On the Subject of Stories and Adaptations
DOOM, popular game series, would make a fun movie. At least, one would think as much.
But how do you make such a film?
Most video game adaptations suffer from a lack of respect by their creators. Simply put, the source material is considered too simple to adapt.
Bare in mind, adaptation does mean that changes need to be made and – as with books – such modifications are a necessity. However, the changes we are discussing are often drastically out of place.
The same happens with anime adaptations and other popular media. Someone sitting in an office somewhere decides ‘nah, this won’t be good for the general audience’ or ‘the general movie goer won’t understand this.’ Changes are made by people that have little to no understanding of the source material.
I have seen – though I cannot place the exact dvd – a behind the scene feature in which Uwe Boll defended his bizarre choices in game adaptations by claiming that these games did not have actual story. Of course, he was manipulating tax laws and his movies were/are typically bad by intent. Therefore he isn’t the best example in this discussion anyway. But the sentiment is clearly present in much of Hollywood.
It’s because of this trend that VALVe software have resisted the urge to allow a true, block buster film adaptation of the Half-Life series. Fans make some pretty good short films and Hollywood studios – even small studios or independent film makers – would change much more then necessary. They simply won’t stay true to the source material.
Just as an example, I remember reading one of the proposed scripts for a Half-Life film that was submitted by a “fan” of the series that wanted to make a proper film. It is a hazy memory and I can’t find that script now. I wish I could as I remember that it made weird and unecessary changes to the story.
But a Half-Life film is a subject for another day. Today, I want to discuss DOOM.
There have been four DOOM games with a fifth on the way. DOOM 3 layered story in pretty thick. And regardless of some opinions, DOOM 2016 did have a decent story in addition to the fun and violence. If you do the research, there is much to work from.
Hell, there was even a four book series of novels based on the original game. I’ve read a total of one. Knee Deep In The Dead was not a bad book per say, but it was a bit forced and made unnecessary additions to the lore.
However, at the time we only had the first two games to work from. So I give it a fair amount of slack.
You see, the original game had story… in the form of a few paragraphs long description in the manual and a little text on transition screens. Always remember the bunny.
You can find a decent collection of all of the story summaries from DOOM, DOOM II, and Final DOOM stuff here – http://classicdoom.com/doomtext.htm
That does indeed leave a lot to interpretation and expansion for a feature film or novel. And if you claim to be making your film based only on these, then you would indeed have plenty of room for changes. But the core still should remain the same.
Further, we now have more then these text snippets.
That brings me to a part of this discussion I had been waiting for. The first attempt to make DOOM into a film. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Karl Urban star in a movie inspired by the hit game franchise DOOM.
DOOM 3 released in 2004. And it definitely influenced this film. But not the story. Heavens no.
Or did it?
According to info I can find mostly on wikipedia and the doom fandom wiki – because it’s basically copied from wikipedia word for word – some references to an actual DOOM movie date back to 2003. It was a Warner Brothers property back then. Though it sounded promising, it didn’t happen. By mid-2004 the rights had been bought by/fell back to Universal Studios and according to an article in Variety the film would be based on DOOM 3.
Back then, I thought ‘okay. The game isn’t great but it could totally work as a movie.’ I was naive.
The film was supposed to enter production in October of that year.
Once again, I am forced to recall some hazy memories that I can’t back up because the old source is too much trouble to track down.
However, I remember reading a discussion on-line. News appeared that claimed the new movie would not be set on Mars. It was set on a planet in another galaxy. Olduvai or something like that. The reason the facility was given that name instead of Mars City as it was in DOOM 3.
I don’t remember if that was ever debunked as “just a rumor,” but I remember that I was displeased. I also remember that online backlash went about the way that one would expect.
Ultimately, the film was set on Mars. It was still a terrible adaptation.
