Thoughts on DOOM's protagonist

[Teo Slayer]

What are your thoughts about Doomguy?

[out_of_service]

If he doesn’t rip and tear he can’t have any pudding!

[roadworx]

1 hour ago, PSXDoomer said:

If he doesn’t rip and tear he can’t have any pudding!

we don't need no hell invasion

 

DA da da, da da, da da

DA da da, da da, da da

 

we don't need no shores of hell

 

DA da da, da da, da da

DA da da, da da, da da

 

hey! demon! leave that man alone!

 

"just another startan on the linedef part 2" by green droid. what a masterpiece.

Edited June 24, 2021 by roadworx

[Doom Dragon]

What protagonist? Last time I checked, the marine was everyone.

[garudave]

The simplicity of the Doomguy is what makes him work.  He doesn't need anything more than a few facial expressions and a very basic motivation.  I think maybe new id is starting to stray from that simplicity with the new games.  It definitely makes the newer Dooms have a different identity from the classic games, for better or worse.

 

People have praised the narrative of Doom 2016 for being bold, just because the Doom Slayer shows disdain for Hayden's dialogue, creating a sort of meta vibe between protagonist and player.  Personally, I think the bolder thing to do would have been to eschew most elements of dialogue or narrative in lieu of environmental story-telling and a fever dream progression a la the classic games.  Giving the Doomguy more personality and more things to react to in a narrative context feels kind of unDoom to me.

 

It would be great to see a high budget game come out these days that has bare-minimum segues between levels and just a few cutscenes at the most pivotal points in the campaign.  That's more refreshing to me than adding meta shit, which is becoming more and more cliche by the day. 

 

Doom Eternal is an even bigger step in the wrong direction.  For as much cool shit as the Slayer does in that game, it interrupts the core game way too often for my taste.  Plus the science fantasy story elements feel like a different game to me, it definitely feels like they've injected He-Man into the Doom universe and I find that to be ill-fitting.

 

So, to return to the topic at hand, the Doomguy benefits from a minimal approach.  The less I feel the hand of the designer in the vibe Doomguy gives off, the more I identify with and appreciate him.  It seems like a concept that is missing from big budget games today, to have a protagonist that does less than the player does in a narrative sense. 

 

The closest comparison that exists today is Mario.  Most, if not every action Mario makes is player-controlled.  That creates a deeper connection than cutscenes or glory kill animations ever will.

 

tl;dr Doomguy should be like Mario

 

(Sorry for the long reply, guess I had some shit to get off my chest lol)

[Hawk of The Crystals]

He/she/whatever is pretty cool, although I say that since I've always considered doomguy to be a blank template for the player to project onto.

[mrthejoshmon]

*UNF*

[magicsofa]

He's a simple character but he's got a few subtle yet important qualities. He decked a superior officer for ordering fire on civilians. Showing that he may be a jarhead but he knows right from wrong and will confront authority in favor of the common person. Furthermore, he apparently has no family, other than his pet bunny. The demons took his only companion and that's why their entrails decorate the floor.

[Somniac]

I've always preferred the idea that he's a kind of Die Hard style everyman thrust into an insane situation. For all the things the new games have done well, I never liked the quasi-superhero angle they went with for the "doom slayer". While he's still basically a silent protagonist, something about that loses the universal "its you" space that existed before.

[DNSKILL5]

Doomguy is cool. I don’t really care for the name Doom Slayer. I think they could’ve come up with something FAR more creative if they were really that adamant about changing the name. I prefer the Doomguy that’s just a marine, where the player gets to interpret far more for themselves than how it was done in 2016/DE. 
 

I know some prefer having characters with names, stats, and whatnot but I’ve never felt that Doom didn’t have a lot of interesting characters from the start. All of the demons are fascinating in their own right.

 

I just don’t get people that want to tie everything together as some multiverse universe ultraverse thing where all the games are connected and Doomguy has to have a name and a father and mother and family lineage dating back to wolfenstein and blah blah blah (and before anyone thinks to reply to point out that Id mentioned this and that there’s a relation to Commander Keen, I think we can piece it together that they were not being serious). Just seems sort of silly to me at least. I like it more simple myself. He’s a marine stuck in the worst possible situation imaginable. Live or die.
 

