DOOM Anthology

I've spent time across every title in this package, and the thing that strikes me most about the DOOM Anthology is how ruthlessly it exposes the difference between each era of id Software's design thinking. You're not getting a remastered box set where every game feels polished to the same standard. You're getting a time capsule with sharp edges, and that's actually the point. The collection spans six games: DOOM (1993), DOOM II, DOOM 64, DOOM 3, DOOM (2016), and DOOM Eternal Deluxe Edition. The original DOOM and DOOM II are the enhanced versions that support 4K at 120fps on PC, and they come loaded with extra content - a brand-new DOOM II campaign episode, 26 new multiplayer maps, cross-play deathmatch, and a total of 43 deathmatch maps alongside 187 mission maps. That's a genuinely substantial upgrade over what long-time owners had before. DOOM 64, enhanced back in 2020 with native 60fps and the additional Lost Levels story continuation, holds up surprisingly well as the series' forgotten middle child. DOOM 3 remains its own outlier - a slower, corridor-horror take on Mars that plays nothing like any other entry, with flashlight-juggling tension replacing the series' signature push-forward aggression. Whether that sounds like a feature or a bug depends entirely on your tolerance for atmospheric pacing. Where the package earns its keep for most players is the back half. DOOM (2016) and DOOM Eternal Deluxe Edition are both top-tier first-person shooters that stand apart from almost everything else in the genre. DOOM (2016) rebuilt the franchise around fluid, aggressive movement and the Glory Kill system, forcing you to stay in the fight to reclaim health from staggered demons. DOOM Eternal pushed that template further - adding the Blood Punch, the Flame Belch, the meat hook on the Super Shotgun, and a full suite of enemy-specific weapon weaknesses that turn combat into a rhythm game at high difficulty. The Deluxe Edition wraps in both Ancient Gods expansions plus BATTLE MODE, the asymmetric multiplayer mode where one player runs the Slayer and two others control demons. It's not the most populated multiplayer scene anymore, but the base campaign content alone justifies its weight. The honest friction point here is what the PC version actually is. This is a keycode product - you get a redemption code that unlocks the games, and a linked Bethesda.net account is required. There are no physical discs. On PC specifically, the physical packaging is more of a collectible play than a practical delivery format, since the steelbook case and BFG replica are the physical items, not discs. For buyers coming to this purely through a digital storefront key, you're skipping the physical components entirely and just getting the game licenses. That's worth knowing before you check out. The value calculation also depends on which of these six games you already own on Steam - there's no partial credit system at play here. Who should get this: anyone who wants to run the full series in sequence before or after DOOM: The Dark Ages, players who missed DOOM Eternal and want the complete version including both DLC chapters, and newcomers who want the fastest possible on-ramp to understanding what the modern DOOM reboot lineage is actually doing mechanically. The 1993 and DOOM II enhanced editions alone are worth revisiting if you haven't touched them since the pre-update builds. If you already own the 2016 reboot and Eternal on PC, audit your library before committing - the back catalog entries are the deciding factor.

Alex · Scout Team

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