In bonus materials on the DVD special unrated cut, Johnson spoke very clearly about how much he liked the game and wanted to be a part of the film. He was supposedly picked for the lead, but instead wanted to play “Sarge.” I can’t imagine how he actually felt about the film and how poorly he must have read the original script before signing a contract. I don’t know anything about that, but in a 2009 MTV News interview, he very openly admitted they got the film wrong. – http://www.mtv.com/news/2459007/dwayne-the-rock-johnson-honestly-discusses-infamous-doom-movie/
He’s done the same in more recent interviews as well including when the question arose before the release of Rampage.
Even so, there are still people that seem to genuinely not know that this film is a fairly unfaithful adaptation. If you didn’t play the games, you may well believe this is what DOOM was all about.
Rotten Tomatoes to this day shows a critic score of 19% and an audience score of 34% [https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/doom]. It lists the critical consensus as “The FPS sections are sure to please fans of the video game, but lacking in plot and originality to please other moviegoers,” which tells me that I as a fan of the games should really like the film.
I do… somewhat. I enjoy it as a popcorn flick. But to this day, I can’t shrug off my frustration with this “adaptation” of the DOOM series.
Roger Ebert even described the 2005 DOOM film as being, “…like some kid came over and is using your computer and won’t let you play.” [https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/doom-2005] In his review, he admitted that he never played the game and never planned to. His quote basically tells me that Ebert and others like him could actually think that DOOM was like this movie.
Changes… hah… changes is an understatement.
The film clearly draws heavy influence from the Alien films and the successful but critically panned Resident Evil film “adaptation.”
The science is bad as we hear that 10% of the human genome is not yet mapped in the year 2046. The human genome project was declared complete in 2003. Two years before this flick was released. While it is true that the project sequenced only euchromatic regions of the genome, the other regions that remained un-sequenced make up about 8%. And no, that 8% is not in any way expected to determine if a human is naturally inclined toward evil.
The demons of hell were converted to mere mutations of humans. There were zombies that could be slightly compared to the possessed human classes of the games. Of course, only one ever uses anything weapon like. They basically just lumber around and try to eat flesh.
Then they transform into the imp. Imps sort of resemble their DOOM 3 counterparts except they don’t scurry around on walls and ceilings, they don’t throw fireballs, they don’t spawn out of pentagrams… actually… other then a passable similarity in appearance, they don’t resemble the game monster at all.
But they spit their tongue at you to infect you with zombie mode chromosome 24 if you smell like evil.
Eventually, that becomes a baron of hell or hell knight. They too resemble the DOOM 3 hell knight counterpart in appearance only.
The only chainsaw usage we see in the movie is the hell knight. The only BFG usage we see is 2 shots of the BFG and the aftermath of a third off-screen shot. The blast isn’t a blast either. The gun shoots gooey acid blobs. It has more in common with Unreal’s bio-rifle then the actual BFG.
Even the character names are lousy. The Rock played “Sarge.” In the marine corps, you would never refer to a superior as “SARGE”. Not if you know what’s good for you. Presumably, this was meant to resemble Sargent Kelly from DOOM 3.
Karl Urban played John “Reaper” Grimm. His parents were killed in the ancient ruins in a Mars archaeological dig site that was discovered by way of a teleporter from Nevada that was also discovered.
So… basically, this could be called pretty much anything else and it would have been a passable, cheesy action/sci-fi popcorn flick. But it is most certainly not DOOM. Yes, the UAC logo is all over the place. There is a “Bio Force Gun” – in an R-Rated movie they changed Big Fuck’n Gun because they wanted a more realistic name. There are some monsters that sort of look like DOOM counterparts. One guy even inexplicably skips his zombie, imp, and hell knight transformations and turns into the DOOM 3 version of the Pinky demon. His name was “Pinky.” He was obnoxious and largely pointless.
I loved the FPS segment, but it felt really out of place and – honestly – it was that much more cheesy.
Now, in 2019, there is a new DOOM adaptation coming. DOOM 2016 was a hit. DOOM Eternal is looming on the horizon and looks to be headed for another smash hit.
“Quick, let’s make a new film to capitalize.”
But wait… will Hollywood get it right this time?
DOOM 3 had a pretty big story if you bothered to read all the text items you could find. And DOOM 2016 also had a fair amount of story including background for the DOOM Slayer that you could find.
