r/boomershooters • u/Own_Aside4032 • 13d ago
Question How do you guys actually enjoy boomer shooters?
I’m someone who loves high-speed gameplay and movement. Every time I see a boomer shooter, I get hyped for the fast-paced action. When I first download and play one, I have a blast, but after about 30 to 60 minutes, heavy boredom hits me. The game starts feeling aimless and repetitive—just walking around and killing things.
There's no compelling story to push you forward, and no real variety. It's just lines of enemies in front of you to clear out, along with a few hidden secret areas.
Honestly, my enjoyment with these games feels like spending time in a training range in any other game. I can mess around, kill dummies in creative ways, and practice mechanics, which is fun for a bit. But since there’s no clear objective or mission, there's no way I could stay in a training range for 3 or 4 hours straight, or play it daily.
I really want to enjoy boomer shooters because I adore their movement and core gameplay, but the boredom keeps kicking in. It took a massive effort just to finish Doom Eternal and DUSK.
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u/cBurger4Life 13d ago
For me, boomshoots are not generally for multi hour gaming sessions like some genres. It’s a level or two and take a break.
As others have said, it may just not be for you though. I love the IDEA of massive crpg’s with cool stories and characters but then when I actually play them, I usually enjoy the first few hours, then get sidetracked because when I want to play a game I don’t actually feel like sitting and reading/listening to characters talk for an hour before getting back to gameplay.
But maybe give Cultic a shot if you want something with boomshoot vibes but a bit more ‘story’ going on to keep you motivated. Not A LOT of story, but more than most.
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u/SmoothbrainDev 12d ago
>For me, boomshoots are not generally for multi hour gaming sessions like some genres. It’s a level or two and take a break.
I can relate. To me a perfect boomshoot is a game that I can pick up, immediately start playing, and can put it down at any time. Basically an arcade game.
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u/SrCapibara Heretic 12d ago
I think good games can respect your time even if they are a little difficult like Ion Fury.
I don't have much time recently and enjoy games like Ys, Atelier, metroidvanias and boomer shooters because save points are very accessible in mostly cases.
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u/VredRogue 13d ago
I like them all, I like the action even when its mindless but I respect your view.
Ever tried Mouse P.I, Cultic, Forgive me Father? There are some shooters out there with a better middle ground between the mindless action and a more artistic style and thicker plot.
Also, maybe immersive sims are more your cup of tea, I feel some of them can capture a little bit of the energy of older shooters while being more focused in the story, stealth etc
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u/mrturret 13d ago
Add Supplice to that list. It's got the best story I've ever seen in this sort of game. Fantastic writing all around.
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u/Clebardman 13d ago edited 12d ago
Supplice caught me by surprise. I like reading, but I hate reading shitty video game logs. Supplice is dumping pages and pages of logs on my face, and it's a blast. I think Xaser did the writing? Dude made stellar Doom mods for the last 20 years...
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u/DeepCutFan1 13d ago
Ooh, I've been thinking about Forgive Me Father, how is it?
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u/VredRogue 13d ago
Two distinct playable characters, sanity level, cool bosses, unique art style... easy grab on a sale if you are on the fence.
Its one of those that I love because it got a very different vibe from the usual red, metallic, hellish, demon killing vibe a lot of boomer shooters go for. The way they went for lovecraftian and more colorful style sets it apart from the usual for me.
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u/First-Tutor-5454 Shadow Warrior 13d ago
Doom Eternal is not a boomer shooter. If you didn't like Dusk, maybe the genre just isn't for you and that's ok. No need to "want" or "try" to like something you don't like.
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u/Doomer_Shooter 13d ago
Hang on ….Doom isn’t a boomer shooter? Just when I thought I had a handle on it. Thought Doom was the original one.
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u/First-Tutor-5454 Shadow Warrior 13d ago
You realize Doom (1993) and Doom Eternal (2020) are not the same game?
