What's your general play style in Doom?

[DoomGappy]

I was wondering how others played doom. I know that many players are much more conservative in terms of ammo and general strategy, while others are more crazy and frantic when playing. I am part of the latter. It would be fun to try to define the multiple playstyles in Doom. What's your general approach?

 

Me:

- love running around at 80mph and shooting demons willy nilly.

- die a lot because of my approach when a big trap gets me.

- save before general arenas or when my "Doom sense" is tingling.

- forget to save when the map is really good and I'm completely in the zone, only to die and have to do everything all over again.

- get a rush whenever I beat a very difficult part of a map that I've tried over and over. Especially if it's by a hair's breadth.

- search for secrets but don't mind If I miss some.

 

And you? How would you describe your Doom playing strategy?

Edited November 9, 2023 by DoomGappy

[tewgytaylor]

I tend to prefer the guns blazing approach for sure, however I do have the slight rule of not saving mid-fight. I do this to make sure I don't make things too easy since I'm already in the habit of saving at the beginning of levels (because I don't like pistol starting) so if I got stuck I could just reload.

[HavoX]

Aggressive.

[baja blast rd.]

I don't have a single approach -- it shifts with the wad and my mood. 

 

Here are some things that I try to do sometimes (not all at once): 

 

- Do unnecessary things just because they are fun. Not just little mini-challenges like two-shotting these awkwardly placed cybers for no particular reason, but one example is that I replayed Scythe X map06 recently and decided the two central cacodemons were pets and I would protect them from chaingunner crossfire and keep them alive.

 

- Replay hard encounters after my first success at them so that I feel confident I understand them, rather than just desperately moving on the first victory because I got it. Have found this to be a good mental game level-up because it preempts that feeling of just wanting a too-hard map to be over with. You don't feel scared of any encounter. 

 

- Avoid what I feel are pointless types of ammo conversation. (I ~never run out of ammo anyway. This is because playing evasively rather than 'see monster, shoot it' is 10x better at saving ammo than painstakingly swapping between weapons to save every shell or bullet.) 

 

- Play experimentally and try to ask and answer questions about what it's possible to do in a setup/map. Recently I played Fallen Leaves map04's final fight two different ways because I was curious about how they played. I have a lot of curiosity about how maps work as gameplay systems and find that fun to dig into. 

 

 

 

 

- Seek beauty in pragmatism and discovery. The above Fallen Leaves fight is a good example. If you completely ignore the pain elementals and fact that half the arena is damaging floor, that fight is pretty easy, but the very first time I played it I thought this encounter was hard because I naturally respected those constraints too much. (This is why I end up butting heads with 'ammo conversation for its own sake' and the way people talk about target prioritization sometimes -- because it's shackling to supposed ideas of 'clean play' that commonly just make things harder, but not in ways I think of as sexy like getting to pull-off a cool cyb two-shot. :P) 

 

- Treat maps as one big space instead of clearing out the 'first area', then clearing out the 'second area'. 

 

- Seek fun. I think of playing as a cooperative interaction between player and map, where my goal is to enjoy myself. That is not always possible but it means I care more about "Is it possible for me to enjoy this?" than "If I don't even try to enjoy myself and put zero effort into try to have fun, does this play badly?" or "If I try to shoehorn this one particular playstyle (like cautious survival maximization) in a wad that doesn't support it (because it's loose and easy), does it suck?" This is why I don't really have one playstyle. I adjust to whatever I feel I need to do to enjoy the wad more. 

 

- Don't go out of my way to max maps, track down all the straggler kills or every last secret. Leaving a little bit of mystery left over usually strengthens my experience.

[volleyvalley]

When playing new .WAD's, I play them casually, that is, not trying to max the level, so when I replay the .WAD at an later date, I still have something to look forward to.

[baja blast rd.]

My actual favorite 'no reason to do this' two-shot. :P

 

[Li'l devil]

My playstyle is abysmal and involves a large amount of failure.