Surely the creators have plenty of content to work off now. They can do it. But will they?
I’ve heard very little about the film so far. But what I have heard tells me that the answer is “probably not.”
Set photos don’t look very promising. Neither do tweets from the cast.
https://twitter.com/ninabergman/status/1040319236105818112 – ‘Nina Bergman “can’t wait for this character to hit the screen” Carley? What is this weird punk look? What kind of… oh god their doing the Alien thing again. — Vasquez‘
https://twitter.com/DoomMovie/status/1040009550399586304 – ‘Damn… the armor doesn’t look much like security or marines as depicted in DOOM 3 or DOOM 2016.’
https://twitter.com/dommafham/status/1003612271518601218 – ‘No, that armor sort of resembles a cross between the Alien films and Starship Troopers. Oh dear.’
https://twitter.com/dommafham/status/999388721102426114 – ‘Well that looks kind’a promising. And Dr Betruger as a character would imply they are looking at a DOOM 3 adaptation.’
https://twitter.com/AmyMansonLondon/status/997813507713327105 – ‘Who needs a… oh no… that’s a really bad sign.’
Not the set photo. That seems acceptable. I could even buy the character as a merc or something. Don’t know what the hell that chair is supposed to be, but it could certainly pass for some kind of UAC future tech. It does sort of look like it came from the 2005 film though.
No the issue is the quote of the tweet.
I realize that “Who needs a #doomguy” is sort of a joke and that she is saying her character is a bad ass… but… it’s a DOOM movie. Therefore, it does actually need a “#doomguy”.
The internet backlash is as you would expect.
Some screaming about it being a female led movie, a woman shouldn’t be a marine character, and so on as if that were the issue. It isn’t.
Remember, movies from Starship Troopers to Aliens have had characters that were female soldiers/marines. It’s the future. I don’t see why a woman couldn’t be a leader or an important member of a marine squad.
Other people are genuinely mad that the quote would indicate they would not have any form of the DOOM Guy / Marine / Slayer. But that’s actually taking the quote too literally. It wasn’t meant to be disparaging the lead character in a nearly 26 year old franchise. In fact, the director has openly said that DOOM Guy WILL be in the movie – https://screenrant.com/doom-movie-director-doomguy-rumor/
The first bit of news I heard about this movie was that Amy Manson was cast as the leader of a squad of marines. And here she is with the quote “Who needs a #doomguy?”
No friends, my issue with that quote is the try-hard nature of it. That is “I’m a badass. See?” It’s a squad of “I’m a badass. See?” So yeah, I fall into a third category of people that have issues with this tweet. We’re people that have a practical interpretation of the quote and the news about the film so far. It sounds – and in many ways looks – like DOOM 2005 only weaker.
Even better… it’s likely a direct-to-dvd film. https://screenrant.com/doom-movie-direct-video-digital/
Hollywood higher ups don’t trust it to carry the weight of a full theatrical release. And there is a fair chance the budget will reflect that too.
A smaller budget isn’t necessarily bad, but CGI for a film like this must look better then the original game from ’93. And practical effects are a must for something like this. It’s a future world… we need something physically real to keep it grounded.
Of course, I’m not the only person to notice the non-DOOM styles and influences. Even in comments I’ve read from various outlets I have seen the same. Take for example the comments on this Bloody Disgusting article – https://bloody-disgusting.com/movie/3502471/photos-set-new-doom-movie-show-blood-big-guns-badasses/
“Starship Troopers vibe” – Christopher Webster
“total recall chair, resident evil hallway, aliens guns. this flick will suck” – SpacemanSpliffz
“Why are you not using the original UAC logo? And why am I getting a Resident Evil vibe from some of these photos?” – Doom Video Vault
“that hallway of blood instantly reminded me of the one from the resident evil movie” – Spunker666
But one of the biggest red flags I have for this movie comes from Amy Manson’s character. More specifically, the name currently listed on IMDB.
Joan Dark.
Really? — https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8328716/
Joan… Dark.
Oh… damn.
There are a handful of characters in that listing with a full name.