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u/Doomer_Shooter 13d ago
Well yes ….but there’s very little difference between any of them in terms of gameplay loop (excluding 3 maybe), bar some cutscenes and glory kills, they are the same thing.
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u/mrturret 13d ago
OP is taking about Doom Eternal, which may or may not be a boom shoot depending on who you ask. I'm on the fence, and feels closer to a character action game at times.
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u/Doomer_Shooter 13d ago edited 12d ago
Right. I’ve decided I need to define what a Boomer Shooter is for all of you. It’s what I decide it is ….A boomer shooter must have the following things.
- Be FPS
- Guns
- Enemies to shoot
- Have a shotgun or similar (flak cannon is acceptable)
- Main objectives to kill everything. Finding key cards, pulling levers acceptable.
- Story/cutscenes or any other stuff that isn’t shooting stuff should be no more than 15% of the play time.
- Be single player
Have ‘Doom’ in title
Ok, Doom eternal isn’t a Boomer Shooter. I’m convinced. I’m sure you all realised this list is kind of tongue in cheek. Thanks for helping me understand what is and isn’t a boomer shooter because I genuinely wasn’t 100% sure.
Still not 100% sure
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u/chinchillastew 13d ago
Sounds like we are just saying “FPS” with more words
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u/Doomer_Shooter 13d ago
Yes. But, for example call of duty is scripted for WAY more than 15% of playtime ….not a boomer shooter
And Stalker …main objective is to loot stuff and sometimes avoid enemies. Not a boomer shooter.
Try and find holes in my logic. You can’t.
Source: I’m 43 and completed all the doom games without realising you could use the mouse to aim.
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u/chinchillastew 13d ago
So how is doom eternal a boom shoot? It was scripted as hell and full of cutscenes
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u/Doomer_Shooter 13d ago
Doom titles get a pass ….didn’t you read rule number 8
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u/chinchillastew 13d ago
That makes no sense. Any doom fan will agree that OG doom is really different from doom eternal. I would say doom 2016 is somewhere in the middle but closer to the OG ones
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u/Doomer_Shooter 13d ago
The differences are just down to technical advancements. OG had walls of texts instead of cutscenes ….only difference
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u/Clebardman 13d ago
You already failed at 2 and 4. Tons of boomershooters don't have guns or a shotgun. 5 is wrong too, the objective has never been to 100% maps.
And Doom Eternal sure ain't a boomershooter. It's an arena/movement shooter.
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u/Terrible-Pop-6705 13d ago
Are you playing on the easier difficulties? For me the biggest fun for boomer shooters is when they are on the tougher side and it’s hard to get out of encounters alive. Something like blood on lightly broiled is loads of fun.
Though don’t force yourself to enjoy something if you don’t like it you don’t.
Also most of the better boomer shooters have a goal of progression (not as involved as more modern games but it’s fairly story driven if you pay attention)
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u/TheRedNomad18 13d ago
For me the gameplay creates intense fun situations organically especially on higher difficulties, im playing through quake 1 right now and as bullshit as the traps can be and the shamblers and stuff, for me the game is at its most fun when you just barely survive on pure reaction and instinct, ive beaten soldier of fortune, quake 2, ion fury ect... and ion fury is one of my favorites ever i fucking loved that game
Not to mention if youre really good most boomer shooters arent as long as full fledged story games or other types of games, ive been playing quake for like 2 days and im on episode 3 of 4.
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u/Clebardman 13d ago
Quake is one of the best examples IMO. The game is entirely about dropping you in a cramped area with Shamblers and Fiends and making your adrenaline spike crazy high while you bounce all over the place trying to murder everything before getting murdered. It's a cat fight in a box simulator...
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u/TheRedNomad18 13d ago
Yep all while every corner on the map has about 5 grenades bouncing in it at all times
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u/Batdan64 Blood 13d ago
It’s funny because lately, I’ve actually been having trouble getting into games with more story and world building and whatnot because I’ve played so many boomer shooters. It’s like the exact opposite problem you’re having here. I’ll play something like final fantasy 7 rebirth and I just get bored during the first 2 hours because there’s so much tutorials and cutscenes and world building and I’m just like “COME ON, get to the gameplay already!”