[DoomGappy]

1 hour ago, baja blast rd. said:

 .

 

 

 

You're even more frantic than I am. I still have a long way to go to become a doom god...

Edited November 9, 2023 by DoomGappy

[DynamiteKaitorn]

nowadays its with Master Of Puppets. Just going toe to toe with enemies that can rip me apart if I'm not careful whilst I'm able to eviscerate a whole hoarde of them with a nuke is surprisingly fun. Add on the fact MOP is for Multiplayer and yeah its a crazy mod. XD

[ducon]

As much as possible, prudent and trying to get no damage at all but when I have to go in the furnace, I circle-strafe with only my keyboard.

[Roofi]

I just like walking and run only if needed.  Here is a random of mine in order to show my playstyle.

 

I never trigger the autorun.

 

 

[Somniac]

Generally quite aggressive, I like to make as much use of the available space as I can and get infighting going if possible. It can vary depending on the map, as I like slower paced maps too, but if I feel like the gameplay is going to be kinetic I'll rush in and see what happens. Usually results in a lot of dying!

[SilverMiner]

If I can't use RL, I like to avoid monsters and run away. When I get powerful weapons, I spend them on anything I see, like I'd feed a zombieman with a rocket if I found one. If I have to shoot but don't have RL or higher, I choose chaingun

[slowfade]

A lot of saves and loads. Sometimes iddqd. I play keyboard-only unless I'm doing strolling attempts. I don't use autorun either, I keep the booster key pressed. I tend to look at the design elements of the map and not notice an approaching revenant missile. If I can, I tend to escape the final monsters before an exit, and generally I don't aim to get 100% of anything.

[Zirtonic]

More conservative than I want it to be. The reason I recently jumped back into classic DooM is to learn how to play more aggressively. I want to get to a point where I'm playing the same way I play the nuDooMs, although I know it isn't an apples to apples comparison.

 

My current typical blind playthrough consists of a lot of door fighting, corner peaking, and other "rat" style strategies. I'm not scared to kite a bundle of revenant missiles but spring a trap on me where I'm forced to push forward instead of retreating to the safety of a closing door and it's a coin toss whether I live or not, regardless of the actual trap contents.

 

I'm doing 2 things to improve at the moment:

1) Playing Cannonball maps because he loves spawning you in the middle of every enemy in the map and telling you to figure it out.

2) Replaying levels right after I beat them. Part of the reason I play the way I do (I think) is because I'm always being exposed to new situations and never becoming familiar with a level. It keeps me attentive but I often find DooM mentally draining. Replaying maps should help with both of these things.

 

More generally I pay a lot of attention to the flow of levels. Is there lots of backtracking? Does interconnectedness exist to help with any? Are secrets just out of reach or do I have to solve the Hellraiser puzzle for 10 armor bonuses? Are keys next to their doors? If not, does the mapper provide a reason for you to run across the level (a new fight, an opening in the geo to show off a custom skybox, etc)?

 

I also love seeing how perched or long range monsters affect a fight. A raised mancubus at an odd angle or an arachnotron off in the distance always pique my interest (and make me smile).

[Pseudonaut]

Chaos. Brain turned off.

[Grizzly Old B]

Hey @DoomGappy, does that question have it's origin in our recent exchange? ;-)

 

• I'm more like a careful, sometimes almost cowardly player.
• I like to take out enemies from afar and from safe spaces, if I can.
• Normally I save before entering new areas, but not mid-fight.
• I take my sweet time exploring levels and finding secrets.
• If I can, I also try to get 100% of the items. BigMacDavis spoiled me a bit there, I guess.
• All in all, I tend to play Doom like someone who doesn't like action and danger. And yes, that's exactly as weird as it sounds. ;-)

[Finnisher]

"Hell devours the indolent"

[Thil]

I am often a very careful player, saving before taking a key and being economical with ammo. Except that when I play a slaughter map, i am then in a frenzy which makes me forget my usual style of play!