Joan Dark – ugh – Dr Bennett Stone, Sandy Peterson, and… oh come on… AND Captain Hector Savage.
I’m supposed to believe that this film is a serious attempt to adapt the DOOM franchise into a film.
The release date is currently listed as the 17th of May, 2019. So it’s too late to save this movie if it does indeed need saving.
Joan Dark and Captain Savage tell me it probably did desperately need saving.
John Grimm and Sarge would tend to point to that conclusion and agree.
Yeah, Betruger is not even credited as Dr Malcolm Betruger. Just Dr Betruger.
I have some hope for this movie, but news like these tend to sour that hope quickly.
There’s a character named Dr Betruger. – ‘okay, maybe they’ll use the DOOM 3 story as a guide.’
The director keeps tweeting stuff that indicates he likes the games and was inspired as a film maker by Evil Dead movies – ‘yeah, but The Rock spoke at length about how much he loved DOOM and playing the games. Look what the 2005 version became.’
The story bits that cast and crew have talked/tweeted about say it’s about a squad investigating an incident at “the Phobos Compound” – ‘Okay, so that would indicate more an inspiration from the original games and/or DOOM 3’s Resection of Evil expansion pack. That could be a good thing, but now we’re mixing the games together in a haphazard way. And we’re completely ignoring 2016 which is the highly successful newest game in the series and the one most people will be familiar with. Maybe it’ll work. Maybe. But I have my doubts.’
“Louis Mandylor is a priest or preacher, confirming that Hellish overtones will be present in the plot for this film” – ‘eh… maybe. But that could also be another “Goat” character. I would think they would include Hell this time, but that doesn’t mean much if the film is poorly written / made.’
https://doomwiki.org/wiki/Doom_(2019_upcoming_film)
“The character of the Doom Slayer is also supposed to appear in some form” – ‘good. What form?’
“The BFG9000 will appear, with an official expansion of “Baryon Fusion Gun,” though the character immediately mentions that the R&D department referred to their “crown jewel” weapon project internally as the “Big Fucking Gun.”” – ‘FUCK YOU. FUCK YOU! FUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOU! IT DOESN’T NEED AND EXPANSION! IT HAS NEVER NEEDED AN EXPANSION! This tells me this movie is on the same track as 2005. And kindly FUCKYOU!’
Sorry. That’s an unconfirmed leak detail. Maybe they aren’t that stupid. But Hollywood IS stupid. Pure and simple. They think that 10% of the human genome wasn’t mapped back in 2003. They think that global warming means instantaneous freezing of life and a water world. They think that humans use only 10% of their brains and that to increase that and especially to make it 100% would make us superhuman demigods.
So in all of this, I am worried the movie won’t be any good. Maybe it could be. But very likely not.
I want it to be good. The games deserve a good film adaptation. But I have lowered expectations.
So this is a very, very long post about my thoughts on the new DOOM movie so far. Is that all?
No.
I am not a member of the Writer’s Guild of America or any other such organization. But I can – when I want to – write interesting stories.
And it is because of what I see happening with this upcoming movie and other games and films and whatever that I feel the urge to do something with a new series of posts.
I will NOT promise to write something like this all the time. But I will write a Story Strategy Sunday or Saturday from time to time when I feel like it. It’s a From The Wildcat’s Notebook article, but one that is dedicated to coming up with the idea I would use if I had the chance.
I don’t know anything about writing scripts – but let’s be honest, I could learn very quickly if I had to – and I don’t want to spend too much free time making a fiction piece for a property I couldn’t manage myself for free.
So this is more of a quick explanation… a little like a pitch.
I’m not a Hollywood writer. But I am BWL’s Benevolent Overlord. And I’ll tell you what I would like to see. I won’t write a story for free… that would be stupid. And I do actually doubt that Universal would spend the budget necessary for this at this point in time. But I will give you a taste anyway.
Today, I want to tell you about my idea of a DOOM movie.
DOOM – the good way
First of all, draw from what we have. And pay attention to the current games first and foremost. 2016 was a smash hit. Don’t ignore that.
