DOOM Eternal – Smart Slayer: Instant Weapon Swapper for Controllers

ARE YOU A SMART SLAYER?!

Of course, you are! Why else are ya reading this? You’re probably having fun, sitting on your couch, ripping cyberdemons in half when suddenly, you fight your first Marauder…
And then it hits ya…

“God danm it! There are too many pace killers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHY DOES THE GAME HAVE TO FEEL SO SLOW?!”

Rest assured, it ain’t the first Marauder causing most of them when you fight him. (much)
It’s the weapon wheel you are stuck with. Use it for too long, and the world goes slow-mo. Pick a direction outta 8, and your camera goes flying that way, screwing your aim. It’s a mess…

But what if I told you…..

There’s a better way to swap your weapons.

NEXT/ARSENAL

Behold my secret!

“Now hang on!” you may say. “How the hell are ya suppose to play like that?! The weapon wheel is down there! Now how the F@#$ am I gonna doom like DOOM? Also, why are Jump and dash down there?! Are you playing with your [redacted]”

Why no, I am not playing with my redacted; thank you very much. And as for the weapon wheel, arn’cha noticing what’s highlighted? “N/A.”

“But that does nothing!” You respond. “It means “Not Acknowledged.”

Right you are….normally. But in this case, with the support magic of steam controller configs, I effectively rename this button to be called the “NEXT/ARSENAL” system. And it’s straightforward too.

All you have to do is hold the button down to activate “NEXT/ARSENAL” mode. As you do that, press another button, like LB or LT or the face buttons, to bring out a particular weapon of your choice.

How to Set Up

For starters, if you want to be a very effective Slayer, I recommend binding your controls like mine the tee. There is some leeway in swapping launchers under your sticks or melees on the face buttons with each other. But at the end of the day, Doom is a very movement-driven game, so because of that, you can’t be dragged down by managing commands on the D-pad (or face buttons. Hi lefties!). That thumb has to remain on that stick at all times.

“But the aerial buttons are bound to your D-pad.”
More on that later.

Ultimately

• N/A is critical for NEXT/ARSENAL to work no matter what. To bind it above your shoot button as I did. Suppose you are not gonna shoot, your gonna swap. That’s a general idea.
• Next, after binding, you gotta go into your steam controller config. Just press “Home” or whatever you call that non-gaming button on your controller and go in
• After that, press the button that sends you to “Browse Configs” and search in the community. and look for the Smart Slayer config
  Side note: Steam filters what configs you’ll see based on the controller you use. Since I use DualShock 4, you may have to press the north button on your face buttons to turn off that filter.
• After selecting, apply with the left button on the face buttons.
• Take that baby for a spin! (And when you’re done, upload that for me if you’re using non-DS4 controllers for me)

  ———————————————————————————————————————————-

• Alternatively, (which I just found out) you can also copypasta the following link into your browser. Afterward, it should take you to your steam client.
  

  steam://controllerconfig/782330/2259545675

  It should look something like this.
  

  Pick your Shotgun. The former if you in Big Picture/in-game as is, or the latter in Desktop mode.

  The best part about this is that it requires no real installation. So as long as you don’t forget your account, this set-up will follow you.

