourself, what if I don’t have the mouse buttons? Well, before I started using the mouse buttons, I had my Left Control bound to fire the grenade and ice bomb, and I had T bound to the BFG and Unmaykr.

Now that you have your key bindings set, let’s talk about the bread and butter of DOOM Eternal, The Combat.

Part 3: The Combat

The more you progress through the game, the more insane the combat gets. Here, I will highlight some of my favorite tricks to mastering the game’s combat.

Stay Moving: The more you move, the harder it will be for demons to deal your damage. Make sure you are using your double jump and dash for maximum movement capabilities.

Use the Terrain: You’ll find with each very unique level, they all present a new terrain and obstacles for you to use to your advantage. Things like swinging bars, jump pads, and explosive barrels can all be used to your advantage.

Utilize Each Weapon: Each weapon has a use. For example, the rocket launcher’s lock-on burst upgrade can make dealing with Whiplashes and Prowlers much much easier. The precision bolt on the heavy cannon can be used to take out enemy weak points, like Arachnotron turrets and Mancubus cannons. The Super Shotgun’s Meat Hook can be used to obtain armor, escape a situation, get around the map, and most importantly, put on a clinic. Find what each weapon is useful for, and you will be able to deal with demons a lot faster.

Personally, these are the tricks I use in every playthrough, and they always seem to work. Let me know what your favorite tricks are.

Part 4: Mastery

Now, mastering anything takes time, especially with DOOM Eternal. I’ve put a decent amount of time into the game, but I am nowhere close to mastery. Keep playing the game, using tips and tricks, learn about all the weapons, maps, demons, etc. Who said mastering something can’t be fun?

Part 5: Conclusion

I hope this guide helped anyone who was looking to improve their game. Whether it’s a 1% improvement or a 10% improvement, it’s improvement regardless! I look forward to continuing to enjoy DOOM Eternal, and hopefully post more guides in the future. Feedback is always appreciated!

Hope you enjoy the Guide about DOOM Eternal – How To Improve at, if you think we should add extra information or forget something, please let us know via comment below, and we will do our best to fix or update as soon as possible!