The DOOM Slayer needs to be a part of the film, but not the main character. He should be the goal.
Make the film a sort-of prequel to DOOM 2016.
We don’t need some Marines investigating an incident. That’s an Aliens sort of story. Or a sequel after an initial successful adaptation.
Start before Olivia Pierce steps out of control. Show us the UAC facility as it was.
Scientists and marine security details. The Elite Guards are mainly security for the more ‘interesting’ parts of the facility and troops deployed on exploratory visits to hell as seen in the game.
We draw a little inspiration from the original DOOM and DOOM 3 for our main characters.
The film would begin with a ship in orbit of Mars. Our lead is a Marine on reassignment after disobeying an order during a previous conflict. This Marine could be anyone of any race and any gender. There is also one Counselor Elliot Swann bound for Mars to investigate several issues at the facility. He is accompanied by his bodyguard – a UAC employed merc named Jack Cambell.
We also meet some other characters that are bound for Phobos for a facility there. Talking with ID about their upcoming game would be a big plus as you don’t want to contradict that story. We don’t need to know what they will work on, but I’m guessing the BFG 10000 is probably on the list and hearing it mentioned in idle conversation in the background would make for a decent easter-egg.
You will not see the BFG 9000 in the film as it is in a storage chamber that you access during the game. However, two or three of the Elite Guards have been assigned or – more accurately – will be assigned the BFG 8000, a predecessor unit with similar but weaker damage. Thus, you have a connection to the game without breaking the existing lore.
Our marine boards a landing craft while people bound for Phobos board a second ship. The two landing craft leave the main vessel and then separate on course for their respective destinations.
Perhaps there is even a friend aboard the Phobos vessel that could communicate information to our hero during the course of the film as events are observed from the moon labs.
On landing, the marine is dispatched to Sargent Kelly for assignment and thus is given a quick tour of the quarters and some information about the complex such as where each lab is, etc. This should be fairly short and can be cut away from to show other characters. I think that’s also a good time to show that Sargent Kelly doesn’t really care for our lead. Disobeying orders is heinous in his eyes.
Swann goes on to speak with one Maclom Betruger, Samuel Hayden the facility director and 10 foot robot from the game, and Olivia Pierce.
Hayden is the UAC Chairman and oversees the Argent energy research projects. Olivia Pierce is the head of biochemical research and head of the Lazarus Project. She is one of the two major department heads directly below Hayden, and the Lazarus Labs are highly secretive. The project itself has largely become a cult though outsiders haven’t been able to prove anything concrete to that effect. Dr Betruger is the head of the teleportation and expeditionary service and is an interim director of combat mechanics – weapons r&d and cybernetics with a bent toward military applications. He technically is currently assigned to work on Phobos and direct the advancement of certain experimental weapons technologies but is officially over the teleportation labs on Deimos. However, he has come to Mars for the meeting with Swann.
Swann, as it turns out, was brought in by the UAC board. Hayden is no longer receiving full reports from either of his subordinates. The facility control ai Vega is also unable to report their most recent activities. However, some staff have mysteriously resigned their posts and departed without notice. In fact, there is no evidence that they actually departed aboard one of the shuttles. They are simply gone.
Additionally, there have been complaints from some staffers that indicate harassment by staff from Olivia’s department or concerns regarding artifacts and technologies disappearing. And now, advanced cybernetics seem to be wandering off from the Phobos labs. There have also been teleportation signatures in all 3 facilities that indicate unauthorized teleporter usage.
At the meeting, we get our first look at the Praetor suit via the stone carvings in Hayden’s office – from the game . Betruger is already defending himself to Hayden. It should be made apparent that Hayden is fixated on maintaining the source of Argent energy and advancing that research primarily. Swann would like to know where Pierce is and why she hasn’t already arrived.
We should see a team dispatched to hell and another returning with artifacts in tow. Of course, the artifacts are hurried off to the Lazarus Labs. One of the Elites is suffering from an injury. One of the demons was spotted with what the injured man described as metallic parts. It quickly escaped from view and as the Elites gave chase they came under an apparent coordinated attack and the injured man was specifically targeted.