Notes

• In NEXT/ARSENAL mode, button-mashing the Super Shotgun (RB+LT) will also shoot the Meathook. This is why it’s bound to LT. The Meaty is one of the vital tools for toying with your enemies so take advantage of it if you got sticky fingers. The less finger work, the better you’re in control. And on top of that, the Meaty will always be available even if you run out of Shotgun ammo, proving how vital it is to getting around.
• The Chaingun (RB+LB) will also activate it’s mod in NEXT/ARSENAL mode if held down. This is so that defense is only a few buttons away with the shield mod. These are the only two guns that do this.
• The Ballista, unfortunately, requires double-tapping NEXT/ARSENAL to bring out (RB+RB) as a workaround. I tried to come up with a way too pressing it once would bring Ballista out and make the input cancelable if it detected another gun. Still, it always ended in pulling out two guns in sequence, making getting back into the fight longer even with the rapid gun swap upgrade.
• Similarly, I tried doing this with grenades too. There are only two grenades; it makes sense to turn the grenade swapper into an Ice Grenade button, similar to the Flame Belch. In certain control schemes, especially on the keyboard, the grenade swapper is redundant as is. But alas, it received the worst fate of getting canned since it never worked. Maybe idSoft should make everything here a new in-game feature.
• The BIG☆Friendship♥GUN 9000 is mapped to the Start/Options button. This way, it’s always available even without NEXT/ARSENAL.
  “HOLD IT!!!” You shout epically like an over-the-top Japamerican lawyer, “Now how the hell am I gonna pause the game now?! Or upgrade myself?!?!” Easy.
  Everything is mapped to the select button now. If you press it, you’ll pause normally. If you hold it, you’ll see the map. And If you want to swap these bindings, go into controller configs, pick the select button on your controller, and swap the two bindings.
• If you want to rebind your guns, you will have to go into your keyboard Slayer Bindings and change them from there. Guns are reliant on the number row on your keyboard in the default scheme.
• Also, unfortunately, there is no left-handed version of this. (Sorry, lefties)
• Smart Slayer is also available for DOOM ’16. URL to install here: steam://controllerconfig/379720/2259573680

Bonus Round!: Back Buttons

“More on that later,” I said

It’s later.

Back buttons are a new, revolutionary way to do more on a controller. Once I got a hold of them at a demo kiosk, I knew this was the future of controllers. Especially vital in action games. AND ESPECIALLY in games like DOOM. This is why I recommended following my scheme, as it really invests better finger real estate into how you attack

With Back Buttons, you can keep your fingers on the important stuff while on the move, whether it’s jumping, dashing, running, aiming, or even shooting…. while flame belching a grenade in mid-air while no scoping, weapon swapping, and bunny hopping around a corner in the same 2 seconds.
It. Is. Amazing.
In comparison, you have to take your fingers off the aim or move the stick to jump (among other things) in the default scheme, limiting your human options. And that makes DOOMing with controllers inferior without this guide.

I can’t give any discounts nor am I getting any money. I have no power to do that. But I can help by offering an olive branch. Below are just some stepping stones for you to get started on these.

https://www.amazon.com/DualShock-Back-Button-Attachment-PlayStation-4/dp/B082VX16VJ
Complete with rebindable paddles, this is the most cost-effective upgrade. Even compared to the Xbox Elite series, this, plus a DualShock 4 V2, will only cost around 90 bucks. And that’s if you already don’t own a DS4, slashing the price drastically. The only problem is, most PC games keep forgetting to add Playstation buttons to their releases. (A simple toggle in the options menu. Like, C’mon devs.) So the controller will work, but it will read like Xbox. Still, it’s my preferred choice.

https://www.amazon.com/Elite-2-Controller-Black-Xbox-One/dp/B07SFKTLZM/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=%EF%BC%B8%EF%BD%82%EF%BD%8F%EF%BD%98+%EF%BC%A5%EF%BD%8C%EF%BD%89%EF%BD%94%EF%BD%85&qid=1602582975&sr=8-1
Next is the more generic choice. It comes with 4 back buttons and swappable parts, such as D-pads and sticks. But it may feel a little heavier to handle with its weight, and its price tag almost feels doubled the previous choice. Still, many people seem to like this controller for a reason, so, options yours.

https://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Controller-Nintendo-Programmable-Customized/dp/B081DV6SN4
Finally is a more off-brand stepping stone, but one you might want if you own a Switch. I don’t have much to say about it because it’s off-brand. But if your a Nintendo owner, then have at it.

This is all about DOOM Eternal – Smart Slayer: Instant Weapon Swapper for Controllers; I hope you enjoy reading the Guide! If you feel like we should add more information or we forget/mistake, please let us know via commenting below, and thanks! See you soon!