Doom 2's first true expansion since the '90s showcases just how much modding has improved in 30 years

The Nightdive and Bethesda re-launch of Doom 1 + 2 brings a lot to the table: Integrated mod sharing, a new soundtrack by shredmeister Andrew Hulshult and a tuned-up engine. But for most the juiciest cherry on top was new official expansion Legacy of Rust, developed primarily by a team of veteran Doom modders now working for id Software, Nightdive and MachineGames. Having played through it over the weekend, I’m happy to say that this is peak 2024 Doom, and one of this year’s best FPS campaigns to date.

Split into two 8-level episodes (The Vulcan Abyss and Counterfeit Eden), Legacy of Rust has Doomguy sent to clean up an overrun UAC industrial facility built into hell itself. While the story is as threadbare as you’d expect from classic Doom, each level does flow cleanly into the next, giving it a great sense of coherent escalation and adventure. The opening level (Scar Gate) sends you through a fleshy hell-portal to a blood-flooded transport facility where you hop on a cargo train leading into the next map, a dam complex at the foot of a lake of blood, juxtaposing coherent human architecture against the abstract, gory weirdness of hell.

That contrast is a key theme of the whole expansion, aided by a fresh set of textures that fit seamlessly in with the older Doom assets. There’s little differentiation between strange demon castles and high-tech bases. Instead, industrial pipework blends into teeth, flesh and blood then back again. Where classic Doom could feel downright abstract even in its city or military environments, the maps here feel like they’re coherent places. Or at least were, before they got covered in ornate demon marble-work and fleshy growths.

While John Romero’s recent Sigil episodes might have made some headlines, they didn’t resonate that much with me. They were good levels, but pointedly old school. The work of an old master, returning to his workshop as if nothing had changed in the past 30 years. Legacy of Rust is a community project headed up by prolific modder and Nightdive staffer Xaser Acheron, who has been hugely active in the scene since 2003, and it shows.

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While limited by the old Doom engine (no GZDoom wizardry here), there’s a lot of clever detailing done using semi-transparent textures to create the illusion of curved surfaces or more complex geometry, and its environments are a cut above classic Doom in terms of detailing and coherency. Xaser is also the composer of the expansion’s excellent, upbeat and heroic MIDI-synth soundtrack.

The new batch

The encounter design is quite modern, frequently teleporting in waves of enemies in enclosed arenas, forcing you to dance to the mappers’ tune instead of abusing choke-points. On Ultra-violence difficulty ammo can be tight, demanding you rely on enemy infighting to buy you time and space. The six new enemies (spread evenly across the various enemy classes) also help keep up the pressure. The Ghoul is a new light flying monster that looks like a less fiery lost soul but behaves like a mini cacodemon, often appearing in swarms and zapping you from awkward angles. Shocktroopers are evil marines that move fast and fire incredibly damaging plasma, but are fragile in turn.

The Vassago is a fiery winged bruiser that fits in between the Hell Knight and Baron Of Hell, and the final stretch introduces Tyrants—lesser cyberdemons that still spam rockets, but take a lot less beating to kill. They infight with regular cyberdemons, making them potentially useful in a messy scrap. There’s also a variant Arachnotron with the Spider Mastermind’s heavy chaingun, which makes for a scary thing to encounter in groups. Last but (sadly) least is the Banshee, a floating blob of red ectoplasm that explodes when you get too close to it. An interesting concept, but under-utilized here. Probably the one part of the package that didn’t impress me.

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I did like the two new weapons, although they don’t so much even the playing field as force old Doomheads into new new tactics. Replacing the plasma rifle is the flamethrower, which deals less damage at shorter range—but due to its flames burning over time, it can stunlock enemies like nothing else. The BFG is replaced by the (awesomely named) Calamity Blade, which shoots piercing waves of fiery energy and can be charged to fire wider spread-shots. Perhaps weaker than the weapons they replace, they still fit nicely into Doom’s rhythms, and the flamethrower’s lingering fire burning even the user gives it a particularly fresh feel.

As great as Legacy of Rust is, it’s more than just a pair of new episodes. Included along with the new episode are resource files containing all the new assets, monsters and weapons for modders to use in their own creations. Between that and a new official map format (named ID24) that allows for a little extra visual flair, this feels like the foundation for a new decade of Doom. Legacy of Rust represents the new ground floor—the baseline to which modern Doom mods should aspire to.