The lead elite from that mission demands to speak with Sargent Kelly.
Our lead character encounters the elite while still receiving instructions from Kelly. The Sargent ushers the marine off to do assigned duties – locating a paranoid scientist that has apparently gone into hiding in the facility. Kelly then speaks privately with the Elite Guard. Kelly when speaking with the elite decides to double current security protocols and begin a quiet investigation into the matter due to the earlier rumors of missing tech.
As that investigation begins, our friend on Phobos is pulled aside by a staffer that is concerned about the sudden extra security. They share the concern with the friend and warn against sharing too much personal information with the “grunts.”
Security teams are being denied access to the Lazarus Labs and staff from that department have all suddenly drawn into the compound. Vega informs Hayden that Olivia Peirce was last sighted in the sarcophagus room with several staff from her department. She was tracked from there to Resource Operations. Why would she go to either place?
The lead character locates the hiding scientist in the midst of a hostage situation. The lead works with a small team of fellow marines that respond to the call to defuse the situation.
It’s about that time that the ground quakes and alarms begin to sound. Vega reports portals opening in multiple locations around the facility.
The panicked scientist flees screaming about how it’s too late and is trampled by a group of fleeing staff.
Elite Guards are deployed throughout the facility and we should get an intense sequence as the Hell Invasion overruns the facility.
After that, Betruger runs off as though cowardly and trying to escape. Swann and Campbell are indignant and suspicious. They follow Betruger. Hayden begins using Vega to explore options and investigate the incident.
On Phobos, the friend is at work when the alerts begin regarding the situation on Mars. And there is something else… impossible.
On Mars, our lead is outside when a point of light appears in the sky and then fades. Deimos, the entire moon, has vanished.
Our lead will regroup with a small team of elite guards and Sargent Kelly. The hostages have no choice but to follow the marines to regroup with the Sargent.
They attempt to secure a command station and then send a team to breach the Lazarus Labs as the Sargent believes the issue originated there. This is because the friend has secretly contacted the lead character to report what they are detecting on Phobos combined with the reports that the Lazarus Labs were refusing access to the investigation. As senior officer in command, Kelly remains with the civilians and a small guard contingent. The lead, elites, and a squad of marines undertake the mission.
You should see an assortment of DOOM Weapons here including the chaingun, shotgun, and such devices. Chainsaw, super shotgun, and others will be found and used along the way. One of the elites should also have a BFG 8000.
The mission runs into trouble several times as the class of demon increases from possessed to imps to hell knights to pinkies and so on. The situation is just getting worse. Staff all over the facility are dying and strange artifacts and manifestations have started to appear. There are stones that in the game were Rune Trials that are completely unknown to anyone and don’t seem to be usable by these characters. There are gore nests that, when the team attempts to destroy one, summons a larger force of demons to battle. There are ethereal objects, somewhat spherical in shape that also can’t be accessed or used by any of the team.
Swann and Campbell follow Betruger to a research station with an argent accumulator. Betruger fractures it and is drawn away to hell along with Swann and Campbell.
They find themselves surrounded by imps and other demons. They must fight to survive. Deimos is in the sky above and is slowly being pulled apart to match the environment of hell.
Members of the marine team begin to die from time to time as encounters grow more intense in the facility. They also encounter a few Lost Souls that either kill or posses members of the team.
Around the same time, the secured command falls under attack and Lost Souls appear there as well. The command is overrun with Sargent Kelly’s fate uncertain.
Once in the Lazarus Labs, the team finds very little. People there are either dead or possessed. Mostly, they find recordings of Olivia Pierce similar to the ones we find in game. The Elites want to find her and are informed by Vega that she was last detected entering the foundry. Her actions are strange. Hayden intervenes and instructs the team to secure the Helix Stone instead.
Communications are lost as the Satellite Array falls out of alignment and little further data can be accounted for by Vega. Hayden has very limited access to the team from this point forward and the friend is left with no means to warn the team about other events that are happening near them.