That’s what I mean, that’s why I like how it was before in terms of a loose story and main protagonist being nameless. There was more to the story and characters that would be from your own thoughts and imagination, not set in stone lore that is canon that you have no control over besides to simply ignore it. 
 

These aren’t complaints about the new games, this is just my opinion on why I prefer Doomguy and the way the character was handled prior to Doom 3.

Edited June 24, 2021 by Gerolf

[spineapple tea]

Am I the only one who thinks these "what are your thoughts on ______?" threads are super vague? He's the guy you play as. He sure does wear green. Fast dude. There are my thoughts.

[xScavengerWolfx]

2 hours ago, roadworx said:

we don't need no hell invasion

 

DA da da, da da, da da

DA da da, da da, da da

 

we don't need no shores of hell

 

DA da da, da da, da da

DA da da, da da, da da

 

hey! demon! leave that man alone!

 

"just another startan on the linedef part 2" by green droid. what a masterpiece.

OMG LOL!

[SLOTH MARINE (CB)]

I think that doomguy and doom slayer are two different people not one person.

 

like yes the stories match up but I don't think they are the same.

 

also the reason doomguy never talks is to not wake up demons so he can attack by surprise  

[D4NUK1]

He is the only thing demons fears.

 

And the best FPS Protagonist.

[TheMagicMushroomMan]

I always thought he was as interesting as possible given the small amount of information and total lack of character development.

 

Pros:

 

-Badass, but not macho like Duke. Had a pet bunny. Gives the impression that he was a somewhat sensitive man driven over the top.

-Strong and bulky, but also fast as hell.

-Iconic outfit, but not in an over the top kind of way.

-Portrayed as a determined character, not a wiseass. Strong, but still human.

-Design fits the overall aesthetics established by the environments.

 

Cons:

-Ugly and hairy arms, poor form when throwing a punch.

-Face portrayed in official artwork is very different from the one featured ingame.

- *constipated grunt*

[idbeholdME]

He's green. He's mean. He is, the Doom Marine.

[The_Trve_Raith]

5 hours ago, Teo Slayer said:

What are your thoughts about Doomguy?

I kinda like to imagine he's this super sensitive caring guy who loves animals and peace and fun and all that, and is just constantly thrusted into situations where he has to violently murder demons.

[Dusty_Rhodes]

2 hours ago, VisionThing said:

I've always preferred the idea that he's a kind of Die Hard style everyman thrust into an insane situation. For all the things the new games have done well, I never liked the quasi-superhero angle they went with for the "doom slayer". While he's still basically a silent protagonist, something about that loses the universal "its you" space that existed before.

Don't get me wrong, I'm very happy Doom 4 and Eternal exist. Really revitalized the series and brought in a whole new audience.

 

However*

The super hero demi god thing is really weird to me. He's literally got a Justice League watchtower in space. He fights angels and stuff. It's just weird. Doom (ie, Doom, Ultimate Doom, Doom 2, and Final Doom) always felt aesthetically rooted in science fiction, not a whatever's going on in the new games.

 

Doomguy really did feel like just a random marine that you could self insert into. An everyman stuck in a horrific situation. And I can see the appeal of Doom Eternal but I much prefer blank slate marine. 

 

 

 

 

*A very big however 

Edited June 24, 2021 by Dusty_Rhodes

[Dusty_Rhodes]

2 hours ago, SLOTH MARINE (CB) said:

 so he can attack by surprise  

Because a chainsaw, double barrel and pump action, rocket launcher, and BFG9000 just scream subtlety. Haha

[Dusty_Rhodes]

1 hour ago, TheMagicMushroomMan said:

Cons:

-Ugly and hairy arms, poor form when throwing a punch.

-Face portrayed in official artwork is very different from the one featured ingame.

- *constipated grunt*

1. How dare you insult Kevin Cloud's beautiful arms?

 

2. What's up with the hair on the Doom 2 cover art?

 

3. Best part of the game series.

 

I see no cons here.