[Wo0p]

- Hate running around at 80 mph trying to get monsters to infight.

- Aggressive tunnel-vision when encountering Pain Elementals and Revenants often leading to misery and ... pain. Fitting.

- Ammo conservationist, aggressive weaponswapping to get the best tool for the job often leading to death because it takes too long to find the right weapon.

- Seething hatred of monster closets and insta-popping-in-your-face-monsters leading me to getting annoyed and contemplating quitting the WAD.

- Admirer of tiny details in architecture and a choking love for doom-cute :>

- Weirdo who enjoys the environmental storytelling (if any) present in the WAD.

Edited November 9, 2023 by Wo0p

[DoomGappy]

37 minutes ago, Grizzly Old B said:

Hey @DoomGappy, does that question have it's origin in our recent exchange? ;-)

 

• I'm more like a careful, sometimes almost cowardly player.
• I like to take out enemies from afar and from safe spaces, if I can.
• Normally I save before entering new areas, but not mid-fight.
• I take my sweet time exploring levels and finding secrets.
• If I can, I also try to get 100% of the items. BigMacDavis spoiled me a bit there, I guess.
• All in all, I tend to play Doom like someone who doesn't like action and danger. And yes, that's exactly as weird as it sounds. ;-)

 

Absolutely, friend. I was thinking about that and about how our preferences also seep into our works somehow. I can see why you'd develop those two rooms for box doom now that I know you're a secret hunter. 

[Aeddes666]

Slow pace, conserving ammo, killing from afar, provoking infight when possible.
The goal is finish the map, i don't care with 100% on anything, except if i'm testing a map to someone.

I like too see the architeture and always take prints from maps.

[Grizzly Old B]

4 minutes ago, DoomGappy said:

I can see why you'd develop those two rooms for box doom now that I know you're a secret hunter.

 

You should've known already after playing “Four Rooms” with its 10 secrets ... ;-)

[staros96]

Pretty chill - similar to @Aeddes666 tbh. Like to be cautious on ammo, provoke infighting so my job is at least partially done, soak in the environment - on the last point, its why I genuinely love aesthetic WADs. Visuals are a big one for me so I like to take my time, hence slaughter etc not really my style. 

[DaBigNerd]

Shoot anything that moves while speeding around the map.

[fai1025]

> go to where demons are

> kill 'em

> find the next demon

> repeat

> demons'all dea' 

> lost 

> got bored

> shooting the wall around

> suddenly find a way out

> repeat above process 

Edited November 9, 2023 by fai1025

[DeafPixel]

4 hours ago, baja blast rd. said:

I don't have a single approach -- it shifts with the wad and my mood. 

 

Here are some things that I try to do sometimes (not all at once): 

 

- Do unnecessary things just because they are fun. Not just little mini-challenges like two-shotting these awkwardly placed cybers for no particular reason, but one example is that I replayed Scythe X map06 recently and decided the two central cacodemons were pets and I would protect them from chaingunner crossfire and keep them alive.

 

Every cacodemon is a precious pet in my eyes

[DeafPixel]

In easier maps, I like playing super agressively and turning my casual playthrough into a semi-speedrun.
In harder maps, I like playing very methodically.

[Spectacles]

It's been a while since I've played Doom, but I generally tend to take things a bit on the slower side. Usually surveying rooms before jumping straight into battle, and checking out any suspicious areas that could lead to secrets. And when I do fight I tend to circle strafe a whole lot, usually not noticing my surroundings until I'm deep into a pit.

That aside, I tend yto just play pretty casually, no first try 100% completions or the sorts.

[LoatharMDPhD]

.... // kinda like putting a marmoset in a shoebox for 6 hours whilst playing "March of the Knights" on loop and then throwing said box off the over pass on the highway... then add monsters... frantic to say the best. if not that, then like capellan, arduous and methodical.