As the team reluctantly make their way to the Helix Stone, they enter a large chamber with prototyping labels above the door.
It’s here that they encounter the cyber demon as it comes online. The team fights a viscous battle. The elite with the BFG is stuck down and our lead has to recover and use it. They ultimately defeat the demon mostly because it was not yet fully revived. It falls dormant but not dead.
On finding the Helix Stone and setting a small perimeter, the team examines the object. Hayden – via console – explains that Olivia believed it held the secrets to Hell. We get to see the holo recording from the game of Olivia promising to open a permanent link and the hologram of the Praetor suit and sarcophagus. And the recording of the sacrifices. The staff that suddenly resigned and departed have now been found apparently.
The team must choose one of their number to access the Helix Stone. According to available computer records, whoever does will suffer a great deal and likely break down and die after a short time. Our lead wishing to end the disaster and make some level of penance for past acts lowers the shielding.
All of the remaining team are bombarded by visions and flashes of hell. The lead touches the stone and is overwhelmed. When everyone returns to awareness the shield has been restored. And the lead is slouched down beside the console, visibly drained and suffering from hemorrhages.
The team is recovering as quickly as they can but are forced to move by the demons and possessed. They believe they have secured the cyber demon and the Helix Stone. And the lead character has been filling them in on what needs to be done.
They need to access the sarcophagus. Hayden via console reveals that he already knew this, but did not know how to do so. By now, the facility is overrun and almost everyone is dead. Only the team remains and their number dwindles as the lead character accesses a console and locates a control room. The same one Sargent Kelly had attempted to secure.
From there, the sarcophagus can be remotely and properly opened so long as someone marks the cover stone.
Betruger emerges from a corridor in front of the team. There is no sign of Swann or Campbell. He is worn, injured, and begging for help. As the team continues their mission he fills them in on his role in the attack and the events leading up to the attack but he seems to be slowing them down. The lead character and the lead elite both realize he has been stalling. Several possessed and a staff looking half alive and half possessed shuffle into the end of the corridor. The staff is carrying a newly acquired argent accumulator.
The elite realizes what is happening and attempts to kill the possessed as they begin stumbling down the hall. The possessed shield the staff with the accumulator from the weapons fire. The other team members join in and the lead character uses the BFG.
But even as the possessed are destroyed, the accumulator shatters too close to the team and they are drawn to hell with Betruger. Betruger is gone, but Swann and Campbell are there. Campbell is wounded and holding back a horde of enemies with his dwindling supply of BFG cells.
The battle is fairly fast paced and the remaining team are killed or sacrifice themselves to ensure the lead reaches a relay point where they can connect to the Deimos facility – or what is left of it – and return to Mars via the tether system.
During these encounters, the lead character stumbles across one of the ethereal orbs. Drawn to it, the lead character can see what looks a bit like a skull in the midst of yellow flames. Reaching out, the lead character can now use them. The character roars with rage and begins attacking the demons with bare hands, tearing them apart for a time. As the beserk fades, the lead character becomes very sluggish. This is due to being overwhelmed by the power.
The lead elite and one marine remain as the lead character and Swann’s escort.
The remaining four people arrive and are informed by Vega that they along with Hayden and Pierce are the only surviving humans left on Mars. They enter a large open area between the control room and the sarcophagus. Sargent Kelly makes radio contact and orders them to stand down. As the elite attempts to explain the situation, we see hints of a mechanical device among the rocks and crags.
The area is sort of a natural arena.
The Elite questions Kelly as he was not listed among the survivors remaining. The elite reminds Kelly that he does not answer to the Sargent and demands an access code that Kelly should know. However, Kelly seems to struggle and can’t fully recall the code.
A BFG blast sails out from among the rocks and the team scatter for cover. The remaining Marine guard is unable to get to cover and is killed.
The elite coordinates with the lead character and Swann. However, Swann is visibly weak. His health is fading due to the strains of this situation and the less then optimal Martian atmosphere the facility provided. The Elite and lead character are both equipped with armor that aides in this environment, Swann is not.