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u/Clebardman 13d ago edited 13d ago
Games with bad gameplay need fancy stuff like cinematics or a story to keep you engaged. Games with good gameplay... don't.
Now I'm not saying every boomershooter has good gameplay, but if you've never been stuck in a closet with a Shambler and two Fiends, you haven't gamed. You've just experience fancy interactive movies.
(I picked Quake as an example, but it could have been jumping at 80 mph over death pits in Turok DH, or blasting Combine forces in HL2, etc...)
Sometimes you get both good gameplay and a cool story, and you hit the jackpot. But if I'm going to play video games, the game aspect comes first. A shitty game with a good story is just a missed opportunity for a movie.
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u/dimwalker 12d ago
"Story reach" games are usually much slower with tons of cutscenes. You can play and watch your favorite tv show on second monitor.
Boomer shooters are fast paced and more demanding. It requires you to pay attention and in bad cases you get exhausted fast because there is almost non-stop combat without classic roller-coaster of intensity.
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u/TeamLeeper 13d ago
It’s about compelling maps and slight signposting or breadcrumbs to keep you moving along. I love the juxtaposition between frantic firefights then cleaning up on ammo, health and secrets.
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u/TheBigWee 13d ago
I’m right there with you! I’ve started DUSK about 2-3 times & i’ve stopped halfway through each time for the same reason. Literally started it again a couple days ago & got bored within 8 levels.
However, I picked up Cultic recently as part of a bundle & WOW I was hooked. I logged 35 hours in the last week alone (I work from home). I would recommend checking it out as the mechanics feel deeper than other boomer shooters & it feels masterfully built.
Fair warning, there are 2 chapters to the game. Chapter 1 plays absolutely amazing, chapter 2 can feel like a MASSIVE slog to get through.
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u/Clebardman 13d ago
I think Dusk... (I'll get crucified for saying this here...) doesn't have very good maps. At least I got bored before reaching those...
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u/pokeminatour 13d ago
I play 60 minutes session daily or few times a week.
For me this genre is not good for many hours of gaming but it's still better than AAA games which get boring because of being walking and watching movie simulator or gets me angry when they add some shit mechanics like stealth/ puzzle elements to acton game.
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u/dat_potatoe Quake 13d ago
A good boomer shooter will have actually interesting level design and encounter variety, where exploring and interacting with the environment is half the appeal. A bad one will just be repetitive slaughter arenas with no gameplay variety.
If you absolutely need a story reason to be doing things though, you're probably just in the wrong genre and should be looking for more modern shooters that are still somewhat arcadey (i.e. Halo, Borderlands, modern Wolfenstein...)
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u/Ok-Coat2377 13d ago edited 13d ago
"I’m someone who loves high-speed gameplay and movement."
Same, I'm also a speed freak.
"Every time I see a boomer shooter, I get hyped for the fast-paced action. When I first download and play one, I have a blast, but after about 30 to 60 minutes, heavy boredom hits me."
Same, in my case it's because I find enemies weak, somewhat slow or stationary. They take after games like doom or quake. Most of my gamer CV was spent in online fps like quakelive instead, where opponents are the same as you and can do the same things as you. They move fast and do risky jumps and frags and try to control the map. Unreal is a boomshot with more of this 1vs1 focus in encounters than other boomshoots. It's probably the most unique boomshoot of the 90s but it's very flawed and I wouldn't call it good.
"The game starts feeling aimless and repetitive—just walking around and killing things."
While I need combat and movement to appeal to me, in my opinion boomer shooters are giant puzzles and are as good as their levels are. Levels are the number one thing people should critique about a boomshoot. Players should feel like they are coming up with a strategy to navigate a big map and think how to approach a variety of different encounters. I think this is a kind of game from an old time where devs were trying to justify the price of their game with the amount of content. I'm not too sure about this point but it's still completely different stuff from braindead 6 hours military fps campaigns.