[roadworx]

35 minutes ago, The_Trve_Raith said:

I kinda like to imagine he's this super sensitive caring guy who loves animals and peace and fun and all that, and is just constantly thrusted into situations where he has to violently murder demons.

i've always thought similar, but with the addition of being hot-headed and rebellious (he did punch his CO in the face, after all)

[KubaloBlackMT]

18 minutes ago, roadworx said:

55 minutes ago, The_Trve_Raith said:

I kinda like to imagine he's this super sensitive caring guy who loves animals and peace and fun and all that, and is just constantly thrusted into situations where he has to violently murder demons.

i've always thought similar, but with the addition of being hot-headed and rebellious (he did punch his CO in the face, after all)

 

This pretty much sums up my view of Doomguy's personality if he was given one. He's clearly not a psychotic killer like others would portray him if he gets in a lot of situations where he needs to run away and fear any demons coming into the same room he's in.

[ICID]

I agree with what everyone else has said about how the old "it's just you"* approach is so much more immersive than the new approach where Doom Slayer is a character who got superpowers from magic orbs created by the devil or whatever the heck is going on over there these days. It's the difference between having an adventure yourself and watching someone else's stories.

 

^{*provided you're a brown-haired white guy, of course.}

 

I will say that there are a couple non-canon conceptions of the Doomguy I liked. First is the comic. I know it's just remembered as a meme now, but I always thought that "raving, drug-addicted lunatic who talks to himself" was the smartest take on what someone who went through literal hell would actually be like.

 

I also like Struggle: Antaresian Legacy's protagonist who's not a marine at all, just an ordinary person who sees the demonic apocalypse on the news, picks up a pistol and a hammer, and decides to go do something about it. Also the detail that they lay down all their weapons and returns home at the end. It's the ultimate realization of what other people have talked about in this thread - the idea that he's literally just some guy, not someone uniquely destined for heroism. (Side note: more PWADs should include legit stories!)

 

I also enjoyed Doom: Annihila- (the sniper I paid to blow my head off if I get too close to sharing a controversial movie take does his job at 600 yards).

[Teo Slayer]

2 hours ago, TheMagicMushroomMan said:

*constipated grunt*

unf

 

[Teo Slayer]

2 minutes ago, ICID said:

First is the comic

You are huge, you have guts

Huge guts

 

-Doomguy, Comic

Edited June 24, 2021 by Teo Slayer

[Sena]

seems like a nice chap, he's been fighting demons for 30 odd years, I think he deserves a vacation

 

[Murdoch]

Personally i think there is hidden depth there. Like he is really quite kind and sensitive under the gruff exterior. Can quote Shakespeare and Wordsworth with ease due to his long standing love of classic English poetry. I think he once tried to get into classical Greek literature but just found it a bit to simplistic and unsophisticated. I think his original home would have been classy and understated. Well chosen art on the walls. A couple of bookshelves in the corner...

 

 

Dude. He is you. A channel for acting out all your violent fantasies on very deserving foes without want or need for anything resembling mercy. That's it.

Edited June 24, 2021 by Murdoch

[Doomsday]

He's pretty cool I guess.

[The_Trve_Raith]

4 hours ago, roadworx said:

i've always thought similar, but with the addition of being hot-headed and rebellious (he did punch his CO in the face, after all)

I mean if you were ordered to slaughter a bunch of innocent people you'd punch the guy ordering you as well.

[DavidN]

9 hours ago, garudave said:

 

 

tl;dr Doomguy should be like Mario

He already spends the whole of Doom Eternal bouncing around collecting 1-ups and coins - how much more like Mario can he be?! :)

 

I love the He-Man comparison, I hadn’t thought of it that way but it really does resemble it, a mixture of magic and technology with an invincible hero who lives in a floating castle. And what is Skeletor, if not a Revenant in a cowl with a silly accent. I loved Doom Eternal (and Doom 2016) as games, but I think of them as something completely separate from Doom because they’re not good (classic) Doom games - they play more like Devil May Cry, with you bashing demons to earn upgrades to bash more demons in increasingly stylish ways.

 

Oh, and Doomguy walloped a superior officer instead of following orders to fire on civilians and that’s why he was sent to Mars, so he’s definitely OK :)