The disfigured Sargent Kelly emerges. He is now an assembly of combat and exploratory drone parts crossed with Sargent Kelly’s remains stretched over the surface. The fight is tense as he uses a BFG and even landing a shot near one of our protagonists without cover will kill them. Worse, demons begin to appear and flood into the arena.
A weakened Swann pushes the lead out of harms way during an attack and is mortally wounded by an imp. Dying, he pleads with the marine to stop the invasion at whatever cost it takes.
The lead character uses their own bfg in battle and drives back the imps. The elite is wounded by one of the robotic arms of Sargent Kelly but manages to fall back. The encounter buys the lead time to fire a bfg blast at “sarge” – spoken with disgust – and Sarge is destroyed.
The elite and the lead split up. The lead needs to enter the control room and access the containment system as well as issue the commands and speak the restorative call to action to revive the “DOOM Marine” as it is known to the staff that studied the figure.
As the elite hobbles toward the containment room and the lead hobbles toward the control room, a voice penetrates the lead character’s mind. It is the first of the DOOM Slayer’s Testaments from the game.
The elite passes a dead marine body with a shotgun in hand, crushed by a door. Struggling, the elite opens the door enough to slip under and for a moment considers taking the weapon to replace his own empty weapon. But the sound of an imp draws his attention to the ceiling. Struggling, he kicks the imp back and runs toward the sarcophagus. He was informed earlier that he only needs to apply the symbol from the Helix Stone.
There are several tough encounters as the elite shrugs off the first of several possessed that are approaching him. He manages to close a door moments before the imp can kill him. But he knows he doesn’t have long.
Dying he pushes past the possessed and clutches the edge of the sarcophagus. The imp emerges from an air duct and leaps toward the elite. The elite manages to spread his blood onto the sarcophagus in the correct pattern before he is dragged away by the imp. The ground trembles and the marking glows.
The voice continues in the lead character’s head. The lead reaches the terminal and enters the access commands.
Mechanical arms begin cutting along the base of the sarcophagus lid. It is drawn back releasing a flow of smoke and ash from inside.
“…and those that tasted the bite of his sword named him,” the voice concludes, “The Doom Slayer.” And we need a bit of Mick Gordon’s Soundtrack or at the very least something very much like it for this part to really drive the moment home.
Clutching the BFG which was damaged in the last battle and has part of it’s core mechanism exposed and critically damaged, the lead leans to a microphone and begins to speak while ramming a single BFG round into the chamber.
“So you walk eternally through the shadow realms, standing against evil where all others falter. May your thirst for retribution never quench…”
The lead’s voice begins to change and their eyes seem to loose their color.
“…may the blood on your sword never dry,” the lead character continues. The lead’s eyes are emitting a strange light now.
The ground shakes more violently. In the containment room, a brilliant red glow emerges from the sarcophagus and the possessed seem to take notice and begin staggering around drunkenly.
“…and may we never need you again.”
Betruger looking half-decayed emerges from the corridor behind the lead with a group of possessed and a pair of frantic imps. The lead notices but turns back to the mic. The BFG is propped on the console and the lead’s finger rests on the trigger.
The hollow recording of Olivia stating “We’ve got to contain this” plays in the containment room on its own.
In an otherworldly voice the lead finishes, “They are rage, brutal, without mercy. But you. You will be worse.”
The imps lunge and Betruger attacks with a chainsaw and the possessed lurch forward.
But they’re too late. Everything seems to slow. All sound dies away except the lead’s voice. “Rip and tear, until it is done.”
The lead squeezes the trigger and the BFG explodes filling the room with a blast of green energy.
We see a chained hand reach up and violently pull against the chains from the sarcophagus while the possessed seem to notice and turn toward it. The camera pans and zooms in toward the Praetor suit in the next room.
We cut to black with Mic Gordon’s music and the sounds of the chains breaking and the possessed dying to carry us out.
If there was interest in mid credit scenes and such, these would be similar to the old Fight Like Hell live action trailer for DOOM 2016. – https://youtu.be/KSZ4tSoumNk
How was that? What do you think?