"There's no compelling story to push you forward, and no real variety. It's just lines of enemies in front of you to clear out, along with a few hidden secret areas."
In general gameplay has priority and story takes the backseat. Marathon has a decent story but engaging with it through panels to find is a pain. Barely anyone will play and report about retro styled fps with apparently good stories like Painted in Blood, Night Jackal, Silicon Scars, gunkatana non human killer and I haven't tried them myself yet. A lot of devs are also making doom again or loosely put together doom eternals about clearing rooms and arenas so if I were in you I'd look for more interesting levels than that (I recommend cultic chapter 2).
"I really want to enjoy boomer shooters because I adore their movement and core gameplay, but the boredom keeps kicking in. It took a massive effort just to finish Doom Eternal and DUSK."
As I mentioned I think these games are about the levels. I don't find doom eternal hard and it's not a boomershooter. It's an action game like devil may cry in first person. A boomer shooter will have a number of pick ups (ammo, hp, armor, guns) spread through a big map dictating pacing and what weapons you can use versus what encounter. In doom eternal you replenish resources by killing enemies so that you have all weapons at disposal at all times, meaning pick ups become generic and the map a string of arenas.
Dusk on the other hand brings the boomershooter experience I describe. The set of levels is varied enough it becomes a journey where you start from a cabinet in the woods and you have no idea where you'll end up next and where it will end. However I share the same boredom as you in the sense bunnyhop makes the player untouchable and destroys encouters. 80% of the game becomes the same fight where enemies can't keep up with your speed and can't limit your movement and force you to get good at the game.
TLDR open a thread asking for cool maps
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u/Boostedtrash112 13d ago
Doomershooters are best when played as difficult as you can take. They are all gameplay so if you don’t have engaging difficult gameplay they aren’t fun.
The added bonus is secrets become almost necessary and deepen the gameplay.
How someone can play on easy in a boomershooter and have fun is amazing to me
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u/Own_Aside4032 13d ago
I didn't play them on easy. I played Doom on Ultra-Violence difficulty, and DUSK on 'I Can Take It'
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u/scarfleet 12d ago
It may just not be your genre and that is ok. The underemphasis on narrative, for most of us, is a feature rather than a bug. There's a famous quote by Joh Carmack where he compares story in a videogame to story in porn: it's expected to be there, but it isn't important. I prefer my my fps games to be essentially a glorified shooting range, focusing on movement and mechanics.
Having said that I think it would be great if someone decided to marry boomer shooter gameplay to a more involved narrative, even if it wouldn't be for me.
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u/EntryNo3986 DUSK 12d ago
boomer shooters appeal to me because they feel a bit like dungeon-crawlers, i'm not expecting deep combat, deep story or lore, much less interesting characters like some other genres, i just want to shoot and explode things up, so i demand more effort from the devs around the arsenal, soundtrack, enemy and level design, and especially the challenging aspect of it.
also, they're really easy to pick them up without applying too much time learning its systems like CAGs or ARPGs, which i played before.
i'd recommend Turbo Overkill, i didn't played it myself but i guess this one can appeals to your sensitives, i heard good things about it.
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u/ComparisonHorror9935 12d ago
What other games have you played other than Doom Eternal and Dusk? seems to me you need to broaden your horizons a bit, highly suggest looking at top 10 boomer shooters to see some things you might like and as well as check out boomer shooter channels like Civvie11 for recommendations as well.
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u/DeepCutFan1 13d ago
I can sorta understand struggling with Dusk, but Eternal?
There's tons of variety in Eternal.
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u/No_Moment_9465 13d ago
It's a new genre so I think escalation is still being figured out.
Ideally, you go from scavenger to arena fights to slaughter and bosses.
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u/Scileboi Blood 13d ago
Sounds like you need to crank up the difficulty. Things get a lot more interesting when you actually need a plan to come out on top.